Maroon

              The Loyola Maroon Volume 71 No. 20 asdfsdf sdfasdfsdf Endowment large but increasing slowly, study says By Martin R. Welles Staff Writer Although in 1992 Loyola's endowment, at $ 185 million, ranked fifth among Jesuit Universities in size, with only a 3.1 percent increase in growth Loyola had the third lowest return on their investments, according to a recent survey. This stagnation of growth occurred because Loyola dipped into the endowment to the tune of $10 million during the 1991-92 fiscal year . "Drawing out from the portfolio to support operating expenses and our undeveloped real estate brings the growth down," John L. Eckholdt, vicepresident of business and finance, said. University endowments are their investment portfolios. They generate div idends and interest, and they are an indication of the university's financial health. While the total Loyolaendowment grew 3.1 percent, the annualized returnreturn on the endowment from Sep. 1, 1990 to Dec. 31,1992 shows a growth of about 13 percent, according to Eckholdt. He says that, during this period, equity returns grew 23 percent, stocks and bonds increased by 14 percent, and cash accounts grew 6 percent. "The endowment committee is very pleased with the management of the endowment," said the Rev. James C. Carter, S.J., university president. "In all fairness we have focused our attention on the library. We are going to turn our attention to endowment building," he said. According to a Feb. 10 survey compiled by The Chronicle For Higher Education, only four other Jesuit institutions have endowments larger than Loyola: Loyola - Chicago, $385.5 million; Boston College, $355.0; Georgetown, $295.9 million; and , Saint Louis University, $240.1 million. The average growth during Money in the bank? LU defendant in 'Mother of all Louisiana libel cases' By Chris Bonura Assistant News Editor Just when Loyola's administrators thought they had conquered last year's budget crunch with severe cuts, "the mother of all Louisiana libel cases," as Attorney Jack Weiss coined S ass one v. Elder, is threatening to add to their woes. But the case, which the Louisiana Supreame Court is currently deciding whether to try, goes far beyond Loyola's humble woes — as far as Louisiana's interpretation of the First Amendment. "The case involves a number of very important, far-reaching issues," said Weiss, who represents the Louisiana Press Association and is an adjunct professor of Media Law at Tulane and LSU. Weiss cited three issues: the legitimacy of implied libel cases, the standard for summary judgment and the degree of protectiveness of Louisiana freedom of expression law. Attorneys Martha Sassone and Joseph Montgomery have sued Loyola, former owner of local CBS affiliate WWL-TV, and Bill Elder, WWL reporter and anchor, for defamation. As owner of the station at that time, Loyola could be held financially responsible for WWL-TV's alleged mistakes. Sassone, who recently became a 24th District judge, and Montgomery claim that Elder's June 1986 investigative rnews series on Marie Giordano Lloyd, their former client, implied that they were involved in unethical practices. The plaintiffs complain of inaccurate facts disguised as opinion and rhetorical questions and quotations taken out of context Handing down a summary judgment,judgment, a district court originally dismissed Sassone and Montgomery's case. Sassone and Montgomery appealed the decision, and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals decided that summary judgment was not adequate in this case. The defendants appealed the Court of Appeals decision to have a jury hear the case. The Louisiana Press Association, a coalition of 93 Louisiana newspapers, has submitted an Amicus Curiae (friend of the court) brief in support of Loyola and Elder's arguments. In 1986, Elder broadcasted a series of reports concerning Marie Giordano Lloyd. Since 1981, Lloyd had persuaded hundreds of Juan Ronquillo's alleged heirs to finance litigation aimed at reclaiming vast tracts of Louisiana marshlands, which she claimed to be rich in oil and minerals, and a nonexistent $63 million escrow account. A contingency fee contract illegally allotted 25 percent of the proceeds to Lloyd, who is not a lawyer. In 1987, Lloyd pled no contest to unlawful practice of the law. In a WWL news program. Elder covered a meeting Lloyd held on May 6,1986 to change the contingency fee contracts. The plaintiffs claim that Elder defamed them by implying that they were acting unethically when they were merely representing their client. They point to five allegedly defamatory statements: • An alleged heir claims that Sassone and Montgomery "do not have a working telephone number." • Another alleged heir claims that he and the other heirs do not know Sassone and Montgomery's last names. •In one segment Terrebonne DistrictDistrict Attorney Doug Greenburg says that Lloyd's operation "smacks of fraud." Citing Greenburg's deposition, the plaintiffs claim that Greenburg's comments were taken out of context. •Elder asks Montgomery, "You're not trying to take these people to the cleaners, are you?" •Elder poses a rhetorical question: "Was it wrong for Marie and her attorneys Martha Sassone and Joey Montgomery, to try to rush nearly a thousand people into signing a binding legal contract." Pierre DeGruy, a prominent former investigative reporter and former part-time Loyola communications instructor, has sworn in an affidavit thai "it is my opinion that those broadcasts were fundamentally unfair to the plaintiffs, Martha Sassone and Joseph Montgomery, and that those broadcasts violated industry standards for ethical and accurate reporting." Rawls, Sassone and Montgomery's lawyer, claims that Sassone "lost hundreds of potential clients" because of Elder's broadcasts, and the case became "a repeated issue in her campaign (for judge)." Rawls also claims that Montgomery, who was a candidate for partnership Byte After byte— New Orleans-area shcool children spent the day at Loyola last week learning how to make their own newsletters. Their trip Included a tour of the Maroon office and a visit to the Miller computer lab /Photo by Bruce Hyman, S.J. See ENDOWMENT, pg. 3 See LIBEL, pg. 3 Comparing endowments at Jesuit universities School Rank 1991 ($ Mil) 1992 % Increase Loyola— (Chicago) 38 334.9 385.5 15.8 Boston College 43 312.0 355.0 13J Georgetown 56 265.8 295.9 11.3 St. Louis 67 2064 240.1 163 ' :V Loyola— (New Orleans) 89 179.5 185.1 3.1 SanU Clara 111 115.4 132.1 14.5 Loyola Maiymount 116 1123 127.1 13.2 Holy Cross 126 88.3 116.5 31.9 BE : Around the world in a I ®aset)a" swings up If : Time to make the beignets... |i r—^ The Ataman will not publish next week due to midterms. Publication will resume March 26.