The University of North GafoUfta at Asheville
Volume 26 Issue 12
November 20, 1997
New security
device able to
'track' students
By Amanda Thorn
staff Writer
Dennis Gregory
Acting Director of
Public Safety
The university has invested
$150,000 in a new security system
featuring a personal security device
that will alert public safety officers
to the owner’s whereabouts on cam
pus with the push of a button.
“When you are in danger, you
squeeze the device and there is a
system of sensors throughout cam
pus that flashes your information
on a computer
screen in
the Public
Safety dis
patching
office, and
then they
can dis
patch an of
ficer,” said
Eric
lovacchini,
vice chan
cellor of stu
dent affairs.
The per-
Isonal security device is made to fit
1 on a key chain or be carried by
lAand, and contains two yellow but-
llons on either side of it. When the
I buttons are pressed simultaneously,
[Public Safety will be alerted that
I someone is in danger, said Dennis
I Gregory, acting director of public
I safety.
“There will be transponders placed
[throughout campus to cover the
I entire campus area. It will take 100
[ or more to make sure we have total
[ coverage,” Gregory said.The tran-
[ spenders will be placed on each
[building on campus, and are
[ equipped with lights that turn on
[when the buttons are pressed so
I that the system can be tested.
Once the victim presses the but
tons on the security device, the
transponders send a signal to Pub
lic Safety, Gregory said.
“The transponders send a signal
I to us telling us that your personal
security alarm has been activated. A
computer screen shows your data.
It tells us where you live, what kind
of car you drive, any medical prob
lems you have and any other infor
mation you want to share with us.
It can also pull up a picture,” Gre
gory said.
The computer screen will also
show a map of the campus, and can
track the victim’s location at all
times, Gregory said.
“I like the part that it can be used
anywhere on campus, including
dorm rooms. If you have a medical
problem or someone is kicking in
your door, you don’t have to get up
and dial 911. Just press the security
alarm,” Gregory said.
“! think it’s a really good idea, not
just for protection, but for an added
sense of security and comfort.
UNCA doesn’t have a lot of crime,
but it would be nice to be safe if a
problem does arise,” said Carrie
Enders, a junior mass communica
tion major.
“I believe that we have a very safe
campus. However, having a safe
campus does not negate the need
for some type of emergency system.
I believe it is better to have precau
tions in place in case of an emer
gency, instead of not having them
for lack of prior need,” said Derek
Edwards, junior biology major.
The mobility allowed by the per
sonal security device stands as a
major plus, according to Gregory
and lovacchini.
The personal security device does
not require the victim to stay sta
tionary, unlike some pull-box sys
tems, Gregory said.
“Some pull boxes that have the
light that flashes require you to wait
there because it is only known that
a pull box has been activated,” Gre
gory said.
This system allows public safety
to know that a device has been
activated, and they can actually track
the victim and see where they are
on campus, Gregory said.
“If you are being stalked or fol
lowed, then you don’t have to stay
in one place,” Gregory said.
lovacchini rates the new security
device higher than pull boxes for
similar reasons.
“To me, it seems better than a
phone because you have to go to a
phone (to use it), and with this
system you can stay mobile,”
lovacchini said.
“(Having to press) both sides si
multaneously for it to be activated
eliminates any accidents of alerting
the system. I like that part of it,”
Gregory said.
See TRACK on page 10
PHOTO BY DEBBIE CHASE-JENNINGS
UNC President Molly Broad speaks with Chancellor Patsy Reed during a visit to UNCA on Nov. 11. Broad, elected by
the UNC Board of Governors last April, plans to visit all 16 UNC campuses during her first year in office.
UNC president addresses
student concerns, issues
By Nancy Hayes
staff Writer
The problem of campus binge drinking and
the question of what to do about it stood at
the top of the issues addressed by UNC
President Molly Broad in a meeting with
UNCA student leaders last week.
“We are in a very challenging time because
the incidences of alcohol consumption are
frequently associated with property damage
or personal injury, whether it is roughing or
rape,” said Broad.
Broad met with representatives of the stu
dent body in Ramsey Library during a visit to
the university on Nov. 11. Broad, who took
office in July, visited UNCA as part of her
plan to make in-depth visits to all 16 UNC
campuses during her first year in office, said
Joni Worthington of the UNC General
Administration’s office of public relations.
Broad referred to the recent incident at
Massachusettes Institute of Technology
(MIT) in which a student died from binge
drinking. She said the death had substan
tially changed the bonds of trust between
students and faculty.
“The mutual trust and support that you
provide to one another is very important.
This sense of community is tied to trust and
mutual respect, and (binge drinking) inci
dences break those bonds of trust,” said
Broad.
University leaders and student judicial sys
tems face a difficult task, according to Broad.
“They must make a very important effort to
try and balance the protection of members of
the community with the rights of the accused
until the wheels of justice have a chance to
turn. Sometimes they turn very slowly,” said
Broad.
University leaders do not have an under
standing of the causes of binge drinking,
according to Broad.
“There’s a lot of speculation about genera
tion Y,” Broad said. “We have examples of
hazing incidents in fraternities and other
behaviors we can describe, but we don’t under
stand the causal relationship there yet.
“There are some efforts to get a handle on it
and understand it. The question is, if you don’t
understand what the basic causes are, what can
you do to reduce the likelihood that students
will find themselves in these circumstances?”
said Broad.
Broad said one of the difficult issues is the
request of some newspapers to gain access to
student j udicial proceedings that are now closed
by federal law. Many believe students would
not step forward to inform the university that
some other student had harmed them if the
proceedings were open.
“The bottom line is that the problems are
serious enough and frequent enough that it
leads institutions to provide more clarity, more
rules of conduct of behavior, and sanctions for
those who don’t meet those standards of behav
ior,” said Broad.
Broad asked student Community Service
See BROAD on page 8
PHOTO BY SARAH HARNDEN
UNCA students and employees may soon be carrying
personal security devices that enable them to alert Public
Safety officers of their location at the push of a button.
University names assistant director of
Cambridge Fellows summer program
By Catharine Sutherland
News Editor
The university announced the new
assistant director of the Cambridge
Fellows Travel and Study Program
last week, naming David Peifer,
assistant professor of mathematics,
to fill the position.
“I’m excited about this. It’s going
to be flin,” said Peifer of the rwo-
year term.
A new assistant director is se
lected from faculty applicants each
year, and serves as the director of
the program the following year.
Peifer replaces Gwen Ashburn, as
sociate professor of literature,who
is now director of the 1997-98 pro
gram.
Peifer will teach the Humanities
224 course offered during the three-
week travel and study abroad sum
mer program in England, and espe
cially looks forward to emphasizing
science in the humanities curricu
lum at the Cambridge site.
Scientist Isaac Newton once held
an honorary chair at Cambridge
University, a position now held by
Stephen Hawking, a leading physi
cist and cosmologist, according to
Peifer.
He hopes to take students to a
lecture by Hawking during the
group’s stay at Lucy Cavendish
College, one of 32 Cambridge
University campuses, next summer.
The Cambridge Experience, spon
sored by the UNCA Teaching Fel
lows Program, is designed specifi
cally as a Teaching Fellows junior
enrichment opportunity, but is
open to non-Teaching Fellows as
well, said Brenda Hopper, Teach
ing Fellows director.
Involving other students “makes
(the program) better” because of
the mixture it provides. Hopper
said.
“I think this is what liberal arts is
all about,” Hopper said. The pro
gram has space for 24 students.
Students interested in participat
ing in the 1997-98 Cambridge Ex
perience should attend an informa
tional meeting Nov. 24, 8-9 a.m. in
the Laurel Forum.
Teaching Fellows must partici
pate in one ofthe summer activities
sponsored by a North Carolina
university between their sophomore
and junior years.
UNCA sponsors the Cambridge
Experience.
T eaching Fellows arestudents who
are awarded $20,000 for four years
of study in a North Carolina uni
versity in return for four years of
teaching in a state public school
following their graduation.
Approximately 400 high school
seniors receive Teaching Fellows
scholarships each year, and 94
Teaching Fellows currently attend
UNCA.
While UNCA Teaching Fellows
can choose from over 30 different
summer programs, including trips
to France, Italy, and Greece, many
choose the Cambridge program for
its credit hours and opportunity for
independent travel. .,
UNCA’s Cambridge Experience
remains the only Teaching Fellows
program to offer course credit, ac
cording to Hopper.
Students can earn seven hours of
See PROGRAM on page 10