Newsmakers -- May 2000 U.S. News & World Report Several UC programs received top rankings nationally in the magazine's 2000 rankings of America s best graduate schools. The College of Law came in at No. 49, which puts it in the top tier of law schools nationally. Environmental engineering from the College of Engineering was ranked 20th in its field. Three programs from the UC Medical Center also were singled out for top-tier recognition in their fields by U.S. News & World Report. UC tied with Ohio State for 40th place among medical schools. For primary care, UC was ranked 42nd. The pediatrics program remained among the nation's elite, with a number five ranking. The College of Nursing ranked 52nd in the country. Among specialty health programs, UC's speech and language pathology program was tied for 30th. Graduate programs from the College-Conservatory of Music were also listed in this year's report although the figures come from previous ranking surveys. UC ranks 3rd in Opera/Voice, 5th in Conducting, and 6th for Music. The department of geology's doctoral program in paleontology was ranked 9th in last year's survey. Those programs were not re-evaluated this year. Chronicle of Higher Education The Cincinnati Initiative for Teacher Education (CITE) was included in a roundup on teacher education programs around the country. UC's program was highlighted, because it requires new teachers to complete a five-year program of study with a full year of training as a teaching intern in local public schools. The CITE partnership includes Cincinnati Public Schools and the local Cincinnati Federation of Teachers. Los Angeles Times Paula Adams Hillard, Medicine, was quoted about the helpful role the Internet can play for teenagers seeking advice about their own sexual choices. New York Daily News George Vredeveld, Center for Economic Education, was quoted in a story about a study the center did that estimates the economic impact of Ken Griffey Jr. coming to Cincinnati will add $40.5 million and approximately 650 new jobs to the local economy. Columbus Dispatch Fred Siff, UC vice president of information technology, was quoted in a story about the problems caused to universities by the Napster music service on the Internet, whose popularity with students is overloading the capacity of college computer resources. A display of garments and illustrations by UC fashion design students, graduates and faculty in an exhibit titled "Reality and Interpretation: 20th Century Clothing and Illustration" in Columbus' Riffe Gallery was featured. National Public Radio Research into differences in the amount of brain cells by gender, conducted by Gabrielle de Courten-Myers, Medicine, was the subject of a commentary in the "Weekly Edition: The Best of NPR News" show. de Courten Myers was also quoted in stories in the Arizona Republic and the Kansas City Star about her research findings. Cox News Service Eric Rademacher, Institute for Policy Research, was quoted in a story about George W. Bush appealling to Hispanic voters in the upcoming presidential election. Rademacher was also quoted in the Dayton Daily News recently in an article exploring the role of independents in this presidential election year. National Law Journal James O'Reilly, visiting professor in the College of Law, was quoted in an article about the impact on judicial interpretation of the government's authority to regulate products, as it related to the Supreme Court's most recent decision concerning the FDA and tobacco products. A textbook written by O'Reilly was central to the arguments of the minority opinion from the court on the case. Nashville Tennessean Andrew Hudgins, English, was quoted in a story about the modern role of religion in the Deep South. Hudgins was part of a special Vanderbilt University program, "Millennial Gathering of the Writers of the New South." Alumni making news: Charles "Junior" Johnson, a point guard on UC's basketball team from 1979 through 1983, was featured in Crain Business Communication's publication B to B as one of its Top 25 E-Champions. Johnson is the chairman and CEO of PurchasePro.com, a web-based trading network that involves 20,000 businesses across various industries. Frank Brogan, a 1976 graduate from the College of Education, is second in command in the state of Florida as Gov. Jeb Bush's lieutenant governor. A profile in the Florida Times-Union mentions Brogan's personal popularity in Florida and indicates he may be a finalist for U.S. Secretary of Education if George W. Bush wins the upcoming presidential election. David Armstrong, a CCM graduate, has been named as artistic director of the 5th Avenue Musical Theatre in Seattle. The organization sells an average of 300,000 tickets annually and has a budget of $13 million. Harsh Koppula, who earned his master's degree in industrial engineering at UC, is the president and CEO of ClareREMtech, a new company formed by mergers last year. The company is a $65 million technology company that serves customers in the telecommunications, industrial control, lighting and power markets and employs approximately 1,200 people. Jon York, who holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from UC, has gone on to make his mark in a different field, serving as executive chef of the private Rivers Club in downtown Pittsburgh, Pa. York was the subject of a profile in the Pittsburgh Post- Gazette. Joseph Mitolo, a graduate of UC's architecture program and now an architect in Dayton, Ohio, has been selected by the Dayton Daily News to its Community Board of Contributors, a group of 10 area residents with interesting backgrounds who will regularly contribute columns to the paper's editorial page. Students making news: Christopher Watts, a CCM student, had a letter published in the international edition of Time Magazine in response to an article that was written on a modern view of composing. The Santa Fe New Mexican featured "eighth blackbird," a contemporary chamber performance group whose six members are all enrolled in CCM's Artist Diploma program. The group recorded a CD, and its performance bookings began growing on a national basis. Archive of Previous Newsmakers Contact the Division of Public Relations and tell us about your newsmaking project.