Good news

The Hoya has a few tidbits of good University news. GU appears to be approaching two benchmarks that we've waiting a decade and day to hit. First, there is an article about the number of applications breaking 16,000 for approximately 1,600 spots in the freshman class. If our yield is good, it is possible that we will finally dip below the 20% mark for acceptance rate for the first time. Again, it feels like we've waited a decade to do this; but, as the IPB pointed out, the student body has grown by almost 200 students per year since we were there. That has kept the rate steady in the 21-23% range.

Here is the breakdown:
College - 9,910 (+4%)
SFS - 3,045 (+6%)
MSB - 2,400+ (+?)
Nursing - 820 (+35%)

http://www.thehoya.com/news/012607/news1.cfm

The second big piece of news is that the endowment is approaching $1 billion. Again, I thought we'd hit that around 2000 so this is not exactly cause for celebration. But it is important. In June, the endowment was listed at $834 and now it is at $951. That is a pretty significant 6 month growth; and, while it is possible that a few big gifts came in, it is likely that this is fruit borne by hiring a chief investment officer. My fervent hope is that this will grease the giving wheels for the new campaign by instilling in alumni a sense that endowment gifts will not be pissed away as in the past. At the end of the day, assuming we are about to embark on a 10 year $2 or $2.5 billion campaign, at least 80% of the funds raised should be directed to the endowment. Far too much of the last campaign went to current use and building projects (something like 60% or 65%).

http://www.thehoya.com/news/012607/news3.cfm

Finally, the Hoya has a great profile of Dikembe Mutombo who was lauded in the SOTU address.

Mutombo Still Doing Big Things
Former Hoya Leads by Example

Mutombo has made a living playing tenacious defense and swatting shots, but when he came to Georgetown in 1987, basketball wasn’t even in his plans. Mutombo received a USAID scholarship to become a doctor so that he could return to his native Congo and help his people. The only sport Mutombo had played in his native land was soccer, but things changed quickly when Head Coach John Thompson Jr. spied Mutombo in a pick-up game.

“He said, ‘Son, I want you on my team.’ I said, ‘Man, this big man is going to be my coach,’” Mutombo recalls. “I was kind of scared of him in the beginning.”

......

Mutombo says his strong emphasis on community service was inspired by the Jesuit ideals that drew him to the Hilltop.

“To get the opportunity to get to be on the same campus as Jesuit teachers, it kind of helped me a lot,” Mutombo says. “It helped me go out and do what I do, helping those that don’t have what I have.”
Mutombo still follows his alma mater’s basketball team as well as one could expect from an in-season basketball player with two young children and a hospital opening in Africa. He has even challenged current Hoyas to off-season pick-up games.

While Mutombo denies having a favorite player on the team, he does admit that he may have a slight preference for “the young man that is wearing my uniform.” That young man, junior center Roy Hibbert, is developing quite the reputation for his shot-blocking abilities. Mutombo believes that Hibbert’s opportunity to develop for four years gives him the chance “maybe to be better than me.”

“His ability to block shots, I think that will make his name and be known and take it to the next level.,” Mutombo says.

Mutombo stays connected to the Georgetown community so that his children can one day follow in their father’s footsteps at Georgetown.

“I try to take them to the Georgetown campus every year,” he says.

A legend at Georgetown for reputedly exclaiming, “Who wants to sex Mutombo?” the big man has kept his sense of humor over the years, and his teammates appreciate his jokes almost as much as his rebounds.

http://www.thehoya.com/sports/012607/sports4.cfm