Rhode Island Hero, 6/28/05 - A surprise 4 a.m. attack by the abnormally large octopus Lusca was thwarted today with the help of just a dozen plucky young heroes, oddly including the new administrator of Paragon City's newest private school.

Dr. Harold Crow was seen flying around the beast, with beams of light shooting straight from his eyes. Just three weeks ago, Crow was diagnosed with an indefinite comatose state in Founder's Falls, with no past record of superhuman tendencies.

Still, onlookers agreed that he flew circles around Lusca, literally, as if monster hunting was second nature.

The attack in Independence Port interrupted an undercover investigation conducted by Postmodernprof, a schoolteacher who wore armor plating recovered from the Freakshow gang. Heroes raced against the clock to defeat Lusca before Postmodernprof's disguise fell apart.

Lusca felled many heroes, most of which had not even reached a security clearance level of 25. A few wily empaths and others were able to quickly revive their comrades and maintain the pressure on the beast.

Among the ranks of the vanguard was Temp Aurealis, a pupil of Super Heroes for Hire leader Temp Extremes, who said he was too exhausted after the battle to discuss recent talks between PLC and his own employer.

Shortly after Lusca fell into the depths of the bay, emergency response and research teams arrived to take samples and clean up damage to the area. Lusca has been known to excrete a murky, thick ink that can burn to the touch and poison water sources.

"That thing is a menace. It's stuff like this that keeps us on strike," commented Leroy, a union dock worker who protests the continued inaction of the Paragon Waterworks.

Though Lusca escaped officials once again, every victory creates a peaceful break as it licks its wounds before the next attack.

[Ed: See photos of the battle in our PLC Newsmakers gallery.]

Paragon Post, 6/16/05 - Atlas Park has fallen under a deafening wave of whispers, as rumors spread of some key city players and an enormous property deal connected to the recent reactivation of Paragon City's privatized liberal arts university.

Like his dear Paragon Liberal College, Dr. Harold Crow was once as dormant as an ancient volcano. Since his revival, however, he has been seen wheeling, dealing and allegedly flying all over Atlas Park to get his school reactivated.

"He's been there for three days," said one hero who spotted Dr. Crow in front of 114 Reynolds Way, a complex that is reportedly in talks to become the new PLC headquarters.

Such feats of administration are reportedly fueled with the help of large local supergroups such as the Digital Defenders, while other sources including the Conglomerate and Mayor Morales himself have made no public statement to date.

"Everything is moving along fine," Dr. Crow said one week ago. "We really appreciate the community's help in piecing our programs back together, and it's great to see such a wonderful new batch of superheroes emerge since the war."

Crow did not serve in the 2000 Rikti War, though he was tallied among the collateral damages at his former office in Astoria.

The new Paragon Liberal College is still in the process of forging new partnerships and building a new staff in spite of its tragic devastation.

Paragon Parent Weekly - Just weeks into Dr. Harold Crow's return as president of Paragon Liberal Colleve, parents and residents have sharply criticized some of his appointments to the private school's board of directors.

At the top of the controversial list is Director of Student Affairs Ari Anderson, whose demonic appearance has been an upshot to more conservative members of the community. Anderson has suffered numerous character attacks since she arrived in Paragon City, but her appointment has inspired the most vicious attacks yet.

"I have been selected to do a job, and I am looking forward to seeing it done well," she told reporters.
In the meanwhile, a different kind of controversy is raging around Crow's choice of former sports agent Jim Jones as the school's new athletic director.

Jones spent years managing basketball players until he found fame and fortune organizing superhero fights - a business that eventually got him in some trouble with the wrong heroes. Jones and Crow deny the onslaught of die-hard sports geeks who are whispering disbelief in Jones' experience or ability to manage students.

Crow assured ESN3 that Jones would provide PLC students with physical and mental challenges, and not obstacles.

Crow's other recent selection have caused less fervor, including Director of Finances Ms. Hanasawa, a PLC accountant before the war, and former dean of fine arts Russell Garison. Garison's appointment was in fact a great relief to many alumni who fondly recall their time at PLC.

Jermaine Garvis, a human who graduated from Paragon Liberal in 1998, took the news with a spot of confusion.

"There are so many new faces coming in... I don't know if I'll recognize anyone at the next reunion," he exclaimed.

Crow is still assembling the other half of his faculty, with a few undisclosed members still in negotiation.

Philedelphia Daily News, 6/5/05 - Rhode Island spokeshero Statesman had some heartbreaking news at a press conference this morning, when he announced that the reactivation of Paragon City University would take more time than previously expected.

"Current resources are to be spread," said Statesman, describing multiple attempts toward reassembling the school's once-grand curriculum and staff.

Though the university may be completely rebuilt in this fall, Statesman said students should expect to wait a few more months before they can return to the classroom and start developing trade skills again.

Students back in Paragon City, RI, were disappointed at the news.

"Unversity? You realize that is also one of the higher forms of committees! Not to mention all the grant writers need to gear up, supplies, lawyers to approve the different forms to sign, and etcetera," said Zine, a super-powered private instructor.

Many students were still enrolled in PCU when the Rikti War broke out in 2000, protected by federal laws against military drafting. When the Rikti infantry invaded the Steel Canyon district toward the end of the war, however, the university was directly under fire, and student drafting immunity was indefinitely put on hold.

Many students, some extremely unprepared for combat, were immediately enlisted for front-line combat against the vicious aliens. Both local and federal powers suffered heavy criticism for turning students into soldiers.

Statesman said little else about the progress of PCU, and there was no mention of whether young superheroes would again receive their draft immunity when the school is reinstated.

Despite the delay, some are just relieved to see the university construction site again.

"I'm amazed things are running this fast as they are!" said Zine.

Paragon Post, 6/8/2005 - Dr. Harold Crow, a native son of Paragon City and former president of Paragon Liberal College, just yesterday awoke from a vegetable-like state that has lasted for nearly five years.

Doctors say Crow's first few disoriented questions were about family, friends and the war, though he seemed most concerned about the state of his institution.

The Rikti War devistated much of PLC's two campus branches, once located in Astoria and The Hollows. Both have been declared hazard zones since the war, Astoria covered in a thick ashen mist and the Hollows scoured by gangs such as the Trolls.

None of Crow's former colleagues or students could be contacted upon his revival, though librarians are currently finding them listed in civic records - many as casualties of the Rikti conflict.

Though Crow has quickly recovered his health since waking yesterday morning, Aquarius Hosptial doctors were confused at some of his symptoms, including a new pale blue shade of skin. He was discharged within a day, to recover what remains of a life and family he left behind.

"The first steps will be to recollect what friends I can find, and hopefully rejoin or reactivate the university," he told reporters. "The Rikti can strike at our well-being, but they can't defeat education."

Crow was first admitted in 2001, when the Rikti bombardment of Astoria crushed PLC administrative buildings. He was quickly transferred out of the area, to his home Founders Falls district.