Oct. 18, 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

New Class of Drug Adds Options for Diabetics
The Los Angeles Times
Federal regulators Tuesday approved a new class of oral drugs for Type 2 diabetes that is as effective as most existing treatments and avoids common side effects, such as dangerously low blood sugar...But Dr. John Buse, director of the diabetes center at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and president-elect of the American Diabetes Assn., said it was still uncertain how valuable the drug would prove to be.

One-a-day pill OK'd for Type 2 diabetes
The Boston Globe
"The concern always has been that the regulation of some of those hormones may be very important in subsets of patients that we don't yet understand," said Dr. John Buse, director of the Diabetes Care Center at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and president-elect of the American Diabetes Association.

Fatal Flaws in American Health Care (Opinion)
ABC News
… Lost amid the debate over a new system of health care, and whether it would or would not save money and would or would not serve everyone more equally, are the two fatal flaws in the U.S. health-care system...Dr. Nortin Hadler is a professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of "Last Well Person: How to Stay Well Despite the Health-Care System" published in 2004 by McGill University Press.

State and Local Coverage

Treatment option allowed gun buy
The Associated Press (N.C.)
The difference between those who get involuntary and voluntary treatment often is small, but it can have potentially huge consequences, said Mark Botts, a law professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

The Curse of Cast
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM (Chapel Hill)
Host Frank Stasio speaks with William Andrews, co-editor of “The Curse of Caste; or The Slave Bride: A Rediscovered African American Novel” (Oxford University Press/2006), about what many consider to be the first novel ever published by a black American woman.
Note: William Andrews is Dean of Arts and Sciences and an English and Comparative Literature professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/oct06/collinsbook101806.htm

Bland Simpson will lead tour
The Chapel Hill Herald
UNC associate professor Bland Simpson, who has written several books about North Carolina, will lead a walking tour of the Old Chapel Hill Cemetery Oct. 30 at 11 a.m. Simpson's free public tour will begin, rain or shine, at the gazebo on the cemetery's west side. It will last 35-45 minutes and include a variety of university history and lore. Participants are encouraged to wear good walking shoes.
UNC News Brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2006/101606.htm

The practice of poetry
The Chapel Hill News
For a guy who first broke into print with a second-place prize in the Washington Post's "Worst Poetry Contest," Roy Jacobstein writes some awfully good poetry...Jacobstein, who daylights as an adjunct professor of maternal and child health at the UNC School of Public Health, will read from his work Saturday at McIntyre's Fine Books in Fearrington Village.

Long Leaf opens with Barber opera
The Chapel Hill News
Long Leaf Opera, the professional company that moved its base of operations from Durham to Chapel Hill last year, will open its 2006-07 season this weekend with Samuel Barber's "Vanessa." Performances are scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday in Memorial Hall on the UNC campus.

Board ruling goes against Knight
The Rocky Mount Telegram
State law dictates that Knight's removal as a voter in Rocky Mount Ward 1 immediately makes his seat vacant, said David Lawrence, an expert on state and municipal law at the Institute of Government at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

Issues and Trends

ECU seeks a dental school
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
ECU submitted its proposed dental curriculum this month to the 16-campus University of North Carolina system for consideration, and the Board of Governors could vote to approve the new program at its Nov. 10 meeting.

Some dentists question proposed dental school at East Carolina
The Associated Press (N.C.)
The dental society has not endorsed or officially opposed the plan, but survey results showed that 50 percent of members oppose the plan, 25 percent support it and the rest are undecided, [Dr. Rex] Card said. Most of the state's dentists were trained at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the only dental school in the state, which the society supports expanding.

Task force approves UNC cap to keep tuition affordable
The Daily Bulletin (Tryon, N.C.)
The University of North Carolina is proposing a cap on tuition hikes to keep tuition affordable after recent increases. task force for the UNC board of governors approved a proposed tuition cap at a meeting last week. The full board was expected to consider the cap at a meeting today.

Well-cared-for pay (Letter to the Editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
UNC health system executive William Roper's base salary last year was only $489,030, so this paltry sum was augmented by a bonus of $110,010 (news story, Oct. 13). At least two other administrators reportedly received bonuses of over $100,000.

University needs outsourcing policy (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
While the trend started with large corporations, it has been wending its way throughout the economy. In recent years, for instance, local school districts have looked at outsourcing custodial and cleaning functions. Now it's the UNC School of Dentistry.

Don't allow outsourcing of valuable UNC employees (Letter to the Editor)
The Daily Tar Heel
The laying off of UNC employees, including some with several decades of service to the University, should only happen in the absolute direst of financial circumstances.

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.