For the record
Basement barber best
Silvestre Vigilante, a fixture in the Reynolds Club basement since 1964, was named Best Barber in the city in the August Chicago magazine. Cutting hair at the U of C since emigrating from Italy, Vigilante has groomed five U of C presidents, numerous Nobel laureates, and thousands of students.

All the news that's fit to invent
In its annual college-rankings issue released in September, U.S. News and World Report placed Chicago 9th, tied with Dartmouth and Columbia, one spot higher than last year's rankings (see "News you can abuse," page 18). In the July issue ranking the nation's hospitals, the magazine put the U of C Hospitals at 15th among the 168 medical facilities listed.

New human rights director
Susan Gzesh, AB'72, a lecturer in the Law School, has been named director of the Human Rights Program, succeeding founding director Jacqueline Bhabha who left the University this summer. Gzesh, who assumed the post August 1, has published several chapters and articles on immigration and since 1993 has taught an annual course on immigration and nationality law.

Above-average professor
At its 161st annual meeting in Atlanta, the American Statistical Association presented George Tiao, the W. Allen Wallis professor of econometrics & statistics in the Graduate School of Business and chair of the Statistics Research Center, with its Samuel S. Wilks Memorial Award for his outstanding contributions to statistics. Tiao, who joined the University in 1982, specializes in Bayesian inference, econometric methods, time-series methods and applications, and modeling and analysis of air pollution and stratospheric ozone data.

An offer she can't refuse
Susan L. Lindquist, the Albert D. Lasker professor of medical sciences in the molecular genetics & cell biology department, the Committees on Developmental Biology and Genetics, and the College, leaves Chicago to become director of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research on October 15. The institute is affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where Lindquist will become a professor of biology.

Medical management
On July 18 Kenneth Kates left his position as vice president and director of the University Children's Hospital to become the executive vice president and chief operating officer of the University Hospitals and Health System. Kates succeeds Michael Riordan, who became president and CEO of the Hospitals July 1.

Comptroller commended
John Kroll, the U of C's associate comptroller, received the 2001 Daniel B. Robinson Award from the National Association of College and University Business Officers. Kroll, who has worked in higher education for nearly 20 years, was cited for "excellence and leadership in demonstrating a continuous commitment to the advancement of college and university accounting and reporting."

Getting down to business
On August 6 the University Board of Trustees approved the design by New York architect Rafael Viñoly for the new Graduate School of Business complex. The four-story structure will be located on 58th Street between Woodlawn and Kimbark Avenues. Scheduled for completion in 2004, the complex will bring classrooms, faculty offices, research space, and GSB support services under one roof for the first time.

The ancient world wired
An Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant of $100,000 to create the Electronic Tools and Ancient Near Eastern Archives (ETANA) will increase the capabilities of Abzu, the Oriental Institute's Internet resource. ETANA, based at Vanderbilt University and partially supported by the Oriental Institute, will link Abzu to other sites, creating a comprehensive portal for ancient Near Eastern studies.

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