September 23, 2002

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:

But What About the Squirrels? 
The Washington Post
While the U.S. News & World Report rankings are arguably the best-known and most controversial, 
there are plenty of other ways to measure the college experience, from Seventeen magazine's "Schools 
With More Guys Than Girls" to the Princeton Review's list of colleges where "Students Pray on a 
Regular Basis." Here's a variety of ranking systems, the number one school according to each survey, 
where that school placed on the U.S. News listing of national universities with doctoral programs, and, 
if available, comments about the school... KIPLINGER MAGAZINE'S Top 100 Values in Public 
Colleges: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (tied for 28th)...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47124-2002Sep21.html

Can We Find an Anthem for 9/11?
The Chronicle of Higher Education
In the last year, many popular musicians have tried to produce a song accessible to all ears, yet also able 
to resonate with the overwhelming emotions of September 11. But no such anthem has appeared. Why 
not? One answer is that the popular idiom is simply too shallow to express what needs to be expressed. 
Lawrence Grossberg, professor of cultural studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has 
speculated that "the emotions people have toward the events of September 11 are too complicated to 
be captured in a pop song." 
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i05/05b01601.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to access articles.)

Listening to Islam (Opinion-Editorial Column)
The Boston Globe
When Michael Sells' interpretation of the Qur'an recently landed him in the middle of a noisy national 
debate, it was an unlikely position for a professor of comparative religion who specializes in the 14th-
century mystic poet Ibn `Arabi... The 53-year-old Sells is the author of ''Approaching the Qur'an: The 
Early Revelations,'' a sympathetic account of the sacred book of Islam that was assigned this past 
summer to incoming freshmen at the University of North Carolina.
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/265/focus/Listening_to_Islam+.shtml

Web site promotes academic freedom 
The Bloomington (Ill.) Pantagraph
John Wilson is not one to shy away from an argument. The topic of his latest battle suggests that's a
fitting trait.... Conservative groups tried to stop the University of North Carolina from requiring 
freshmen to read and discuss passages from the Quran, Islam's holy book. The assignment went 
forward.
http://www.pantagraph.com/stories/092202/new_20020922037.shtml

PROFILES IN PORK: Medical University of South Carolina: Hollings Cancer Center
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Earmarks have paid for cancer research, including a major expansion of the university's Hollings Cancer 
Center. The $39.9-million expansion project, to be completed in 2005, will more than double the center's 
space... However, some question whether earmarked funds are the best way to meet such needs. "You 
could take that same money, probably, and put it in a place like [the University of North Carolina at] 
Chapel Hill, and we would fly with it," says Joseph S. Pagano, a professor of cancer research at Chapel 
Hill and the director emeritus of its cancer-care center.
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v49/i05/05a02302.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to access articles.)

Doctor’s holistic approach heart-felt 
Dayton (Ohio) Daily News
When the cardiologist sent Carol Georges home to live out her few remaining months, her heart was 
pumping out 15 percent of its volume with each beat... But hostility was the behavior most strongly 
correlated with heart disease, in research from Ohio State University, the University of North Carolina 
and others.
http://www.activedayton.com/ddn/local/daily/0923heartcare.html

Youth coaches say football is safe environment
Boulder (Col.) Daily Camera 
The death of a 10-year-old tackle football player in Bartlett, Ill., recently raised a familiar concern 
regarding the age children should be allowed in pads and helmets... The Annual Study of Football 
Injuries conducted by Frank Mueller, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina, reported one football-
related death of a youth player in 2001. 
http://www1.dailycamera.com/bdc/sports/article/0,1713,BDC_2398_1432692,00.html

Regional Coverage

Restricted teen driver licenses start Oct. 1 
Huntsville (Ala.) Times Staff
Tough luck for would-be drivers who aren't 18 by Oct. 1. By virtue of their birthdate, they won't be 
eligible for a driver's license that lets them go wherever they want, whenever they want, with whomever 
they want... That said, ''something is better than nothing,'' said Rob Foss, a teen driving specialist with 
the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center. 
http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/news/1032686173273970.xml

State and Local Coverage

Sigh of relief from campus over state budget
Chapel Hill News
Three months into the new fiscal year, the General Assembly passed a state budget that includes a 
nearly 3 percent cut in the university budget. It also keeps Horace Williams Airport open until 2005 and 
gives the legislature greater oversight of development on the Horace Williams tract. UNC-Chapel Hill 
Provost Robert Shelton said the university fared well in the budget, considering the tough economic 
conditions that have tapped state revenues.
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/1755230p-1763303c.html

State universities feel the pinch 
News and Observer
In the basement of Whitener Hall at Appalachian State University, 24 students sat in a circle in their 
freshman seminar to relive memories of Sept. 11 and debate the question, "Has America really changed?"... 
UNC campuses actually fared better than expected, with a 2.9 percent cut in the budget passed by 
the General Assembly last week, but the pinch is still felt across the system. "The problem with the cuts," 
said UNC system Vice President for Finance Jeff Davies, "is we've had repeated cuts over a series 
of years."
http://newsobserver.com/news/nc/story/1755105p-1765752c.html

Budget cuts are deep, serious, not fatal 
News and Observer
For students, mental health patients and poor children without health insurance, the new state budget 
proved as generous as many had hoped for in the midst of a dire financial crisis.
http://newsobserver.com/news/nc/story/1755105p-1765751c.html

Budget woes not over 
News and Observer
Lawmakers finished work Friday on one of the most difficult budgets in decades, but no one celebrated 
the accomplishment because their patchwork approach may create even more money problems next year... 
James F. Smith, a professor of finance at the Kenan-Flagler School of Business at UNC-Chapel Hill, 
agreed.
http://newsobserver.com/news/story/1750423p-1762190c.html

After Major Defeat, Easley Comes Out on Top in Budget
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
It's not rocket science to figure out the rejection of a lottery referendum in the state House last week 
was a sound defeat for Gov. Mike Easley. So how did he soar again so fast?.. "He kind of seems to 
be Johnny One Note, and that one note is the lottery," said Thad Beyle, a political science professor 
at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 
http://www.wral.com/news/1681239/detail.html

Cheaters find it’s easy to get caught, too 
The Herald-Sun
Hamilton McNutt didn’t even know he was cheating. While writing a term paper on the Argentine 
economy, the UNC junior took a snippet from an online journal and paraphrased it... "I think the days 
when the student would go to the library, get a book, read it and cite passages of are long over here. 
The vast amount of research is electronic now, particularly at the undergraduate level," said David 
Gilbert, an associate dean of students who works with the university’s student judicial system. 
http://www.herald-sun.com/orange/10-269355.html
(Note: This article was picked-up by the Associated Press and featured in today's Charlotte Observer.)

UNC-CH pushes students to broaden horizons (Question and Answer)
News and Observer
Students and faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill will have an opportunity Tuesday to find out more about the 
230 study abroad programs offered in 64 countries. Program representatives and past participants will 
be at the 15th annual Study Abroad Fair in the Great Hall of the Frank Porter Graham Student Union. 
The hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Robert Miles, who came to Chapel Hill two years ago from Scotland 
to oversee the study abroad program, talks about a new push across campus to give undergraduates 
greater opportunities to see the world while they are in college. 
http://newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/1757786p-1768068c.html
(Note: Miles is study abroad office director at UNC-Chapel Hill.)

UNC team excavates lost Greek city 
News and Observer
A team of archaeologists headed by a UNC-Chapel Hill researcher has unearthed a lost city on the 
Greek island of Crete -- a rare find that will lead to a better understanding of a "silent period" of Cretan 
history about the 6th century B.C. The dig began in June under the direction of Donald C. Haggis, 
associate professor of classical archaeology, and will continue over the next several summers. 
http://newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/1757784p-1768065c.html
(Note: This coverage was the result from a UNC news release 
http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/sep02/haggis091002.htm)

FOOTNOTES
News and Observer
Seventeen rates campuses: Academic reputation, graduation rate, faculty pay -- sure, all that stuff is 
pretty important if you want your university to look good in the national ratings published by U.S. News 
& World Report. Duke University is proud of its No. 4 score this year... But UNC-Chapel Hill, which 
made only No. 28 in the U.S. News tally, was No. 8 in Seventeen's Top 10... Exploring music at 
UNC-CH: Whether it is hip-hop, salsa, merengue, bebop or country music at the top of your 
entertainment guide, the coming weeks offer several opportunities at UNC-Chapel Hill to explore 
the different genres. The Center for the Study of the American South is bringing in Bill Malone, a 
country music historian at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, to speak at 7 p.m. 
http://newsobserver.com/news/triangle/story/1757788p-1768100c.html

Issues and Trends Affecting Carolina

Merit-based scholarships Expand As College Expenses Climb
The Wall Street Journal
Who should get the college scholarship: the good student or the low-income kid? With college costs 
rising at twice the rate of inflation and the new focus on federally mandated standardized tests, that's no 
longer the easy answer it once seemed to be.
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB103272997349132713,00.html?mod=your%5Fmoney%5Fmain%5Fsecondary%5Fhs
(Note: The Wall Street Journal requires a subscription to access articles.)

Report Finds Minority Ranks Rise Sharply on Campuses
The New York Times
The number of minority students attending American colleges and universities jumped 48 percent in the 
1990's, with all minorities posting double-digit gains in college enrollment, according to a study by the 
American Council on Education.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/23/education/23COLL.html
(Note: The New York Times requires free registration to access articles.)

Updates on Billion-Dollar Campaigns at 17 Universities
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The 17 American universities that are seeking to raise at least $1-billion collected a total of more than 
$240-million in gifts and pledges during the last month for which they had data available. The most 
significant gain in August was made by the University of California at Los Angeles, which moved $51-
million closer to its $2.4-billion goal. 
http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/09/2002092309n.htm
(Note: The Chronicle of Higher Education requires a subscription to access articles.)

N.C. retooling. . . (Editorial)
News and Observer
In the annals of unemployment, the nation's present 5.7 percent jobless rate sounds manageable, 
especially to those still receiving a regular paycheck. Annual unemployment has been higher than the 
present rate in a dozen years since 1980... Yet for North Carolina there is a glistening glimmer of hope 
in an initiative from the state Senate's leadership to build a $35 million center at N.C. State University
for training biotechnology manufacturing workers and $14 million worth of regional training centers 
around the state. These are just the sort of economic development investments that make sense here. 
http://newsobserver.com/editorials/story/1757590p-1768042c.html

Council needs more information on development law (Editorial)
Chapel Hill News
The Chapel Hill Town Council has set an aggressive agenda for environmental protection and 
neighborhood conservation with its latest version of a development ordinance for the town.
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/opinion/story/1748052p-1759582c.html

Proposed development ordinance raises issues
Chapel Hill News
After an outcry raised by developers, builders and property owners at a public hearing last Wednesday, 
town officials are leaning toward holding more workshops on proposed changes to the development 
ordinance but not delaying a vote on the ordinance.
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/1755231p-1763301c.html

Residents blast Carrboro for move on Winmore tract
Chapel Hill News
The Carrboro Board of Aldermen on Tuesday will discuss and in all likelihood vote on the controversial
annexation of 480 acres of land north of the current town limits, including more than 300 acres of UNC’s 
Horace Williams Tract and the tracts targeted for the proposed Winmore development.
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/story/1755232p-1763271c.html

All those empty buses (Commentary)
Chapel Hill News
A strange phenomenon my husband and I observed around Chapel Hill during the summer has not 
changed appreciably since then: empty and almost empty buses. Over days and weeks we counted 
how many empty buses we saw in any given day. Several times during the summer, we noticed as
many as four buses in a row passing along streets in Chapel Hill that had not a single person aboard 
except the drivers...
(Note: Trudier Harris-Lopez is a professor of English at UNC-Chapel Hill. The Chapel Hill News 
requires a subscription to access archives.) 

'Empty buses' column sparks response (Letter to the Editor)
Chapel Hill News
The editorial opinions expressed by Professor Trudier Harris-Lopez in the Sept. 18 issue of The Chapel 
Hill News contained a number of inaccuracies about the Chapel Hill Transit System and its fiscal 
management.
http://www.triangle.com/triangle.com/communities/chapelhill/opinion/story/1748045p-1759848c.html
(Note: The Chapel Hill News featured three letters to the editor about Harris-Lopez's commentary.
To view all letters, go to the above url and scroll down the page.)

UNC should proceed slowly with Estes plans (Editorial)
The Herald-Sun
The university’s stance on its plans to move its groundskeepers, print shop and other campus services to 
a site on Estes Drive Extension seems to be a case of whether you see the glass half full or half empty. 
On the one hand, Chancellor James Moeser says UNC is pushing on with its plans to put those services
on a 24-acre plot adjacent to the Elkin Hills neighborhood. 
http://www.herald-sun.com/opinion/chhedits/57-269306.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