By Joseph Lyell —
Here are the big campus stories since the Nov. 28 issue:
Dec. 12: Water main break floods Shelby Park neighborhood
A Rave alert warned students that a water main break near the intersection of Oak and Clay would affect water pressure for both the Belknap and Health Science Campus campuses. During repairs, the Louisville Water Company told the university it had inadvertently shut off water pressure to the SAC and Threlkeld Hall.
The next day, another Rave alert issued a boil water advisory for those two buildings. The following day, the advisory was lifted and facilities were permitted to return to normal use.
Dec. 13: U of L files lawsuit against Rick Pitino
A federal lawsuit filed by the U of L alleged that Rick Pitino’s negligence and wrongful conduct during his time as men’s head basketball coach has harmed the school’s image and reputation. The NCAA violations committed by the program under Pitino include the Katina Powell escort scandal, and most recently, the school’s NCAA corruption case, which is still being investigated by the FBI.
The lawsuit is seen as a counter to Pitino’s own suit against the university, which claimed his contract was breached in his dismissal.
The school’s case seeks the return of “any bonuses and other compensation wrongly paid” to the former coach for any appearances in NCAA tournaments.
Dec. 14: Board of trustees meet for the last session of 2017
At the meeting, it was announced the board will allow eight constituency group representatives to meet with finalists in the presidential search process. They will then provide feedback on behalf of their constituents to the board, which will take their thoughts into consideration when making their decision.
The constituency representatives will speak for their respective groups, which will be composed of students, staff, faculty and deans.
It was also announced at the meeting the university will not pursue legal action against the foundation for its mishandling of the school’s $785 million endowment.
The Alvarez & Marsal audit, published in June, described how the university’s foundation overspent, hid transactions and tried to obscure public information from the media.
Chairman of the Board of Trustees David Grissom said suing the foundation would be akin to the university suing itself.
“The university and the foundation have not closed the book on future litigation,” Grissom said, though he would not comment on specific parties the litigation committee may be looking at.
Dec. 19: Police investigate second shooting at the Arch Apartments in four months
LMPD Spokesperson Dwight Mitchell said the victim of a Dec. 19 shooting at the Arch is expected to survive his injuries.
Witnesses to the scene said the man appeared to had been shot in the chest before he was taken by ambulance to U of L Hospital.
U of L spokesperson John Karman said the victim was not a U of L student.
This shooting came less than four months after another shooting at the Arch wounded another non-student resident.
Karman said the university will be contacting management at the Arch to discuss ways to ensure residents’ safety in the future.
Photos by Arry Schofield / The Louisville Cardinal
