January 15, 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:

Under this plan, 'dumb jock' may be an oxymoron
The Christian Science Monitor 
If the chief of the most powerful organization in college sport has his way, the 
national momentum toward education reform will find a new and unusual target:
dumb jocks. ... "If the new academic rules render top players ineligible, we'll 
see whether that resolve is still there," says David Knight, a chemist at the 
University of North Carolina and a former NCAA official. ....
http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/0115/p01s02-ussc.html

IBM bestows grants for e-gov, performance management study
Washington Technology
The IBM Endowment for the Business of Government has awarded grants to 
16 scholars throughout the United States for research in e-government and 
performance management, the organization announced Jan. 14. ... The e-gov 
grant winners are: ... Carolyn Heinrich, assistant professor of public policy 
at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill ...
http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/1_1/daily_news/19826-1.html

Pleasure Reading
The Chronicle of Higher Education
... James L. Peacock, professor of anthropology at the University of 
North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of The Anthropological Lens: 
Harsh Light, Soft Focus (Cambridge University Press, second edition, 2001): 
"Revealing my reading diet is like dissecting the stomach of a scavenger: variety, 
not all appetizing and not all "for pleasure" only, but I take pleasure in just about 
all reading ..."
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i19/19b00401.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to 
access articles.)

Mightier Than the Sword
The Chronicle of Higher Education
A privately financed effort to send books to American troops overseas has 
come under fire for what some are calling jingoistic choices. ... So The 
Chronicle asked nine scholars what books they would recommend to soldiers 
... Catherine Lutz, a professor of anthropology at the University of North 
Carolina at Chapel Hill: Ms. Lutz offers ideas for "fiction and poetry that 
most soldiers will find more compelling than Shakespeare": Joseph Heller's 
Catch-22; Johnny Got His Gun, by Dalton Trumbo; and War Poems, edited 
by John Hollander. ...
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i19/19a00601.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to 
access articles.)

State and Local Coverage

N.C. opens national window to free health information 
The Herald-Sun
A vast array of free health information was unveiled to North Carolina residents 
Tuesday in a landmark Internet pilot project designed to ultimately streamline all 
Americans’ access to medical knowledge. ... Specialists at the UNC Health 
Sciences Library and the university’s School of Information and Library Science
labored for many months to create the community-specific information in 
www.nchealthinfo.org. ... 
http://www.heraldsun.com/orange/10-309432.html

UNC Survey Details Impact Of Recent Ice Storm
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
December's ice storm left more than one million people in the dark for days. A 
survey from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill sheds some light on 
how the storm affected people and businesses in the state. ... 
http://www.wral.com/news/1908447/detail.html
(Note: This coverage was the result of a UNC news release, 
http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan03/stormsurv011403.html.
Other coverage includes News 14 Carolina (Time Warner, Raleigh),
http://rdu.news14.com/content/top_stories/?ArID=21477.)

SAS grant helps research into HIV 
News and Observer
Dr. Joseph J. Eron, core clinical director of the Center for AIDS Research 
at UNC-Chapel Hill, used to spend hours scanning individual patients' paper 
medical records, searching for clues about which therapies were working best 
for HIV- infected patients treated at UNC's clinics. A $600,000 software grant 
and technical assistance from Cary-based SAS Institute helped UNC get 
organized. ...
http://newsobserver.com/business/story/2097786p-2001104c.html

BTI bets on affinity over advertising 
News and Observer 
BTI is counting on school pride to boost demand for its telephone services. The 
Raleigh company has partnered with at least nine universities in five Southeastern 
states, including UNC-Chapel Hill and N.C. State University, to help promote 
itstelecommunications offerings ... "There's no work or onerous responsibility for 
usto do anything from our end," said Gary Sobba, general manager of Tar Heel 
Sports Marketing, which has the multimedia-rights contract for UNC athletics 
and arranged the deal with BTI last year. ... 
http://newsobserver.com/business/story/2097784p-2001084c.html

Roses and Raspberries
Chapel Hill News 
.... Roses to former UNC basketballer Jerry Stackhouse for creating an awards 
program in his hometown of Kinston to recognized students for classroom 
achievement. ... 
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/opinion/story/2095674p-1999620c.html

A school without grades 
News and Observer
Christa Noyes arrives at her desk shortly before 8 a.m., sits near a computer and 
flips through her notebook to check her work schedule. ... Tom Oppewal, a 
clinical professor in the education department at UNC-Chapel Hill, says another 
problem with testing is that it puts too much pressure on teachers. ...
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/2097705p-2001195c.html

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

Admissions Preferences Given To Alumni Children Draws Fire
The Wall Street Journal
With two cases challenging affirmative action at the University of Michigan 
pending before it, the Supreme Court will soon decide the fate of race-based 
preferences in college admissions. But the cases also may affect the future of a 
longer-standing kind of preference: the one favoring children of alumni. The 
legacy preference, as it is known, is nearly as widespread as those based on 
race and ethnicity. ... One Democratic presidential hopeful, Sen. John Edwards 
of North Carolina, is calling for an end to legacy preferences. ... 
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1042580441793521864,00.html?mod=todays%5Fus%5Fpageone%5Fhs
(Note: The Wall Street Journal requires a subscription to access articles.)

Bush May Intervene in Affirmative Action Case
The New York Times
President Bush has asked administration lawyers to present him with a brief 
arguing that the University of Michigan's programs for using race in admission 
decisions go too far, officials said today. ... 
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/15/politics/15AFFI.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles.)

Kinnaird-Lee race costliest in county history
Chapel Hill News
When Howard Lee won his state Senate seat back in 1996, he spent more than 
$125,000. Running in the two-member District 16, Lee was joined on the victorious 
Democratic ticket by Carrboro Mayor Ellie Kinnaird who spent about $30,000 ... 
Thad Beyle, a Chapel Hill political science professor who specializes in state and
local politics, said the move toward high priced consultants and big media buys is 
a growing trend in local races. ... 
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/2095701p-1999644c.html

Note: If you have any questions about Carolina in the News, 
please call Cathleen Keyser or Mike McFarland at News Services, 
(919) 962-2091 or news@unc.edu or mike_mcfarland@unc.edu