‘Hall of Shame’

BLOOMBERG NEWS, Aug. 6 — What's in a name? Sometimes, heavy baggage. At one point, New Jersey's Seton Hall University — named for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton — had three buildings bearing the names of indicted or convicted felons, reported the news wire.

Faculty and students have complained that they don't enjoy hearing such quips as “Seton Hall of Shame,” and that it is not appropriate that two of these buildings remain with names unchanged, including the business school, named for recently convicted Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski.

And the university of the Archdiocese of Newark “is not alone,” said Bloomberg, which offered a long list of schools in similar situations, including the Franciscans’ St. Bonaventure University, whose Olean, N.Y., campus includes the Rigas Family Theater named after John Rigas, the convicted founder of Adelphia Communications Corp.

Going Home

WDBJ7.COM, July 21 — Washington & Lee University President Thomas Burish has resigned the post he held since 2002 to become provost of Notre Dame University, his alma mater.

The website of the CBS affiliate in Richmond, Va., reported that Burish said Notre Dame “aspires to be both a great academic institution and a great Catholic institution.”

He added: “[It] being a Catholic institution is why I went there as an undergraduate, and is a major reason I am now drawn back.” Combining “this faith-based heritage” with the quest for academic excellence is, “for me, a special dream.”

Keeping Faith

THE JOURNAL STAR, Aug. 8 — Peoria, Ill., Bishop Daniel Jenky celebrated a special faith-building Mass for college students as they prepare to head back to campus.

Each participant received a Miraculous Medal that Bishop Jenky said he hoped the students would use to help them through these “years of transition,” and as an aid to prayer.

Jenna Powers of Spoon River College in Ohio said the medal will remind her of the need to “keep the faith.”

Bishop Jenky recalled how he once clung to a rosary during a difficult exam during his own college days.

College to University

THE OLYMPIAN, Aug. 8 — Saint Martin's College, a 110-year-old institution in Lacey, Wash., has officially become Saint Martin's University, reported the Olympia daily.

“University” better reflects the school's mix of undergraduate and graduate-level programs, said officials, who added that the new name will distinguish it from the growing number of two-year colleges that have dropped “community” from their names.

In addition to its new name, Saint Martin's has a new president, Douglas Astolfi. He replaced David Spangler, Saint Martin's longest-serving president who retired in June after nearly 20 years in office.

Workplace Misconduct

ASSOCIATED PRESS, Aug. 5 — St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., says it fired a senior computer programmer for engaging in serious workplace misconduct, not because the man was planning sex-reassignment surgery and to return to work as a woman.

Robert Blanchette, 53, sued in federal court in May claiming he was fired after telling the college he was “transgender.”

The college's lawyer argued that the suit was prohibited by St. Anselm's constitutionally protected freedom of religion.