Pack Attack UNC runners stay close. See Page 9 ®be latlu (sar Mrel www.unc.edu/dth Students, Faculty Argue Fairness of Cheating Ruling Students and faculty hold strongly divided opinions on the guilty verdict in this weekend's Honor Court case. By Robert Albright and Loren Clemens Staff Writers Computer screens were not the only things buzzing in Sitterson Hall on Monday, as students hody debated the verdict of Sunday night’s open Honor Court hearing. Senior Mike Trinh and junior Brianne Abortion Pill Fuels Old Debate Now that the FDA approved RU-486, the drug will be available in some Orange County health care centers. By Ben Gatling Staff Writer An abortion drug recently approved by the federal government that provides a nonsurgical way to terminate preg nancies continues to fuel controversy on the local level. The Food and Drug Administration approved the abortion drug mifepre stone, or RU-486, on Thursday. The pill allows a woman to have an abortion without traditional invasive procedures by terminating the fetus and then help ing the body to expel it. Kaye Michaels, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Orange and Political Pundits Discuss RU-486 Abortion Pill See Page 5 Durham counties, said she is overjoyed that women in the area have anew choice. “It’s just another option for women seeking an abortion,” she said. But even though the FDA has approved the drug, Michaels said Planned Parenthood will not offer it in the area until sometime next year to ensure that its employees are aware of all the dangers and advantages of the drug. “We already do extensive counseling, but this is a little different," she said. “There is a little more education going on.” During a woman’s first visit to the clinic, the FDA requires her to obtain counseling to receive the first dose of the drug, which blocks a hormone nec essary for the pregnancy to continue. The patient returns a few days later to receive the final pill to expel the fetus. After a woman aborts the fetus, she must go to her doctor again for a check up to ensure the fetus has been com pletely removed. The only restriction for this type of abortion is that women must have completed the procedure by the seventh week of their pregnancy, Michaels said. But Barbara Holt, president of Right to Life, a local chapter of the anti-abor tion lobbying group, said the drug can cause problems for women and for future pregnancies. “In addition to killing the baby, it poses great health risks,” Holt said. “It’s not just a simple little drug.” Holt said the drug can cause severe uterine hemorrhaging, and there is also a risk of future infertility. The FDA Web site states that this occurred in 1 percent of patients in clinical trials. Although the drug has been available in France since 1988, certain obstacles See ABORTION, Page 6 hbbbbb bm- -iw h’WB& y* t?i KjHSldr W/ Ip ' Sr J—:' BU Roth were found guilty of academic cheating in connection with unautho rized group work on a programming assignment for Professor James Coggins’ Computer Science 120 class last semes ter. Although many computer science faculty members feel the ruling was just, other faculty and students said they are outraged by the decision. Senior computer science major Heather Morgan, who was in Coggins’ class last semester but was not charged with cheating, said she thought the Honor Court could have interpreted the evidence differendy. “I don’t agree with the way the SlingStyleßag j 7. -—t t P Two-strap 4§ Booking photo iuusatwiCMauAsrtN rnnPFB thin m mm iui u-.htb\ Students Tote Textbooks in Style Bookbags Combine Accessory and Necessity By Shahrzad Rezvani Staff Writer What used to be an efficient device for lugging around a day’s worth of textbooks has become an element of style. With the introduction of the messenger and sling-style bags, combined with redesigned two-strap backpacks, back packs are being customized for stylish and technological appeal. “I don’t use it for function, only for fashion,” said Kathy Nawabi, a junior from Durham, of her messenger bag. Nawabi’s backpack is decorated with a colorful array of Chinese characters, sym bol and pictures. While the structure of her bag is com mon on campus, its Chinese print speaks louder than a typical messenger bag. “There are so many colors, so it matches with everything. It’s kind of got a tacky quality to it,” Nawabi said. With only one strap, the popular mes senger bags cross over the torso and land NCSU Students Camp Out for Cash Six campus organizations are participating in this week's Shack-A-Thon to aid those in unsuitable housing. By Aimee Brown Staff Writer RALEIGH - Seven wooden-slab shacks strung with Christinas lights and topped with garbage bag roofing are prominendy positioned in the brick walkway in front of the D.H. Hill Library at N.C. State University. The shacks are part of an annual weeklong effort called the Shack-A- Thon, which is meant to raise awareness ■ ' Bagman' is not a legitimate career choice. Bart Simpson, on the blackboard Go North Chapel Hill students will trek north to Ohio on Thursday for a conference on diversity. See Page 7 Serving the students and the University community since 1893 Honor Court is handling everything,” she said. “I have a really hard time believing that many people cheated.” Coggins turned in 24 of his Computer Science 120 students to the Honor Court this summer. He said there were a few procedural errors in the open hearing but that the Honor Court worked hard with litde recognition. He also said it is his duty to report any suspected cheating and that the Court interpreted the Student Code of Conduct correcdy. “I am not winning anything from doing this,” Coggins said. “This is my duty as I see it under the (code).” on one hip. Sallie Fleckenstein, a sophomore from Statesville, said it was the dignified appear ance of her messenger bag that lead to her purchase. “I think it looks a lot more profes sional,” she said. While her messenger bag does not hold many books, she said she has easy access to it on her hip. “They’re convenient if you want to get something out,” she said. Also prevalent on campus is the sling bag -a one-strapped pack that sits diago nally across the back. Sam Yellen, a junior from Raleigh who owns a sling bag, praised the new fashion statement. “It’s not as bulky as regular backpacks are, and you can fit a lot of stuff in them,” Yellen said. “It also looks pretty cool, too.” But it’s not all about appearance. Students are also buying bags that carry their gizmos and gadgets. So as people with cellular phones and CD players flood the Pit, and students prop open laptops in the quad’s shade, of inadequate housing and raise funds to eliminate it nationwide. The event is sponsored by the N.C. State chapter of Habitat for Humanity and six other campus organizations - N.C. State Spanish Club, Parks Scholars, Bisexual Gay and Lesbian Alliance, Wolfaides in student government, Hope 4 the Homeless and Inner Residence Council. The organizations are staging a friendly competition to see who can raise the most money from passers-by willing to donate to their cause. Bisexual Gay and Lesbian Alliance member Chloe Palenchar, a senior com puter engineering major from Wilmington, said she is participating in the Shack-A-Thon to promote social justice. Steven Matuszek, a graduate com puter science student last year, spoke in Coggins’ defense. “It sounds to me like (the groupwork) was definitely not fair to students who worked unaided,” Matuszek said. “I don’t know if the situation was dealt with correcdy, but Coggins did what the department Web page says.” The site advises professors to take any instances of suspected academic dishon esty direcdy to the Honor Court But Roth, who received an F in the course and was suspended for the fall semester, said the court proceedings and outcome were unjust. “I felt the Honor Court would be today’s bags have pockets, once used for pencils and pens, which now carry com partments for portable necessities. The Gap sells a backpack called the Urban Laptop, which has multiple padded slots for different devices. The two-strap pack features a main compartment with a cushioned divider for a laptop ideal for students carrying their Think Pads alongside their textbooks. The bag also has a padded CD player holder and an earphone-jack opening to make it easier for those who want a dose of DMX between their calculus and histo ry classes. Cheryl Honeycutt, manager of the Gap at 108 E. Franklin St., said the store’s sling style bag with its detachable cellular phone case was the company’s most fre quendy sold accessory. “It’s definitely more of an urban look. It’s not really for textbooks,” she said. Although these bags might bring aver- See STYLE, Page 6 “Helping stop one (form of) oppres sion helps all,” she said. “Solidarity.” Students began building their shacks Sunday afternoon and worked into the night. The shacks will be manned 24 hours a day until Friday afternoon. Jason Hedrick, president of the N.C. State chapter of Habitat for Humanity, said he hopes the effort will make more students aware of the conditions in which many people live. “In general, our purpose is to raise awareness about lack of affordable hous ing and make students aware that peo ple really do live like this,” he said. Hedrick said the event will likely help Habitat for Humanity reach its SB,OOO See HABITAT, Page 6 rx fair,” Roth said. “What happened made a travesty of the (UNC) honor system.” Roth cited her failure to receive an individual trial and Student Attorney General Taylor Lea’s decision to testify against the defendants as examples of how the hearing was unfair. Computer science Professor Sanjoy Baruah, who served as a character wit ness for Trinh, also said he was disap pointed in the outcome of the court pro ceedings. “The Honor Court made a completely incorrect decision,” he said. Trinh, who also received an F and was put on academic probation, said he was “very disappointed” after the ver dict was reached and will submit an Funding Needs Remain, Despite Slower Growth Interim Provost Richard Edwards says the University still needs capital funding, even though enrollment projections are down. By Alex Kaplun Assistant State & National Editor University officials still say they need SSOO million to improve facilities, despite the provost office’s recent predic tion that enrollment growth will be slower than previously prejected- .- - 1T 11 " 1111111 1 ' " At Thursday’s Board of Trustees meeting, interim Provost Richard Edwards announced that UNC-Chapel Hill’s pro jected enrollment growth through 2008 would be only 2,200 students. UNC-system officials have projected that UNC-CH will absorb nearly 6,000 new students in the same time period. University advocates have used projected enrollment growth as leverage in their quest for additional state funding. UNC-Chapel Hill is set to receive half a billion dollars if voters approve a $3.1 billion bond referendum to fund capital improvements at the state’s universities and community col leges Nov. 7. John Hood, president of the John Locke Foundation -one of the few groups whose members have organized some oppo sition against the bond - questioned the necessity of such a large bond package, especially if enrollment growth is slow er than originally projected. “The bond referendum’s main purpose is expansion,” Hood said. “If there’s any question about the rate of expan sion, then that questions the need of the whole bond.” Hood also said he questioned the need for rapid expansion because it would mostly add underqualified students into the system. But Bruce Runberg, UNC associate vice chancellor for facilities, said the drop in projected enrollment will not have an impact on either facility needs or upcoming construction projects. Runberg also said the determination of capital needs was based on three factors - renovation needs, existing deficien cies and projected enrollment growth. “(Enrollment) was only one part of the requirement,” he said, citing the need for anew science complex with a price tag of about S9O million. Edwards said the lower projected enrollment does not decrease UNC’s facilities needs. See ENROLLMENT, Page 6 I j a I Jmi [ ||l||!||wjk *♦-1 w'" 1 * UTH/MIIXER PEARSALL Jason Hedrick, president of the N.C. State University chapter of Habitat for Humanity, works on the group’s shack on the campus Brickyard. One More Day Today: Partly Cloudy, 88 Wednesday: Cloudy, 87 Thursday: Storms, 81 Tuesday, October 3, 2000 appeal soon. While Trinh did not com ment further on the case, other students involved in the cheating controversy openly discussed the proceedings. Senior computer science major Evelyn Salazar, who was among the stu dents charged by Coggins, participated in a closed hearing last week. She said the court proceedings could have been avoided if Coggins had communicated better with his students last semester. “I never felt we were breaking the Honor Code,” she said. “We thought we were doing the right thing because group work was encouraged.” See REACTION, Page 6

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