Wednesday, April 26
Erie Man Killed In Gorge
Tragedy at Devil's Backbone
A 22 year-old Erie man was
killed Sunday night when he fell
from Devil's Backbone in the
Wintergreen Gorge near campus.
John H. Morton of East 25th
Street was kicking rocks over
the edge of the sheer cliff when
he apparently lost his footing,
falling approximately 200 feet to
his death.
Morton had been hiking with
a companion at the time of the
incident, which occurred at
approxinmately 5 pm.
Behrend police officer Chip
Sanders and Collegian
photographer Jeff Majcher were
two of the first people on the
scene.
Both concur that a family who
was picnicking along the top of
the Gorge ignored repeated pleas
for help. "They just didn't take us
seriously," said Sanders. -
Sanders reports that Morton's
friend apparently ran to the
bottom of the shale cliff and
checked on Mortores condition
before running to Behrencrs
Enrollment Reaches
Record Levels
by Cindy Craig
Collegian Staff Writer
t IXT
VVeare at the limit," said
college registrar Robert Schenker
of Behrend's growing enrollment.
A record 2,707 students enrolled
for this semester, a 5.4 percent
increase over last spring's
enrollment of 2,568.
Optimal enrollment at
Behrend is 2,500 students.
Ideally, the administration would
hie to reduce enrollment to 2500
while retaining an equal number
of juniors and seniors versus
freshmen and sophomores. Since
underclassmen presently
outnumber the upperclassmen,
the number of entering freshmen
is being cut back. To achieve
this, the admission requirements
for first year students are
increasing and will continue to
increase. "Right now, a student
sitting in a high school senior
class . . . may need the ability to
predict a 3.0 grade point average
to be admitted to Behrend,"
Schenker said. The admissions
office is also being very selective
about which provisional students
are admitted.
While overall enrollment has
increased, admissions has been
successful at improving the ratio
of upperclassmen to
he . .... g..''''''''''''.i...o e..lan
apartment complex to report the
incident.
While Morton's companion
reports he spoke with him after
the fall, Erie County Deputy
Coronoer Richard Skonieczka
believes that a fall of such
magnitude would have killed
Morton instantly.
He estimated that
approximately 33 minutes
elapsed between the incident and
the phone call notifying Police
and Safety. He adds, however,
that a' quicker response probably
wouldn't have made any
difference.
Devil's Backbone is the
steepest, most dangerous part of
the Wintergreen Gorge and has
been the subject of considerable
concern for a number of years.
Sanders, who notes Morton
was walking on or near campus
property, said there is no
suspicion of alcohol being
involved in the incident, but
notes that Gorge patrols have
been increased this-spring.
Majeher
photo by Jeff
underclassmen. There are 186
more fifth to eleventh semester
students for spring of 'B9 than for
spring of 'BB while the number of
first to fourth semester students
has decreased by 64.
While short term plans are to
cut back by about 200 students,
the long range goal is to increase
the size of the student body. This
will only be attempted after
appropriate physical facilities are
constructed. Behrend currently
needs more resident space,
parking, faculty offices, and
classrooms. New offices and a
new gym are in the works and
there are tentative plans to
increase residence space and
parking area. Projected
completion dates are not available
at this time, but it's estimated
that the construction is several
years away.
Inside
Research P. 2
Letters • P. 5
Cats in Erie P. 7
Roadhouse review P. 8
Fast Food P. 10
NBA Playoffs P. 11
PENN STATE ERIE'S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
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The liberal Mr. Schlesinger listens to the rebuttal of
an offended audience member. Schlesinger, former
assistant to John F. Kennedy, discussed the nation's
trend toward liberalism last Thursday in Erie Hall.
(photo by M. Zawistoski)
=lll
r_.~ ~~
Volume XXXVII, No. 19
Police
Investigate
Incidents
by Laura A. Weaver
Collegian Staff Writer
Two traffic accidents near
Behrend were reported on April
23. In the first, a vehicle was
found laying upside down on
Jordan Road. It is not known
how the car was flipped, but
apparently no one was injured.
Later that day, a car leaving
Behrend collided with a car
traveling on Station Road. No
injuries were reported. Vehicles
parked along Station Road during
a softball game reportedly
blocked one driver's view. The
Pennsylvania State Police are
investigating.
Schlesinger
Predicts
Liberalism
by Maria Plaza
Collegian News Editor
Historian and Pulitzer prize
winning writer Arthur
Schlesinger, Jr. predicted a turn
towards liberalism in the 1990's
and questioned the practicality of
Bush's "Thousand Points of
Light" before about 300 people
in Erie Hall on Thursday, April
20.
Schlesinger's lecture, "The
Shape of American Politics to
Come," was the final feature of
Behrend's 1988-89 Speaker
Series.
Public vs. Private
Schlesinger described a 30-
year cycle between concern for
public interests and private
interests. Concern for the public
good and active government, he
said, peaked under Theodore
Roosevelt's administration during
the century's_ first decade,
Franklin Roosevelt's in the '3os
and '4os, and John Kennedy's in
the '6os. The focus was on
private interests and a small
government role during the
presidencies of William
McKinley at the turn of the
century, Harding and Coolidge in
the '2os, Eisenhower during the
'sos, and Reagan in the 'Bos.
"Thirty years is about the
span of a generation . . . the
cycle during youth shapes one's
views," Schlesinger said,
Cont. on pg. 2