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(10/11/06 4:00am)
RALEIGH - A diverse but small crowd of union workers and community supporters came out Tuesday night to view a film documenting the struggle of the Raleigh sanitation workers.
Independent Voices produced the film, which was shown in the back of a dimly-lit bar to a crowd of about 15 people.
The audience included sanitation workers, union administrators, student demonstrators and community activists.
"If we could get massive turnout like we should, it would be better," said George Parker, who has worked for the Raleigh Sanitation Department for eight years.
The department's workers went on strike Sept. 19. They sought to increase overtime, to protest layoffs and to earn permanent status for temporary workers.
The workers quickly returned to their jobs but have been negotiating with the city government ever since.
While City Manager J. Russell Allen initially was unresponsive to the workers' demands, Mayor Charles Meeker and council member James West are working in tandem with the union.
"There's this give and take, mutual respect," said Angaza Laughinghouse, president of the N.C. Public Service Workers Union.
The sanitation workers have achieved some success, and that success has benefitted all the city's workers, Laughinghouse said.
Many workers have been taken off temporary status and given permanent jobs, and the city now has regulations in place that limit the time a worker can be on temporary status to six months, he said.
"We've been able to do some great things."
The union will hold a summit for all workers in the Triangle on Oct. 26.
Muallah X, who has worked in the Raleigh Department of Administrative Services for three years, said watching the sanitation workers organize has given courage to workers in his department.
It is difficult for individual workers to find the motivation to take action, he said.
"A lot of people are afraid to be involved with anything that involves unions."
Standing up for fair treatment has taught the sanitation workers valuable lessons, Laughinghouse said.
"They learned that they have some rights as human beings."
The sanitation workers' strike is just the beginning, he said, adding that all N.C. workers should protest state laws that prohibit collective bargaining.
"This has to be a long-term fight for social justice."
The struggle for workers' rights affects everyone in the community, especially students, said Dante Strobino, a member of the Student Worker Alliance at N.C. State University.
Strobino said the sanitation workers' protest raised awareness.
"In a way, they slapped the community in the face."
He said the community since has shown impressive support for the workers. "It's been real positive seeing that response."
Students need to be involved in the fight for workers' rights, he added.
"When you get out of college, you're going to be a worker too."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/26/06 4:00am)
The Charlotte United Steelworkers union, irate at a recent sponsorship deal between the UNC Department of Athletics and Continental Tire, has appealed to the University to cancel the marketing contract.
Mark West, who was laid off July 7 after 28 years at Continental, said that the sponsorship deal, valued at about $500,000, inaccurately represents Continental.
"They're getting the appearance of being supportive to the community, which is a flat-out lie."
West and other representatives from the union met Thursday with Dick Baddour, director of athletics.
"We had a good discussion, and I offered them the opportunity to send me more information," Baddour said.
Mark Cieslikowski, president of Local Union 850, said that he will send more information to Baddour.
He said that he hopes to hear from the director of athletics within a week.
The union also wants to meet with another influential N.C. personality, UNC-system President Erskine Bowles, as soon as possible.
"Just out of respect - he should know what's going on," Cieslikowski said.
"Erskine has always been a friend to the union," said Larry Little, who retired two years ago after 32 years at Continental.
Little said many union members campaigned for Bowles when he ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate.
"I know he'll do the right thing."
Cieslikowski said the union wants to give officials from UNC and Continental a chance to rectify the situation before it launches a full-scale media campaign against the sponsorship deal.
"It's not our goal to run UNC's name through the mud in this thing."
Baddour said he felt the issue is between the union and the company.
"I told them that I really would not get in the middle of a labor dispute."
Cieslikowski said that Baddour should pressure the University's marketing division to cancel the deal.
"His responsibility is to jump on the marketing company," he said.
"I think he's got that power."
Baddour said that he does not feel qualified to mediate a labor dispute, but that the University will take the union's complaints seriously.
"I certainly feel an obligation to at least talk to someone from Continental Tire," he said.
"I couldn't draw any conclusions from hearing one side."
The sponsorship deal has nothing to do with Continental's labor negotiations, said Rick Holcomb, Continental senior counsel.
"One decision has nothing to do with the other."
Holcomb said the company is moving manufacturing to lower-cost countries, but it still intends to sell tires in the United States and therefore needs to increase its customer base.
"This is just one of the many new marketing initiatives."
Holcomb said that while the parent company of Continental has been successful, Continental's North American subsidy has not turned a profit in five or six years.
Negotiations between the union and the company are ongoing.
The union's primary goal is to negotiate a closure agreement for the Charlotte plant.
Jerry Bullard, who retired on May 1 after 30 years at Continental, said the company is avoiding paying employees shutdown benefits by keeping a skeleton crew at the plant.
Bullard said Continental should close the plant in fairness to the workers.
"Quit using word games to cheat people out of what they're legitimately entitled to."
But Holcomb said it is cost-effective for the Charlotte plant to continue rubber-mixing operations.
"We are not and have no plans to close the Charlotte plant."
The company last met with the union Sept. 5 and 6 and will arrange another meeting in a few weeks, he said.
Holcomb said the company is sympathetic to the concerns of retirees and laid-off workers.
"We certainly understand the frustrations."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/21/06 4:00am)
If Chatham County officials have their way a hilly site bordered by the Rocky River soon will be transformed into a hub of industry.
The Chatham County Board of Commissioners and the Chatham County Economic Development Corporation broke ground for the Central Carolina Business Campus near Siler City on Wednesday morning.
"The goal, of course, is to create jobs and capital investment in Chatham County," said Tony Tucker, president of the Chatham County Economic Development Corporation.
The groundbreaking ceremony seemed to portend future success for the center.
"We had a good crowd - beautiful day," said Bunkey Morgan, a member of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners.
The business center will contain a new branch of Chatham Hospital and an expansion of Central Carolina Community College.
"We do have a couple anchor tenets going in," Tucker said.
UNC has provided expertise to the venture, with UNC Health Care signing a contract to provide management for Chatham Hospital.
Officials said that they hope the hospital will attract private medical specialists to the area and that the hospital itself should draw business to the center.
"A hospital is an important piece of attracting industry to any area," said Carol Straight, CEO of Chatham Hospital. "Any area that is growing needs to have a hospital."
The new facility of Chatham Hospital should open in the center in 2008, Straight said.
The current hospital is no longer in a good position to take advantage of traffic patterns, she said, adding that the new facility will be located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 64 and U.S. Highway 421.
The medical industry is doing well in the state, and Chatham County is looking to tap into that growth, Morgan said. "It will create some good jobs."
The county traditionally has been a Triangle bedroom community, with many workers commuting to more developed areas, but the new business center should provide jobs within the county, he said.
Tucker also said that Chatham County would benefit from keeping more of its workers inside the county.
"Every county that surrounds Wake County or Orange County is a bedroom community," he said.
Tucker said the area around the Central Carolina Business Center is in great need of development.
"Certainly we need some stimulation in the Siler area."
The property for the center was purchased seven years ago, but local commissioners only recently agreed to fund the project fully, Tucker said.
"It's been a six-year, seven-year odyssey."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/19/06 4:00am)
UNC-Asheville is seeking a new direction from a leader who is returning home.
Anne Ponder, who was installed as the university's sixth chancellor on Friday, is a native of Asheville who has spent the last 10 years as president of Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire.
In her installation address, Ponder said she will draw on the university's liberal arts tradition to make the school a catalyst for change.
"The liberal arts and the interdisciplinary habit of mind are more than what we do - it is who we are and it is what we teach."
Ponder said she will focus on two key groups: the enrollment growth task force, which will determine the optimal size for the college in the future, and the university community council, which will work to improve community relations.
"Her goal is to complete a thorough strategic planning initiative which will help to define where the school will go in the next decades," said William Massey, vice chancellor for alumni and development at UNC-A.
Initiatives that Ponder will work on include improving diversity and supporting North Carolina's K-12 educators, Massey said.
In her address, Ponder concluded that UNC-A must seize the opportunity to help improve North Carolina.
"Now is our time - this decade and the next - this is our chance and our challenge."
Kimberly Slover, director of communications at Colby-Sawyer, said Ponder was ready for a new challenge after a decade of work in New Hampshire.
"It was a good time to go back home."
Ponder found success leading the Colby-Sawyer's largest-ever funding campaign, a $40 million effort to raise capital funds, support faculty and academic programs and increase the endowment, Slover said.
One of Ponder's greatest strengths was her ability to build community ties, Slover added.
"She was really good at nurturing relationships with alumni, with the community."
Faculty who worked with Ponder appreciated her open and creative leadership.
"I've really never worked with an administrator who was more collaborative in style," said Ann Page Stecker, a Colby-Sawyer professor.
Stecker said Ponder always asked tough questions and listened intently to others' point of view.
"She never asked you to solve her problems for her," she said, adding that Ponder treated all constituents as equals.
Stecker said that UNC-A will benefit from Ponder's leadership.
"I've been around - seen a number of presidents - and she's the best," she said.
"They're so damn lucky to have her."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/19/06 4:00am)
UNC-Asheville is seeking a new direction from a leader who is returning home.
Anne Ponder, who was installed Friday as the university's sixth chancellor, is a native of Asheville and has spent the last 10 years as president of Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire.
In her installation address Ponder said she will draw on the university's liberal arts tradition to make the school a catalyst for economic and social change.
"The liberal arts and the interdisciplinary habit of mind are more than what we do - it is who we are, and it is what we teach," she said.
Ponder said she will focus on two key groups: the enrollment growth task force, which will determine the optimal size for the college in the future, and the university community council, which will work to improve community relations.
"Her goal is to complete a thorough strategic planning initiative which will help to define where the school will go in the next decades," said William Massey, vice chancellor for alumni and development at UNC-A.
Specific initiatives that Ponder will work on include improving diversity and supporting North Carolina's K-12 educators, Massey said.
Ponder said that UNC-A has a distinct role as the state's liberal arts university.
"We're part of a university system that supports and encourages us while challenging us to remain unique in an increasingly standardized world."
In her address, Ponder concluded that UNC-A must seize the opportunity to help improve North Carolina.
"Now is our time - this decade and the next - this is our chance and our challenge."
Kimberly Slover, director of communications at Colby-Sawyer, said Ponder was ready for a new challenge after a decade of work in New Hampshire.
"It was a good time to go back home."
Ponder found success leading Colby-Sawyer's largest-ever capital campaign, raising $40 million for capital projects, faculty, academic programs and the endowment, Slover said.
One of Ponder's greatest strengths was her ability to build community ties, Slover added.
"She was really good at nurturing relationships with alumni, with the community."
Faculty who worked with Ponder appreciated her open and creative leadership.
"I've really never worked with an administrator who was more collaborative in style," said Ann Page Stecker, a Colby-Sawyer professor.
Stecker said Ponder always asked tough questions and listened intently to others' point of view.
"She never asked you to solve her problems for her," she said, adding that Ponder treated all constituents as equals.
Stecker said that UNC-A will benefit from Ponder's leadership.
"I've been around - seen a number of presidents - and she's the best," she said.
"They're so damn lucky to have her."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/15/06 4:00am)
A local steel workers union lost more than a 1,000 jobs when the Continental Tire plant in Charlotte underwent mass layoffs.
A recent sponsorship deal between UNC athletics and Continental Tire added insult to the union's injuries, said Mark Cieslikowski, president of United Steelworkers of America Local Union 850.
He said fewer people in Charlotte will root for the Tar Heels now that the Continental Tire name is attached to UNC athletics.
The three-year contract, announced on Sept. 6, gives the automotive safety system and tire manufacturer the title sponsorship of one Carolina football game and one Carolina basketball game this season.
The company also will sponsor a "coaches corner" on game day radio broadcasts and on the TV shows of John Bunting and Roy Williams.
Continental Tire has a documented history of sponsoring the Atlantic Coast Conference, said Rick Steinbacher, associate director of athletics for marketing at UNC.
"They're a solid, steady North Carolina company."
The company will pay more than $500,000 for three years of sponsorship rights, said Art Chansky, associate general manager of Tar Heel Sports Marketing.
"They want to brand Continental with Carolina."
In addition to the sponsorship deals, the company plans to use the Kenan-Flagler Business School as a recruiting base, said Travis Roffler, director of marketing for Continental Tire.
"It made sense for both of us, so we got together."
Roffler said the recent layoffs at the Charlotte plant have nothing to do with the company's marketing efforts.
"The other has to do with competitive manufacturing; it has to do with the sales and marketing of our products."
Continental Tire started downsizing in the Charlotte plant in March when company officials decided it was no longer competitive in the global market.
Alan Hippe, president and CEO of Continental Tire North America Inc., released a March statement explaining the shift.
"Due to skyrocketing costs for energy, raw materials and health care, CTNA cannot continue to operate the Charlotte plant with our current manufacturing cost structure."
In August, former U.S. Sen. John Edwards sent a letter to Hippe, criticizing CTNA for its alleged violations of U.S. labor laws and demanding that the company show more respect to its workers.
"I understand that Continental's decisions will force hundreds of retirees in North Carolina who are not yet Medicare-eligible to either use three-fourths or more of their pension income to pay for health care insurance or drop their health care coverage altogether and become dependent on taxpayer-funded health care," he stated.
Cieslikowski said the company's retirees typically make $900 a month in pension funds. As of Jan. 1 they must pay monthly premiums of up to $1000 or lose their health care, he said.
The company started cutting benefits and laying off workers because their American manufacturing plants were not as successful as they hoped, said Wayne Ranick, spokesman for United Steelworkers.
Continental Tire, based in Hannover, Germany, attempted to operate in the United States as it had in Europe, a strategy that ultimately failed, he said.
But strategic setbacks aside, the foreign-based company is making a profit.
"They're not a poor company - they've done really well," Ranick said.
During 2005, Continental's share price increased 60.5 percent, and consolidated sales increased 9.8 percent to 13.8 billion euros, equivalent to $17.5 billion in U.S. currency.
Cieslikowski said a company doing so well in the market should treat its workers better.
"To even cheat a retiree out of health care and be making that kind of money is wrong," he said.
In July the National Labor Relations Board filed complaints against Continental Tire for violating federal labor law in North Carolina.
The board claimed the company illegally relocated the production of the Charlotte plant and didn't participate in fair bargaining with the union.
"It was a big ruse - even their involvement in negotiations," Ranick said, noting a lawsuit allegeding that the company decided to close the Charlotte plant before negotiations with the union began.
The worst part of the situation is that no one is paying attention to the wrongs committed against the state's workers, Cieslikowski said.
"I'm so close to this - it gets upsetting. What's upsetting is that people don't know the full story."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(09/14/06 4:00am)
Like a true businessman, UNC-system President Erskine Bowles knows how to delegate.
(09/13/06 4:00am)
CORRECTION: Due to a reporting error, the photo cutline accompanying this article incorrectly reported that Eric Gardner is a senior. He is a UNC graduate. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error.
Angry slogans scrawled on bedsheets in red spray paint.
Dancing students who called themselves "radical cheerleaders" leading satiric chants.
The scene, generated by the presence of John Ashcroft, former U.S. attorney general, on campus started 30 minutes before his 6:30 p.m. speech in Memorial Hall Tuesday night.
(09/11/06 4:00am)
Five years later, the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have reached the silver screen, stirring strong emotions from an American public still struggling to cope with the attacks' consequences.
Several major films dramatizing the event have moved the attacks into the mainstream media, but audiences have been slow to embrace Hollywood's adaptations.
"United 93," which ran in theaters from April 28 to July 6, tells the story of the plane that crashed into rural Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the hijackers.
The movie earned about $31 million domestically and $32 million overseas. Locally "United 93" received a cold welcome.
When Southpoint Cinemas in Durham showed trailers for the movie, customers began to complain, said Robb Gannotta, the theater's general manager.
"It wasn't a lot of people, but we had enough to spark some concern." People said that it was too soon to be showing a movie about flight 93, he said.
In contrast Gannotta said he has not heard any complaints about the movie "World Trade Center," which is in theaters now.
"World Trade Center" does not have the same tone that seemed to strike a nerve with viewers of "United 93," he said.
Gannotta said neither movie has done well at the box office, but both have brought in modest amounts of revenue. On the retail end, people also have been slow to embrace films about the attacks.
"United 93" has been on the shelves of Durham's Wal-Mart since Tuesday. As of Friday the movie's sales had been minimal.
"I only sold four; that's not good," said Alex Tarson, department manager of electronics.
People who experienced the aftermath of Sept. 11 firsthand have a unique perspective on the media's treatment of the subject.
"I have a different understanding or concept of what's going on," said Ernest Grant, nursing education clinician for burn outreach at the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center. Grant arrived in New York on Oct. 7, 2001. The hospital where he volunteered received the majority of burn patients from Ground Zero.
Grant and two other volunteers from the N.C. Jaycee Burn Center worked ten 12-hour night shifts in an effort to relieve the hospital's overburdened staff.
"All you did was go to work and sleep." The atmosphere in New York after the attacks felt like a surreal dream, he said. "Even a month later it was eerie going into the airport."
Grant said a sense of reality didn't hit until he visited Ground Zero.
Every time a new body was found, an alarm would sound and everyone on site would stop working and salute the body, he said. "It was really touching to see that."
Grant said he has friends who have viewed movies about Sept. 11, but he has no personal desire to see the films himself.
"I don't think that they could even come close," he said.
"I think it's something you have to experience."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/31/06 4:00am)
Wednesday night, Durham students turned to America's pastime to mend the recent rift between their two historic universities.
The relationship between the schools was strained last year when an N.C. Central student accused members of the Duke lacrosse team of rape. Three players have since been charged.
To combat the tension, students from Duke University and N.C. Central University came together for a student night at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.
The night got off to a slow start, with university administrators voicing disappointment at the poor student turnout.
"The place is empty - look at this," said Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs at Duke.
"I think the weather's been a bit discouraging," he added.
The darkening sky gave way to rolling thunderstorms, eventually forcing officials to postpone the baseball game until Thursday.
But the prospects of student night took a turn for the better.
The Marching Sound Machine, NCCU's showcase band, added some pomp and percussion to the dampened proceedings.
The thunder only grew louder, but the band's brassy tunes kept the mood light, and students from both schools began to fill the stands behind the musicians.
By the time the band finished playing, there were about 20 Duke and NCCU students mingling in the bleachers. That interaction was the goal of the entire event.
"We're trying to get Duke students to socially interact with Central students," said Elliott Wolf, student body president of Duke.
Richard Brodhead, president of Duke, and James Ammons, NCCU's chancellor, were set to throw out the first pitch.
Neither got a chance to show off their baseball skills, but both were eager to build camaraderie between their two universities.
"It's fun to be here with a group of Dukies and our great friends from across town," Brodhead said.
Ammons said that Brodhead is a close friend, and that he was pleased to work together to create a sense of unity between Durham's collegiate institutions.
"What we want is to take advantage of this opportunity to give the two universities - our faculty, staff and especially the students - an opportunity to get together at the ballpark for a fun event to begin this academic year," Ammons said.
"At the height of this incident the historical relationships between the two universities were lost," he said, stressing the need for both of Durham's campuses to regain a sense of shared community.
Both Duke and NCCU students spoke of the need to connect with their neighbors.
"I think it's really important that Duke students are personally engaged with the Durham community - specifically their counterparts at NCCU," said senior Daniel Bowes, a member of Duke's student government.
The event was only the beginning of a closer collaboration between the two universities, officials said.
"Obviously a baseball game is not the end-all and be-all," Bowes said.
The student governments of Duke and NCCU have been working together all summer. They are planning a Unity Day for October.
"The ultimate goal is to get student groups at Duke . to work with the student groups at Central," Wolf said.
"We don't want to force anything, but there are opportunities on both sides."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/31/06 4:00am)
The much-awaited long-range tuition proposal that UNC-system President Erskine Bowles planned to present in September will be kept under wraps for another month.
The president was planning to present his four-year tuition plan to the tuition policy task force at its September meeting.
The proposal will determine the maximum annual tuition increase that each campus can request in the next four years.
Tuition increases that fall short of the maximum amount will be approved automatically.
Charles Mercer, co-chairman of the tuition policy task force, said he doubts the committee will meet in September. "I imagine we will postpone our meeting."
Jim Phillips, chairman of the UNC-system Board of Governors, said that Bowles has solicited a wide range of opinions about his tuition plan and that the president is delaying his proposal to carefully consider all the advice he has received.
"His feeling is that we've got one chance to get this right," Phillips said.
Hannah Gage, co-chairwoman of the tuition policy task force, said Bowles wanted to meet individually with all 32 board members, as well as the chancellors.
"He wanted some more time so that he could complete the process," she said.
The president is seeking input on all aspects of tuition policy, from financial aid concerns to guidelines on allocating money from tuition increases, Gage said.
"It's not just, 'Do you think it should be this high?'"
Jeff Davies, Bowles' chief of staff, said the new goal is to have the plan finished two weeks before the October meeting.
"We are continuing to be consultive - it's not an easy process," he said.
Gage said that Bowles wanted tuition increases to be consistent with the precedent set in the last 30 years.
He set forth that goal in January and has sought to incorporate it into his tuition proposal.
The president said an increase of 6 to 6.5 percent would be appropriate, Gage said.
Tuition increases are linked to General Assembly appropriations, she said, adding that this year's funding increase should affect the tuition discussion.
"I would be surprised if it did not have some impact," she said.
Gage said that the task force should meet sometime before the October BOG meeting, and that a specific date would be set in a few days.
The delay should not be seen as a major setback, Phillips said.
"There's no real reason to run it out there in September per se."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/29/06 4:00am)
Thomas Dee, an economics professor at Swarthmore College, sparked an academic firestorm when he published a study suggesting that students learn better from teachers of their same gender.
"The Why Chromosome: How a Teacher's Gender Affects Boys and Girls" is featured in the fall issue of the journal Education Next.
"Simply put, girls have better educational outcomes when taught by women, and boys are better off when taught by men," the study states.
Some experts said they are wary of Dee's findings.
Marcia Greenberger, co-president of the National Women's Law Center, told The Associated Press that the study's conclusions are faulty.
"The data, as he presents them, are far from convincing," she said.
Dee said people assume his research has an agenda, when all the study concluded was the need for more investigation.
"It suggests that gender dynamics matter in the classroom, but it doesn't suggest how."
The backlash from the study primarily has been from educators who assume his study calls for controversial changes in the education system, he said.
"The negative reaction is because of what they perceive as policy," he said.
He said his study does not advocate aggressive recruitment of male teachers or single-sex education.
"We've got a long and discreditable history of separate but equal education," Dee said.
Greenberger told the AP that experiences in the classroom have more to deal with individual interactions than the trends gleaned from the study.
"I don't think there are many parents or students, looking back over their educational careers, who haven't been inspired by a teacher of the opposite sex.
"And many have had very unhappy experiences with teachers of the same gender that they are. We have to be careful of too many generalizations," she added.
To conduct his research Dee used a survey from 1988 that includes interviews with almost 25,000 eighth-graders from across the United States.
The data set is unique in that it focuses on middle-school students, the age range that Dee claims is most affected by the gender gap.
The survey assesses student performance through test scores and also includes interviews that provide teacher assessments of the students and measure their intellectual attachment to a subject.
In addition to anecdotal evidence, Dee's study includes a quantitative assessment on the effects of having a teacher of the opposite sex.
"My best estimate is that it lowers test scores for both boys and girls by approximately 4 percent."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/28/06 4:00am)
With members of Duke University's lacrosse team at the center of an ongoing criminal investigation, the rape allegations that rocked the Durham community also have affected the way Duke students think about honor and integrity.
This summer, in response to what Judith Ruderman, chairwoman of the Academic Integrity Council, calls "the lacrosse incident," the council carefully re-evaluated the university's honor code.
The council sought to examine whether the code has been communicated properly to students and whether it has the right jurisdiction to extend beyond academics.
"Though it's nice to build a tradition with words that don't change, these honor codes are not the Ten Commandments," Ruderman said, adding that the code must be revisited periodically to ensure continued relevance.
Duke President Richard Brodhead emphasized the need for civility in his commencement speech Wednesday.
"To make this a better world, you'll need to practice the arts of human respect ... Recognize that each other person is as fully human as you and requires as much consideration as you would want in their place."
Jimmy Soni, co-chairman of Duke's Undergraduate Judicial Board, said that no official action has been taken to change the university's judicial system, but that there has been an attitude adjustment on campus.
"There's a heightened awareness among students that off-campus activities reflect poorly on the university," he said.
Most disciplinary issues at Duke are taken care of by administrators who meet with students and enact appropriate sanctions if necessary.
But students facing suspension or expulsion are brought before the Undergraduate Judicial Board.
While administrators in the Office of Judicial Affairs handle the logistics, each case is heard by a group consisting of three students, one faculty member and one staff or administrative representative.
The board takes action based on clear and convincing evidence, a threshold slightly lower than the "beyond reasonable doubt" standard that the UNC Honor Court employs, said Stephen Bryan, associate dean for judicial affairs at Duke.
Cases involving academic dishonesty, theft, fighting and drunk driving are brought before the board.
Board members also are trained in the appropriate handling of cases involving sexual misconduct, Bryan said. Training consists of a four-hour session held jointly with members of the UNC Honor Court.
Suspensions are the main disciplinary tool of the board, Soni said. But extra sanctions are imposed according to the individual circumstances of each case.
For example, a student who is caught driving drunk might be required to take an alcohol education course or distribute literature across campus that illustrates the dangers of drunk driving.
Students who are suspended must reapply to the university.
While there is no guarantee that students will be reinstated, almost all applicants are granted readmission, Soni said.
"You'd have to do something totally egregious to not be admitted."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/25/06 4:00am)
The issue of school districts divides communities through more than just physical separation.
When education officials need a way to cut through the fierce political debates that often accompany discussions of school growth, they turn to the Institute for Transportation Research and Education at N.C. State University.
Jeff Tsai, the program director of the Operations Research and Education Laboratory at the ITRE, said the center's integrated planning program provides a vital service.
"There's a fairly strong need in the public education system to make decisions using data and mathematical models," he said.
The lab takes information about local growth patterns from county governments and creates 10-year projections for school populations.
The planning program then pinpoints ideal areas to locate new schools, based on school capacity, the forecasted number of students and demographic considerations.
More than 30 school districts in North and South Carolina have used the program, Tsai said.
The second-largest school district in North Carolina, Wake County Public Schools, started working with the lab two years ago.
"We have only really just gotten their preliminary results," said Christina Lighthall, senior director of long-range planning for WCPS.
Wake County traditionally had used historical growth models to determine where to place new schools, whereas the lab calculates projections based on future anticipated growth.
All the county's municipal planners pooled their data so that the lab could generate accurate projections.
After the growth projections were completed, the lab began to generate models that pinpointed the ideal locations for future schools.
"We are very satisfied with the process," Lighthall said.
Wake County will begin using the lab's recommendations to locate new elementary schools beginning in 2009, and starting in 2010 the data will be used to locate new middle and high schools.
"We wanted to get our enrollment projections by area more data-driven," Lighthall said.
In June, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools used the lab's services to help configure boundaries for their new high school.
The school district uses the lab's projections to create a base plan, said Pam Hemminger, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Board member.
"It gives you a model to start from."
When creating models for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, the lab calculates the best driving distances for each student.
The result is a good ballpark estimate for the best transportation plan, Hemminger said.
Although other labs perform demographic research, N.C. State's program is unique in creating solutions based purely on mathematical data.
Changing school boundaries is a politically charged and emotionally fraught issue, and relying on mathematical calculations helps bring order to the process, Tsai said.
"It doesn't make it any easier, but it's easier to stand up and defend the solution."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/25/06 4:00am)
Local public transportation companies are catering their services to college students, who they view as the key to the future of their businesses.
Kevin Elwood, strategic information specialist with the Greensboro Department of Transportation, said a Greensboro Transit Authority study revealed the need to tap into the college market.
In response the GTA created the Higher Education Area Transit, a bus system geared toward university students.
HEAT is a partnership between the City of Greensboro and six universities: Bennett College, Elon University School of Law, Greensboro College, Guilford College, Guilford Technical Community College and UNC-Greensboro.
The $8.2 million project is supported by federal and state grants, as well as subsidizes from participating universities, Elwood said.
Students can ride the bright orange buses for free using their college ID.
Buses will run until midnight on weeknights and 3 a.m. on weekends.
The service will operate 39 weeks a year.
Riders who do not qualify for free service will pay $1 each way.
HEAT began operation on Aug. 8, and campus officials are already seeing positive results from the new service.
"We're extremely happy with it," said Mike Byers, assistant vice chancellor for business affairs at UNC-G.
"So far the ridership has increased every day. Since the first day it's increased 200 percent."
UNC-G has very scarce parking resources, he said, adding HEAT is part of the university's effort to facilitate alternative modes of transportation and to prevent a crisis in how people access campus.
HEAT is not the only bus service that caters to students.
The Triangle Transit Authority maintains a similar partnership with UNC-Chapel Hill and other local colleges.
"This is the third year of TTA's relationship with UNC," said John Tallmadge, TTA director of commuter resources.
Universities have a vested interest in ensuring that students have a cheap, available mode of transportation, he said, because it can help with crowding in campus parking.
He said that colleges often are willing to subsidize the cost of student fares to offset parking shortages.
"It's because the market makes a lot of sense," he said.
Tallmadge said partnerships between universities and local transportation companies across the country have found success in targeting and appealing to the student population.
"They have a need, and it's a proven technique."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/23/06 4:00am)
The N.C. Center for Public Policy Research has issues with the way the UNC-system Board of Governors operates.
Last week, the center released a study detailing their recommendations for the BOG. The center would like to see three-fourths of the board appointed by the governor, as opposed to the current system where all BOG members are elected by legislators.
Ran Coble, the center's director, said campaign contributions from BOG candidates to legislators have corrupted the process.
But BOG member and former chairman Brad Wilson said the legislature should retain control of BOG elections.
"I disagree that the selection process is so broken that it needs to be repaired."
Wilson said placing the selection in the governor's hands would not remove politics from the process.
But Coble said the governor has a better record at appointing women and minorities. The center also would like to see the BOG focus on long-term planning, addressing issues such as the teacher and nursing shortages.
In the process, the board must remember to make full partners of community and private colleges, Coble said.
"The university system is kind of treating them like step children in the planning process," he said.
The center emphasized that research universities, like UNC-Chapel Hill, should not seek special treatment from the legislature, which might undermine the system. The report also called for better oversight of intercollegiate athletics and warned that recent tuition increases could lead to a lawsuit based on the constitutional mandate to keep tuition low.
In addition, the center suggested that the student member of the BOG be granted voting privileges.
For three straight sessions, the N.C. house has passed a bill that would give the student member of the BOG a vote, but the provision is blocked by the powerful chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, Tony Rand, D-Cumberland.
"The board's too big now," Rand said. "The student only serves a year; it's a four-year term."
"The students, their life experiences haven't been such as the other members."
But Sen. Ellie Kinnaird, D-Orange, said that the student vote on the campus boards of trustees has worked well, and that she feels there should be a student vote on the BOG as well.
"The students are what are being governed - they ought to have some say in what happens."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/22/06 4:00am)
North Carolina's two national senators took a different approach to their summer breaks - one traveled to China, while the other spent time in the western N.C. countryside.
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., focused on the western areas of the state that had received rural-development grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The farm-based non-profit HarvestWorks Inc., located in Shelby, received one such grant to fund its work and care services for individuals with developmental disabilities.
Dole wanted to tout the organization as an example of a passion of hers that has found success, said Bill Green, executive director of HarvestWorks.
"She is quite the advocate for the developmentally disabled," he said.
Dole was the first national senator to visit the organization.
Keeping in touch with voters across the state is a priority for the senator, said Katie Norman, Dole's press secretary.
"She represents all 100 counties, and she tries to come down and visit with her constituents as much as possible," Norman said.
Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., also made time to meet with constituents during his break from Congress. He made a swing through the state, visiting non-profits, civic groups and local politicians.
But Burr did not confine his summer travel to the state of North Carolina. He was one of nine senators who went abroad to meet with the Chinese legislature.
"He wanted to see what was going on in China as far as trade issues, avian flu issues - there were a lot of issues he was interested in," said Laura Caudell, press secretary to Burr.
Back in North Carolina, Burr visited the Merck Vaccine Manufacturing Facility in Durham.
Burr, who leads the Senate subcommittee on bioterrorism and public health preparedness, sought information from plant officials about how the facility could help expand vaccine production nationwide.
"He had a very distinct interest in learning about the Merck plant in Durham and its potential for expanding vaccine-manufacturing capabilities," said Patrick Witmer, director of public affairs for Merck's manufacturing division.
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/22/06 4:00am)
Judging from the provisions of the N.C. General Assembly's latest budget, it's a good year to be a UNC-system professor.
The legislature's budget includes $90.6 million for academic salary increases, plus $5 million targeted toward retention of faculty who have received competitive offers.
It is heartening to see increased support from the General Assembly, UNC-Chapel Hill faculty chairman Joseph Templeton said.
"Faculty are delighted with the significant action taken by the state of North Carolina," he said.
Funding for salary increases is important to UNC-system schools because it enables chancellors to recognize good work, said Jeff Davies, chief of staff to system President Erskine Bowles.
"I think everyone generally is very pleased that the General Assembly had the capacity and was willing to be so generous," Davies said.
Each UNC-system school received funds equal to 6 percent of its total salary budget from last year. Consequently, UNC-CH gained $12.5 million in legislative appropriations.
In addition, the University received $3 million in funding from campus-based tuition increases.
All UNC-CH faculty will not receive a flat 6 percent raise; instead, the $15.5 million in total funding will be distributed according to a merit system.
"We're not spreading peanut butter - it's not 6 percent everywhere," Templeton said.
Executive Associate Provost Steve Allred said deans have broad discretion to determine how salary increases are distributed within their schools.
Merit is the driving force in making decisions, he said, adding that deans also must seek to keep salaries competitive with peer institutions and maintain salary equity within each department.
The funding available for salary increases this year is much greater than has been provided in the past five years, Allred said.
As opposed to previous years when there was not enough money to go around, Templeton said this year's pay increase is generous enough that it is worth taking the time to decide how best to allocate funding.
"The good news is that we have enough money to make decisions," he said.
Bernadette Gray-Little, executive vice chancellor and provost, said the salary increases are a relief after years of budget cuts.
"In past years at the time of budget submissions, academic units have been warned that they should prepare for a cut of a certain level and how they should make those cuts. This year it was possible to send out that notice without saying that," she said.
The money will enable the University to reward excellent faculty, and the pay increases should help UNC-CH stay competitive with peer institutions in the areas of faculty recruitment and retention, Templeton said.
"It will help in recruitment in terms that the general salary levels will be higher, especially if we continue to get good increases in the next few years. It could do a lot to our average salaries in a way that compares better with our peers," Gray-Little said.
Beyond increasing retention of faculty, Templeton said the pay increase will raise job satisfaction.
"It's a financial boost, but equally important, it's a morale boost."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/22/06 4:00am)
After a year with practically guaranteed tuition increases, the annual tuition policy debate soon could become even more predictable.
UNC-system President Erskine Bowles, who has been considering the issue of tuition policy since taking office in January, is preparing a formal proposal that would create a four-year tuition framework.
The system president's proposal will set yearly maximum tuition increases at each campus for the next four years. All tuition requests that do not exceed the set limit would be automatically approved.
"It's that 'up-to level' that's so hard to get our arms around," said Jeff Davies, chief of staff to Bowles.
Bowles will present his proposal to the tuition policy task force Sept. 7. If the task force accepts the proposal, the full Board of Governors will vote on the proposal at their meeting the following day.
"The jury's still out until the president's made his case," said Hannah Gage, co-chairwoman of the task force.
The task force originally formed last year in response to a failed legislative provision that would have given UNC-Chapel Hill and N.C. State University control over their own tuition increases.
Members' efforts led to a one-year policy that placed caps on campus' requests while guaranteeing approval of requests within the guidelines.
The goal, now, is to have a four-year plan in place by the end of September, when each UNC-system school forms committees to work on their tuition requests.
Davies said that Bowles hopes each campus will not automatically come to the board to request the maximum hike, but instead will weigh its needs against the burden increases impose on students.
Derek Pantiel, president of the UNC-system Association of Student Governments, said predictability would be beneficial because students would know in advance the maximum amount that tuition could rise in the next four years.
"I'm not for tuition increases whatsoever - that's not me," Pantiel said, adding that it might be possible to keep increases low if the N.C. General Assembly continues to adequately fund the universities.
A new player in the tuition debate, Pantiel aims to keep tuition affordable for all students. "We want to keep it as low as possible - to a bare minimum."
If Bowles' predictability model is adopted, it will operate as a pilot program. After four years, the BOG will assess the plan's success before determining a permanent policy.
Gage said she's glad the president took his time with the plan. "I think it will be a very thoughtful policy when it finally comes out."
Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.
(08/22/06 4:00am)
When UNC-system President Erskine Bowles swept into office last January, he sought to use his business background to transform the way state universities operate. He has worked to push the UNC system out of the staid world of academia and into the dynamic global economy. Bowles might be a Tar Heel, but it's his degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Business that seems to shape his management style. Evidence of his business-oriented approach is everywhere, from his slashing of the General Administration budget to his attempt to leverage systemwide buying power in the fight to lower textbook costs. Bowles drew on his extensive experience in the business and political arenas to gain financial support from the state legislature. "We've got a new president, Erskine Bowles, who has strong street cred in Raleigh and great personal relationships with politicians in both parties and both houses who wanted to give him, I think, a successful start," UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor James Moeser said. The General Assembly's latest budget includes $90.6 million for academic salary increases - an average raise of 6 percent. "It's the best, certainly the best budget in my time - it might be the best budget in the past 20 years," said Moeser, who's in his seventh year at UNC. "I didn't dream we'd get 6 percent," he added. Despite the salary increases, the General Assembly only allotted $5 million for teacher training and recruitment programs for which Bowles had requested $21 million. "We didn't get everything we asked for; we never get everything we ask for," said Jeff Davies, chief of staff to Bowles. Alan Mabe, vice president for academic planning for the system, said it's difficult to get funding for new programs during the legislature's short session. Bowles should have more success funding new programs in the next two-year budget, which will be prepared in January, Mabe said. Some of the programs that did not receive funding in the latest state budget have attracted private donors, he added. For example, the Bryan Foundation is partnering with Guilford County Schools to fund a pilot program that provides salary boosts and mentoring services for math teachers in eight high schools. Encouraging students to study math and science and placing the best teachers in classrooms will help keep system students competitive in today's global economy, Davies said. "I think that all the chancellors are acutely aware of the need to advance students in STEM fields," Davies said, referring to the science, technology, engineering and math disciplines. To aid his effort to streamline the education bureaucracy, Bowles created the president's advisory committee on efficiency and effectiveness . Krista Tillman, BellSouth's president of N.C. operations, is in charge of the committee, which aims to compile a final report by late October. The committee's report will help Bowles prepare his budget requests for next year. "This project grew out of his desire to look at where we spend money and whether or not we spend it in the most effective and efficient way," Tillman said. General administration has proposed a $1.3 million cut in salary and nonpersonnel expenses, Davies said. "We've taken a hard, careful look at ourselves," he said, adding that Bowles wants each campus to perform a similar assessment. As part of the self-investigation, Bowles is requiring each college to look into the feasibility of a textbook rental system. "My hope is that if we have to raise tuition this year, that we do it in an environment where we've examined all costs," Davies said. The president will submit his long-term tuition plan in September. The plan will determine the maximum amount that each campus can raise tuition in the next four years. "It provides for predictability that I think will be so helpful for students and campuses," Davies said. In the spirit of remaining globally competitive, the board commissioned a report from the Pappas Consulting Group Inc. entitled "Staying a Step Ahead: Higher Education Transforming North Carolina's Economy." The consultant suggested creating a K-16 board that would expand communication between educators from all grade levels. Another idea from the report was the possibility of offering in-state tuition to students in bordering counties of neighboring states. The program could enable students in Southern Virginia to pay in-state rates at schools in the tidewater region of Eastern North Carolina, and similar reciprocity programs also could be set up in the western part of the state. Though it might seem that the new president has a lot on his plate, he seems to be keeping one constant in mind - streamlining the process. Tillman said, "We're very focused on this effectiveness side." Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu. What's next for UNC-system President Erskine Bowles Making tuition predictable: In September, Bowles will present a formal proposal to the tuition policy task force. The proposal will determine the maximum amount that each campus can raise tuition in the next four years. Lowering textbook costs: As part of their annual tuition requests to the Board of Governors, each university must examine whether a textbook rental system would work on their campus. The BOG will also explore other ways to save money on textbooks, such as creating a systemwide pool of used books. Improving efficiency: Bowles has created a special committee to study the effectiveness of the UNC-system administration. As part of that study, General Administration has proposed a $1.3 million cut in salary and non-personnel expenses.