Katie Rumbaugh

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N.C. State restricts football festivities

By Katie Rumbaugh | April 27

At N.C. State University, where violence during tailgating made national headlines in 2004, fans will face new regulations regarding behavior for football games. N. C. State University Chancellor James Oblinger approved the new rules Monday which, among other things, enforce listening levels for music, require fans to carry a picture ID at all times and prohibit beer kegs in stadium parking areas. "The goal is to create a positive environment on football game day where the rules are clear and everybody understands and respects them," said Keith Nichols, a spokesman for N.C. State.

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Bowles keys in on new programs

By Katie Rumbaugh | April 26

The UNC-system Board of Governors approved a wide variety of new academic programs this year in response to the state's shortages in health care professionals and educators. "(UNC-system) President (Erskine) Bowles made it clear his priority . is to support and expand the university's role in teacher training, nursing and economic development," said system Board of Governors Chairman Brad Wilson. Recently approved programs, such as a proposed dental school at East Carolina University and a doctorate program for organizational science at UNC-Charlotte, reflect Bowles' goal, Wilson said.

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Exchange program aimed to tighten racial bonds

By Katie Rumbaugh | April 13

A program is in the planning stages that will exchange students from historically black colleges and universities and students from the University of Virginia to work on summer research projects. Officials from five Virginia HBCUs and UVa. are hammering out the details, but a partnership between the traditionally black colleges and the public university would be nothing new, said Yuri Milligan, director of university relations for Hampton University. She said Hampton, a private HBCU, has had many educational partnerships with UVa. in the past.

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State groups rally against disputed immigration bill

By Katie Rumbaugh | March 28

Latino organizations statewide are taking a stand against federal proposals designed to curb the influx of undocumented immigrants in the United States. In December 2005, the U.S. House passed a resolution to make being an illegal immigrant in the United States a felony. The bill also would require employers to verify the immigration status of all employees. The Carolina Hispanic Association's executive board met Monday to discuss what the student organization will do to respond to the national debate.

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Dole fights to protect forests

By Katie Rumbaugh | March 23

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., wrote a letter Tuesday expressing disapproval of President Bush's plan to sell national forest land tracks - including 10,000 acres in North Carolina. As part of the 2007 federal budget, Bush proposed the sale to generate up to $800 million to fund the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act for five more years. Dole co-sponsored a bill that would extend the act through the fiscal year 2013. But in her letter to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources she disagreed with Bush's plan to fund the program.

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Grants target state health disparity

By Katie Rumbaugh | February 23

Health care professionals might have a new incentive to practice in rural areas, thanks to a grant totaling $15 million from two N.C. foundations. Tuesday, BlueCross and BlueShield of North Carolina announced a donation of $10 million to the community practitioner program of the N.C. Medical Society Foundation, which has promised to supplement that donation with $5 million of its own funds. The money from the grant will function as an incentive for health care professionals, serving as a means to pay off medical school debts.

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Ex-FEMA head gives stormy report

By Katie Rumbaugh | January 26

Images of natural disasters on television are nothing compared to what it looks like on the ground, a former FEMA director said Wednesday. James Lee Witt, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency from 1993 to 2001, has seen it firsthand. Witt was the keynote speaker at Wednesday's Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce meeting at the Carolina Club. About 450 members of the chamber listened intently as he discussed his experiences reforming FEMA during the Clinton administration and the problems the agency faced when dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.