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MUriii
SPRING DREAMS
TIAA-CREF exec
establishes position
of leadership/8C
Executive VP
Bertram Scott
CLASSROOM
HEROES
True stories of how
teachers inspire their
students to achieve
academically/5D
Volume 29 No. 31
www.thecharlottepost.com
STEADY, YET
OLDER HAND
Veteran QB gets
chance to deliver
for Cobras/1 C
^ Rickey Foggie
Ciiarlott
$1.00
Apr
The Voice of the Black Community
PHOTO/WADE NASH
Growth in the suburbs is forcing Charlotte-
Mecklenburg Schools to rethink its spending
priorities while balancing inner city needs.
Reading,
MmHig
and CMS
priorities
School district weighs
growth vs. pledges
By Chens F. Hodges
cheris. hodges @ thecharhtteposi. com
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is taking a sec
ond look at where monies can best serve the rapid
ly-changing system.
But one community group warns school leaders
should not let the issue divide the community
along economic and racial lines.
“We don’t have to pit one community against one
another,” said Steve Johnston, executive director
of the Swarm Fellowship, which advocates equity
in public schools.
Johnston said if the proceeds of voter-approved
bonds aren’t handled properly, CMS may have a
difficult time getting future referendums passed.
But, Johnston admits, the needs at schools have
changed since the 1997 and 2002 bonds were
passed with overwhelming African American sup
port.
For example, Marie G. Davis Middle School was
supposed to have a magnet program there and the
capacity for 1,200 students. Johnston said while
there is work that needs to be done at the school,
dealing with the infrastructure, the school doesn’t
Please see CMS/7A
Ashcroft asked to
reopen 1955 Miss,
murder probe
By George E. Curry
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER PUBUSHERS ASSOCIATION
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Bobby L. Rush has
rejected Attorney General John Ashcroft’s asser
tion that the Justice Department
has no authority to open a federal
investigation into the murder of
Emmett Till^ the 14-year-old
African-American who was beat
en, shot to death and thrown into
a river in 1955 for allegedly
whistling at a white woman in
Money, Miss.
Rush’s appeal to Ashcroft was
joined last week by Congressman
Charles Rangel and Senator
Charles Schumer.
“Emmett Till’s murder seared into the minds of
all Americans the hate and violence of racism in
the South,” Rangel said. “But because of the
Rush
Please see JUSTICE/6A
2,
Also serving Cabarrus, Chester, Mecklenburg, Rowan and York counties
WEEK OF APRIL 22-28, 2004
Risky business over vendors
City Council
mulls options
on minority
contracts
By Herbert L. White
herbMhite@rliecharlotiepost.com
Charlotte’s small business
opportunity
Lassiter
program
faces a refer
endum of
sorts.
Last week
provided the
first indica
tion of the
divisions
between City
Council
members. The Restructuring
Government Committee
deadlocked 2-2 on a plan to
put race- and gender-specific
goals into place for city con
tracts. Democrat Patsy
Kinsey and Republican Don
Ijochman each made motions
to approve programs without
goals, but failed for lack of a
second. Black Democrats
James Mitchell and Malcolm
Graham voted for specific
goals, but couldn’t get a
majority. Lochman and
Kinsey are white. A third
white committee member,
Republican John Lassiter,
was out of town, but supports
City Manager Pam Syfert’s
recommendation to keep the
current program. The entire
council votes May 1.0
“My inclination is to sup
port the manager’s recom
mendation,” Lassiter said.
Please see DEBATE/2A
PHOTO/CALVIN FERGUSON
Charlotte City Council will consider what to do with the issue of minority- and gender-specific
goals for public projects like construction at the Law Enforcement Center.
Fair offers chance to connect with colleges
By Cheris F. Hodges
cheris.hodges@ihecharlottepost.com
Before the pomp and circum
stance of high school gradua
tion, there are major decisions
to be made. Like where to go to
college.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools will try to make that
decision easier for high school
seniors by hosting the Charlotte
National College Fair Sunday.
Vance High School Assistant
Principal Ibdd W. Porter says
the fair offers students the
chance to meet with 180 col
leges under one roof
“Traveling to 180 colleges
would take forever,” he said.
At fairs hke Sundays, Porter
said students are given a
chance to find out what to
expect when they visit college
campuses and the opportunity
to make an impression on the
person who maybe reading
their application the next year.
“What a lot of students don’t
realize is the people sitting
behind the tables are the same
people who will be reviewing
their applications. This is an
opportunity to make an impres
sion, a lot like a job,” he said.
The fair, which will be held at
the Charlotte Merchandise
Mart in Independence Hall,
also includes four information
sessions, including one on the
distinctions of historically black
colleges and a session on financ
ing. The 45-minute sessions
begin at 12:15 p.m.
Other sessions include how to
get better scores on the SAT
and ACT tests, parental sup
port for college boimd students,
packaging for a competitive col
lege, how to search for scholar
ships, college planning for mid
dle school students, the college
search for students with dis
abilities and the prospects for
athletes.
Please see SCHOOL/2A
Brick mural chronicles west Charlotte’s history
By Cheris F. Hodges
cheris.hodges@thecharlotteposi.com
PHOTO/CALVIN FERGUSON
Seattle artist Mara Smith compares her sketch of a brick mural on
West Boulevard to the art itself.
Motorists driving along
Wilkinson Boulevard may be
slowing down soon.
Not because of proposed
photo enforced speed limits,
but to take a look at the art
decorating the entranceway
to Wilkinson Business Park.
Seattle, Wash., artist Mara
Smith was commissioned by
Advantage Carolina to cre
ate a scene that reflects the
history of the neighborhoods
surrounding the business
park.
“We have a family in the
park, because people in this
area enjoyed going to the
parks, a couple at the drive
in, a choir,” Smith said of the
six-foot by 11-foot panel on
one side of the park. Smith
said it took over a year to
come up with the concept for
the two panels and to do the
carving of the brick.
The Charlotte-
Mecklenburg Development
Please see WEST/3A
Inside
Editorials 4A
Life 4B
Religion SB
Sports 1C
Real Estate 5C
Business 8C
A&E ID
Happenings 4D
Classifieds 5D
To subscribe, call (704) 376-0496 or FAX (704) 342-2160.
© 2004 The Chariotte Post Publishing Co.
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