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Permit No. 374
Durham, N.C.
The official Student newspaper of North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC 27707 Friday, October 8, 1982
Convocation Address
Whiting lauds NGCU’s gains,
confronts financial problems
Eagle fans have a lot to celebrates these days. The football
team is undefeated and while the team is ranked fifth in NCAA
Division II, a lot of people expect bigger and better things
before the season ends. (Photo by August Mustafa Abdur-
Raafi)
Black College Day
date set for Oct. 25
By LaTanya A. Isley
Despite being postponed from its original date of Sept. 27, Black College
Day ’82 is finally underway.
Student Government Association officials from various predominantly
black colleges and universities throughout North Carolina have been
meeting to lay the groundwork for the Oct. 25 march and rally in Raleigh.
James Webb, SGA vice president, said one of the reasons for the
postponement a lack of communication between the organizers.
“The information was received too late and too close to the date we were
supposed to have it,” he said. “There was a lack of communication bet
ween Tony Brown (one of the organizers of the first Black College Day) and
the universities.”
Webb explained that one of the primary issues in the meetings centered
on whether or not bands were to be included in the march because of the
parade type publicity that the news media gave Black College Day last year.
“We had about 45 minutes of debate,” he said. “The affirmative side
was tisai bands provide a form of unity and show the talent we have. The
negative side was that the media distorted this and (characterized the event)
as a parade. It was felt that it was not necessary to have bands to make our
message;”
In order for Black College Day ’82 to be a success, Webb has suggested
that “presidents of organizations and the executive staff bring to the next
meeting specific goals we want to achieve and the specific things we weren’t
satisfied with as far as black universities are concerned.”
‘ Wonderful script ’ highlights
drama department production
By Thomas McDonald
The director, musical consultant and male lead of NCCU’s upcoming
theatre production, “Death and the King’s Horseman,” agree African
playwright Wole Soyinka has written a masterpiece.
The story, set in 1947 in the ancient Yoruba city of Oye, Nigeria, centers
around the attempt of a colonial district officer, Simon Pilkings, to prevent
the ritual suicide of Elesin Oba, the chief horseman of the recently deceased
tribal king. Elesin intends to follow tribal law and die with his king.
Director Karen Dacons, whose recent directing credits include Euripides’
“Medea” and last season’s “Boesman and Lena” by South African
dramatist Athol Fugard, says, “Elesin is a larger than life character. He
takes on the classic aspects of the tragic figure who struggles with himself,
who finally determines his unfortunate destiny.”
Nigerian-born Shola Olaoye, the shows’s musical consult2mt and himself
a member of the Yoruba tribe, also feels that the script is a “classic”that
will challenge his creativity and theatrical skills as well as those of the cast.
In fact, he says, staging and performing Soyinka’s drama is more than
just a theatrical challenge. “It is not merely acting for the cast; it is a
reeducation for them also.”
Walter Norflett, who will play the tragic Elesin, agrees that it is a “rare
opportunity for an actor” because the situations in which the character
finds himself are “very challenging.”
And like Dacons and Olaoye, he has only the highest praise for the script.
It s beautiful,” he said, “an incredible script. It has become a very emo
tional and educational experience.”
The play will run Oct 13-17 in the NCCU University Theatre located in
the Communications Building on the corner of Fayettville and Lawson
Streets. Performances will begin at 8:15 p.m.
Webb’s proposed amendment
will change election laws
By Edwin Horsley
A proposal to change two articles in the “Eagle Eye Handbook,” two
elections and three approved motions highlighted the Oct.7 meeting of N.C.
Central’s Student Congress.
Congress President James Webb submited a proposal to change Article 7,
section 5 under General Elections and Article 8, section 2 under Election
Board in the “Eagle Eye Handbook.” The articles specify a required
number of hours for candidates for class presidencies.
In other actions, the student congress also approved its executive commit
tee members and approved Leon Rouson as congress parlimentarian.
The congress also approved a resolution submited by Billy Barber,
sophomore class president, congratulating Durham native Mickey Michaux
on his efforts in the recent 2nd distict congressional race.
Two congressional officers were elected. Billy Barber was voted congres
sional president pro-tempore and Diane English became congressional secr-
tary.
By Kelvin Hart
Highlighting his years as chancellor, Albert N. Whiting expressed the
positive and negative aspects of Central’s past and present state to an au
dience of about 1200 faculty, staff, students, and guests at NCCU’s fall
Convocation in McDougald Gymnasium Thursday.
Starting with the positive, Whiting, in his final state of the university ad
dress, noted Central’s success in obtaining accreditation for the Evening
Law School program and re-accreditation for library science and nursing
programs. “In addition we have added an undergraduate degree program in
computer and information science,” reported the chancellor, noting that
the criminal justice and public administration programs have received ap
proval for master’s degree programs.
Whiting was pleased with the progress made in capital improvements,
such as the completion of the Health Science Building, the renovations to
the School of Business Building, the construction of the Criminal Justice
Building, and the site being cleared for the new Physical Education and
recreation complex.
Expressing delight in this year’s increase in enrollment, Whiting com
mended the Admissions Office Staff and director Nancy Rowland for their
diligent recruiting in the face of the current economic recession and reduced
federal student aid. “This is no small accomplishment,” he said.
Turning to the problems, he noted that Central could offer no NDSL
loans because of the excessive 51 percent default rate of alumni and former
students, totalling a deficit of $3,098,580. SEOG grant money was reduced
by $149,459 and BEOG grants were cut about $150 per student.
Other dilemmas faced by Central, said the chancellor, were an overall cut
in the budget of 6 percent, a loss of the equivalent of eight positions, and a
freeze on salary increases for state employees.
One major problem he mentioned was in athletics. Last year, the two
sources of income, student athletic fees and gate receipts, totalled only
$264,000, while athletic expenses, not including salaries, totalled about
$325,000—producing a deficit of over $60,000. “Without significant ex
tramural funds we can anticipate only deepening deficits and an untenable
situation,” said Whiting. Consequently, he announced that he has asked
the Board of Trustees to appoint a committee “to give this problem im
mediate and serious attention with a report and recommendations due next
September at the fall board meeting.”
According to an NCAA report, most Division II institutions, of which
Central is a member, experience an average annual athletic deficit of
$140,000.
The chancellor touched on the sub
ject of finding a replacement for
himself, cautioning against
“beguilement by rumor and
speculative politics.” Whiting ad
monished, “(This) can be the cause of
great disappointment and peculiar an
tipathies, detrimental to the harmony
and spirit of this community.”
Whiting explained that “if the com
mittee’s timetable is met, you should
know by the first part of the new year
whom the Board of Trustees will final
ly appoint.”
The chancellor, in explaining his ac
tions over the past 16 years, said that
“his interest, his motivation, his con
cerns were always formulated in terms
of what I perceived as the best interests of NCCU.”
Albert N. Whiting
In considering NCCU’s future role, he declared, “It is imperative that
NCCU and all other institutions of higher education focus on the im
peratives of world citizenship, the essentiality of a bond of respect for all
people and all cultures and the maximum use of intelligent, honest analysis
of the human condition. Only in this way can education at NCCU lift its
products beyond self, beyond group, beyond culture and carry the motto of
this institution, truth and service for humanity, to the pinnacle of achieve
ment.”
Baines hears Reagan at White House,
finds support for black colleges wanting
By Reginald Watson and Marion McKinney
Dr. Tyrone Baines, director of University Relations for N.C. Central
University, expressed disappointment, though no surprise, with President
Reagan’s position on supporting black colleges, following a Sept. 22
meeting with the president in the White House.
Baines and Duane Howell, SGA president, met with Reagan on the an
niversary of his signing of an executive
order to increase the involvement of
historically black universities and col
leges in federally sponsored programs.
Also attending were seven
chancellors from predominantly black
universities.
While Reagan delivered a speech at
the meeting in which he claimed his ad
ministration had increased support for
black colleges, Baines said that in fact
his research indicates that when .4 per
cent rise cited by the president is cor
rected for inflation, the new figures
show that there has been little, if any,
increase in financial support for black
colleges.
Prior to the meeting, Baines admit
ted that he had been “somewhat skeptical” that Reagan’s initiative had ac
tually increased the support for historically black colleges, even though “it
was the President’s intent to assemble the heads of historically black col
leges on an occasion to show how much support his administration had real
ly given.”
Tyrone Baines
Baines noted that the format of the meeting did not promote an exchange
of ideas between college officials and the president. “Prior to the speech
Reagan had ordered that there be no questioning session. So basically it was
a ‘show and tell’ meeting. Reagan followed his agenda by saying what he
came there to say in political terms and that was it,” he said.
Baines added, “1 was disappointed, but not surprised. The President had
the opportunity to interact with some of the best minds in black education
in the country” and yet he structured the meeting so there was no oppor
tunity for dialogue.
Indeed the program for the entire evening was tightly organized. Upon
reaching the White House, Baines and the other guests were directed to a
briefing room and addressed by Terell H. Bell, U.S secretary of education;
Secretary Francis Pierce of HUD; chairman of the White House office of
Black College Initiative staff; and the assistant secretary to transportation.
They spoke positively about the administrations efforts on behdf of black
colleges and explained how each of their individual programs had helped
support black colleges.
Baines also expressed concern about discrepancies between two reports
that the White House had prepared on black colleges.
According to Baines, the final report was much more optimistic than the
preliminary report issued two weeks earlier.
However', Baines does give the Reagan administration credit in the
government’s role in saving financially troubled Meharry Medical School in
Tennessee.
Although he was disappointed in Reagan’s presentation, Baines said, “I
am looking foward to attending another such meeting that examines the
support of black colleges. I will also be looking foward to a clearer presen
tation of the facts and a meaningful interaction between the leaders of the
black educational system and the White House staff.”
Burning the devil
out of rock & roll
SALUDA, S.C.: A young boy
tosses an album cover into a drum
of fire after hearing born-again
Christian evangelist Rev. Billy
Adams deliver a fiery sermon on
the evils of rock and roll music.
Adams told the nearly 200 people at
the Sept. 23 revival service that
“rock music has a direct effect on
the pituitary gland,” and that when
the beat of the music pounds on the
gland, “it distorts it and sends too
many chemicals to the brain. It
causes a complete wipeout of the
moral inhibitions.”
(UPI photo bv Bill Creighton)