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<Ehr oatly (Tar Heel The University and Towns In Brief Jazz Bands, Glee Club To Play Final Concerts i The Department of Music will pre is?nt end of the year concerts April 30 through May 2 in Hill Hall auditorium, c.; On Sunday, the Jazz and Lab Bands vyill perform at 3 p.m. and the Glee Clubs will perform at 8 p.m. The University and Concert Bands will perform at 8 p.m. May 1. The Singers and the Carolina Choir will perform at 8 p.m. May 2. Motley Fool Co-founder •:To Speak Thursday David Gardner, co-founder of The Motley Fool Inc., will speak at the Kenan-Flagler Business School on Thursday. This event will be the finale of the Kenan-Flagler 2000 Dean Speaker Series. Gardner, a 1988 Morehead Scholar graduate of UNC, founded the Internet company in 1993, and it has grown to become the most popular online invest ment site. Gardner will speak at 5:30 p.m. in the Maurice J. Koury Auditorium of the McColl Building. Annual Unity Games To Take Place Friday The second annual Unity Games will be held from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Friday on the Ehringhaus fields. The games are sponsored by Student Government, the Black Student Movement, Residence Hall Association and the Carolina Athletic Association. Today is the last day to sign up. Sign ups are being held in the Pit. Additional questions can be sent to Unity Games Chairman Zach Fay at zfay@email.unc.edu. Alumnus Set to Speak At Annual Meeting Robert Morgan, award-winning poet, novelist and UNC alumnus, is the keynote speaker for the 21st annual meeting of the Thomas Wolfe Society, which will be held May 5-6 on the UNC campus. Morgan’s newest book, “Gap Creek,” was featured on Oprah Winfrey’s Book Club and has become a national bestseller. Wilson Library’s North Carolina Collection will sponsor the event. Sessions held in the Pleasants Family Assembly Room are free and open to the public. For additional information, call 962-1172. CAA Hypes Baseball With Pitching Machine The Sports Marketing Committee of Carolina Athletic Association will be promoting the remainder of the UNC pjseball schedule with a speed pitch from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in ijje Pit today. '♦.Students are encouraged to come out had show support for UNC baseball. * * Carrboro Seeks Coaches Por Pee Wee Baseball i* The Carrboro Recreation and Parks department is seeking volunteer coach applications for the 2000 Pee Wee base ball program. * The league is designed for players •aged six through eight. ~ Coaches must be able to teach prop ier playing skills, fundamentals, sports -manship and be able to organize prac tices. For an application or additional information, call the department at 968- Baseball League Opens Registration to Public *■ The Carrboro Recreation and Parks department is accepting registrations Tor the youth baseball league for players aged 13 or 14. The fee is $27 for Orange •County residents and ssl for non jQrange County residents. Z Registration forms must be signed by ti parent or guardian and are accepted ion a first come-first serve basis. For "Jidditional information, call 968-7703. County Needs People for Volunteer Positions * Volunteer Orange, a service of Triangle United Way, is seeking volun teers for a variety of positions. t Volunteer needs include teaching children about butterflies at the science museum, assisting with the Chapel Hill food drive, timing and iefereeing during the 2000 Senior (Games in late April and helping with jhe Celebration of Women to take place Jtlay 6. For additional information, call From Staff Reports Officials Kill Resident's Land-Use Proposal Bv Theresa Chen Staff Writer A local resident’s petition to the Chapel Hill Town Council has sparked controversy over noise pollution, but some involved believe the conflict is masking a greater issue. The problem first arose Nov. 30, when Steve Dobbins, of 218 Wilson St., submitted a petition to the council to change the land-use designation of a 2.2 acre piece of land his family owns at the comer of Cameron Avenue and Wilson Street. The issue was revisited at Monday night’s Town Council meeting. lst-Year Projects Garner Students' High Praise This year's freshman programs stem from a 1997 UNC Intellectual Task Force report, initiated by the late Chancellor Michael Hooker. Bv Karey Wutkowski Staff Writer Coming to UNC as an out-of-state student, freshman Jennifer Koo was nervous about college life. “I didn’t know anyone, and it was my first time being away from home,” said Koo, a Dunwoody, Ga., native. These fears, common among entering freshmen, prompted UNC officials to revamp the freshman experience this year by implementing a number of new programs designed to ease the social and aca- Urban Growth the ‘Smart’ Way Managing growth in small towns and urban centers has become a topic that is receiving state attention. Bv Kellie Dixon Assistant City Editor In striving to maintain growth in an efficient manner, Chapel Hill has become a trendsetter for other state municipalities facing expansion prob- lems. Chapel Hill and Carrboro have historically addressed growth as indi vidual town pri orities through their own ver sions of Smart Growth. Smart Growth is a philosophy I'Takes A four-part series examining local development. employed by the Chapel Hill Town Council to manage growth that is ulti mately controlled by state jurisdiction. Factors that the plan encompasses include environmental protection, increased population density, improved public transportation and an emphasis on mixed-use housing, which combines commercial and res idential development. Neighboring towns and cities are Neely Campaign Focuses on Family Values Editor’s Note: During this week,The Doily Tar Heel will profile the top five candidates in the N.C. gubernatorial race. Primaries are slated for May 2. By Lucas Fenske Assistant State & National Editor A man who enjoys gardening, loves sailing and has a passion for the movie “Chariots of Fire” has been forced to do without. Republican gubernatorial candidate Chuck Neely said he had spent the past 15 months working on the campaign trail, keeping him away from his hob bies. “Campaigning pretty much cuts into my spare time,” Neely said. Calling himself a “very strong con servative,” he said several factors, including the ability to work across party lines, made him a qualified candi date. “I want everyone to be heard,” he said. “The legislature can be partisan, but I try to bring people together.” Neely was first elected to the N.C. House of Representatives in 1994, a year that saw the Republicans take con- University & City Dobbins said the request would change the designation of the land from an R-3 low-residential area to a mixed use area, which would allow for the con struction of offices, day-care centers and even places of worship on the site. This would help buffer noise, he said. “We’re within earshot of 14 frats, three dorms and parking lots,” he said. “It makes sense to put buildings on the northern perimeter to take the brunt of the noise. In good planning you need smooth transition from one land use to another. Currently we’re intended for low residential, but right across the street in our face is town center.” demic transition into college life. And with the first full year under their belts, offi cials and students like Koo are touting the initiative as a success. In her first semester, Koo took a first-year sem inar, one of the newly offered programs, and enjoyed the sense of community she found in the smaller, more interactive class. “It was a class where we actually knew each other’s name,” Sue Kitchen, vice chancellor for student affairs, said the strength of the programs was their versa tility. “Our approach to the first-year experience was variety,” she said. “For some students the sem inars really had great importance. For others it was summer reading. Others wanted a housing expe rience.” The programs targeted social and academic See INITIATIVE, Page 10 also starting to focus on the concept of Smart Growth in order to address their own problems with sprawl. Cary and Raleigh are two prime examples where growth is being addreased. Because of rapid develop ment in the past couple of years, Cary has struggled to provide enough water for its residents. Raleigh, meanwhile, is trying to reign in development that is threaten ing to encroach on neighboring juris dictions, such as Wake Forest and Holly Springs. Concern over growth management has reached the state level where a Smart Growth Study Commission was created to educate North Carolina about the Smart Growth concept. Rep. Joe Hackney, D-Orange, and Sen. Howard Lee, D-Orange, head the commission. Hackney said he expected that a bill would be intro duced to the General Assembly during the next session. Despite the state’s decision on the matter, Chapel Hill already enacted its own form of Smart Growth. Town Council member Kevin Foy said Smart Growth began when the council established an Urban Growth Boundary for the town in 1988. He said this rural buffer was aimed at pro tecting Chapel Hill and most of Orange County from outside sprawl. “(The buffer) is like drawing a line around Chapel Hill,” he said. “It’s not even but it follows a specific path. This trol of the state House for the first time since Reconstruction. Reminiscent of 1994’s Republican “Contract with America,” Neely said his guberna torial bid focused ELECTIONS m STATE on his “Covenant with The Family.” He said the covenant was a collection of several initiatives designed to improve the quality of life for families throughout the state. Neely said he would work to ban video poker machines, restrict access to online pornography and increase penal ties for domestic violence. He said he also supported strength ening the UNC system through several measures, such as improving campus facilities and bolstering noncompetive faculty salaries. In addition to state funds, Neely said the state should look into possibly using student tuition and fees to cover some of the costs. Last summer, UNC-system President Molly Broad presented the state legisla ture with a multibillion dollar bond pro- Catherine Frank, vice chairwoman of the Historic District Commission, who lives near the area in question, said although Dobbins might believe the revision could provide better land use transitions, his main focus at the coun cil meeting was the noise coming from fraternities. “He played a video of Chi Psi Lodge on Halloween night to use as an exam ple of noise,” she said. Junior Jason Russell, president of Chi Psi, said Dobbins had asked Russell to support him in the matter. However, Russell said he was unaware that noise from his fraternity was an issue. y‘ > DTO FILE PHOTO Freshman Genevieve Yancey reads a critique of Arthur Golden's novel "Memoirs of Geisha" in "American Life of Japanese Women," a first-year seminar taught by Jan Bardsley. DTH/VICTORIA ECKENRODE Mixed-use developments like Meadowmont (above) have caused heated debate about Chapel Hill's growth. area will not be annexed and nothing will be built out there.” Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Orange County have used stringent policies to manage urban sprawl. “We’ve got development standards such as maximum density, height stan dards, limitations on the size of the buildings, road improvements,” Roger Waldon, planning director for Chapel Hill said. “We (also) require recre ational improvements.” In addition to building specifica tions, Chapel Hill’s Smart Growth also posal to fund construction and renova tion throughout the system. The legislature adjourned without taking any action on the measure, set ting the stage for another debate on the issue when it reconvenes in several weeks. Neely also said he would increase the level of tuition support the state offered to citizens who chose to attend private schools. “There are 10,000 empty seats in pri vate schools,” he said. “We can use some of those seats to take the pressure off places like (UNC- Chapel Hill).” Neely, currently a Raleigh lawyer, has both legal and political experience. He graduated with honors from UNC in 1965 with a degree in political science. After graduating from law school at Duke in 1970, Neely served in the U.S. Navy for several years. While working in the state legislature, Neely served on several committees, including finance and ways and means. Neely said he also served as Judiciary Committee chairman for four years, where he worked with issues such as tort reform, juvenile crime and domestic vio “I didn’t know he was going to use us as a way to try to get these buildings, Russell said. “I think it’s a bit ridiculous myself. There is no way that a building on that plot of land could logically be considered a buffer against the noise made by our fraternity.” Fnftik echoed Russell’s sentiments and said a land use change would lead to a zoning change. “Noise is kind of a red her ring in this case,” she said. “The way to deal with noise is not to rezone property." However, Dobbins said it was not his goal to rezone the land. “I know at least one person who’s incorrecdy characterized this as a rezon touches on environmental regulations. “We have open space requirements and a series of environmental protec tions to protect stream corridors, steep slopes and wedands,” Walden said. He said recent local development projects fit the Smart Growth concept. “Southern Village is an excellent example of Smart Growth,” Walden said. “The development has green ways, which allow residents to walk and bike to neighborhood business.” See OPTIONS, Page 10 lence. “(The committee) concentrated on ways to better prevent crime and to increase punishment for those who deserved it,” he said. Despite his past service, Neely faces a rocky road in his candidacy, trailing his two major Republican opponents in many polls. “The whole (primary) has to do with if you’re well-known,” said UNC politi cal science Professor Thad Beyle. “In every poll I’ve seen, (Neely’s) been running a solid third." Neely admitted his later entrance in the race did have an effect. “People committed to (my oppo nents), support I might otherwise have had," he said. But Beyle said the other two Republican gubernatorial candidates were engaged in a nasty advertising bat tle, which could upset the party leader ship or the voters, leaving Neely in posi tion to grab the party nomination. “Close to a majority of voters are still undecided,” Neely said. “I think I’ve got a real good shot." The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu. Wednesday, April 26, 2000 ing request,” he said. “I’m not asking the town to solve the problem, just acknowl edge it. It is not a rezoning request and does not ask Town Council to approve any given project” The Town Council decided not to vote on the petition because it was too vague, council member Kevin Foy said. “We did not have a specific proposal in front of us,” he said. “It was not clear what was going to go there. In that case, there didn’t seem to be a sufficient case for changing the land use category.” The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu. UNC Tops Nebraska's Retention Chancellor-elect James Moeser's tenure did see a boost in graduation and retention rates at Nebraska. By Jonath an Moseley Staff Writer UNC Chancellor-elect James Moeser will be trading University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s graduation and retention rate weaknesses for one of UNC’s primary strengths. UNL’s freshman retention rate in the 1998-99 school year was 79 percent, compared to UNC’s 94.2 percent. And UNL’s graduation rate is approaching 50 percent, while UNC’s graduation rate is at 81.9 percent, once five- and six-year degree programs are taken into account. Universities use freshman reten tion and gradua tion rates as a benchmark for students’ academ ic performance. The 30 percent difference in the schools’ gradua- C H of the A. GUARD tion rates reflects a difference in acade mic standards, said Moeser, who will remain UNL chancellor until July. “(UNC) has a more selective student body and displays a really high level of performance in undergraduate educa tion,” he said. But Moeser also said UNL made some tangible progress in retention and graduation rates during his time there. “(UNL officials) set a goal of 84 per cent freshman retention, and we’re just about to hit 80 percent now, so we’ve come a ways,” he said. “And we did the same with graduation levels. We want to hit 60 percent in five or six years.” James Greason, UNL vice chancellor for student affairs, said recent gradua tion and retention rate increases result ed primarily from increased admissions standards implemented in 1997. Gary Bames, UNC-system vice pres ident for program assessment, said rais ing admissions standards was a com mon approach to boosting graduation and retention levels. “The higher the requirements, the less likely you are to have any academic difficulty,” he said. But because public universities such as UNL and UNC aim to educate as many state citizens as possible, many schools try instead to help freshman adjust to life on a college campus, Bames said. See STATISTICS, Page 10 3
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