Thursday, June 10, 1971
The Tar Heel
pnntft committee to consider
today to abolish dormitory visitation
........ j i r::i " ctn;.
by Norman Black
Staff Writer
A bill to abolish visitation in the
dormitory room of state-supported
universities is scheduled for consideration
today by the Senate Committee on
Higher Education.
"I'm not going to push the bill, but it
is possible that some committee member
will make a motion," said committee'
Chairman Russell Kirby when asked if
any action would be taken on the bill
after the first hearing.
Regardless of the action taken by the
committee, the bill must come to the
floor of the Senate for a final vote. No
date has yet been set for consideration by
the Senate.
No request for a public hearing was
made to the Committee on Higher
Education, but Sen. Kirby has extended
an invitation to anyone who is interested
in speaking on the bill to attend the
committee hearing at 3 p.m.
The bill was introduced on May 4 by
Sen. Jyles Coggins (D-Wake).
Coggins was prompted to submit the
legislation because of the "publicity and
commotion that has come out in recent
weeks from some of these schools."
"These students and some outsiders
are using college dormitories for living
together and sleeping together " he said.
Coggins said though some college
administrators may not object to it, he
believes the general public does.
Presently, the Board of Higher
Education permits daily visitation with
members of the opposite sex during
prescribed hours on all six campuses of
the Consolidated University.
Joe Stallings, student body president,
is planning to attend the committee
hearings.
Stallings said he feels that Sen. Coggins
has missed the total perspective of what
visitation means to this campus.
"Visitation on this campus has
definitely Droved beneficial," Stallings
continued. "And besides, all
intra-university matters should be
handled by the universities involved."
The bill reads in full: "No student
enrolled in any state-supported
educational institution shall visit in the
bedroom or other sleeping quarters
maintained by or for a student, who is a
member of the opposite sex, upon the
campus of any state-supported
educational institution. Any violation of
the terms of this act shall be grounds for
suspension or expulsion. Provided, this
act shall not apply to married students
visiting in the bedrooms of their spouses.
E) G (3 OU G D Q dl (3 ft 0 GD
10-year-old battle may rage forever
by Mike Parnell
Editor
The battle for deconsolidating the Consolidated
University of North Carolina did not begin in January
when Gov. Bob Scott appointed a committee to study
the system and offer proposals for change.
The battle did not begin when the Warren Committee
made its proposal to the N.C. General Assembly to
create a board of regents which would oversee all the
state-supported universities and colleges.
The battle did not begin when University
administrators and trustees rallied to support the
minority report of the Warren Committee, a report
which supports changes in the present structure but
would retain the Consolidated University as a separate
entity from the other state-supported schools.
The battle actually began 10 years ago when the
General Assembly took away powers it had given to the
state Board of Higher Education in 1959-powers
comparable to those proposed for the board of regents.
The 1961 legislature recognized that trouble was
brewing from the various state institutions of higher
learning, which had all become basically general purpose
institutions even though most retained their specific
purpose of being teachers colleges or community
colleges, etc.
In 1963 the late Irving Carlyle of Winston-Salem
headed a commission which was expected to end some
of the conflicts.
The system created by the Carlyle Commission gave
each school functions of education, i.e. some were
designated teachers colleges, some community colleges,
some general purpose universities.
The system was heralded as ending the duplication
and waste of the institutions in this state and the rivalry
and vote-swapping every two years in the Assembly.
Plans were also adopted which would allow other
schools to become branches of the University of North
Carolina. The powers of the state Board of Higher
Education continued to exist but with several changes:
the authority to coordinate the plans of the schools was
stripped and thus the Board lost influence with the
Assembly.
In 1965 Charlotte became a branch of the
Consolidated University. In 1967 East Carolina, Western
Carolina, Appalachian and A&T in Greensboro became
the first regional universities, with no alignment with the
Consolidated University.
That idea had been conceived by former Gov. Terry
Sanford, who thought it would help the Democratic
nominee for governor in the 1968 elections. Lt. Gov.
Bob Scott threw his weight behind the plan. He was the
democratic nominee for governor in 1968.
""""""""""""'" V"VVVVV,i'i,,""i
News analysis
In 1969 Asheville and Wilmington became part of the
Consolidated University. Every other state-supported
school in the state was given university status, with the
power to grant doctoral degrees. The Carlyle
Committee's plan for functional education had been
completely smashed.
The Board of Higher Education was strengthened
early in the 1971 legislative session in a surprising move.
The Board gained political power as Gov. Bob Scott, the
chairmen of the Senate and House finance committees,
the chairmen of the Senate and House appropriation
committees and higher education committee members
were added to the Board.
The battle which had begun so long ago flared anew
when Gov. Scott called the University trustees together
last year and told them of his proposal to deconsolidate
the University.
In January Scott named the Warren Committee, with
former state Sen. Lindsay Warren as its chairman.
Warren had been a former member of the Board of
Higher Education.
At its meeting on April 3 the committee heard a
report written by staff members of the University and the
Board of Higher Education. The report would have
strengthened the Board by giving it stronger authority
over new programs and the universities' budgets.
The plan did not include deconsolidating the
University. The committee accepted it for its report to
the Governor by a 13-6 vote.
The committee recessed for three weeks to draft its
report for the governor. The draft was submitted back to
the committee on April 23.
At that time the deconsolidation plan was submitted
to the committee. It was written by Wallace Hyde, a
representative of Western Carolina, and Watts Hill and
W.C. Harris of the Board of Higher Education. v
A motion was approved to reconsider the earlier vote.
A subcommittee was approved to try to reconcile the
differences in the two reports. It failed.
When the final vote was taken there were 13 members
supporting deconsolidation, 8 supporting the
strengthening of the state Board of Higher Education.
The majority and minority reports were presented by
the General Assembly. Gov. Scott supported the
majority:
"Most of the damage to higher education is occurring
from within," he said, "the wrangling, rivalry, the
empire building, the costly overlapping and duplication,
the gilding of the lily, the arrogant distrust and
suspicion, the holier-than-thou, looking-down-the-nose
attitude, the devil-take-the-hindmost, Tin getting mine,
how are you doing?' philosophy.
"These internal disorders will grow progressively
worse if left unchecked. Strong measures are called for."
The plan for the board of regents does not give the
board stated powers in the Constitution of the State of
North Carolina. The powers in the plan may be taken
away at any time by the General Assembly. Witness the
fate of the Board of Education.
Gov. Scott has just been one figure in a long battle
over higher education in this state.
Other governors in the future will have the same
opportunities to "reform" higher educition.
The battle rages on.
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