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It’s getting easier and easier to keep track of UNC online.
University officials are trying to figure out how to outfit every bed on campus with a safety rail.
Correction (September 2, 1:22 a.m.): Due to an editing error, a previous version of this story incorrectly stated the dates of the mandatory meetings when students are required to declare their candidacy. The meetings are Sept. 7 and Sept. 8. The story has been updated to reflect the correction. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error.
A giant inflatable slide, rock music and a bustling crowd gave Irwin Belk Track the look and sound of a fairground Friday and Saturday as thousands marched in support of the fight against cancer during this year’s Relay For Life. The 20-hour fundraiser for cancer research had more than 2,300 registered participants and raised $196,427.85 as of the closing ceremony on Saturday. Event co-chairwoman Coty Lee said the event was much bigger than last year, when it had only 2,000 registered participants. “Relay has really taken off,” she said. “We love that we can put together something so big to celebrate, remember and fight back against cancer.” The celebration began when Justin Singer, event co-chairman, asked the crowd, “Are you ready to relay?” He was met by a cacophony of cheering and applause that continued until he invited the almost 70 cancer survivors in attendance to take their victory lap — the official start of the relay. After the pink-clad survivors completed their lap to the tune of the song “Don’t Stop Believin’” and further applause, everyone walked a lap together. For many, Relay For Life was a good way to get involved on campus in support of a good cause, though some people had more personal reasons for participating. “I lost my mom to cancer when I was 13. I’ve been doing Relay ever since,” said sophomore Brooke Goodspeed, a Relay For Life committee member. “It’s a good way to unify people for the cause.” Participants were treated to performances by a cappella groups and American Idol star Anoop Desai along with eating contests, a rave and a giant Twister game. But it wasn’t all fun and games. At 9:30 p.m. Friday, a luminaria ceremony brought a more serious tone to the event with the lighting of more than 500 luminaria in remembrance of those that have lost their battles with cancer. “It’s definitely the most somber part of Relay, but it’s really important for us to all realize why we do this and why we care so much,” Lee said.
For the UNC Latino community, Saturday was a day to celebrate. With a speech from Chancellor Holden Thorp, colorful performances and heartfelt emotions from students, community members gathered for the opening of a long-awaited cultural center and an annual talent show. The University has seen a 74 percent increase in Latino students between 2003 and 2008, according to a 2009 report on diversity. Community members said this shift has been evident on campus. Latina/o Collaborative Students celebrated the opening of the Carolina Latina/o Collaborative, which opened in the office suite of Craige North Residence Hall, representing the end of a journey that began in 2007 to turn the idea into reality. “The CLC is a visible representation of our commitment to providing for the diversity on campus,” said Ron Strauss, executive associate provost, who was a part of the task force which proposed the new collaborative. The center will serve as the premier place for students and the community to teach and learn about Latino issues and culture and will focus on scholarship, student life and community involvement. The center’s development has been a result of the joint effort of the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost and the Division of Student Affairs. Noche Latina An audience of about 200 cheered and laughed its way through “Noche Latina,” the Carolina Hispanic Association’s annual celebration of multicultural talent across campus. “It’s the biggest cultural showcase for Latino culture on campus,” said Chispa treasurer Melodie Pellot-Hernandez. The night’s performances ranged from a cappella to spoken word, from break dancing to traditional Latin American folkloric dancing. “The organization wants to be at the forefront of promoting diversity on campus — and not just Latinos — all diversity,” said Adrian Lopez, Chispa secretary. Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
When over the river and through the woods is too far for a five-day break, some students stay in Chapel Hill.When students are from the other side of the county or abroad, a trip home might take too long or cost too much. But those staying behind when the residence halls close Wednesday at 10 a.m. won’t be left out in the cold.Rick Bradley, assistant director of the Office of Housing and Residential Education, said all students have the option to apply for campus housing during breaks.“We have free apartment space in Ehringhaus where we can house about 12 people of each gender,” he said.Bradley added that the two apartment complexes on campus, Ram Village and Odum Village, stay open during breaks to accommodate these students.“A lot of international students decide to live there for that reason,” he said.Much of campus, including the Student Union and the dining halls, will also close down for the long weekend.Some students, such as sophomore Patricia Laya, opt to live off campus through the year in order to avoid housing dilemmas during breaks.Laya, from Caracas, Venezuela, can’t afford to go home often. She said Chapel Hill has become her home for the next four years, so she decided to live in a place where she could stay over breaks.This year, her family is coming to experience the holiday — and some of the best deals of the year — with her.“My mom is coming to visit me,” Laya said. “We’re going to do Black Friday. We sure are going to enjoy the discounts.”Unlike the numerous American students who travel home to spend the holiday with their families, Laya said Thanksgiving break isn’t a huge deal for international students because most don’t even celebrate the American holiday.Thomas Reilly, a graduate student from New South Wales, Australia, plans to visit friends in Raleigh during the break. “I can’t go home because it’s a 24-hour flight and it costs about $2,000 one way,” Reilly said. “And we don’t even celebrate Thanksgiving in Australia.”There will be about 20 students staying in Ehringhaus Residence Hall during the break, and Bradley said between 30 students and 40 students will be staying in the on-campus apartment complexes.So while most students will venture home to stuff their faces full of turkey and pie, those few students left on campus can rest in peace knowing they’ll avoid traffic, a few extra pounds and those awkward family moments that come with the holidays.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Renovations to subterranean steam tunnels crisscrossing campus are costing the University tens of millions and causing a major headache.To make things a little easier, the school is going to demolish Miller Hall, which houses the Institute for the Environment.On Wednesday, UNC’s Board of Trustees approved the building’s destruction. The tunnel project’s contractor offered to do the job free of charge to help ease renovation of the tunnel running through the lot, an offer that will save the school $100,000.The University is in the final phases of the renovations. The current concluding steps will cost $28 million, and the project as a whole is on schedule to end in the summer of 2011. The tunnel runs from the UNC Cogeneration Facility to campus and houses pipes that provide steam services — which include heating, cooling, sterilization, distilling water and making hot water — to the school and UNC Hospitals.UNC Construction Manager Jeff Kidd said the tunnel, built in 1939, has fallen into disrepair. Phil Barner, the cogeneration systems manager, said the tunnel was in great danger of failing in several places.“They may have wanted it to last 100 years, but it just hasn’t,” he said. “It’s enough of a threat that we knew we needed to replace it.”The tunnel that the school wants to renovate runs underneath Pittsboro Street. Miller Hall — built in 1942 — sits on the corner of Pittsboro and McCauley streets.“Miller Hall is really small, very old, very tired, and we’re running this line that’s planned to go around three sides of the building,” said Bruce Runberg, associate vice chancellor for facilities planning.He added that the University planned to tear down Miller Hall anyway, since it wasn’t a part of the long-term plan for the Carolina Inn property next door.The Institute for the Environment will be relocated to rental space on Rosemary Street, said Runberg, who added that the Miller Hall space will be turned into a parking lot for the inn.Linda Convissor, director of UNC local relations, said the project’s engineering crew is currently deciding how to approach the Pittsboro Street portion of the tunnel. At minimum, the sidewalks on Pittsboro will be closed when that section of the pipeline is being worked on.Tunnel renovation currently requires Ransom Street to be closed while crews dig a 50-foot-wide trench down a strip of University-owned land that runs through the Cameron-McCauley neighborhood. It is on track to reopen in mid-December.Convissor said Ransom Street residents have mixed feelings about the construction.“They’re not happy, but I think most of them realize this has to be done,” she said.The University sends weekly e-mail updates to residents affected by the construction as a “token of appreciation” and as a means of keeping people informed, Convissor said.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
UNC’s ability to recruit and retain top faculty members and maintain the quality of instruction students receive will be directly affected by tuition increases for the 2010-11 school year.The tuition and fee advisory task force will vote Wednesday on a tuition increase for out-of-state students. Revenue from both out-of-state and in-state tuition increases could generate as much as $6 million for the University in a time of budget shortfalls.About a quarter of this money is earmarked for faculty retention and course offerings. The amount of money UNC will have to retain faculty members will depend on how much tuition is increased.Administrators cannot raise in-state tuition more than $200, a number mandated by the state legislature. Out-of-state increases are not similarly regulated, and the task force has suggested increasing undergraduate students’ tuition by either $1,126.68 or $1,414.30.Interim Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Bruce Carney has said the University will need $1.5 million for faculty retention if the school wants to remain competitive.The lower tuition increase for out-of-state students would generate only about $860,000 for faculty retention. The larger increase would provide $1.49 million.While Carney expressed apprehension about losing faculty this year, UNC will not see as big an outside threat as it has previously. In speeches this year, Chancellor Holden Thorp has said few institutions are actively hiring, especially traditional competitors such as the University of California system.But Carney said recruitment and retention money could go further this year because of the downturn. He said the tuition increase would play a crucial role in enabling the University to retain its best professors and lecturers, as well as bring in new ones.“We put a lot of emphasis in trying to attract the very best faculty, and we want to keep them here,” he said. “If we don’t vote a tuition increase, we simply won’t be able to compete.”When faculty members are offered jobs from other universities, UNC can make counteroffers. Money for faculty retention would fund these offers. Carney said the University spent about $1 million on salary increases for faculty retention last school year.Carney said the College of Arts and Sciences’ biggest competitors last year were the universities of Texas and Utah, Yale University and Duke University. He said private schools pose a threat because they can offer higher salaries.The UNC system receives $2 million annually in the state budget for recruitment efforts, and UNC-Chapel Hill usually sees a large share.John McGowan, director of the UNC Institute for the Arts and Humanities, which received recognition from the Board of Trustees for its success at faculty retention, said UNC needs funding to keep the best faculty members.“It’s the best teachers and the best scholars who get raided by other schools,” he said. “Retention directly affects the worth of a Carolina degree.”McGowan said UNC’s retention success has a huge impact on academic quality.“Obviously, if you keep losing people, you have to keep hiring new people — and you can’t always hire the best,” he said.Last year, 20 faculty members received outside offers. Of those, 12 accepted UNC’s counteroffers, seven left for competing schools and one has still not decided, said Karen Gil, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, in an e-mail.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Students in the American studies seminar “The Role of the University in American Life” spend a lot of time talking about UNC’s relationship with the state.Today, they heard from two men who set the tone of that relationship.Joe Hackney, speaker of the N.C. House of Representatives, and Roger Perry, a member of UNC’s Board of Trustees, spoke to the class Monday about the connections between UNC and the state legislature.Both men are major players when it comes to making big decisions for UNC.Hackney, D-Orange, brought the political point of view while Perry acted as the University’s voice. Perry is one of 13 trustees who advise UNC’s administration and examine policy changes.They spent most of their time explaining the relationship, not debating policy issues.State and University policyHackney said the General Assembly shares the responsibility of making University policy with UNC-system and University administrations.He said the chancellor, trustees, Board of Governors and the governor’s office all impact University policy.New programs within each University are initiated by administrators. But they must pass through the Board of Trustees before they can be approved by legislation, Perry said.University and the budgetHackney said education currently receives approximately 60 percent of the state budget. That money is spread between the university, community college and public school systems, creating tension, Hackney said.“There’s only so much money, and percentages are up in the air,’ he said. He said legislators historically advocate for universities, sometimes at the expense of K-12 education.“We are nationally known for supporting our universities,” Hackney said. “Some would say we’re nationally known for neglecting public schools.”At UNC, the trustees are responsible for helping to manage the state money, which covers a fourth of the campus’ budget of more than $2 billion.Out-of-state tuitionPerry said the Board of Trustees is trying not to be too “mercenary” about setting the price for nonresident students, even if the price tag seems steep compared to in-state tuition.“Our goal when we set out-of-state tuition is to make that tuition equal the cost of providing education,” he said.Hackney said a lot of people in North Carolina don’t think the out-of-state tuition is high enough.He said acting on behalf of out-of-state students is not politically beneficial because many residents are against out-of-state competition for admission.“I’m glad you’re here, but they’re not,” he said.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
With senior course registration approaching, advisers are discovering some problems with the new general education curriculum implemented in 2006.Some members of the senior class — the first to graduate under the curriculum — are having trouble completing certain requirements, including an interdisciplinary component for which there are few available courses.Academic advisers are working with seniors to make sure they are able to graduate on time — even without completing certain general education requirements exactly as written.Students graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Arts and Sciences or a Bachelor of Science in psychology are required under the new curriculum to complete three courses above the 199 level outside of their majors’ division. The divisions are fine arts, humanities, natural sciences and mathematics, and social and behavioral sciences.Seniors, many of whom have put off the requirement, are particularly struggling to find fine arts classes that work.Carolyn Cannon, associate dean for academic advising, said students who have not fulfilled the fine arts requirement can consult with academic advisers to choose a course below the 200 level if no other options exist.Part of the difficulty in fulfilling the requirement is that only three fine arts departments exist: music, art and dramatic art. Many of those classes have few seats or have a prerequisite.Academic advisers are working with seniors to ensure requirements are filled before graduation. “In situations where students are in their last semester and cannot fulfill the requirement based on their knowledge of classes that are available, they can go to their advisers and find a class that can serve as an alternative,” said Dee Reid, communications director for the College of Arts and Sciences.Bobbi Owen, senior associate dean for undergraduate education, said administrators are unsure of the scope of students who are having difficulty meeting graduation requirements.“We won’t really know what the problem is until seniors start registering for classes for the spring semester,” Owen said. “We would work with students who can’t graduate in May to find an option.”Many seniors said they were frustrated about having to take courses outside their majors that sometimes conflict with their schedules.“I understand what they’re trying to do as far as getting a diverse background with these general education requirements, but it’s a definite hindrance on taking classes that you need,” said Brittany Johnson, a senior history major.Leslie Taylor, a senior English major in a class that meets the fine arts requirement, said the availability of classes often forces students to take inconvenient courses.“I’m taking a God-awful class that I don’t even like because it was one of the only ones that would fit my schedule,” Taylor said. “I was worried there wouldn’t be a class I could take next semester because there’s a limited number of upper-level classes that fulfill the requirement.”Seniors in some schools, including the School of Education and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, are not required to take the supplemental courses, even if they are double-majoring in the College, advisers said.Owen said the University has found the supplemental courses effective, despite minor issues this year. The curriculum will undergo a systematic review in fall 2010.“We expect to make some adjustments in areas where it’s not working in the way we intended,” Owen said.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Economics professor Ralph Byrns stands in front of more than 500 students a semester and makes jokes about sleeping with deans and the economics of punching students in the face.But Wednesday night in the Great Hall of the Student Union, the jokes were on him.Byrns, a teacher known around campus for his interaction with students, whether debating on the steps of Gardner Hall or talking with students about their career paths, became the subject of a “roast” — a good-natured ridiculing — to help support student-teacher interaction.“I’m sort of considering bringing a water pistol full of ammonia to squirt the people who say nasty things,” he said before the event.The event, sponsored by Connected for Cause, raised money for Another Way of Learning, a student group that attempts to improve student-professor relationships to enhance the academic environment.Michael Johnston, a member of Another Way of Learning, said the group wanted to use the event to get students more involved with their professor while having some “chaotic entertainment.”“Byrns was more than happy to be our sacrificial lamb,” Johnston said.After decades of teaching, Byrns said he doesn’t think students can break through his thick skin.“At my age, I’m fairly bulletproof,” he said. “I was drafted to the Army, and I lived through that.”And he left the roast unscathed.“I did okay,” he said. “I survived.”Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Roy Blount Jr. didn’t always have ambitions of becoming a professional writer.“Originally, I wanted to be a three-sport immortal,” he said in an interview Monday.It wasn’t until a 10th-grade English teacher convinced him to shift his dreams to wordplay that he realized his desire to become a writer. The young aspiring writer grew into an acclaimed author and winner of this year’s Thomas Wolfe Prize. He will deliver the annual Thomas Wolfe lecture today in Carroll Hall.The prize honors the memory of the famous UNC alumnus and author, Thomas Wolfe, and recognizes contemporary writers for their work.Michael McFee, director of the creative writing program, said Blount, an author, playwright and radio personality, was a natural choice for the award.McFee said nominees for the prize must be American and preferably Southern, so Blount, who grew up in Georgia, fit the bill.“He’s the one we wanted. He’s the one we got,” McFee said.Blount started reporting for his high school newspaper in the 10th grade and decided to make a career out of writing.“Somehow, it worked. I’ve written through my life,” he said.As an undergraduate at Vanderbilt University during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Blount edited his campus’ newspaper. He said he worked with the paper to campaign for the integration of black students at the university.Blount said the experience of writing during the racially charged era had a significant impact on his decision not to become an English professor after earning his master’s degree from Harvard University in 1964.“Academia was a little too dry. I had gotten used to telling off the forces of darkness, standing at Armageddon and fighting for the Lord,” he said. “I wanted to do something big — something real.”From college he moved on to writing for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and then Sports Illustrated, where he was assigned to spend the 1973 football season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.From this experience, Blount collected material that he turned into the first of his 21 books.Blount has also written for 166 different periodicals, acted as a panelist on National Public Radio and written a screenplay, among other accomplishments.He will formally accept his award and medal before tonight’s lecture.McFee said he was excited to hear Blount’s talk.“I met him, and he was just so personable, I knew he would be right for this,” he said.Blount said he will talk about the importance of language and word choice, with anecdotes interspersed.He said he is proud to be honored by the University.“As Jerry Lewis said when he won his lifetime Oscar: ‘My humility in this moment is staggering.’”Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
The UNC Cogeneration Facility has been getting a lot more attention than usual.Recent protests on campus against the use of coal have caused the public to turn its focus to the industrial site, which is on West Cameron Avenue.Activists have been encouraging the University to reduce coal consumption at the facility, which produced 63 percent of campus greenhouse emissions in 2008. Plant managers said plans are already in place to do so.The facility’s primary purpose is to produce steam for the University campus and UNC Hospitals. Steam is used for heating, cooling, sterilization, distilling water and making hot water.The plant utilizes cogeneration to produce approximately 25 to 30 percent of all electricity used on campus through steam production, said Ray DuBose, director of energy services.“It’s critical for the operation of the University and the hospital,” DuBose said.In order to produce the steam and electricity used across campus, the cogeneration plant burns coal, fuel oil and natural gas.Tim Aucoin, the plant’s regulatory compliance coordinator, said the facility monitors all pollutant emissions, but only nitrous oxides and sulfur dioxide — key components of ozone depletion and acid rain — are regulated.“Carbon dioxide just isn’t a monitored gas yet,” he said.Laura Stevens, a representative from the national Sierra Club’s “Moving Campuses Beyond Coal” campaign, said carbon dioxide should be monitored, and that in 2007, the plant emitted 320,000 tons of global warming pollutants. “That’s like having over 50,000 cars on the road,” she said.The Sierra Club’s program collaborated with UNC students to protest the cogeneration plant’s practices.The protest, held in the Pit on Monday, gathered 280 supporters to voice their opposition to the burning of coal.Sara Mishamandani, a junior, was among those protesting.“A lot of people didn’t even realize we have the plant on campus,” she said. “Their eyes were opened up by the amount of carbon dioxide emissions.”DuBose said the University is committed to reducing the plant’s carbon footprint.In 2007, former Chancellor James Moeser pledged the University to the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, a promise to become climate neutral by 2050.In order to reach this goal, the University has produced the Climate Action Plan, which details ways to reduce campus emissions.DuBose said that one method to reduce the plant’s emissions is to replace the type of fuel that the facility burns.The plant will begin testing more environmentally friendly fuels next year, Aucoin said. But the facility has to wait for the go-ahead from the Environmental Protection Agency and the N.C. Division of Air Quality.Aucoin said these types of changes usually take 18 months to gain approval from the system.Mishamandani said the University’s efforts are a good first step, but not a final solution. She said the University must take more immediate action to see results.“They do want to make the effort,” she said. “Our main thing is they’re not making that effort fast enough.”Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
As students crowded Davis Library studying and printing papers Monday, a few were running for their lives, trying to escape an imaginary fire.Not all of them made it.The group of students in visiting lecturer Sal Mercogliano’s American history class used the eight-story library to re-enact the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.The March 25 fire in upper floors of the Asch Building in New York City claimed 146 lives. The factory’s exits were blocked and fire escapes broke under the weight of panicking workers.The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory incident had a direct impact on fire safety codes — primarily in the form of sweeping workplace reforms in the years following the fire. “I love bringing history to life for my students,” Mercogliano said. “What I try to do is get them out of being a UNC student in 2009 and into being a factory worker in 1911.”Mercogliano’s students have been reading about the tragedy as a part of their class. Monday’s re-enactment was a taste of realism, Mercogliano said.“What we’re going to do is crank up the time machine, the flux capacitor, and we’re not going to be in Chapel Hill anymore,” he said.The group headed up to the library’s eighth floor. Mercogliano designated exits and set a three-minute time limit for escape.Some stragglers trickled out after about five minutes, and Mercogliano pronounced them dead before proceeding.“It was a good way to actually illustrate it to us,” said sophomore Kellye Thompson. Mercogliano said he got the idea while sitting in Davis one day. He said the library eerily reminded him of the Asch Building. Once Davis’ physical structure inspired him, Mercogliano said coming up with the role play was a simple combination of his long-standing interests in fire fighting and the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory tragedy.Capt. Rob Pruitt of the Chapel Hill Fire Department explained how firefighters would respond to a fire in Davis, pointing out similarities and differences between the Asch Building and the library. Mercogliano said the fire department was excited about helping him.“It was a good chance to show that there’s more to the fire department than just putting out fires,” Pruitt said.The re-enactment ended with students role-playing factory workers by recounting a minute-by-minute account of the fire.“Having a vested interest in a character makes the event more memorable, I think,” Mercogliano said.This was his second year of re-enacting the fire. He said the library’s directors were wary at first but have embraced the project.But there’s a limit to their support.“For some reason, they wouldn’t let me set the building on fire,” he said.
The University will test its emergency sirens today between noon and 1 p.m. as part of the safety awareness campaign Alert Carolina.
The Gillings School of Global Public Health gained $12.1 million and international notice a year ago when the United Arab Emirates hired UNC researchers to assess the negative impacts of its rapid development.Researchers look at the contract as a chance to work with state-of-the-art environmental research methods while further expanding the school’s impact.Jacqueline MacDonald, the project’s principal researcher, said the United Arab Emirates has developed so quickly that environmental health has been a back-burner issue until now. She added that the country didn’t have researchers with the same expertise as UNC faculty members.The 32,270-square-mile country just east of Saudi Arabia has been rapidly transformed in the past few decades as a result of oil wealth.“They’re a very new country,” she said. “Not too long ago, they were a country of nomads. They had never really worried about the environment before.”Researchers from UNC are leading a team that consists of United Arab Emirates University’s Department of Community Medicine and the RAND Corporation, a global public policy research institute.This research team is responsible for developing a national environmental health strategy, reporting on the environment, conducting surveys to determine how health is affected by air pollution and evaluating the United Arab Emirates’ procedures for monitoring air quality.International statureThe project is now at its halfway point, and the school is starting to feel the intrinsic benefits of working abroad.“This is a very prestigious contract. It not only brought dollars into the school, it gave us the opportunity to work in a very exciting part of the world,” said Barbara Rimer, School of Public Health’s dean.United Arab Emirates officials approached the top three United States public health schools: Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University and UNC.MacDonald said the project is opening up a lot of global connections for researchers as well as forming camaraderie both within the school and abroad.“The numerous challenges associated with conducting such a large research effort in a country on the other side of the world, with a culture that is very different from our own, have forged close bonds among the many faculty members involved in the research,” she said.Rimer and MacDonald both said the work is bringing UNC’s environmental researchers global recognition.Rimer said the work with the United Arab Emirates will make the school more competitive for similar environmental risk managing contracts across the globe.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
The School of Information and Library Science experienced a larger boost in research funding than any other UNC department this fiscal year, leaping 572 percent from last year.The jump is part of a record-setting year for University research funding, with UNC receiving $716 million. Research groups in the library science school collectively raised $7.7 million. “It’s an impressive jump,” said Barbara Moran, the school’s interim dean.The School of Information and Library Science, consistently ranked as one of the best in the country, works to develop ways to better store, sort and manage information.One of the major reasons for the jump in funding is Data Intensive Cyber Environments, or DICE, a research group that moved to UNC from the University of California-San Diego’s Supercomputer Center last fall.“The group brought a lot of grants with them to UNC,” Moran said.DICE Associate Director Reagan Moore said the group decided to move to Chapel Hill because they had specific goals that UNC would help them to achieve. These included new grant submittals to the National Science Foundation, a collaboration with the National Archives in Washington, D.C., and an opportunity to teach students.“DICE is responsible for approximately one-third of the funding increase,” Moore said. “We’ve reliably pulled in about $2 million to $2.5 million every year for the past 10 years.”DICE won a $5 million grant, spread over five years, from the National Science Foundation for a research program called the National Archives and Records Administration Transcontinental Persistent Archive Prototype. This program seeks to develop a preservation standard for digital archives.While DICE brought a bulk of the new research money, other faculty efforts also helped win funding.Professor Helen Tibbo received a grant of almost $900,000 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to develop an international network to manage and preserve digital archives.Another money-winning project in the school, called HIVE: Helping Interdisciplinary Vocabulary Engineering, was approved for $334,699. Moran said HIVE’s goal is to determine a timeless language for labeling and organizing digital archives.She added that the school has an ongoing 30-year grant with the Environmental Protection Agency, which lets UNC students manage the agency’s archives as interns.SILS communications director Wanda Monroe said the school expects more funding increases in the future.The school has hired a professional staff member to aid faculty members in writing and filing grant proposals, a move Moran said other schools have made.“I think a lot of us are realizing we can’t depend on state support for the bulk of our funding any longer,” Moran said.Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
Correction: The accompanying graphic misstates the amount of money gathered by the School of Medicine. The school has received $349.6 million in the 2009 fiscal year.
There will be fewer gray hairs in some University classes this year — and a little less life experience.Citing the larger financial crisis facing the state, the N.C. General Assembly cut a beloved but infrequently used University fee waiver for state residents older than 65. Under the waiver program, elderly residents could enroll without charge for classes at any of the 17 schools in the UNC system.“It was a very difficult budget year,” said N.C. Sen. Richard Stevens, R-Wake, co-chairman of the Senate’s committee on education. “We had to make cuts in every agency, but for the universities, the key aspect was to maintain the classroom experience for the undergraduate and graduate students.”The elimination of the waiver will save taxpayers about $300,000 — not much compared to the state’s more than $18 billion budget. Stevens said this indicates the relatively small number of people who took advantage of the program.The change in the waiver has already had an effect on enrollment for elderly residents at UNC-Chapel Hill. Of the 25 individuals who applied for the program this fall, only seven have opted to continue their courses and pay the usual tuition fee — about $150 per credit hour.For the residents who used the waiver, the sudden expense of taking classes will be dearly felt.“I’ve taken a course every semester since spring 1992,” said Lawrence Slifkin, an 83-year-old alumnus and former UNC physics professor. “I guess I’ve had more courses than anyone at the University.”For many elderly residents, the chance to attend a class is an opportunity to refine a skill, discover a new passion or simply to spend time with younger students.“How eye-opening and wonderful to see young people — many of whom were quite talented in languages — in a classroom setting,” said Bobbie Lubker, past president of the UNC’s Retired Faculty Association. Lubker, 76, took a German class to prepare for a trip.The program was primarily a benefit for returning students like Lubker and Slifkin, but the presence of seasoned learners could often illuminate class discussions.“Senior citizens in a history class on World War II, for example, can sometimes relate their own first-person experiences,” said Timothy Sanford, associate director for credit programs at the Friday Center. “Not having these additions could diminish the intellectual character of a class.”Stevens said the waiver might return should economic conditions improve. Tuition at any of the state’s 58 community colleges remains free for senior citizens.But elderly learners stressed their simple desire to learn.“The main thing, I think, is to not take away from students or burden the instructor,” Slifkin said. Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
When then-Campus Y co-president Richard Harrill graduated in 1991 with a degree in political science, he knew he would be back someday.Now, almost 20 years later, Harrill has returned to UNC and the Y, succeeding Virginia Carson as the organization’s director. And he said he couldn’t be happier.“I am very excited about it. I mean, this is a dream job for me. I feel like I have the best job at UNC,” Harrill said. Harrill, who comes to UNC after 10 years promoting social justice in Hungary, said he’s happy about following Carson because of her rejuvenating influence on the Y, in terms of the actual building and the spirit of the students there.“I’m inheriting an organization that is already strong,” he said.The Campus Y is the largest student service organization on campus with 17 different service committees and 12 special projects.The director mostly serves to act as a voice for the Y’s student leadership in discussions with administrators and potential donors.Harrill said he plans to use his international experiences and connections to introduce students to opportunities abroad and to help them see global potential for their Campus Y work. Campus Y co-president Erin Marubashi said she’s excited to work with Harrill.“He understands what it means to be a student leader within the Y, so I think he will be able to strike a great balance between being a leader and mentor,” she said.“He has his own style, approach and heart for this field, and I think that will really shine through the Y’s mission in action.”And Melissa Exum, associate vice chancellor and dean of students, said Harrill’s experience with nonprofit organizations and human rights groups, combined with his enthusiasm for working with students, makes him a good fit for the job.Harrill said he was inspired by his work in the Y to engage in public service abroad after obtaining a law degree from UNC in 1998. “I went into the Peace Corps wanting to get some international contacts for my work here with the Campus Y, and now it’s kind of coming full circle,” Harrill said.Marubashi said Harrill’s overseas focus could open students’ eyes to new possibilities abroad.“For example, service work in Hungary is not the first option I would consider for post-graduate work, but learning about his experiences and service has really encouraged me to consider options I otherwise may have overlooked,” she said.Harrill said a lot of people have asked him why he chose to return to the Y.“Why not?” he said. “I’ve always thought, even when I was student president of the Y, gosh, if there’s ever a chance for me to come back and be director I’ll take it.”Luckily for him, he got invited to Carson’s retirement party last spring. He said he wouldn’t have known the position was available otherwise.But Harrill will have to adjust to being back on campus. He said the Campus Y and UNC have grown tremendously since he’s been away. The physical and economic changes are impressive, he said, but the soul remains essentially unchanged.“There’s something about the campus and the culture of the campus that rubs off on you pretty quickly,” he said.He said that special culture sets UNC apart from its peer institutes. And he wants to help it grow by planning new outreach programs to involve more students in the Y.“We’re excited about pulling in students,” he said. “The Y is a place where everyone is welcome. It’s a very inclusive environment. Our doors really are always open.”Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.