The State from Columbia, South Carolina • 5

TA 62 SO The a State COLUMBIA SOUTH CAROLINA METRO Business B6 See SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2000 COLUMBIA TODAY B2 STATE BRIEFS B3 OBITUARIES B3 www.thestate.com SECTION Former Clemson president collapses at McCain rally, dies Bill Lee Atchley suffered a heart attack at rally, died at hospital By BILL ROBINSON and AARON SHEININ Staff Writers Former dent Bill Lee ternoon after at a campaign hopeful John Atchley, at an event Clemson University PresiAtchley died Friday afr suffering a heart attack rally for presidential McCain. 68, of Murrells Inlet, was in Litchfield Beach when he became dizzy and collapsed, Georgetown County Coroner Kenny Johnson said. Atchley had a history of cardiac problems, Johnson said. The Pawleys Island-Litchfield Res- Atchley cue Squad took Atchley Atchley to Georgetown Memorial Hospital, where Atchley was pronounced dead at 5:50 p.m. The rally was delayed as paramedics treated Atchley.

Those in attendance were later asked to pray for his recovery. Atchley served as president of Clemson University from 1979 until 1985. He later went on to serve in the same post at the University of the Pacific, a job he held from 1987 until he retired in 1995. He moved into Clemson's presidency from West Virginia University, where he was dean of the engineering college. He succeeded Robert C.

Edwards, who had been Clemson president for 23 years. Atchley's tenure was marked by efforts to remake Clemson's staid image as a small, regional agriculture college into a major land-grant university that emphasized research. He generally got mixed reviews for what he accomplished. When he arrived in 1979, private giving to Clemson was $2.5 million. By 1984-85, that figure tripled, but was short of what he had hoped to deliver.

Atchley's outspoken management style often attracted criticism within and outside the Clemson community. He also had the misfortune of guiding the Upstate school at a time when James B. Holderman was at the height of his political power and popularity as president of the University of South Carolina. During the latter part of his term at Clemson, Atchley found himself embroiled in an internal struggle with the university's athletics department, its fiercely loyal boosters and trustees. They were at odds over the football team being put on probation in 1982 and changes Atchley tried to make to fix those problems.

The friction over his stewardship of Clemson came to a head on March 1, 1985, when Atchley sought a vote of confidence from the university's 13- member trustee board. Some viewed it as an ultimatum, and trustees fired him. A native of Cape Girardeau, Atchley earned bachelor's and master's degrees in civil engineering from the University of Missouri. He received his Ph.D. from Texas University.

He also played professional baseball in the old New York Giants organization. He and his wife had three children together. WLTX-TV deploys new Doppler system WIS-TV says it plans to get one just like it later this spring By DOUG NYE Television Editor The weather war heated up Friday when WLTX-TV announced it is installing a new, improved live Doppler radar weather warning system next week under the guiding eye of its new chief meteorologist, Jim Gandy. Rival WIS-TV, which has had Doppler for several years now, said it will be matching the new system later in the spring. The outlook? Lots of blustery winds and rising temperatures.

Doppler radar enables a station to receive instant information about any area weather pattern. WIS-TV calls its existing system "Super Doppler." WLTX-TV will call its new radar "News 19 Dual Doppler." In any language, Dual Doppler means dueling Dopplers. WLTX-TV's system, atop the Lexington Medical Center, "gives us the ability to connect with another Doppler site," WLTX-TV general manager Rich O'Dell said. "In this case, we'll connect with a station in Atlanta. We'll have the ability to put both on display.

"We'll be able to track a storm system coming from the west and then pick it up on our own system when it moves into South Carolina." WIS will counter by adding the "Dual Doppler" capability by late April to its system on top of the Blue Shield building at I-77 and I-20. "The only thing I can say (to WLTX) is welcome to the neighborhood," said Jerry Grimes, director of development for WIS-TV. "We've SEE RADAR PAGE B5 Cayce's city manager, public safety chief quit Two top Cayce employees resigned Friday, but elected leaders didn't seem at all fazed by it. City manager John Hicks, who had held his job for three years, and Department of Public Safety chief George Brothers, who was hired by Hicks just four months ago, left the city amid wildly differing explanations. The city accepted Brothers' resignation, Mayor Avery B.

Wilkerson said Friday, but he couldn't say when the resignation became effective. He said Brothers had tendered his resignation in early February. Hicks delivered a resignation letter to City Hall late Friday, in which he said he intended to pursue other opportunities, Wilkerson said. Neither Hicks nor Brothers returned phone calls Friday. Hicks chose city treasurer Johnny Sharpe as acting city manager, Wilk- MORE CHANGES FOR PUBLIC HOUSING By and By RODDIE BURRIS Staff Writer Joy Patterson, at right, plays with her nephew, Raphael Capell, 6, at might be Allen-Benedict Court By CHUCK CRUMBO The Columbia Housing Authority Staff Writer will seek a grant to tear down Allen-Benedict Court and replace Another public housing community could face the fate of bulldozers.

it with a mix of single-family The Columbia Public Housing Auhouses and apartments. thority said Friday it will seek federal Slighs Saxon money to raze Allen-Benedict Court, Harden southern Railway Homes a Harden 59-year-old, Street. 244-unit complex on "If we don't go after it now and Drew Park be a missed opportunity," said Bobby wait two or three years later, it could Elmwood Gist, chairman of the housing authorAllen-Benedict ity commission. Read Court The commission voted to seek a grant for Allen-Benedict similar to one yeo Heidt it received in September to tear down Two neighboring Saxon Homes and replace Laurel Benedict it with a mix of 438 single-family College homes and apartments. The idea to revitalize Allen-BeneTaylor Allen dict has merit, said Thelma Minor, University president of the complex's community club.

Hampton "I believe it will be for the better," STEVEN A. STATE said Minor, who has lived with her USC logs on in election of student government By CHRISTINE SCHWEICKERT Staff Writer USC dumped its poll workers and paper ballots, boosted voting time by a day and a night and tallied a nearly 23 percent increase in during this week's student government elections. How? Online voting, which also raised the number of potential polling places from six to "You could vote anywhere that had a computer," said Woody Carothers, adviser to student government. "This year, if you had a computer with Internet access, you could vote anytime all night and all day." Clemson University tried a similar effort last year but allowed paper ballots, too. USC elections usually attract 2,200 to 2,300 voters, Carothers said Friday.

This time, the tally was 2,973, with one student casting a vote from as far away as California for executive officers and student senators. All students had to do was log on to the university's VIP site the same SEE ONLINE PAGE B5 JASON STATE, Allen-Benedict Court public housing complex. edict complex razed, replaced husband, James, in a three-bedroom The U.S. Department of Housing apartment at Allen-Benedict for more and Urban Development is expected than 50 years. "We're all lumped up to announce later this month or in in these old apartments." early March how much money for new Minor said the two-story apart- projects will be available under the ments cause problems for older resi- HOPE VI program.

dents. They have no central heat or air HOPE VI, which stands for Housconditioning, they have stairs, and they ing Opportunities for People Everyhave antiquated plumbing. where, is designed to get public there's a fear of change, ing agencies to tear down aging but sometimes change is for the bet- facilities and replace them with a mix ter," she said. "We've kind of felt this of single-family houses and apartwould eventually happen." ments that enhance the community as Housing authority staffers have well as spur economic growth. started relocating some of the 400 ten- When HUD offers details, the auants who live in Saxon Homes to make thority will apply for the money.

If the way for demolition, which is expected authority elects to replace Allen-Beneto start around Aug. 1. The $25.8 mil- dict with new housing, the project may lion Saxon Homes project will take cost $18 million to $20 million. about four years to complete. Allen-Benedict is a good location Hendley Homes on Rosewood for senior housing, said Dalton TrezeDrive is the third community sched- vant, regional director of U.S.

Rep. Jim uled to be razed. The 300-unit com- Clyburn, who noted Allen-Benedict plex, though, won't be replaced with has a large elderly population. new housing. The authority plans to "It would be a good project to comredevelop the 20-acre site for commercial use.

SEE HOUSING PAGE B5 SAT finals 2000 Eight schools that belong to the S.C. High School League will compete March 8 for state championship honors in the second annual SAT competition. Also, students who had the top individual scores in their respective classifications will vie for honors in a singles contest. Team finalists Class Christ Church Episcopal School of Greenville vs. Johnsonville High School.

Class AA: Chapin High School vs. Bishop England High School of Charleston. Class AAA: Dreher High School of Columbia vs. Southside High School of Greenville. Class AAAA: Lexington High School vs.

Spring Valley High School of Columbia Individual finalists Class Joshua Butler, Christ Church Episcopal School; and Brian Young Johnsonville High. a Class AA: Virginia Barton, Chapin High; and Jennifer Brady, Bishop England High. Class AAA: Katherine Mancuso, A.C. Flora High' in Columbia; and Paul Heider from Dreher High. Class AAAA: Joshua Foust, Lexington; and Fozail Alvi from Spring Valley.

SOURCE: S.C. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 4 Midlands schools to vie for SAT glory erson said. Sharpe said Friday morning that Hicks asked for personal leave time after the council met in executive session Wednesday morning. City Council member Rick Meyer also described Hicks' departure as a time for him to "make a decision about his career." Sharpe, who has worked for Cayce for 25 years, would not comment about the public safety chief's position Friday morning. At midday Friday, the Cayce Public Safety Department secretary said Brothers was still chief.

However, former public safety director A.G. Dantzler said Sharpe asked him to take over as acting public safety director Friday. Hicks and Brothers' departures continue a rash of exits from Cayce public service jobs. Former community development SEE CAYCE PAGE B5 3 The four teams are among eight that will compete March 8 By BILL ROBINSON Staff Writer The secret's out. Doing well on standardized tests starts with a breakfast of waffles and hash browns topped with cheese.

At least that's the unofficial training meal of Lexington High School's SAT competition team. "It's a good, traditional country breakfast. We have to do it every time," junior Susanna Brailsford said Friday after learning the Wildcats will defend their Class AAAA title. Brailsford and her 32 teammates celebrated the accomplishment during an assembly featuring an appearance by state education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum. Tenenbaum announced the eight teams that qualified for the March 8 finals, where champions in four classifications will be crowned.

The 30-minute gathering took on a pep rally atmosphere with cheerleaders and a motivational chant that senior J.R. Knight borrowed from the cross country team. "Giddyap, giddyap determina- tion," the team said in unison. Senior Kimberly Gross was team spokeswoman for the event and told students who were packed into the auditorium that the competition is changing stereotypes. "The SAT is one of those areas where it's OK to be smart and do well on standardized tests," she said.

Gross estimated she's taken the PSAT, the real SAT and the competition version a combined 15 times. "By experiencing it time and time again, you're not scared," she said. Junior Josh Foust earned individual honors. He had the top score among students who took the test in the Upper State semifinal round for Class AAAA schools. "When I came out, I was less enthusiastic.

I thought I had blown it. I was totally surprised," Foust said. Other Midlands schools in the finals are Spring Valley, Dreher and Chapin. Chapin senior Emily Purnell said the team looks forward to defending its Class AA title. "We had a lot of fun last year," Purnell said.

"This is our chance to go back and prove that our win wasn't a fluke, and we can do it again." Chris Jones, a senior at Dreher, is, SEE SAT PAGE B5.