February 21, 2005

Carolina in the News

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

National Coverage

George Stephanopoulos interview with John Edwards
"This Week" ABC News
Now to our headliner, John Edwards....I visited with him yesterday at the University of North Carolina where Edwards is starting a new Center of Poverty, Work and Opportunity. He was blunt about last year's loss, his wife's treatment, and what the Democrats should do now.

Edwards to Head Poverty Center
"All Things Considered" National Public Radio
Former Sen. John Edwards began a new job this week at the University of North Carolina. The vice-presidential candidate will teach there and head a newly formed center designed to study poverty. But Edwards has shown signs he will seek national office again in 2008.

High-Tech Renaissance
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The University of North Carolina is paying Daniel A. Reed a whole lot of money -- more than its chancellor, more than its system president -- to start what he says will be "a halfway house for crazy ideas."

Panel to Advise Testing Babies for 29 Diseases
The New York Times
An influential federal advisory group plans to recommend in the next few weeks that all newborns be screened for 29 rare medical conditions...."It had a religiosity to it," said Dr. Michael Simmons, a professor of pediatrics at the University of North Carolina.
Registration required.

Military offering more, and bigger, bonuses
USA Today
Faced with a persistent demand for personnel in Iraq and elsewhere, the Army and some of the military's elite commando units have dramatically increased the size and the number of cash bonuses they are paying to lure recruits and keep experienced troops in uniform....Richard Kohn, a history professor at the University of North Carolina who studies the military, also has misgivings.

Last of the Confederates (Commentary)
The Boston Globe
Conservatives often complain, with good cause, about America-hating left-wing radicals in academia....There's a lot more, collected by University of North Carolina professor Eric Muller at www.isthatlegal.org.

To Discriminate or Not?
Inside Higher Ed
Religion was front and center on North Carolina campuses last week. At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a fraternity appears close to winning its battle to gain university recognition while limiting membership to Christians.

State & Local Coverage

Edwards makes debut at UNC law school
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/The Chapel Hill Herald
Sure, he's not technically a politician anymore, having given up his U.S. Senate seat for a failed bid for the White House....But John Edwards still knows how to work a room. The UNC School of Law's newest faculty member made a grand debut Friday, plunging deep into a crowd of law students with all the smooth and savvy of the veteran politician he was and may once again be.

John Edwards comes back to UNC-Chapel Hill
News, WUNC-FM
John Edwards is about to open the next chapter of his life in public service. The former Senator and Democratic Vice Presidential candidate is returning to UNC-Chapel Hill to head up the new Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity.

Edwards to begin bulk of work at UNC-Chapel Hill after wife's treatments
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Former vice presidential candidate John Edwards returned to his alma mater Friday to tell a crowd of supporters about the struggles of two impoverished women....These women represent both the problems and solutions Edwards will consider as director for the new Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he earned his law degree.

Edwards won't commit (Commentary)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
In an interview filmed Saturday at UNC-Chapel Hill, Edwards was asked whether he had told Sen. John Kerry, who chose him as his running mate last year, that he would not run for president next time if Kerry did.

University needs to mean what it says (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
If there's one lesson to be learned from UNC's recent appearances in court, it's this: universities should always say what they mean and mean what they say.

Could Jesus pledge? (Letter to the Editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
As a UNC alumnus who was actively involved with a campus Christian organization (Newman Catholic Student Center) in the mid-1980s, I can speak from experience regarding the value of welcoming students of other religious persuasions to our activities.

Students resist sports-fee hike
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The UNC-Chapel Hill athletics department is blue about its financial fortunes. The Rams Club surely isn't....John Montgomery, executive director of the Rams Club, said the scholarship fund may be the second- or third-richest in the country, but it's university policy not to withdraw more than 5 percent a year.
Related link: http://www.newsobserver.com/print/sunday/front/story/2143767p-8525536c.html

Educate for the state (Letter to the Editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Concerning tuition rates at UNC system universities, I don't know whether a rate hike is appropriate or not. What I do know is that I must take serious exception to the basic premises expressed in Rick Martinez' Feb. 16 column on the subject. Alas, Mr. Martinez seems to think that the sole purpose of a "first class" state university education is to benefit individual students.

In setback for Easley, Meek selected as N.C. Democrats' chairman
The Associated Press (N.C.)
North Carolina Democrats delivered a blow to Gov. Mike Easley on Saturday, choosing a favorite of local party activists over Easley's choice as state party chairman....Thad Beyle, a political science professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, agreed that Turlington's defeat was a mild embarrassment to Easley.

Textile job bleeding may get worse
News & Record (Greensboro)
Rose Wilson doesn't like being a statistic...."Layoffs have been incessant," says Patrick Conway, an economist at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Honorable Mentions
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Joe DeSimone, Kenan distinguished professor of chemistry and chemical engineering at UNC, has been elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering....UNC-Chapel Hill ranks first among U.S. academic institutions recognized as "best places to work for postdocs," according to The Scientist magazine.

Staffing at issue in group homes
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Group homes for mentally ill children will have to meet increased staffing requirements under a proposed rule that seeks to correct a problem that had the government paying for employees some homes never hired...."My personal opinion is, if you're going to run a good program, you need a good director that's going to be available all the time," said (Donald) Stedman, a clinical psychologist and a former dean of the UNC School of Education.

Though my first loyalty is to black-and-gold, blue is getting to me (Commentary)
Winston-Salem Journal
While thousands of students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill belt out the school's alma mater, I always wait until the next lines to chime in. I may be in my second semester at Carolina, but I will be the first to tell you that I was most certainly not born or bred a Tar Heel.

Red Clay ballet ambles into view
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
With a nod from the choreographer, Red Clay Ramblers music fills Studio A and two dozen dancers bound across the room in a mix of expressive movement and hoedown....On a recent afternoon, [Bland] Simpson wrapped up his day job as a professor of creative writing at UNC-Chapel Hill and dropped in on a Carolina Ballet rehearsal.

Issues & Trends

UNC aims to expand insurance options
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/The Chapel Hill Herald
Frustrated with the restrictions and expense of the health plan for state employees, the UNC system wants to create its own insurance program for its workers.

Produced by News Services, Carolina in the News is an e-mail sampling of current news media coverage about Carolina people and programs, as well as issues and trends that affect the university. Stories usually will be online and available free for a limited time - often one to two weeks. Expiration dates before stories move to archives vary by media outlet. Some outlets require free user registration or a subscription.

Carolina in the News is also posted daily to the News Services Web page, http://www.unc.edu/newsserv/clipsindex.htm.

Please share any questions, comments or suggestions at news@unc.edu.