INSIDE:
Chambers
welcomes
protesters
at convocation.
CAMPUS
NEWS
page 6
North Carolina Central University
Durham, NC 27707
Issue No. 84
Monday, April 26,1999
ALSO INSIDE:
Bon Vivant
raises money
to heip injured
student Chris
Mitcheii.
FEATURES
page 5
Merger
possibility
draws
criticism
From staff reports
A plan to merge several academic
departments has mystified faculty in
those departments and outraged some
students, who question the benefits of
the possible mergers.
At a Feb. 10 meeting of College of
Arts and Sciences faculty, Dean
Bernice Johnson surprised the gather
ing by aimouncing that she might pro
pose a merger of the English and
Foreign Language departments and a
merger of the Art, Music and Theatre
departments. The latter combination
possibly would be named the
Department of Fine Arts or the
Department of Visual and Performing
Arts.
Many faculty, including several
chairpersons of the affected depart
ments, privately expressed contusion
and concerns about the atmovmce-
ment. Some students, including mem
bers of the band and choir who wore
protest signs during their performanee
at the April 7 Honors Convocation,
have publicly stated their opposition
to the idea of merger.
In an April 5 letter to Dean
Johnson, Dr. Arlene Clift-Pellow,
chair of the English department,
expressed surprise at the announee-
ment and concerns that she had not
been informed of the rationale for
such a move.
In an interview with the Campus
Echo, Dr. Johnny Alston, chairman of
the Theatre Department, said merger
was one of many suggestions that
were diseussed at a meeting of the
faculty* of the theatre, art and music
departments. He said several depart
ments are in danger because they
have been designated “low productiv
ity” according to state higher-educa
tion policy. A “low productivity”
department, Alston explained,is one
that does not graduate at least 10 stu
dents per year or that does not have at
least 25 juniors and seniors who are
majors in that department.
Alston said he had many questions
about the possibility of a merger. He
said there is no way of knowing
whether staff would be increased or
decreased, nor is it possible to say
whether merger would be eost-effi-
cient. In any case, Alston said, saving
money “is not what drives programs.
I am driven by my will to work with
students in our programs.”
Dr. Melvin Carver, chairman of the
Art Department, told the Echo he
opposes merger, saying it would
“water down” the art, music and the
atre degrees, resulting in a loss of
quality.
“Degree-granting programs would
become concentrations,” Carver said.
“Essentially what would have been a
Bachelor of Music would become a
degree in Visual and Performing Arts
with a concentration in music.”
“On a positive note,” he continued,
“we eould partner with organizations,
companies, etc., to build resources,
develop courses and recruit students.
We can create interdisciplinary curric
ula that would be attractive to stu
dents studying the humanities.
“We also can link curricula with
high school students who qualify.
These students can get an early start
taking college courses in their senior
See MERGER, page 4
Inside
Campus News...
..pages 1-4
Features
page 5
Arts &
Entertainment..
page 6
Sports
page 7
Editorial
page 8
NCCU looks ahead to 2015
More students, buildings expected, but funding remains problem
RAY HUFF ARCHITECT, SASAKI AS^SOCIATION
MOFFATT & NICHOL, ANTHONY BtACKETT
Emphasis on grad study,
sciences envisioned
by IBI LEWIS
The Campus Echo
When North Carolina Central
University graduates of the Class
of 1999 return to campus for their
10th reunion, they will see a lot of
familiar thing—but they may be
startled at some of the differences.
Not only will NCCU have more
students—at least 50 percent
more—but the percentage of
African-American students is like
ly to decrease, and more students
are expected to be seeking gradu
ate degrees. Several new build
ings and parking decks will proba
bly be finished, and the Eagles
athletic teams will be competing at
the NCAA Division I-AA level.
In all, NCCU officials hope, the
university will be greatly
improved. But the anticipated
changes also mean it will be far
removed from the vision of the
university thM Dr. James E.
Shepard had when he founded the
National Religious Training
School and Chautauqua as a
school for African-American
teachers in 1910.
Perhaps more than anything
The new $22 million home of the School of Education is expect
ed to be ready for occupancy in the fall.
STAFF PHOTO BY PAUL PHIPPS
else, the new Biomedical
Biotechnology^ Research Institute,
the new School of Education
building and the new dormitory
symbolize the emerging picture of
NCCU’s expansion. However, not
everyone is happy with the direc
tion the university seems to be tak
ing. Critics are wondering
whether state funding formulas
and private-funding preferences
are forcing NCCU to place greater
emphasis on graduate studies as
the school enters the new milleni-
um.
Now that the $12 million BBRI
has opened, for example, the uni
versity hopes to join its UNC sister
institutions, UNC-Chapel Hill, and
N.C. State, on the cutting edge of
See PLANS, page 2
tmmpim
This is the architecturai
pian for NCCU’s campus
the year 2015.
I. Biomedtpai Research Buridittg
2 School of Educatioh
3 Student Union addition
4 George Street pedestrian con
5 Nelson Street parking garage
6 Student residences
7. Campus Police
8 Physical Plant relocatiott
9 Business school / LIS
10. Campus Drive improvements
II. Convocation Center
12. FootbaH / track stadium
13 Law school
14 Recreation fields
15. PE Buiidmg
16 PE fields
17. Lawson Avenue surface parking
18 Utility relocation
19. Student residences
20. Shepherd House renovation
21 Brant Street improvements
22. Lawson Street parking
23 Mu^c Building
24. bbiary expansion
25 Dining e^qiansion
26 Lincoln Quadrangle
27. George Quadrangle
28 PE Building expansion
29. Research Building
30 Physical Plsmt expansion
Master
plan
making
progress
By MARI McNEIL
The Campus Echo
A major part of Chancellor
Julius Chambers’ legacy to North
Carolina Central University is the
building program that he instituted
in 1995. When Chambers took
over in 1993, no buildings had
been constructed on campus for
nine years, repairs and mainte
nance were lacking and the master
plan for the university had not
been updated since 1972.
Now several large classroom
and dormitory buildings are open
or near completion, long-overdue
repairs have begun, and the uni
versity is acquiring property to
expand beyond its present 150-
acre campus. By the year 2015,
when the current master plan has
been fully implemented, NCCU
See BUILDING, page 2
Housekeeping concerns dominate Speak Out
by CHANDRA MOSS
The Campus Echo
Saying they are tired of their voic
es not being heard. North Carolina
Central University students joined
with housekeepers and local news
media in the Library Bowl on March
31 to voice their concerns about the
university in the form of a Speak
Out.
This Speak Out was arranged by
Shariff Dunlap, a sophomore biolo
gy major from Brooklyn, N.Y., and
the president of the North Carolina
Rural Health Coalition NCRHC).
The major topic was the fate of
housekeepers and groundskeepers at
NCCU. To speak against the possi
bility these services will be “out
sourced,” several housekeepers
were present.
Marion Corley, a housekeeper
here at NCCU, complained that he
has to pay for cleaning supplies out
of his own pockets. “People in pri
vate housekeeping won’t do that,”
he said
He said that when students com
plain about inadequate cleaning by
housekeeping,, they do not realize
that housekeeping is poorly staffed.
He said that he is responsible for
five buildings by himself
Sylvester Keech, another house
keeper, agreed with Corley, saying
the staff is “underpaid and over
worked.”
“Because no one knows what we
have to do, everyone complains,” he
said.
He said that this problem starts at
the top with Chancellor Julius
Chambers and works itself down to
the students.
“I haven’t seen the chancellor
since I’ve been here (since March
1998)” Keech said. He contended
that the chancellor does not know
what is going on because he is inac
cessible. He said that decisions are
being made without people knowing
everything that is going on and that
that is not fair.
Ralph Davis, a graduating senior
and housekeeper here at NCCU,
sees things from both sides. He said
he feels that the main problem here
at NCCU is that people are not
involved enough to know what is
going on at this university. He said
that the destruction that is happen
ing in housekeeping will eventually
happen in administration ,and it will
hurt the student body directly if the
students do not stand up for them
selves.
Student Troy Merritt, a junior.
See PROTEST, page 2
Senior therapeutic recreation
major Carlos Taylor expresses
himself at the NCCU “Speak Out.’
STAFF PHOTO BY PAUL PHIPPS
Student
injured
in brawl
By CRYSTAL FOREMAN
The Campus Echo
An NCCU freshman is in fair
condition at Duke University
Medical Center with head injuries
suffered in a fight outside of a
downtown Durham nightclub in
March.
Police have made no arrests in
connection with the brawl that
injured Chris Mitchell. It occurred
in the parking lot outside the Power
Company nightclub. Police told The
News & Observer that as many as
25 people participated in the fight..
Mitchell’s parents and brother
Kurt, a student at N.C. State
University, have remained at the
hospital since the incident. Mitchell
underwent two surgeries on the
brain to relieve swelling, although
his skull was not fractured in the
fight.
Mitchell, an 18 year old from
Winston Salem, reportedly was
injured when he tried to break up
the fight. It is not clear how the fight
started. But The News & Observer
reported: “Tensions had escalated
most of the evening between NCCU
students and young men who live in
Durham. A Durhamite insulted a
girl from NCCU and jumped in to
defend her, some said. Others said
the Durhamites were jealous of the
Central students.”
In recent months the Durham
City Council had received numer
ous complaints about noise and vio
lence in the vicinity of the Power
Company. On Dec. 27, two men
were shot to death in the city-owned
parking deck next to the club.
T he City Council held a public
meeting April 19 to discuss plans
related to crowd control at the
Power Company, including talks of
a fee system for downtown parking
lots that would raise money to pay
for off-duty police patrols.
NCCU issues
crime alert
By IBI LEWIS
The Campus Echo
A series of armed robberies took
place between March 27 and March
29 at approximately 8:35 p.m.,
according to a report published by
Carmelita Spicer, Director of Public
Relations at North Carolina Central
University.
One suspect was reported as hav
ing a pistol grip shotgun. Just over
24 hours later, at approximately
7:30p.m., another armed robbery
took place at the football stadium at
the north end under the visitors seats
on the east side of the stadium.
The three suspects are described
as black males approximately 17-
19 years of age. Suspect one was
described as having a medium
build, wearing a dark ski mask and
dark clothing,” and carrying a pis
tol grip shotgun. Suspects one and
two are describes as being about
5’9 in height, slender build and
wearing dark clothing.
The next armed robbery took
place later on March 28, 1999 at
approximately 9:40p.m., in the
north comer of the Walker Complex
building. The suspects are described
as being approximately 16-18 years
of age, wearing black jeans and
jackets.
The two men have short hair cuts
and weigh approximately 140
pounds., according to police reports.
According to Spicer it is NCCU’s
mission to keep the campus safe and
crime-free. “It is the university’s
mission to maintain a safe place
conducive to learning for its stu
dents, faculty and staff,” Spicer said
“Luckily, no one was harmed in
these incidents.
“We at NCCU are working with
the neighborhood and the city police
to put criminals on notice that we
are aware of their activities and are
taking charge of our safety.”