Friday
December 3,1993 Vol. CXXI, No. 63
Weather
The warm weather will continue throughout the weekend. This afternoon will be sunny and clear with a high temperature in the upper 70s and an evening in the chilly 50s.
Inside
New Williams film brings up doubts
"Mrs. Doubtfire," the new Robin Williams-in-drag flick, barely manages to keep its head above water, disappointing fans of the comedian / actor with its banal sappiness.
Diversions, page 5
Volleyball looks to upend Cardinal
The second round of the NCAA volleyball tournament has UbC heading to Stanford on Saturday. This is the fourth time in the last six years the two teams have met in the NCAAs.
Sports, page 12
The brutal reality of arson and ruin
Merry pranksters may go around pulling fire alarms in USC housing, but that joke isn't funny anymore. The recent Southland fires illustrate the tragedy of arson.
Viewpoint, page 4
F.Y.I.
Celebrity event to aid children
Local sports and entertainment celebrities will join civic leaders at the Sports Arena's annual holiday celebration for more than 3,000 ill and disadvantaged children from South-Central Los Angeles, East L.A. and Skid Row on Dec. 4 outside the Sports Arena's east entrance.
Entertainment will feature the Ben & Jerry's Traveling Show and visits from Santa. Activities will include face painting and a toy and gift giveaway.
The event will be from
11	a.m. to 1 p.m. and is being sponsored by SMG, the Los Angeles Memorial Commission, the Children's Treasure Chest, and the Athletes and Entertainers for Kids chanty.
Newspaper of the University of Southern Californi
DauyTroiaii
Canine confessions
Dinld Shlh I Dally Tro|an
Melllsa Smith, a senior majoring in anthropology, confides In a trusting mammalian companion.
Students seek alternatives to a typical Spring Break
By Tracie Tso
City Editor
Lake Havasu and Ft. Lauderdale can wait this spring, at least for a handful of USC students looking to spend their energy and good faith in the community through the Student Volunteer Center's Alternative Spring Break program.
This year, the program consists of four projects along with the original Utah Navajo Indian Nation Reservation trip which began three years ago.
Martin Gonzalez, graduate coordinator for the USC Student Volunteer Center and a graduate student majoring in cinema-television, said last year 45 students were selected from over 200 applicants to partici-
pate in two projects.
This year, approximately 80 students will participate.
Students will either be working in the areas of youth and education, environmentalism and homelessness or working at the Navajo Indian Reservation.
Gonzalez said students will be participating in activities including working with local elementary students, staying at different homeless shelters or working on trails in the Santa Monica Mountains, looking at how toxic chemicals and sewage treatment affect the urban environment.
"They will be doing work projects during the day which will be complemented with speakers on those topics in the evening,"
Gonzalez said.
He said the program, which has added two more projects this year, is growing because of student interest and a push to promote community-university interaction.
"It is an opportunity to build a relationship to the local community. Students look at these issues and care," he said.
Gonzalez said the program introduces students to hands-on volunteerism, with some students pursuing the issues they are exposed to even further, through the volunteer center or outside aid organizations.
"It's an initial introduction to a comfortable way in," Gonzalez said.
(See Alternative, page 3)
Administration unveils policy for smoke-free USC campuses
By Matthew Greenberg
Staff Writer
Citing a desire to eliminate the risks associated with secondhand smoke, the university administration announced a new smoke-free policy, effective Jan. 1, 1994, for both the University Park and Health Sciences campuses.
In a memo distributed to all deans, directors and vice presidents of the university, Dennis Dougherty, senior vice president of administration, said "the university must recognize the health risks to non-smokers associated with secondhand smoke and take appropriate steps to eliminate these risks."
The policy, which covers individual faculty and administration offices, states smoking will be "prohibited in all enclosed buildings, facilities and vehicles which are owned or leased by the university, on both the University Park Campus and the Health Sciences Campus."
In addition, the policy states smoking will be "prohibited in all university-owned and leased housing with the exception of the individual living spaces of residents who are living alone or have the consent of their roommate^). All shared community space within university housing shall be designated as nonsmoking areas."
According to the memo, while the university wants to provide "a safe healthful environment," it does not want to "infringe on the rights of smokers" in the university community. Also, the policy states that "administrative and academic units may designate existing outdoor space as smoking areas."
The policy specifies, though, that such areas must be "far enough away from doorways, windows and ventilation systems to prevent smoke from entering enclosed buildings and
(See Smoke, page 3)
Sample outlines plan for competitiveness
By Matthew Greenberg
Staff Writer
Surveying whether USC is focused to compete with the best, University President Steven Sample met with members of the Mortar Board Senior Honor Society Thursday to outline initiatives the university should take to compete in the academic community of the 1990s and beyond.
In talking with 10 of the society's members, Sample, who meets with members of the student honor society at least once a semester, focused attention on undergraduate admissions programs.
"We need to be very, very competitive on the undergraduate level," said Sample. "We need to be in a position where we are more in control of our own enrollment destiny."
Sample said the academic quality of students has increased in recent years, but the university's continuing goal is to create "more reserve demand," by attracting more
qualified students than the university can accommodate.
In discussing admissions programs, Sample mentioned the university's combined B.A. / M.D. program where incoming freshmen accepted into the program can pursue a wide variety of undergraduate majors and still be assured a place in USC's medical school. It is a program that other major private universities, such as Harvard, do not have, said Sample.
During the question-answer period, Sally Roever, president of Mortar Board and a senior majoring in international relations, questioned the president about creating a campus-wide atmosphere of academic seriousness.
Sample said the university is committed to providing more and better opportunities for undergraduates to have academic contact with senior faculty members, but the real change in the academic atmosphere is a con-
tinuing process and one that students must be a part of.
"Changing the undergraduate academic culture is a long-term project," said Sample. "What can change quickly is making sure the opportunities are there." He mentioned the university's freshman mentor program as an example.
During the meeting, the president touched on the endowment history of USC. Sample said the university has made strides in increasing its endowment over the last 30 to 35 years from practically nothing to the current level, which he said is "just under $1 billion," and competitive with the likes of Johns Hopkins University, the University of Pennsylvania and Northwestern University.
But he added that when endowment is looked at from a student I faculty to endowment ratio or how much money the university has per student or faculty member, "it doesn't look so good ” Sample attributed
(See Sample, page 2)