July 18, 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

Elite colleges go after low-income recruits
The Boston Globe
Three top colleges have experienced significant success attracting more low- income students to their campuses through generous financial aid offers and expanded recruiting. ...These schools and a handful of other elite colleges such as Yale University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are competing for the relatively small number of poor, but highly qualified students who can help redress the lack of economic diversity at private universities and flagship public institutions.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/feb05/covenant022105.html

Link between dairy, weight loss unclear
The Associated Press (National)
Got milk? And high hopes it will help you shed a few pounds? ...Barry Popkin, an obesity expert at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, praised Zemel as a good scientist, but said the dairy industry has overreached.

How much should precedent bind judges?
Christian Science Monitor
Whomever President Bush nominates to fill Sandra Day O'Connor's seat on the US Supreme Court will inherit enormous power immediately upon confirmation. ..."In a situation in which you can change the balance of the court, questions of stare decisis come to the forefront," says Michael Gerhardt, a constitutional law professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill.
UNC Tip Sheet: http://www.unc.edu/news/newstips/2005/oconnor070105.htm

Justice selection wait puts Senate in strange spot
Knight Ridder News Services
Just hours before Chief Justice William Rehnquist announced Thursday night that he had no intention of retiring from the Supreme Court, four senators - all women - wrote a letter to Justice Sandra Day O'Connor urging her to remain on the court and be ready to ascend to the chief's post should Rehnquist decide to quit. ..."They are particularly interested in trying to influence the outcome," said Michael Gerhardt, a law professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. "They're trying to find some place for themselves in this debate."

State & Local Coverage

Scholar's Midas touch boosts health care
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Gordon DeFriese describes himself as a fix-it man. ...DeFriese packed what remained of the institute into two cardboard boxes, which he loaded into his car and drove to his home base at the time, the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at UNC-Chapel Hill. He was a professor at UNC-CH from 1982 until this year.

Bill would make alcohol sales possible at UNC arts venues
The Chapel Hill Herald
Under current state law, the well-heeled arts enthusiasts who swoop into Chapel Hill this fall for an evening of ballet or chamber music at UNC's Memorial Hall can only quench their thirst with coffee, soda or other non-alcoholic drinks.

Rising costs not just commuter problem
The Chapel Hill Herald
Local pizza deliverers, taxi drivers, students and even town and university administrators are all scratching their heads and trying to figure out how to cope with the sharp increase in gas prices. ...Carolyn Elfland, associate vice chancellor for campus services, said the cost of providing the 400,000 gallons of fuel used by university vehicles has increased by $116,000 in one year.

Schools embrace the world
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Students from five Triangle school systems will shun the boundaries of their districts and their country next year as they sit side by side in a new public high school. ..."It's really going to be infused into their curriculum; it is going to be every day all day," said Millie Ravenel, director of the Center for International Understanding at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Summer programs promote local campuses
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
In the summertime, there are changes in campus ecologies that might catch you by surprise. ...Last week alone, the Korea Press Foundation occupied space at UNC-Chapel Hill, while the N.C. Center for Women in Public Service Summer Institute wrapped up the third of its training sessions at Peace College.

Williams denies approval of gifts at Kansas
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
UNC basketball coach Roy Williams expressed regret Saturday that an NCAA rules violation "evidently" occurred while he was the coach at Kansas.

Study: Pharmacist shortage sharpest in N.C.
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Short pharmacy staffs and heavy workloads that leave druggists overwhelmed are a problem nationwide, and in North Carolina it's worse than anywhere else, a labor-market study found. ...The number of pharmacists working in North Carolina retail stores increased about 20 percent between 1991 and 2003, according to data compiled by researchers at the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Believe It Or Not, '08 Governor's Race Already Heating Up
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Taking a page from NASCAR enthusiast Mike Easley, the gentlemen -- and at least one lady -- who want to succeed him have started their engines. ..."It's always been a man's game,'' said Thad Beyle, a gubernatorial expert at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With Perdue, "all of a sudden there's been a little more interest.''

Lawsuits, eye problems fail to stop surgeon
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Chris Shively, a Charlotte construction manager, developed back pain in the 1990s. ...The number of lawsuits and settlements, even when high, aren't evidence of incompetence, according to Dean Harris, a professor of health-care law and ethics at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Public Health.

Mom's Summertime Warnings Not Always Based In Science
WNCN-TV (NBC-Raleigh)
Remember what mom said would happen if you jumped in the pool right after lunch? ...Jeff Strickler, a University of North Carolina emergency medicine nurse, said while blood is diverted toward the gut during digestion, there's never been a documented case of drowning caused by swimming on a full stomach.

Defending the caveboy?
The Independent (Durham)
Adam Bergeron puts a lot on the line in A Guy's Tale, his solo show running through July 20 in UNC's Hamilton Hall. And that's to say the least.
Note: Adam Bergeron is a May 2005 graduate of UNC Chapel Hill.

Issues & Trends

College leaders' salaries swell
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The suggestion was so delicate that UNC system leaders floated it by legislators ahead of time: The next UNC president should be offered $500,000 a year.
Related Link: http://www.chapelhillnews.com/opinion/my_view/story/2598484p-9033558c.html

Williams, other coaches debate recruiting 'one-year' players
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Roy Williams spent three years recruiting Marvin Williams, but coached him for just one season before the freshman forward left Chapel Hill, N.C., for the NBA.

Government Partners With Universities To Track Foreign Students
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
More than 500,000 people from around the world come to study in the United States every year. About 10,000 come to North Carolina alone. ...In the Triangle, Duke is home to nearly 1,700 foreign students, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, more than 1,300 and North Carolina State, 1,500.

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/news/clips/index.shtml.

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