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3% Satin (far ~i\n\ mm THURSDAY, JULY 11.1996 Apex Woman Suspected in Sigma Chi Fire STAFF REPORT A former acquaintance of a Sigma Chi fraternity member has been charged with intentionaHy setting the June 8 fire at the fraternity. Erika Lee Biemer, 19, of Apex was indicted Tuesday on charges of first-degree arson, first-degree burglary and damage to property, Chapel Hill police said. Biemer, an acquaintance of a Sigma Chi fraternity member, was expected to turn herself in Wednesday and be formally charged. Biemer used to attend N.C. State University, although she is not enrolled for fall semester, the registrar’s office said. Police could not comment on the possible motive for the fire. Biemer’s attorney, William D. Young IV, could not be reached. Director of Greek Affairs Ron Binder said he could not believe that someone would intentionally set the fire, especially after the May 12 Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house fire that killed five UNC students. “This is a very scary proposition that someone would do this,” he said. Although concerned about the fires that have plagued two UNC fraternities within a two-month span, Binder said he is glad that there has been some kind of closure to this. “We are happy that that a conclusion has been reached on this,” Binder said. Fraternities and the Office of Greek Affairs have been working together to improve security for the fraternities and sororities. Renovations to Fraternity Court have continued and some projects were moved up after the fire. “We have installed three new lights to the parking lot in the Fraternity Court since the Sigma Chi break-in,” Binder said. “Hopefully this will cut down on crime that is targeted toward fraternities and sororities.” The Sigma Chi fire caused more than $5,000 in damage to the house. The seven fraternity members and one visitor safely es caped the early morning blaze. Fire officials credit their safe escape in part to major renovations to the house last September. Getting a fair share UNC System Could Feel Effects of Recent Affirmative Action Decision DTH/JIM WEBB UNC System Running a Steady Race Despite a 1978 U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the use of minority status as a factor in college admissions, the racial distribution of students enrolled in UNC-system schools has not changed significantly during the past 17 years. RACIAL DISTRIBUTION OF UNC-SYSTEM STUDENTS 1978 1995 SOURCE: STATISTICAL ABSTRACT OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN NORTH CAROLINA To be black and conscious in America is to be in a constant state of rage. James Baldwin Getting To Know You... Hinton James' 'faculty link' program brings together students and faculty. Page 4 JJ *■ . “ ’ ._•■ ' • •:*. 4 . =.\ -jV,. <J* ■— ————i _j DTH/KATHLEENOEHLER UNC alumna Lynda Lipson hurls a javelin daring training for the Olympics at Fetzer Field. The U.S. Track and Field Team is training in Chapel Hill through July 17. See story page 9. DTH/ BETH POWERS Aiming for Atlanta BY JON WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to let stand a sth U.S. Court of Appeals ruling barring Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi colleges from using race as a factor in their admissions process has schools in North Carolina wondering about their own admission standards. The federal court ruling did not set a binding national prece dent as would a Supreme Court ruling, leaving schools across the nation—including those in the UNC system—wondering which legal precedent they should follow. “This ruling has really no affect on the UNC system, but it does leave the door open for other trial cases to be heard that could affect (UNC),” Student Body President Aaron Nelson said. Although admissions practices have received criticism, student leaders have continued to protect affirmative action and minority presence grants, said John Dervin, president of the Association of Student Governments. “We need to reaffirm our commitment to these policies,” he said. Dervin said the recent Supreme Court decision sent a bad message. “This failure to set a national precedent will cause people to continue to test affirmative action,” he said. “And it prevents schools from being able to set admission policies because they are not sure what the law is.” But although this confusion was felt at schools here in North Carolina, UNC-Chapel Hill had less to wony about due to the many factors that go into admitting applicants, administrators in undergraduate admissions said. “We do not have an open door policy at UNC,” said Herb Davis, associate director of Undergraduate Admissions. Davis said many factors went into deciding whether they granted a student enroUment, race being only a small part of the overall decision. See SYSTEM, Page 9 A Brief History of Affirmative Action and College Admissions BYAMYCAPPIELLO CITY EDITOR Affirmative action practices within the college admis sions process were dealt a stunning blow July 1 as the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a March rul ing by the sth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said race cannot be used as a factor for college admis sions. The circuit court determined that the University of Texas law school admissions policy was discrimina tory. The sth Circuit, which has juris Low Rent, High Expectations The Chapel Hill Town Council approved a loan for affordable housing. Page 5 diction over Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, based its decision on the grounds that admissions prac tices that considered race as a factor caused white students to be passed over while less-qualified blacks and hispanics were accepted. Because the Supreme Court refused to hear the case, the 5 th Circuit ruling stands for states in its jurisdiction. The Supreme Court has refused to hear, and thus has upheld, other anti-affirmative action cases. In 1994, the Supreme Court re fused to hear a case against the Uni- See AFFIRMATIVE ACTION, Page 5 m A Happy Meal In a Happy Home The Ronald McDonald House serves the families of hospitalized kids. Page 2 Cameron Likely To Be Elected BOG Chairman BY JEANNE FUGATE EDITOR The UN C Board of Governors will likely elect Charlotte businessman C. Cliff Cameron as its next chairman in an impor tant transitional year. The race pitted three hopefuls in a be hind-the-scenes contest, from which Cameron, 76, emerged triumphant. Cameron, who would be the first Charlottean to head the board, called him self a “shoe-in.” Board members Irvin Aldridge ofManteo and Lois Britt ofMount Olive dropped out of the race leaving him unopposed, he said. “There’s no body running, and if there’s no body running Chairman to Play Role in Search for System President See Page 4 and I get nominated, then the chances of it happening are pretty good,” he said. Cameron will find out for sure at Friday’s BOG meeting when current Chairman Sam Neill of Henderson steps down. Cameron said he had already received congratulatory calls from several chancel lors on Tuesday. Having an uncontested election for BOG chairman is not out of the ordinary, Cameron said. “There could have been candidates in some of those early on, ” he said. “It would only be contested if the nominees were placed on the table before the board on the day of the election.” Joni Worthington, assistant vice presi dent for communications in the UNC sys tem, said there was never an announced slate of candidates going into the election. “What routinely happens is they open the floor to nominations and various board members will nominate someone,” she said. Cameron and others said the real slate was announced on a more personal basis long before the election. “Individuals who have had an interest would announce that interest by purely a one-on-one-type politicking,” Cameron said. “I assume it’s like in any race, any contest, any political environment, that certain people have the desire to run for one of the offices,” he said. “And they start politicking by contacting members and asking for their votes, and this goes on until it gets to the place where it appears that they don’t have an adequate number of Council Member Booth-Powell Passes Away After Long Illness • BYAMYCAPPIELLO CITY EDITOR Funeral services were held Wednesday for Chapel Hill Town Council member Barbara Booth-PoweU, who died Sunday after a lengthy illness that kept her from attending council meetings for months. After a unanimous appointment to the council in October 1992 and a general election win in November 1994, Booth- Powell fought to provide for those Chapel Hill residents in need of assistance. “She cared a lot about those she per ceived as disadvantaged or thought needed help,” Chapel Hill Mayor Rosemary Waidorf said. While on the council, Booth-Powell worked especially hard to represent mi norities and lower-paid town workers. “She took very seriously her responsi bilities to represent the minority commu nity and the community she lived in,” Waldorf said. Evans said many people overlooked the fact that Booth-Powell had been a large supporter of new jobs. “It’s been on the radio and it’s been on the news that she worked for her commu nity, but one thing that was not focused on was that she worked for job creation be cause there are a lot of people who are underemployed,” Evans said. “She looked for ways the economy could grow and there would be job creation.” Although Booth-Powell had not been able to attend Town Council meetings for the past three months, Waldorf said she 103 years of editorial freedom Serving the students and the Univtility community since 1893 News/Feamses/Aio/Spoi* 962-0245 Business/ Advemang. 962-1163 Volume 104, Issue 48 Chapel Hill. North Carolina C 1996 DTH Publishing Carp. All rights reserved. votes to be successful and they withdraw.” Despite the politicking, Cameron said the BOG chairman race was not like vying for a normal public office because of the limited —and countable number of votes arising from a 32-member board. “Here you can count the votes,” Cameron said. “If you don’t get firm com mitments, you withdraw.” Aldridge wrote Cameron a letter last week announcing his decision not to run. “Mr. Cameron’s got enough votes to win, and I can count,” he said. “I didn’t want my supporters to vote for someone who would lose, so I decided to gracefully get out.” Aldridge, who is up for re-election next year, said he did not expect to win. “When I started I knew it was a long shot,” Aldridge said. “I told supporters if I decided I couldn’t win I would just with draw.” Aldridge said the nature of a three-per son race caused some difference of opin ion. “Any time you have three people running you have controversy,” he said. But he said he was ready to move ahead. “I’m looking forward to working with Mr. Cameron and to working with the BOG as long as I’m privileged to be there,” he said. Cameron said Britt, chairwoman of the BOG Committee on Personnel and Ten ure, fell out of the race three or four weeks ago. She is expected to vie for BOG secre tary against John Cecil of Asheville. Britt was unavailable for comment. UNC-system President C.D. Spangler said he was glad the race continued to generate such active participation. “I am delighted there has always been an active interest in this because it signifies the importance of this position,” he said. “If there was not active interest in who was chairman of the BOG it would be an unfor tunate circumstance.” A longtime supporter of North Carolina's higher education, Cameron served on the original 100-person UNC board prior to restructuring for the system in the ’6os and was instrumental in bring ing UNC-W ilmington and UNC-Asheville into the consolidated University system. Using this background in higher educa tion, Cameron saidhewas tentatively plan ning for next year. “The biggest and most pressing issue will be the search process to find a succes- See CHARIMAN, Page 9 Council member BARBARA BOOTH POWELL died Sunday afternoon. continued to be involved in the council. “She was following the council’s ac tions closely, ” Waldorf said. “She received all of the council’s written materials, and she was reading the newspapers. She stayed on top of things.” Council member Joe Capowski said Booth-Powell had also worked closely with preparations for the 1996-1997 Budget. “It was in part to her credit that we gave the greatest salary increases to town em- , See BOOTH-POWELL Page 2
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