Diversity Lecture Series   Judith Heumann, co-founder of the World Institute on Disability, the American Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities and Disabled in Action, addresses audience members in the Ohio Union after completing her Jan. 9 lecture, "The History of the Disability Rights Movement." Heumann appeared on campus as part of Ohio State's President and Provost's Diversity Lecture Series. The series continues at 9 a.m. Feb. 4 in the Ohio Union Conference Theatre with lecturer Linda Ammons' presentation, "The Facts and Myths About Battered Women."   By Nathan Robinson

Investing in people

National report calls on Americans to promote and expand diversity

For the first time, top corporate CEOs and university presidents -- members of a coalition co-chaired by President Brit Kirwan -- have joined together to strongly assert that the nation faces social and economic crisis unless America succeeds in promoting and taking advantage of racial and ethnic diversity.

In a report released Jan. 10 by the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF), chief executive officers of leading corporations and presidents of prominent universities noted that while the nation's minority population is steadily increasing, members of most racial and ethnic groups are not making sufficient educational strides. As a result, the nation is headed for a crisis of work force skills and knowledge.

The report, "Investing in People: Developing All of America's Talent on Campus and in the Workplace," demonstrates that "a large number of the people who will be available to work [in the future] will be minorities -- who currently lag behind whites in their training and educational credentials." It warns that, without the required investments in improving education for all Americans, tomorrow's workers will not be ready to meet the challenges of a knowledge-intensive economy.

The report was released during a news conference in New York City that attracted business and higher education leaders and national media organizations. Kirwan was among the featured speakers at the media event.

The best investment for the nation's future is to promote and expand diversity efforts and to ensure quality education for all students, the report states.

"Children who do not succeed in elementary and secondary education cannot go on to college. Without a college degree, an individual will not be prepared for the majority of the jobs that will be available in the future," Kirwan said. "America's educational system is the pipeline from which the diverse pool of capable citizens and workers for the 21st century will flow."

Added Stephen G. Butler, chairman and chief executive officer of KPMG LLP and co-chair of the BHEF Diversity Initiative, "Diversity is an invaluable competitive asset that America cannot afford to ignore. Demographic trends compel business and higher education to make a conscious investment in the development of the talent and productivity of all citizens."

The report calls on business and institutional leaders, policymakers and the general public to become actively involved in promoting and expanding diversity efforts. It outlines several important steps that can be taken to foster diversity and provide equal opportunity and quality education to all Americans.

Steps discussed in the report include:

• Support and strengthen existing outreach programs that focus on the value of attending college, ways to prepare students and assist them in applying for and attending college, and the importance of lifelong learning. Create programs where they do not exist.

• Provide the resources to ensure that teachers are prepared to work effectively with racially and ethnically diverse students.

• Review current strategies and policies designed to foster diversity and tolerance, and ensure that they are meeting their goals. Publicize the results of these reviews in the higher education and business communities.

• Speak out and advocate that colleges and universities take the whole person into account when making admissions decisions; that is, consider all relevant qualities -- not just grades and test scores -- in assessing each applicant.

• Encourage corporate foundations to provide support for diversity initiatives, and to share the programs and their results with professional peers.

• Urge national policymakers to increase the amount of the Pell Grant to its congressionally authorized annual maximum of $5,800 per student. (The 2000-01 maximum is $3,750.)

The report is the work of a special Diversity Initiative Task Force convened by the BHEF in 1999 to explore issues related to racial and ethnic diversity in America. The forum is a partnership of the American Council on Education and the National Alliance of Business.

The report can be purchased on the ACE Web site at: www.acenet.edu/programs/bhef/bhef_publications.cfm?pubID=241, and also is available at www.acenet.edu/bookstore/pdf/investing_in_people.pdf.

Legendary basketball Coach Fred Taylor passes away at 77

Fred Taylor, Ohio State head men's basketball coach from 1959-76, died Jan. 6 at Mill Run Gardens & Care Center following a long illness. He was 77.

Taylor, a native of Zanesville, is the only Ohio State men's basketball coach to win a national championship. His 1960 team defeated California 72-55 on March 19, 1960, to claim Ohio State's NCAA crown. His 1961 and 1962 teams advanced to the national championship game before falling to Cincinnati both years.

Taylor was recognized in 1986 for his basketball coaching accomplishments by being elected to the National Basketball Hall of Fame. He is one of eight former Buckeye players and coaches currently in the hall of fame. Three other Buckeyes elected to the hall of fame -- Jerry Lucas (elected as a player in 1979), John Havlicek (player, 1983) and Bob Knight (coach, 1991) -- played for Taylor.

Five of his teams earned NCAA Tournament berths (1960,'61,'62,'68, Ô71), with four of those advancing to the Final Four (1960,'61,'62,'68). The Buckeyes also made history under Taylor by winning an unmatched five consecutive Big Ten titles (1960-64). He also is the only Ohio State coach to lead six teams to 20 or more victories.

Over his 18 seasons as the head coach, Taylor compiled an OSU record 297 victories in 455 career games. His teams won seven Big Ten titles, four outright, and compiled a 158-102 record in conference play. His .653 overall and .608 Big Ten winning percentages are the highest among OSU coaches with more than two years of service in Columbus.

Seventeen of his players earned All-Big Ten honors: three forwards, five guards and nine centers. Six times, one of his players earned Academic All-Big Ten honors, including three-time winner Bill Hosket, who was an Academic All-American in 1968.

His teams won 32 consecutive games over two seasons from March 5, 1960, to March 24, 1961, and 50 consecutive home games from Dec. 1, 1959, to Dec. 2, 1963. Other streaks included 47 consecutive regular season wins, 27 consecutive Big Ten victories and 34 consecutive Big Ten wins at home.

Taylor, born Dec. 3, 1924, played both basketball (1948-50) and baseball (1947-50) at Ohio State. He was an OSU baseball All-American as a first baseman in 1950. He is survived by his wife Eileen and daughters Janna, Krista, Nikki and Sharla.

Jim O'Brien, current head coach of the Buckeyes, said Taylor set the foundation for success on the basketball court in Columbus.

"He set the standards to which every basketball coach since him has aspired to achieve," O'Brien said. "The thing that impresses me the most about Coach Taylor is that all his former players held him in such high regard."

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