¢ | _ Table of, The University hopes to enroll 150 new freshmen in a pilot program next fall designed to improve student success while reducing the chance they will drop out. Kathleen Lukken, associate provost, said a “First Year Experience” program will group students together for some 100-level general-education classes. The program also will include seminars on collegiate survival skills, information on majors, career information, and community and campus services. The program will emphasize increased contact between freshmen and faculty, staff, advisers and upper-class students. “The key to student retention is to build strong ties between the students and mentors,” Dr. Lukken said. Administrators hope the new program will help students succeed in college. UNIVERSI 2 Legacy Society 2 Tool King 6 50-Year Reunion ~% Alumni Update A HOOPLA — Ruben Nembhard prepares to pass while Kirk Smith (5) screens out opponents during the second round of the NCAA tournament. Weber State lost to Georgetown University on a heart-breaking, last-second basket. My wife and I, resident Tallahasseans, sat through the NCAA tournament just behind the Weber State band. We were infected by the Weber State fans’ enthusiasm and rooted for the team during both games. Your school can be mighty proud of the team. They were top performers and should have been in the “Sweet 16.” But that’s the way it goes. Tell your guys that Tallahasseans loved them and invite them back to our fair town. Charles B. Nam Tallahasse, Florida Your team was the hit of the first round and the heartbreaker of the second. As a University of Connecticut fan, I know what a last-minute shot can do, on both sides of the ball. You held a tough team and a very experienced coach to a very low score. You have every reason to be proud of your efforts, and NCAA fans everywhere will remember those games and cite them often. Well done. Jack Bray Malborough, Connecticut A TOUGH ‘D’ — Jeff Lentfer (40) and Kirk Smith (5) force a Georgetown player to pass during the NCAA tournament held in Tallahassee in March. HAIR DOINGS— Rick Nef, a member of the University’s pep band, uses a unique hairdo to encourage the men’s basketball team. <¢ ANXIOUS MOMENTS — Members of the 1994-95 men’s basketball team anxiously watch the action during the team’s first NCAA appearance in 16 years. Weber State upset Michigan State 79-72 to advance to a secondround game. The team’s 20-win season helped Coach Ron Abegglen earn the “1995 Big Sky Coach of the Year” Award. Postmaster Send address changes to: University Times Weber State University Ogden, UT 84408-3701 = Three distinguished former students, a retired math professor, and the current chief executive of a major Utah corporation received honorary degrees from the University during commencement exercises June 9. The three alumni recipients attended the University when it was a two-year college: ¢ Richard Myers, president of Myers Mortuaries, who graduated with honors in 1952. * Ray Noorda, former chairman of Novell, Inc., who attended in 1940. * Louis S. Peery, past president of the Weber scholarships at the University. Willard M. Heed of Ventura, Calif., left all but $60,000 of his estate to the University, said Dwight Morrell, a family friend and executor of the will. Mr. Heed, 80, died April 29. Mr. Heed and his wife, the late Donna Forsgren Heed, had no children. Mr. Morrell said Mr. Heed also attended Utah State University and the University of Southern California, but felt Weber College gave him “an excellent starting base for his life.” Mr. Heed sold textbooks for Prentice Hall Publishers. He lived in Ventura, Calif., for 27 years. County Medical Association, who attended in 1931. Two others had close ties with the University. ¢ Patricia P. Henry, a member of the University’s mathematics faculty from 1967 to 1994, * Robert L. Marquardt, CEO and chairman of Management Training Corp. in Ogden. i Nal Spot Two University debaters captured the nation’s top spot in parliamentary debate during a spring competition held in Ithaca, N.Y. Nick Coburn-Palo, a senior from Portland, Ore., and Steve Clemmons, a junior from Richmond, Calif., defeated a team from Creighton University to win the Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha National Championship. Judges also selected Mr. Coburn-Palo as the best individual parliamentary debater in the nation. Parliamentary debaters attempt to convince an audience on a particular viewpoint of an assigned topic. The University is the only school to win championships in all three areas of national collegiate debate — parliamentary, policy and value. University debaters won national titles in policy and value debate in 1993. Policy debaters argue the “hows” of assigned topics, while value debaters argue the “whys.” The Delta Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha Championship is the oldest debate tournament in the United States. : A 1932 graduate of Weber College has left $549,606 in his will to fund academic Weber State has created a “Legacy Society” to honor those who use wills, trust funds or other ways to donate to the University. Don E. Spainhower, director of development, said the society allows the University to thank benefactors while they are alive. “These donors will help the University meet significant challenges,” Mr. Spainhower said. “Their legacy of kindness will benefit students for many years.” Forty-three alumni and other individuals have joined the new society, Mr. Spainhower said. The seven newest members of the society have willed gifts to Weber State totaling $999,000. The late Willard M. Heed of Ventura, Calif, gave $549,000 for scholarships when he died. Six other gifts have yet to come to the University — $250,000 from the estate of