RACHEL BROCK

News

A broken night, pieced together

By RACHEL BROCK | April 15

Henry Landsberger remembers Kristallnacht. On that night in 1938, also known as the “Night of Broken Glass,” members of the Nazi party in Germany lashed out against the Jews, breaking windows in homes and businesses, burning and looting synagogues and taking men away from their families. Landsberger witnessed his father being taken away at gunpoint by German officials. His father returned several months later in bad health. “To see him sit there and cry was really very tragic,” he said.

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Diversity group to issue report soon

By RACHEL BROCK | April 14

The Chancellor’s Task Force on Diversity is steps away from determining the state of diversity on campus and submitting a report to Chancellor James Moeser before the semester’s end. The task force met Wednesday to review a preliminary draft of the report that it hopes to have completed and brought before the chancellor by the end of this month. “I think we’ve come an enormous way to be this far,” law professor Charles Daye said of the task force that met for the first time last fall.

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Dean search nears its end

By RACHEL BROCK | March 31

After search committee meetings, a review of applications from across the country and interviews with finalists, the search for a dean of the journalism school is coming to a close. Officials are in the midst of negotiations with Gerald Baldasty regarding his taking over the deanship of UNC’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Steve Allred, executive associate provost, confirmed Wednesday afternoon. Baldasty now holds the post of professor and chairman of the Department of Communication at the University of Washington.

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Group dissects UNC's faculty

By RACHEL BROCK | March 28

A recent University survey shows that UNC lags behind in minority hiring — and members of a campus task force charged with examining faculty diversity had plenty of ideas for change in a Thursday meeting. The subcommittee is part of the Chancellor’s Task Force on Diversity, which has gotten down to business since UNC released the results of a campuswide study on diversity at the University. All three subcommittees met last week, with the panel on faculty diversity gathering Thursday.

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Trustees mull retention study

By RACHEL BROCK | March 24

University leaders were satisfied with the results of a study on student retention rates at UNC but said initiatives must continue to retain those who fall through the cracks. Members of the Board of Trustees’ University Affairs Committee discussed the results of a study on retention and graduation rates at UNC. According to a survey of the classes of 1997 and 1998, 83.9 percent of students graduate from UNC within five years, 5.7 percent of students transfer to another four-year institution, and 10.4 percent drop out.

News

Organ donation, research stressed in forum

By RACHEL BROCK | February 24

Dr. Kenneth Andreoni, a transplant surgeon and director of the renal transplant program at UNC Hospitals, stressed the importance of organ donation and research to a group of about 90 students Wednesday. “Almost 90,000 people are waiting for life-saving organ transplants,” he said. The student groups Life Takes Guts and Socially Conscious Science co-sponsored the event, which was held in 431 Greenlaw Hall, to raise student awareness.

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Turnover of deans emerges as a trend

By RACHEL BROCK | February 21

Joanne Marshall doesn’t regret her decision to step down from one of the University’s most prestigious positions to pursue her true interests — research and teaching. Last June, Marshall left the deanship of the School of Information and Library Science, where she worked almost five years and made $149,714 during her final year, to serve as a faculty member at the school, earning $136,714. She is not alone in her decision to leave a high post at the University. The resignation of deans has become a common occurrence at UNC.

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Nichol on list for presidency

By RACHEL BROCK | February 10

The dean of UNC’s School of Law now is in the spotlight as one of the final five candidates in the College of William and Mary’s search for a new president. Gene Nichol, law school dean and Burton Craige Professor of Law, was named as a top contender Tuesday and will visit William and Mary’s campus later this month. Nichol said that although he enjoys his job at UNC, the search committee encouraged him to apply for the presidency, forcing him to consider the opportunity.

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2 new deans to join faculty

By RACHEL BROCK | January 28

The new leaders of two of UNC’s professional schools were confirmed yesterday at a meeting of the Board of Trustees. Dr. John Williams, dean of the school of dentistry at the University of Louisville, will take the head slot at the School of Dentistry. Barbara Rimer, an alumni distinguished professor in the School of Public Health, will fill that school’s post. “They’re both great appointments,” said Richard “Stick” Williams, chairman of the BOT.

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Rising costs affect efforts

By RACHEL BROCK | January 27

The rising cost of commodities is forcing officials to assess the situation’s effects on University construction projects. Steel and concrete cost more than they have in the past, members of the Board of Trustees’ Buildings and Grounds Committee said Wednesday, and it’s driving up the cost of development. A main point of contention was a change in the design plans for construction of two new residence communities on Bowles Drive that will provide the campus with apartment-style living. The housing is slated to open in July 2006.