February 13, 2004

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

National Coverage

The Winter of Discontent
Science Magazine
When it opened in 2000, the Rhône-Alpes Genopole was supposed to ride a biotech wave generated by the sequencing of the human genome....One such émigré is Franck Polleux. After a postdoc stint at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and 2 years at an INSERM unit in France, the 34-year-old neuroscientist was offered a start-up package 15 months ago by the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and has since raised enough funds to keep his six-member team's research on neuronal connections going for another 5 years.

Almanac for Friday, Feb. 13
The Chicago Tribune
In 1795 the University of North Carolina became the first U.S. state university to admit students with the arrival of Hinton James, who was the only student on campus for two weeks.
(Note: This National Associated Press piece appeared in many national papers.)

State & Local Coverage

Gray-Little tapped for A&S dean
The Daily Tar Heel
Top-ranking universities across the nation have attempted to lure Executive Associate Provost Bernadette Gray-Little away from UNC for years.
Related link:
The Herald -Sun

Panel studying UNC crunch
The News & Observer
The uncomfortable question about whether to raise tuition again at the state's 16 public universities comes down to academic quality versus affordable access, members of the UNC Board of Governors said Thursday....UNC-CH Provost Robert Shelton rattled off the names of star faculty who have left for salary increases of $55,000 to $65,000.
Related link:
The Charlotte Observer

UNC says tuition increase needed to keep faculty
The Herald-Sun
At UNC Chapel Hill, officials are hoping a finance professor won't leave for the University of Michigan, even if the midwestern suitor is wooing her with a $55,000 bump from her current salary.

Aid program gets Williams' support (Editorial)
The Daily Tar Heel
UNC men's basketball coach Roy Williams and his family have pledged $100,000 to the Carolina Covenant, a new initiative at UNC to allow low-income students to graduate debt-free.

UNC Summer Reading Committee Hopes To Inspire Discussion, Disagreement
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill summer reading assignment has gained national attention for its controversy....Jan Bardsley chairs the selection committee. She said five books are finalists, and the final choice is expected in two weeks.

Preserve house, but preserve the Arts Common, too (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
UNC's campus master plan has sparked lots of controversy over the past four years, but one aspect that's had solid support is the idea of building an "Arts Common" in the area around Hill Hall, the Ackland and the Hanes Art Center.

Issues and Trends

Made in Tarheelia (Editorial)
The News & Observer
Virtually all North Carolinians have felt the economic tremors rippling around the globe. Even those who have held onto their jobs are rattled by the new realities that have cast so many neighbors into the unemployment lines.

Placing a bet on biotech (Editorial)
The Durham Herald-Sun
A study lauding biotechnology as a linchpin of North Carolina's future makes a case for more state aid to help the emerging industry take root. But like any other directed economic development, there is a substantial risk. The state might be making the right call -- or not.

UNC Board of Governors takes NCCU hard-hat tour
The Durham Herald-Sun
Two N.C. Central University residence halls shuttered due to a mold infestation will reopen this fall -- at a much lower cost than originally anticipated, university officials confirmed Thursday.

Note: If you have any questions about Carolina in the News, please call Russell Campbell at News Services, (919) 962-2091, russell_campbell@unc.edu, or Mike McFarland in University Communications, mike_mcfarland@unc.edu

Note: Web links on this page are time-sensitive, so stories might not be available after the day they first appeared.