^ol. VIII, Number 5
Thursday, Feb. 20, 1986
Serving the students of the University of North Carolina Asheville since 1982
Board of Governors
to retain Thurman
(Photo by Jonna McGrath)
DEANNA DAVIS ENJOYS THE SUNSfflNE that beemed doim between
showers Wednesday. Rain may return to the area on Fridhiy
with colder weather expected for the weekend.
Spring enrollment
hits all-time high
By Julie Ball
The University of North
Carolina Board of Governors
(lecided Friday to allow Clas
sics UNCA Professor William
S. Thurman to continue teach
ing while remaining in the
J’ace for the 51st House Dis
trict seat in the North Ca
rolina General Assembly.
’’For this semester they
decided to take my word that
I would not let my candidacy
interfere with my duties on
campus,” said Thurman.
However the Board did not
decide Thurman’s status for
the fall semester or the
Spring semester should he win
in November.
"Nothing has been resolved
about the autumn, and nothing
has been resolved about what
happens upon my election,"
said Thurman.
He filed his candidacy on
Feb. 3 without following the
university procedure concern
ing employees filing for
public ofhce.
The procedure involves pe
titioning the chancellor,
getting a recommendation from
him, and having the petition
approved by the Board of Gov
ernors.
Thurman said he was unaware
of this procedure until Jan.
just days before the fil
ing deadline.
i
s
I
The Committee on Campus Go
vernments met in Chapel Hill
to consider Thurman’s case.
The Committee had two other
options.
They could have ruled that
Thurman’s filing was the
ecfuilivant of resigning, or
they could have decided Thur
man’s candidacy, caused a con
flict of time and granted him
a leave of absence without
pay. _
Chancellor David Brown re
commended to the Board that
Thurman be allowed to con
tinue in his duties at UNCA
since Thurman promised not to
campaign during the semester.
Thurman said, "I think the
Board of Governors treated my
case with unusual fairness."
He also said he did not
think the controversy would
hurt his candidacy, but he
did think that it would
prompt the university to cla
rify its policy concerning
employees running for public
office.
Dick Robinson, assistant to
UNC President Bill Friday,
said last Friday that Thurman
must file a petition to ex
empt him from the resignation
requirement concerning uni
versity employees about the
1986 fall semester.
Thurman said he hopes to
devote half of his time to
his job in the fall if al
lowed to stay at UNCA.
By Patricia Cabe
Spring enrollment at UNCA
has hit an all-time high of
2,711 students, according to
Doug McConkey, assistant vice
chancellor of enrollment ser
vices .
That total represents a 1.2
percent increase over fall
enrollment. McConkey said
UNCA’s total of full-time
equivalent (FTE) students—
the number that helps de
termine the school’s bud
getary allotment—is 1,981,
up 2.6 percent over last
spring. It is also an all-
time spring record.
Although total enrollment
at UNCA has been increasing
since the late 1970s, the
number of minority students
enrolling is on the down
swing.
UNCA’s spring enrollment of
out-of-state students, num
bering 173, represents a 10.4
percent increase over last
spring, said McConkey.
McConkey attributed the
continuing increases in part
to the growing visibility of
UNCA’s academic tradition.
The trend is in part repon-
sible for a $25 million cam
pus expansion which UNCA
launched last fall.
Since 1976, a greater per
centage of college-aged stu
dents have signed up for
classes, but the rate of in
crease for black students has
trailed the total enrollment
growth by an ever-Iarger mar
gin. That's according to a
study by the Southern Region
al Education Board (SREB).
continued on pg. 5
Weekend Weather
The UNCA Atmospheric Science department provWes th^
information to the campus community each week in the Bli
Banner.
'Thursday
Friday:
Saturday:
Sunday:
: Fair and warm. Highs in the mid-70s.
Mild with showers and thunderstorms likely.
High near 65 and low in the mid-40s.
Partly cloudy and much colder. High in the low
40s and low in the upper 20b.
Fair but continued cold. High near 40 and low
in the mid-2bs.