May 12, 2006

Carolina in the News

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

National Coverage

Evolution's Bottom Line (Opinion-editorial column)
The New York Times
The usefulness of scientific theories, like those on gravity, relativity and evolution, is to make predictions. When theories make practicable foresight possible, they are widely accepted and used to make all of the new things that we enjoy — like global positioning systems, which rely on the theories of relativity, and the satellites that make them possible, which are placed in their orbits thanks to the good old theory of gravity. ... Holden Thorp is chairman of the chemistry department at the University of North Carolina.

State & Local Coverage

Graduation boosts local economy
News Carolina 14
Years of hard work will pay off for thousands of college students this weekend when they don a cap and gown for their graduation. When you figure in parents and friends coming to support the graduates, that adds a pretty sizeable chunk to the expected attendance and will have a nice economic boost for retailers, restaurants and hotels in the Triangle. ... UNC-Chapel Hill Starts: 9:30 a.m. Place: Kenan Memorial Stadium Speaker: Wendy Kopp, president and founder of Teach for America.
Related Link: http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast.php?id=510037
Commencement Advisory: http://www.unc.edu/news/media/2006/commencement050906.htm
Commencement Tip Sheet: http://www.unc.edu/news/newstips/2006/commencement051106.htm

Going to a graduation? Here's some tips
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
This is it, Triangle college graduates. A few more speeches, lots of posing for pictures, the wait for your name to be called, and you're outta here. Whether you're graduating, going to a commencement ceremony or just trying to avoid the traffic, here's a guide for the next two days -- when seven Triangle schools will hold ceremonies. ... Times, Places and Main Speakers - UNC-Chapel Hill, 9:30 a.m. at Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill Speaker: Wendy Kopp of Teach for America.

Commencement information
The Chapel Hill Herald
More than 5,300 UNC students and about 25,000 friends, family and well-wishers will gather Sunday at 9:30 a.m. in Kenan Stadium for the university's spring ritual. If you're heading over there -- or just in the general neighborhood -- here's what you should know:

Police issue traffic warning
The Chapel Hill Herald
Police are asking drivers to be careful this weekend in Chapel Hill because two major events are taking place that will increase traffic in the area. Chapel Hill High School is holding its prom Saturday night, and UNC is holding is graduation ceremonies on Sunday. Roads will be congested, and many drivers attending the graduation ceremonies will not be familiar with the area.

Tour to show off library's treasures
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Student letters and diaries from the 19th century and a photograph of John F. Kennedy's visit to UNC-Chapel Hill in 1961 will be among the treasures showcased today in a free public tour of Wilson Library. The tour will begin in the library lobby at 3 p.m. The 90-minute guided tour celebrates the history of the university, its alumni and its donors.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2006/050806.htm

Capping It Off
The Chapel Hill Herald
Russell Peterson tries on cap for size as his mother, Ann Harold-Peterson, looks on Friday in the Student Union at UNC. UNC's commencement will be held Sunday. For information about graduation parking, please see Page 3.
Note: No link available. For a copy, email Todd at tvinyard@dev.unc.edu.

Seeking investors after canceled IPO
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Voyager Pharmaceutical, which is suing its former chief scientific officer because of a canceled initial public offering of stock, is trying to raise $40 million from investors. In a letter to shareholders, Patrick Smith, CEO of the Raleigh drug development company, says the money is needed to move toward completing final testing of experimental Alzheimer's disease treatment Memryte and bring the drug to market. ... Richard Kouri, an entrepreneur-in-residence at the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler Business School in Chapel Hill, said the company could have trouble getting cash from the venture capitalists who traditionally fund startup companies because they are more averse to risk than some investors.

FEMA's home (Opinion-editorial column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
As hurricane season approaches, proposals to reform, reinvent or eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency are blowing through Congress with gale force strength. Congress must take care, however, that in satisfying the need to respond to the Hurricane Katrina debacle, it refrains from taking action that actually damages our ability to deal with future disasters, whether they be caused by nature or man. ... David H. Schanzer is director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security at Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill.

Concert tickets go on sale
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Tickets for four upcoming concerts at larger summer venues go on sale this weekend. ... Resident Conductor William Henry Curry will conduct the North Carolina Symphony in a series of May concerts. Along with soloist John Ilika, the symphony's principal trombonist, the orchestra will perform at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, and at 8 p.m. May 20 at UNC Chapel Hill's Memorial Hall.

Man who drove SUV into UNC students writes to campus paper
The Associated Press (NC)
A man charged with trying to kill students at the University of North Carolina by driving through a popular campus gathering spot says in a series of letters he does not deserve punishment. Mohammed Taheri-Azar is accused of driving a Jeep Cherokee into a crowd of students March 3 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and hitting nine people. None had life-threatening injuries.
Related Link: http://www.wral.com/news/9203215/detail.html

Officials, families want accident to be remembered
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Each year, new members of UNC's Phi Gamma Delta get a stack of news clippings to remind them of one of the darkest days in the fraternity's, and the university's, history. "Five die in fraternity house fire," the newspaper headlines from May 13, 1996, announce. The day before, a massive blaze at the house claimed the lives of three fraternity members and two other UNC students. That also was the day of Carolina's commencement and Mother's Day.

Remembering the lessons of May 12 (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
At least in recent memory, it was one of the darkest days in the community's history. What should have been the most celebratory of occasions - Mother's Day and the university's commencement, together on the calendar - turned bleakly, unutterably tragic. Ten years ago this morning, smoke started rising from the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house on Cameron Avenue.
Note: No link available. For a copy, email Todd at tvinyard@dev.unc.edu.

Ex-health director dies at 88
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Dr. Jacob Koomen, North Carolina's top public health official in the 1960s and 1970s, died Wednesday after a battle with prostate cancer. He was 88. Koomen, who served as state health director between 1966 and 1978, is credited with laying the groundwork for much of the state's modern public health infrastructure. ... After stepping down as state health director, Koomen taught at the prestigious School of Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill until his retirement.

Issues & Trends

UNC study may target Wesleyan
The Rocky Mount Telegram
North Carolina lawmakers are considering a study that would look into adding N.C. Wesleyan College to the University of North Carolina system. "This is not the first time this has been brought up, but it's never been taken up in this regard," said Dr. Ian Newbould, Wesleyan College president. "Our entire board has embraced this idea."

Edwards to appear at NAACP event
The State (Columbia, S.C.)
Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards will be the keynote speaker at the state NAACP’s annual Freedom Fund Celebration on May 20 at Bible Way Church of Atlas Road in Columbia. ... Edwards, of North Carolina, was elected to the Senate in 1998 and was the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nominee in 2004. Edwards is the director of the Center on Poverty, Work, and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

NCCU mold case is settled
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The UNC Board of Governors agreed to the settlement Thursday after the parties participated in mediation late last month. UNC Board Chairman Brad Wilson said the decision to settle was reasonable because of the case's complexity. The involvement of three prime contractors, an architect and 15 subcontractors made it difficult to determine who had precise responsibility for the mold infestation.

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.

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