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(11/30/08 5:00am)
While all UNC-system schools are facing a lack of revenue from the state some have more to fall back on than others.All schools fund themselves with a combination of money allotted from the state private donations federal grants and tuition. With the four percent budget cut proposed by Gov. Mike Easley" schools with fewer and smaller private donations will find it especially difficult to offset the cuts.Universities with larger endowments have the option of dipping into those funds if state money comes up short.""We don't have the large endowments you would find at larger schools. That's not an option for us right now"" said Gerald Hunter, vice chancellor for finance and administration at Winston-Salem State University.WSSU is considering implementing a 6 percent cut instead of the required 4 percent cut.A 4 percent reduction in funding at WSSU is equivalent to about $2.8 million in the university's overall budget, Hunter said.WSSU, like almost all UNC-system schools, has implemented a hiring freeze and eliminated nonessential travel and purchases. Deeper cuts make it possible they also will have to reduce staff, but too many position cuts could eventually hurt students, Hunter said. The last resort is reductions in faculty and support for students.The most important thing for us is to make sure that we retain the core enterprise— students and faculty.""WSSU has not decided whether to increase tuition"" although some schools are already in the process.""It could help address some of the reductions" but at this time we're not really looking at tuition increases Hunter said.Officials at Elizabeth City State University said they also are looking to target current donors before considering a tuition increase.It's not in our plan to balance the shortfall by an across-the-board increase in tuition and fees to be borne by our students" said Sherri Belfield, director of marketing at Elizabeth City State. The school hopes to raise $5 million in private gifts by the end of this fiscal year to compensate, Belfield said.At Western Carolina University, officials say that increasing private grants, while a top priority, could be a challenge.We certainly will work to increase our grants" contracts and external gifts. However with the down economy this will be a challenge" stated Chuck Wooten, vice chancellor for administration and finance at Western Carolina, in an e-mail.We are examining all areas of the university for potential budget reductions"" Jeanine Newman, associate vice chancellor for financial services at Western Carolina, stated in an e-mail. Hunter said that dealing with the shortfall is all about differentiating between needs and wants.We're going to keep operative regardless of what's going on. It's just a matter of making choices about what you can and cannot do.""Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(11/05/08 5:00am)
GREENSBORO — A Democratic victory in North Carolina's U.S. Senate race seemed unlikely several months ago" but N.C. Sen. Kay Hagan beat incumbent Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole handily Tuesday.""A little over a year ago" when I got into this race the press the pundits other politicians and all were ready to write this race off and hand Dole the keys to her office for another six years" the Guilford County Democrat said in her acceptance speech at Greensboro Coliseum.Hagan's win was decisive enough that the race was called unofficially by 9:30 p.m., although Dole didn't concede until after 10 p.m.It's been the highest honor of my life to be elected the first female senator in North Carolina history"" Dole told the crowd at her Salisbury rally.In a speech that summarized her long-lasting political career, Dole said she has worked hard to serve the people of North Carolina.I have done my level best to make you proud"" Dole said. I‘ve worn the mantle of my responsibility to North Carolina with deep delight.""Hagan won with about 52 percent to Dole's 44 percent"" up even from Monday's polls. Libertarian Christopher Cole captured about 3 percent.Some noted backlash from Dole's unpopular ""Promises"" ad accusing Hagan of accepting money from an atheist political action committee.""The timing and misdirection were rather transparent. It went over like a lead balloon"" said Greg Sanders, who canvassed for the Obama campaign.But that doesn't account for all of it"" added Sanders' wife Laurel. Her reputation makes up for a lot of why she's winning.""Hagan's vote percentage marked a huge jump from the summer" when she trailed by 14 percentage points.Last spring it seemed doubtful that Hagan not even well-known across the whole state could be a legitimate challenger for Dole who had an established reputation and a long career in Washington.Dole tried to sell herself as the candidate with the experience and clout necessary to work in Washington" but Hagan likely benefited from a nationwide desire for change that has trickled down to the state level.""She has the intellect" integrity and level of energy. She will make a name for herself in the Senate within the first year" said Mike Solomon of Greensboro, who worked with Hagan twice to elect former N.C. Gov. Jim Hunt.Hagan made gains by portraying Dole as entrenched in Washington and out of touch with the state.And the Greensboro resident's ample funding allowed her to wage an aggressive campaign that cast doubt on Dole.Kay ran a great race — she spoke about the economy" jobs and issues people really care about" said Dave Hoffman, spokesman for the Hagan campaign.Hagan promised Tuesday night to bring fresh ideas to the Senate.To the North Carolinians who didn't vote for me" I am going to be working hard for the next six years to earn your vote Hagan said.Because Democrats Republicans or Independent" the ideas we need to create good paying jobs and turn our economy around won't have a party label.""Contact the State and National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(11/04/08 5:00am)
When the U.S. Senate race began it seemed unlikely that Democrats could produce a viable challenger for incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole R-N.C.However N.C. Sen. Kay Hagan D-Guilford virtually unknown when she announced her candidacy" has proven to be a legitimate opponent.""I saw her on TV the other day" and I was blown away by the kind of transformation of the Kay Hagan I ran against in the primary and the Kay Hagan that has run against Dole" said Chapel Hill businessman Jim Neal, who ran against Hagan in the Democratic primary.According to a Nov. 3 poll by Raleigh-based Public Policy Polling, Hagan is leading Dole 51 percent to 44 percent. In June, Hagan trailed by 5 percentage points, and in February, by 17, according to polls by the same organization. It is usually difficult to win against incumbents unless they have strong personal negatives, but disapproval of the Bush administration and Washington politics have hurt Dole's chances.However, a key aspect of Hagan's strong challenge is the support from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which provides money to elect Democratic senators.The biggest aspect of this race has been the tremendous amount of money the DSCC has put in North Carolina against Dole to reinforce the concept that she hasn't been taking care of the state very well"" said UNC journalism professor Leroy Towns.The committee spent several million dollars on television ads, which began in September.A basic rule in politics is that if you allow a heavy ad body on TV to go unanswered" it does considerable damage to your campaign. I believe that's what happened in this case" Towns said.The first DSCC ad was the best and most effective in the nation, Towns said.The ad featured two elderly men on a porch, criticizing Dole's effectiveness as senator and record of voting with the Bush administration.Early on it seemed unlikely that the N.C. Democratic Party could provide a challenger — most thought of Dole as invincible, Neal said.Mainstream prominent Democrats declined to run — Gov. Mike Easley was rumored to be one — and in the beginning, Neal was the only candidate, Towns said.Neal, the first openly gay candidate for statewide office, made the Democratic Party nervous, Towns speculated. Once Hagan announced her candidacy, the Democratic Party establishment threw its support behind her.Since then, Hagan has gathered significant support by portraying herself as more attuned to the needs of the state.She's going to come back to North Carolina and spend time with people. Folks want to know the people representing them"" said Colleen Flanagan, a Hagan campaign spokeswoman.North Carolina is looking for change, she said.She's going to tell people" ‘You're right" we're going in the wrong direction. Here are my ideas to turn it around.'""Dole has spent most of her campaign reminding voters of her senatorial accomplishments and her national legislative record.""She's going to remind people of what she has been able to do. She's had clout and effectiveness from day one to go over there and fight for North Carolina"" said Hogan Gidley, spokesman for the Dole campaign. She's been able to accomplish more in her first term than most have.""Dole has highlighted her opposition to the Bush administration's immigration plan and cuts in Medicaid benefits" her role in keeping military bases open in the state and support for the state's tobacco industry" Gidley said.""People know her. People like her"" Gidley said.Most of Dole's political career has been based in Washington. She first served in the Nixon administration in the 1960s and later assumed Cabinet positions in the Reagan and H.W. Bush administrations. She also was president of the American Red Cross.Dole sought the Republican presidential nomination in 1999 and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002.In contrast, Hagan has been in politics since 1998, when she was first elected to the N.C. Senate. She served for five years as a chairwoman of the committee that handles the state budget, beginning in 2003.John Hood, president and chairman of the John Locke Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Raleigh, said Dole's problem could be summed up with two names: President Bush and Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chairman and a New York senator.Bush is a drag on all the Republican candidates"" Hood said.And Schumer singled out Dole early on because she appeared to be a vulnerable Republican in a swing state, Hood said.Towns said the Dole campaign has since found some money of its own in the last few weeks, but negative ads might be too late. In one of those last-minute ads, which began running at the end of October, Dole accuses Hagan of taking campaign contributions from a PAC called Godless Americans."" The ad may have backfired — it drew considerable condemnation from many of the state's newspapers and the public.""The ad is misleading in that it tries to make a voice at the end of it seem like Kay Hagan's. It has the potential to be a detriment to Elizabeth Dole"" Towns said. The point could have been made very differently.""The Hagan campaign has managed to come from far behind in only a few months"" but earlier projections could swing either way based on voter turnout today.""Erskine Bowles (Dole's 2002 opponent) said you can't beat her because she's Florence Nightingale" Neal said. Well the wind has blown Florence Nightingale's cap off. She can't run from her record" and Kay has exploited that extremely well.""Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(10/22/08 4:00am)
In the last month several industrial plants across the state shut down and more than 2200 jobs were lost.The manufacturing industry concentrated in North Carolina's smaller towns and rural areas got its foothold in the state more than 100 years ago said Emil Malizia UNC professor and chairman of the Department of City and Regional Planning.Those manufacturing jobs which initially brought higher salaries to the state have been disappearing in the last 10 to 15 years Malizia said.Now financial professional and business services which kept the economy moving during the manufacturing downturn" are starting to have problems of their own.""There are non-metropolitan and rural parts of the state that have been hurting for a long time. Metropolitan areas are going to start feeling that pain as well"" he said.Since 2002, North Carolina's unemployment rates have been at all-time highs, said Larry Parker, spokesman for the N.C. Employment Securities Commission. In September, the state's unemployment rate was 7 percent.The commission, which helps people weather unemployment, has 89 offices in the state and all are seeing high traffic, Parker said.It's a difficult time in North Carolina" but that's why we have those offices. We help folks the best we can" he said.This week, Silver Line Building Products announced it would close its Durham plant, leaving more than 400 jobless.When manufacturing workers lose their jobs, they often have to learn new skills because of the shrinking availability of manufacturing jobs.Manufacturer Kohler, which relocated to Statesville from Canada in May, announced in September that it will close its Statesville plant, leaving more than 500 without jobs.We're very surprised by this announcement"" said Michael Smith, executive director for the Greater Statesville Development Corporation.We were working with them on training programs within the last month. This is the largest shutdown of this type in the history of our particular community."" Smith said the real estate publication Site Selection magazine ranked the Statesville-Mooresville area first in the nation for attracting new and expanded corporate facilities projects three of the last four years.The community is accustomed to success" he said.Because of the changing economy manufacturing workers do not always have the skills necessary to find jobs beyond the shrinking manufacturing industry.The N.C. Department of Commerce helps those workers re-enter the job market said Kathy Neal" spokeswoman for the N.C. Department of Commerce.""Our job is to provide services that will get the workers back into the job market or into education training programs as quickly as possible"" Neal stated in an e-mail.Sometimes that requires additional education to meet new professional demands, said Audrey Bailey, spokeswoman for the N.C. Community College System. We've had an increase in enrollment because of the downturn in the economy"" she said. We're the resource where folks turn for help.""Officials from community colleges work with the commerce department to prepare laid-off workers for new employment" Bailey said. Charles Summey city manager in Forest City where a Hanesbrands Inc. knit-fabric textile plant will shut down by next June said the closing will affect more than just the plant's workers. The city's sewer and water departments will lose revenue" too.""They bought 3.5 million gallons of water a day from us. We're worried about helping our employees"" Summey said.I'll just be glad when the whole economy gets better. I think it'll be better for everybody.""Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/24/08 4:00am)
Fear. Anxiety. Desperation.The N.C. Latino community is feeling all three with the increased attention on undocumented immigrants. Their outlook is less than positive" and they don't expect their situation to significantly improve anytime soon. N.C. Latino advocates say the economic downturn and crackdown on illegal immigration are feeding the pessimism.""Latinos particularly seem to have been hit hard by the downturn in the construction and labor markets"" said Mark Lopez, associate director of the Pew Hispanic Center.The fear mostly stems from law enforcement's spotlight on the Latino community and unclear consequences for minor infractions.There's definitely a tangible sense of fear in the community right now with law enforcement" particularly because North Carolina has been one of the leaders in the 287(g) program" said Irene Godinez, advocacy director for El Pueblo, a Raleigh-based Latino advocacy group.The 287(g) program partners local and state law enforcement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to help combat illegal immigration. Godinez said Latinos feel they are targeted unfairly — random checkpoints are set up in areas Latinos frequent and target those driving without licenses instead of those who commit more serious crimes.It's troublesome for the community because people don't know if it will happen to them when they walk out the door to drop their kids off at school"" she said.However, law enforcement agents are experiencing some problems of their own.Victims are afraid of telling police what happened because they think they might be sent to jail"" said Juan Sanchiz, Hispanic/Latino Outreach Program coordinator for the Burlington Police Department in Alamance County.According to Sanchiz, the rumor mill has been working overtime by making Latinos wary of law enforcement officials. There have been fliers posted telling people to be aware of law enforcement because they might be deporting people"" he said. Police do not know who is posting the fliers.This pervasive concern in North Carolina is reflected across the country. A poll released recently by the Pew Hispanic Center, a research institution on the Latino population, reflected those negative sentiments. Fifty percent of those surveyed said Latinos' situations in the U.S. are worse than a year ago, and about 10 percent, both immigrants and U.S. citizens, said the police stopped and asked about their immigration status in the last year.Latinos saying their situation is worse is a quick turnaround from last year when we asked them the same question"" Lopez said.In 2007, not even half said their situation was worse that year than in 2006.Victor Melendez, executive director of El Centro Latino, a Latino advocacy group in Carrboro, said it will take a combination of community and policy action to turn the situation around.We're not a monolithic community; it's just give and take" he said. In smaller communities such as Chapel Hill and Carrboro" there's a better approach stemming from how people think. People here are more open and accepting.""Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/18/08 4:00am)
Absentee voting for the November elections began Wednesday but leaders of campus voter registration drives are trying to encourage students to vote in Orange County.The absentee ballot process is a lengthy one that includes several opportunities for things to go awry" Durham County Board of Elections Geographer Joseph Fedrowitz said.""You have to rely" first of all on the mail he said. Things do get lost — domestically and certainly overseas. Sometimes the ballot is returned late through no fault of the person" he said.Both the initial request for the absentee ballot and the delivery of the ballot itself have to be done by mail, Fedrowitz said.And people don't always follow instructions either.It's not just a matter of marking the ballot and mailing it back" Fedrowitz said. The voter has to sign the ballot and have two witnesses sign it and put their addresses on it. Ten percent usually ignore that part" he said.UNC Young Democrats is encouraging students to register to vote in Chapel Hill partially because it is more convenient, said Co-President George Drometer. The process is so difficult — there's a lot of red tape"" he said.However, for some, such as students studying abroad, voting via an absentee ballot is the only option.We've already had many" many many requests from students who are studying abroad" Fedrowitz said.At UNC, students receive instructions on absentee voting at their pre-departure orientation and receive a reminder during the summer, said Kathryn Goforth, associate director for advising at the UNC study abroad office. The study abroad program Web site also has the information posted.Nicole Short, a Meredith College student who is studying abroad in Italy this semester, said she requested an absentee ballot from Cumberland County, where her family lives.Even though voting is difficult because she is out of the country, Short stated in an e-mail that she still wanted to participate in the voting process because the decisions being made will matter for her.Generally" I would not consider myself a politically interested person but I definitely feel that I have become more aware since leaving the United States" she stated.The Orange County Board of Elections has already received requests for 1,036 absentee ballots. Although this number is only about one-third of the 3,039 absentee ballots requested in 2004, the number is expected to increase.The closer the election gets" the more we get in" said Tracy Reams, director of the Orange County Board of Elections. All requests for absentee ballots must be received by Oct. 28, and completed ballots are due Nov. 3. How to vote absentee in N.C.Submit a handwritten request to your respective county by the last Tuesday before the election.Include your name, residential and mailing addresses, date of birth and signature.The county must receive your ballot by 5 p.m. on the day of the election for it to be counted.Oct. 28: Last day to request a mail-in absentee ballot.Nov 3: Mailed absentee ballots must be submitted by 5 p.m. to county Boards of Elections.Visit the N.C. Board of Elections Web site for more information, and visit your home county's Web site to find the county Board of Elections mailing address.www.sboe.state.nc.us/Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
