USD Magazine, Summer 1999

College-circuit faves Real Big Fish headlined an outdoor concert April 17 at West Point Field sponsored by the Associated Students. Hundreds of fans caught the Fish, as well as bands Goldfinger and Burning Groove.

Bulldozers were fired up May 5 to break ground for the 5,000-seat Jenny Craig Pavilion, which is expected to open by Fall 2000 and will be home to Torero basketball and volleyball teams. Jenny Craig was joined by her husband, Sid Craig, and 400 well-wishers at the earth-moving ceremony.

Poet Jana Hirshfiald signed copies of her poetry collections April 13 after giving a reading sponsored by the Friends of the USD Libraries. Hirshfield has authored four poetry collections, and her work has been described as "radiant and passionate" by the New York Times Book Review.

That collective sigh of relief heard around campus Memorial Day weekend came from the more than 1,400 undergraduate, graduate and law students who picked up their diplomas at the 1999 commencement ceremonies. The former prime minister of Ireland, Alhart Raynolds, encouraged undergradu– ates to pursue their dreams, while Judge John T. Noonan Jr., of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, spoke to law grads and John Hopa Franklin, profes– sor emeritus of history at Duke University, addressed graduate students.