Alumni Fountain Vandalism Costs University

From the Houstonian:

The Alumni Fountain between the Lowman Student Center and the Dan Rather Communications Building was vandalized again when unknown person or persons poured soap into the fountain last Thursday. The act of pouring soap in the fountain can be classified as a tradition that has become widely expected, but is also illegal.

The continuing prank of soap in the alumni fountain costs the university an estimated $500 each time. The fountain is usually a relaxed area of campus where many sit and talk or read amongst the flat bricks with the sound of the falling water in the background.

Over the years, this area is also where students, faculty or anyone passing by the fountain may notice soap in the water. When the prank occurs, the SHSU Physical Plant is notified. Men such as John Turman, Mike Yargo and Earl Carter, all workers for the Physical Plant are informed and begin the necessary work to fix the fountain. "It's something that they do," said Carter. "It's been going on for year and years and years; they think it's cute."

Everything from dish washing liquid to washing powder and even bubble bath has been added in the water fountain. "Sometimes students do leave the containers. Last time, we found some Tide and a Mr. Bubble container," said Yargo. The estimated $500 it takes to repair the fountain is subtracted from SHSU's general fund. "We have to drain it, refill it and put more chemicals in it," said Yargo. Despite the frequency of the vandalism, catching the responsible parties is difficult. "To my knowledge, no one has ever been caught," said Yargo.