November 14, 2002

1. Search for U president ends at home
2. Sperm in the city
3. Health questions? "Ask the Expert"
4. U explores Gophers-Vikings campus stadium
5. $5 million gift is music to U's ears
6. Peanuts alum in Gopher country
7. Regents approve modest budget proposal
8. Go to the bowl with the U
9. U of M Happenings
10. Links

U IN THE NEWS

Search for U president ends at home
Last week the University of Minnesota Board of Regents

Robert Bruininks becomes the 15th president of the U. of Minnesota.

appointed Robert Bruininks, 60, the 15th president of the University of Minnesota. The appointment came just one day after the regents identified Bruininks, who had been interim president, as the sole finalist for the position.

"Bob is both the best and the right person to lead the University at this time," said Maureen Reed, chair of the board. "This is also a vote of confidence in this administration and the strategic direction in which the University is going."

"This is a great honor, and I look forward to serving this great institution and the people of Minnesota," said Bruininks, who has focused on improving accountability and teaching and learning at the University, while helping to make better connections with the broader community.

Bruininks, a professor of educational psychology, has been at the University for 35 years, holding a variety of positions. Prior to assuming the interim presidency, he served for five years as executive vice president and provost under President Mark Yudof, and he was dean of the College of Education and Human Development from 1991 to 1997.

Bruininks is widely respected by faculty, staff, and students. The board approved a contract for the president that will run through June 30, 2005.

Bruininks and his wife, Susan Hagstrum, will live at Eastcliff, the University's presidential residence. They have three adult sons. Bruininks is an avid horseback rider and outdoors enthusiast.

Return to top

Sperm in the city
Sperm concentration and motility (movement) may be reduced in men living in agricultural and semi-rural areas compared to men living in more urban areas, according to a new study that included U of M researchers.

Researchers from the U and the University of Missouri-Columbia, which led the study, analyzed sperm samples from 512 male partners of pregnant women (an indicator of fertility) in Minneapolis; Columbia, Missouri; New York City; and Los Angeles, California, between September 1999 and November 2001.

The results, say the study authors, suggest that agricultural practices may be contributing to a reduction in semen quality. Semen quality among fertile men in semi-rural Columbia was significantly different than samples collected in New York, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles. Sperm concentrations were 38, 75, and 67 percent higher in Los Angeles, New York, and Minneapolis, respectively, than in Columbia. Sperm movement (motility) was higher in all the urban centers than in the Columbia center, but was particularly higher in New York and Minneapolis. Compared to Columbia, sperm motility in New York and Minneapolis was 74 and 77 percent higher, respectively.

"We feel the differences we observed among the various geographic areas represented by this study raise concerns that environmental or other factors may be adversely affecting male fertility," says Bruce Redmon, associate clinical professor of medicine and urologic surgery at the U of M. "We hope to further analyze information collected by the study as well as collect additional data to try to identify specific factors which may be involved."

The study was published November 11 in the science journal Environmental Health Perspectives. The authors plan to conduct another study that will look for a correlation between urinary pesticide levels and semen quality in the study populations. (A recent study by the United States Geologic Survey showed widespread occurrences of herbicides in streams and shallow ground water in agricultural areas.)

More information is available online at www.ehponline.org.

Return to top

Health questions? "Ask the Expert"
Is it true that eating tomatoes can enhance prostate health? How much caffeine is too much? “Ask the Expert” at www.healthtalk.umn.edu and find out.

In this new online service, health professional experts at the University of Minnesota answer a health-related question daily. The Web site also includes health-related columns by faculty.

The breadth of expertise at the University is illustrated by a sampling of the experts, including Will Hueston, head of the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Center for Animal Health and Food Safety; Michael Osterholm, head of the Academic Health Center's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy; and Betsy Seaquist, program director for the Medical School's General Clinical Research Center.

To ask a question, either send an e-mail to healthtalk@umn.edu or fill out a form on the Health Talk site. Questions are reviewed and forwarded to the appropriate expert by a faculty team.

Ask the Expert is for general education purposes only and is not intended to provide medical advice. Specific advice on diagnosing or treating a health care problem, or for receiving a second opinion on your medical condition, should be obtained from a health care provider.

(By the way, 5-10 servings of tomato-based foods a week are helpful in reducing risk of prostate cancer. “Too much” caffeine is a relative judgment, although people who are prone to stress and anxiety are usually the most sensitive to caffeine and should try to avoid it.)

Return to top

U explores Gophers-Vikings campus stadium
At the request of the Minnesota Legislature, the University of Minnesota is exploring the feasibility of developing a Gophers-Vikings football stadium on campus. For more information, visit www.umn.edu/stadium.

Last session, the Minnesota Legislature gave the University $500,000 to complete a predesign on the size, scope, and cost of a joint-use stadium on campus and a memorandum of understanding between the University and the Minnesota Vikings on the stadium's operations. The development of these documents is underway and will be completed by December 2002.

At its September 2002 meeting, the Board of Regents identified six principles to guide the work on the predesign and the memorandum of understanding. These principles ensure that any planning and development of a joint-use stadium on campus will:

1. Advance the University’s fundamental academic mission;
   
   
2. Ensure financial benefit will accrue to the University;
   
   
3. Promote physical and programmatic integration with the Twin Cities campus community and adjacent neighborhoods;
   
   
4. Retain governance control of all aspects of stadium development and management;
   
   
5. Increase community enthusiasm for Gopher football and enhance the Gopher football game-day experience;
   
   
6. Assure that project design and construction meets the highest standards of fairness, integrity, and sound business practice.
   

The University is committed to an open and inclusive planning process and has engaged in numerous discussions with neighbors, the University community, key governmental jurisdictions, and the public at large about this effort.

A completed predesign and memorandum of understanding, if reached, will be submitted to the Board of Regents for action in December. Following board action, the documents will be forwarded to the legislature, which will address any outstanding issues and determine the next steps.

Feedback is welcomed. Send your comments to stadium@umn.edu.

Return to top

$5 million gift is music to U's ears
The School of Music at the University of Minnesota has received a gift estimated to approach $5 million from the estate of the late Harvey Berneking of San Francisco. The bequest is the largest gift ever given to the School of Music and the second largest single gift to any school of music at a U.S. public university.

The gift will be used primarily for scholarships and fellowships, as requested by the donor. A portion of the gift will be used to create an endowment to support the operations of the school, including technology and instrument purchase and repair.

"The School of Music is celebrating its 100th anniversary, and this gift comes at a wonderful time to help define the quality and integrity of this school for the next century," said Jeffery Kimpton, director of the School of Music. "It's the best anniversary present we could ever hope for."

The bequest could eventually fund as many as 20 undergraduate scholarships a year. The portion of the gift designated for fellowships will be matched by the 21st Century Graduate Fellowship Fund, creating a series of new fellowships that will become a powerful recruiting tool for graduate students.

The gift energizes the school's portion of Campaign Minnesota, the University-wide, fund-raising campaign that has raised more than $1.4 billion. It brings the School of Music's endowment to more than $13 million and provides a boost to its effort to increase its endowment to at least $20 million, a level that would put it on par with other top-ranked music schools at public universities.

Berneking was a 1948 graduate of the School of Music with a master's degree in piano. He credited the scholarships he received and his experience at the University as life-changing opportunities. He wanted to give back in a way that would help other students have the same experience. Berneking lived most of his adult life in California, where he invested in real estate. He was a strong supporter of music and the arts in San Francisco. He died in May 2002 at the age of 82.

"We wish Mr. Berneking could see the benefits his gift will bring to our students and the school," said Kimpton. "We have many special events this year to celebrate the centennial, and throughout them you can be sure we'll express our gratitude to Mr. Berneking many times over for this incredible and loving gesture."

Return to top

Peanuts alum in Gopher country
Lucy van Pelt has graced comic strips, books, and TV specials for decades, not to mention scores of streets around St. Paul in recent months. Now she’s taken up permanent residence at the U.

“Pharmacist Lucy,” one of 109 Lucy statues that resided on St. Paul streets during the summer, was recently installed at the School of Pharmacy in the Weaver-Densford Building to become, what Dean Marilyn Speedie called, “a permanent mascot” to the school.

The statue is the gift of three School of Pharmacy alumni: Jeff (’80) and Lucy (’81) Johnson, and Linnea Forsell (’78). The three own the West 7th Pharmacy in St. Paul, which sponsored the statue in the city’s third summertime tribute to native son and Peanuts creator Charles Schulz. Rather than auctioning their Lucy off at summer's end as many others did, they chose to donate her to the School of Pharmacy.

The statue was an instant hit with students, who reacted the same way thousands did in St. Paul: by having their picture taken with Lucy.