NEWS

Local angles: Chapel Hill; Lévis, Québec

Photo note: To download a photo of Dubé, see end of release.

To access the main story, go to UNC News Release No. 661

Rhodes Scholar, stuck on the road, barely makes interview in time to win

CHAPEL HILL -- Karine Dubé is one Rhodes Scholar who almost did not get off the road in time to win the honor.

Scheduled to fly early Thursday (Dec. 5) to her native Canada for Rhodes selection interviews, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill senior awakened to a world covered with ice, crippled by downed trees and massive power outages.

Somehow, an airport shuttle managed to pick her up in Chapel Hill. But the trip to Raleigh-Durham International Airport was none too smooth.

"It was like an obstacle course," Dubé said late Saturday (Dec. 7) by phone from Montreal, where she had just been notified of her selection as a 2003 Rhodes Scholar to England's Oxford University.

She made it to the airport but had missed her intended flight. Her immediate concern: A reception that evening in Montreal with 14 other Rhodes finalists in the province of Québec and members of the selection committee for the province.

"It's a crucial part of the evaluation process," said UNC English professor Dr. George Lensing, interim director of distinguished scholarships and coordinator of UNC's Rhodes nominees.

In a stressful day at RDU, "I rescheduled my itinerary three times," Dubé said. At last, she made it onto a flight to Toronto, with a connecting flight to Montreal. She reached Montreal in the wee hours of Friday morning, having missed the reception but still scheduled for her individual interview with the selection committee at 4:30 p.m. that afternoon.

Possibly, the apparent disadvantage was something of a leg up. She hadn't been able to meet the other candidates and learn about the excellent qualifications of her competition. When the time came for her interview, she said, "I was surprisingly calm. When you're tired, it's almost better, because you don't realize the significance of what you're about to do."

- 30 -

Photo: To download a mug shot of Dubé, click to http://www.unc.edu/news/pics/students/dube_karine.jpg

News Services contact: L.J. Toler,  919-962-8589, laura_toler@unc.edu.