February 3, 2003

Carolina in the News

Current National Coverage

Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina 
people and programs cited recently in the national media:

I.N.S. Extends Start Date for System Tracking Foreign Students
The New York Times
Backlogged in its efforts to give colleges approval to use a new electronic 
tracking system for foreign students, the Immigration and Naturalization Service 
has announced a two-week extension of the deadline for institutions to begin 
using the system. ... One of those institutions awaiting approval is the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "Clearly, if this continues much longer it's going 
to be a real nightmare," said Robert J. Locke, the director of the university's 
International Center. ...
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/02/politics/02VISA.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles.)

Bush tax plan's complications and costs (Commentary)
The Christian Science Monitor
Despite the plug President Bush gave his proposed $674 billion tax cut in his 
State of the Union address last week, Congress will likely shrink it. ... A member 
of Congress visiting constituents may have trouble trying to explain to a widow 
why some of her stock dividends are tax free, and some aren't, suggests Douglas 
Shackelford, a tax professor at the University of North Carolina, in Chapel 
Hill. ... 
http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/0203/p17s01-coop.html

Holes found in foster care fix
The Chicago Tribune
Thousands of abandoned and neglected children have been adopted since 1997, 
when lawmakers created financial incentives to encourage adoption and end the 
damaging, dizzying trek through the foster care system. ... Most adoptive families 
begin experiencing problems only after they have been together between three 
and seven years, said Richard Barth, an expert on dissolved adoptions from the 
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. ....
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0302020313feb02,1,2606347.story
(Note: The Chicago Tribune requires free registration to access articles.)

Economic recovery arriving (Commentary)
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Small and mid-sized businesses are the first to know when a recession is about 
to hit, and they usually see it coming about six months ahead of the goliaths and 
titans of industry. ... Consultant and author Verne Harnich, considered one of the 
top 10 minds in small business by Fortune Small Business magazine, says that for 
most firms, 2001 was a year of pure survival. ... At the Jamaica session, Harnich 
heard a presentation by Dr. James Smith, senior fellow and director of the 
Center for Business Forecasting at the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise 
at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. ...
http://enquirer.com/editions/2003/02/03/biz_dailygrind03.html

The Couch or the Potato? (Letter to the Editor)
The Washington Post
As a nutrition scientist I was perplexed by the conclusions drawn by Rob Stein 
in " 'Supersizing' Hits the Dinner Table; Study Traces Rise of Obesity to Larger 
Portions of Food Served at Home, Too" [news story, Jan. 22]. The main 
objective of the study, conducted by colleagues of mine at the University of 
North Carolina and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 
was to determine how portion sizes for certain foods have changed during the 
past 20 years in different locations where people eat ... 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8734-2003Jan31.html
(Note: Lisa Sutherland is a post-doctoral research fellow in The School of 
Public Health)

States' pact cuts college expenses
Baltimore Sun
By the time freshman Billy Hickey graduates from Middle Tennessee State 
University, his parents say, they will have saved more than $30,000, solely 
because they took advantage of a seldom-used pact that lets Maryland students 
pay in-state tuition at out-of-state schools. ... The other 12 states involved in the
venture - which offers Marylanders a combined 152 baccalaureate and graduate 
degree options - are Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, 
Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and 
West Virginia. ... Featured schools include ... University of North Carolina 
at Chapel Hill. ...
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/howard/bal-ho.market02feb02,0,7061985.story?coll=bal-local-howard

Turning point for Westchester's only black newspaper
The Journal News (NY)
The weather outside was once again cold and dreary, but inside his warm and 
cluttered Mount Vernon office, M. Paul Redd sat and smoked his second 
cigarette of the day. ... The mainstream news media was slow in acknowledging 
the integrity of the civil rights movement, according to Chuck Stone, a pioneering 
black journalist who was the first president of the National Association of Black 
Journalists. Stone, a professor at the University of North Carolina, credited the 
association with publicizing the need for a greater black presence in newsrooms
across the country. ...
http://www.nynews.com/newsroom/020103/a0101press.html

State and Local Coverage

'Owe it to them to learn from it' 
News and Observer
After dozens of space shuttle flights spanning 21 years, most Americans didn't 
evenrealize Columbia was scheduled to land Saturday morning. Patrick Smith of 
Beaufort did. His brother, Capt. Michael J. Smith, was among the seven astronauts 
killed when the space shuttle Challenger exploded 17 years ago last week. ... 
Former astronaut William E. Thornton, a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and a 
native of Duplin County, said one of his biggest concerns is that this second 
accident will force NASA to reduce its mission and vision. ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2161776p-2049605c.html
(Note: Officials from Carolina's Morehead Planetarium and Science Center also 
granted interviews over the weekend to some Triangle broadcast outlets regarding 
reaction to the Columbia disaster.)

Groups to develop plans for Carolina North
Chapel Hill News
University advisory groups charged with developing plans for the Carolina North 
project on the school's Horace Williams property start meeting this week, 
university officials announced. ...
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/2155551p-2045529c.html

Deadline nears on DOT Columbia Street improvements
Chapel Hill News
Chapel Hill Town Council members said they will press for plans to add bike 
lanes and sidewalks to South Columbia Street to start this year. ...
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/2155554p-2045570c.html

Eyeing the future, UNC buys two new sites 
The Herald-Sun
UNC is close to acquiring two pieces of property on the western edge of town 
that eventually could house a bus or train station. ... 
http://www.herald-sun.com/orange/10-316105.html

Health at heart of prevention press (Tar Heel of the Week)
News and Observer
In rapid-fire bursts of speech, without an "um" or an "uh," Meg Molloy explained 
how North Carolinians could be healthier. They have to believe it's their idea. ... 
She later obtained a master's degree from the School of Public Health at UNC-
Chapel Hill ... She returned to UNC-CH and earned a doctorate ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2161765p-2049636c.html

Study brings health tips to beauty salons (Question and Answer)
News and Observer
Public health researchers at UNC-Chapel Hill have a hunch about hair salons: 
Since women pick up beauty tips and talk there, salons could be great places for 
spreading the word about cancer and other health risks ... Laura Linnan, assistant
professor of health behavior and health education at the UNC-CH School of 
Public Health and a principal investigator, discussed the Bringing Education and 
Understanding To You project in an interview ... 
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2164739p-2052007c.html
(Note: For a UNC news release on this project, click here.)

N.C.'s elected support NASA 
News and Observer
North Carolina lawmakers with a direct role in NASA's funding and oversight said 
Sunday that they remain supportive of the space program but are prepared to ask 
tough questions about what caused the space shuttle Columbia's disintegration. ... 
The Triangle's economy also has a stake in NASA's future. Millions of dollars in 
grant money flow to area universities, including N.C. State University, UNC-
Chapel Hill and N.C. Central University. ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2165893p-2052044c.html

Regular Eye Exams Help Catch Glaucoma Early
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness, but many people worry they 
will not be able to tell if they have it. ... "People can go absolutely stone blind 
from glaucoma," said Dr. Sandra Johnson, an ophthalmologist at UNC 
HealthCare. ... 
http://www.wral.com/health/1944200/detail.html

How speakership almost got washed down the drain 
News and Observer
The N.C. Center for Public Policy Research has elected 
seven new members to its statewide 27-member board of directors. ... UNC-
Chapel Hill professor Sandra Greene was elected vice chairwoman ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2164733p-2052033c.html

Nursing teachers in short supply 
News and Observer
With the need for nurses expected to jump sharply in the coming decade, Margaret 
Skulnik needs only to look at her colleagues to know there is a problem. ... A similar 
program is also scheduled to begin this fall through the School of Nursing at UNC-
Chapel Hill using a a $200,000 grant from Golden LEAF, a nonprofit corporation 
designed to help distribute money from the settlement of tobacco lawsuits. ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2164734p-2052046c.html

Food pyramid needs adjustment (Commentary)
News and Observer
Despite a spit shine only two years ago, there's good evidence the government's
dietary guidelines for Americans -- as well as the companion Food Guide Pyramid
-- are already out of date ... 
http://newsobserver.com/features/story/2150060p-2041013c.html
(Note: Suzanne Havala Hobbs holds a doctorate in public health from UNC-
Chapel Hill where she is an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of 
Health Policy and Administration. Her column, "On the table," appears weekly 
in The News and Observer.)

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

The New Calculus of Diversity on Campus
The New York Times
At public universities in California and Texas, the end of affirmative action in 
admissions has benefited one minority: Asian-Americans. And if the Supreme Court 
decides later this year to limit or eliminate race-conscious admissions at the University 
of Michigan, Asian-Americans stand to gain far more than any other group, at least 
in proportion to their numbers in the general population. ...
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/02/weekinreview/02STEI.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles.)

New Topic in Black Studies Debate: Latinos
The New York Times
As hundreds of scholars get ready to gather in Harlem on Thursday night for a 
conference on the state of black studies, many find that suddenly their attention is 
turning to another topic: Hispanics. ...
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/01/arts/01STUD.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles.)

NIH Braces for Slower Funding Growth 
The Washington Post
With just hours left before President Bush lifts the veil from his 2004 budget request, 
the National Institutes of Health is bracing for a serious case of whiplash. That's 
what it's going to feel like, experts said, as the nation's largest funder of biomedical 
research ends its five-year run of 14 percent to 15 percent annual funding growth 
and hits the wall of a 2 percent increase, which sources inside and outside the 
government say Bush has settled upon. ...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12506-2003Feb1.html

Rail-splitting (Editorial)
News and Observer
The lukewarm view of some area developers toward putting up apartments,
retail stores and office buildings near projected stops for the Triangle Transit 
Authority's planned rail system may be understandable, but it would be good 
for the region if it heated up a bit as plans proceed. ...
http://newsobserver.com/editorials/story/2156884p-2046594c.html

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please call Cathleen Keyser or Mike McFarland at News Services, 
(919) 962-2091 or news@unc.edu or mike_mcfarland@unc.edu