919-Hip-Hop
Triangle grooves.
See Page 5
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www.dailytarheel .com
Congress Running Out of Money for Student Groups
By Stephanie Horvath
Staff Writer
A financial shortfall and increased
demand for funding has Student
Congress cinching its purse strings
tighter when appropriating student fees
to campus organizations.
Although Congress had $39,000 to
appropriate to student groups last fall, they
began with only $22,000 this year, placing
extra stress on the allocation process.
Less than $9,000 remains for the rest
of the semester. “There’s a big budget
crunch, so we have to be particular,”
said Rep. Kevin Crockett, Dist. 19.
Student Body Treasurer Patrick Frye
said the shortfall of $5,100 has contributed
to the reduced funds. This lack of funds
occurred because student groups returned
'Ol Seniors
Pick Fishy
Class Gift
An aquarium for the
Student Union garnered the
most votes by a slim margin
for the senior class gift.
By Kim Minugh
University Editor
Amid the renovations of the Student
Union, the class of 2001 will leave its
mark with anew aquarium.
The senior class Gift Committee met
Wednesday night to sort through the
470 votes submitted via e-mail for the
five gift choices.
Seniors chose between a scholarship
for one urban and one rural student that
would have lived
together in a
cross-cultural
experiment, a
wall-sized aquari
um for the Student
Union, a graduate
school advising
program for UNC
seniors, a jum
botron huge TV
screen for Kenan
Stadium or a con
tribution to the
Henry/Copeland
Permanent Art
Collection in the
Student Union.
£
Senior Class
President
Jason Cowley
said he is very
excited about die
senior gift choice.
The aquarium won by a close margin
with 166 votes, with the jumbotron
close behind with 139 votes. The schol
arship received 85 votes, the graduate
advising program received 70 votes and
the art collection received 10 votes.
While senior class officers were excit
ed about the unique gift idea, they were
more pleased by the level of participation
of the senior class. “We’re all really excit
ed how many people voted,” said Senior
Class Vice President Sherilynn Black.
Senior Class President Jason Cowley
said the committee would begin work
ing immediately to make the aquarium
a reality. “I think this is a neat, dynam
ic gift,” he said. “Pm excited about lay
ing out a design.”
Cowley said the aquarium will be
paid for mosdy by funds to be solicited
from the senior class. He said the aquar
ium will complement the renovations of
the Union to be completed in 2002. “It’s
going to be pretty nice for Carolina stu
dents in the future,” he said. “It’s going
to set the Union apart from the norm.”
While Cowley said this year’s gift dif
fered from traditional choices, he said
he thought it was a creative one. “It’s
what the class wanted,” he said. “That’s
the number one thing we wanted to
take care of.”
The University Editor can be reached
at udesk@unc.edu.
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less than the pro
jected 20 percent of
unspent funds after
spring semester.
Student groups are
required to return
leftover money.
Frye said
Congress also is
having to tighten
its appropriations
because there is a
steady amount of
funds but more
student groups
demanding those
funds.
Treasurer
Patrick Frye
said Congress is
short $5,100 for this
year's appropriations
with months to go.
Congress also no longer has the
Special Projects and Speakers Fund,
which funded expensive ventures by
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Cause Trouble
By Megan Butler
Staff Writer
College students are notorious for being
strapped for cash. But the popularity of the
credit card lets students spend now and
pay later.
Students can charge almost anything -
their groceries, their gas and even their
beer tab.
But studies show credit card charges can
lead to trouble for college students if they
fall into the trap of overspending.
And because many students use plastic
more than cash, credit card companies and
banks aggressively target college students
on campus.
Such persuasive tactics are apparent on
campuses across the nation, as card issuers
appeal to students’ weakness for anything
free by offering T-shirts, flying discs and
Candidates Articulate Positions; Rally for Support
By Amy Dobson
Staff Writer
HILLSBOROUGH - Nearly a bal
lot’s worth of candidates came out
Wednesday for a
front-porch discus
sion of the upcom
ing election.
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troCuinS
Candidates running for national and
state Senate and House seats and Orange
County Board of Commissioners slots
gathered at the Hillsborough House Inn
to articulate their platforms.
You want 21 percent risk free? Pay off your credit cards ;
Andrew Tobias
Honor Thy Peers
A recent Honor Court hearing has
raised concerns about the
student-led system. See Page 3
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
large groups such as the Black Student
Movement. The fund was completely
spent and never replenished.
And some organizations discovered
this shortage firsthand when coming to
the Tuesday night Congress meeting to
ask for funds. At the start of the meeting,
$12,221.46 remained in Congress’ pool
of funds for student groups. After all
requests had been granted, Congress
members said that number dropped to
about SB,OOO or $9,000, although exact
calculations were not available.
Speaker Alexandra Bell stressed the
gravity of the situation to Congress at
the beginning of the meeting. “Please
don’t just rubber stamp these. We’re get
ting closer to zero with every meeting.”
Student groups Lighter Shade of Blue,
Masala, the Carolina Hispanic
mugs in exchange for applying for a credit
card.
But some say this sort of promotion is
not in the best interest of college students
and could lead to lifelong debt if students
get into the habit of spending more than
they earn.
Oren Milgram is one of the founders of
StudentMarket.com, a Web site designed
to help students acquire the necessities for
campus life - including information about
credit.
Milgram said that when he was a col
lege student, he saw a need for a Web site
that looked out for students’ best interests.
“It’s pretty common to find students
marketed heavily on campus by credit
card marketers,” Milgram said. “We feel
that’s not a good way for students to make
educated and responsible decisions.”
Milgram said students should be educat
ed about credit use and that on-campus
marketing has shown not to be beneficial
for students’ credit.
Despite the fact that the candidates’
social was open to the public, few peo
ple attended other than the candidates
themselves. “The candidates can vote
too,” said Orange County
Commissioner Margaret Brown, half
joking. “I’d appreciate (other candi
dates’) votes as much as anyone else’s.”
Although the wicker furniture and
rocking chairs were not filled with many
prospective voters, candidates still
turned up the rhetoric as to why they
should occupy the coveted seats.
“I want to do something to inspire the
Association and the Carolina Socialist
Forum all requested funds for projects at
the meeting. Each organization answered
extensive questions on how they planned
to use the funds, but Lighter Shade of
Blue, a show choir, and Masala, an
umbrella organization of multicultural
groups, faced the most intensive scrutiny.
“I know everyone in here wants to be
warm and fuzzy and help every group
out, but we cannot drop down to $6,000
tonight,” Bell said.
In the end, both Masala and Lighter
Shade of Blue got some money, though
not all they had requested.
“It’s a fine line that (Congress walks),”
said junior Michael Troutman, a Lighter
Shade of Blue member who represented
See CONGRESS, Page 4
A 1998 study by the Public Interest
Research Group backs up Milgram’s
claim.
The survey of students from 15 college
campuses across the nation - including
large and small, public and private, 4-year
residential and 2-year community colleges
- reports students who obtain credit cards
on campus have higher unpaid balances
and therefore worse credit records than
those who apply through other methods
such as a bank.
But Beth Metzler, director of public
relations for Discover Card, said
Discovers experience with student card
holders has been very positive.
“We do target college students, and our
experience with them has been very
good,” she said. “They have shown to be
worthy credit card holders.”
Metzler credits this to the efforts
Discover makes to inform students about
See CREDIT, Page 4
next generation,” said Jess Ward, a
Republican challenge for the U.S.
House seat for the N.C. 4th District. “I
want to show people that an ordinary
guy from the wrong side of the tracks
can achieve political office.”
N.C. Senate incumbent Howard Lee,
D-Orange, said he has an advantage
over the opposition because he knows
the rigors of office.
“People don’t want a brand new pilot
flying their plane,” Lee said. “I’m expe
rienced; I’ve been flying this plane.”
Vickie Hargrove, a Republican chal
&r
■ Student government is operating with $5,100 less than in previous years
because they ended with a $5,100 debt last year.
■ Student Congress is appropriating the same amount of student fees,
while the number of groups seeking funding is increasing.
■ The Special Programs and Speakers Fund which used to fund the
expensive ventures of large groups such as Black Student Movement
and Hip Hop Nation was totally spent and never replenished.
■ Student Congress must now fund those groups along with ail other
student organizations.
SOURCE: STUDENT BODY TREASURER
Boy Scout Case
Causes Concern
For Aldermen
Members of the Board of Aldermen have
said the town could pull support for the
United Way if discrimination does not stop.
By Phil Perry
Staff Writer
The Carrboro Board of Aldermen has sent a resolution to
the Triangle United Way admonishing it for allowing members
to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.
The United Way supports the Boy Scouts of America and
has a policy allowing the organization to deny membership
based on sexual orientation. The Supreme Court upheld the
Boy Scouts’ right to screen its membership in June.
Alderman Jacquelyn Gist said the resolution gives the
United Way a year to change its policy to discontinue support
of members who discriminate on the basis of sexual orienta
tion. If the United Way does not change its policy, the town of
Carrboro will no longer support it, she said.
While Carrboro does not contribute funds to the United
Way, the town supports it in other ways, such as allowing it
to solicit and recruit in the Town Hall, Gist said.
Mary Wilhams-Stover, vice president of marketing for
Triangle United Way, said the organization is included in the
campaign for Carrboro, meaning it is one of several organi
zations to which town employees might contribute money
through payroll deductions.
Wilhams-Stover said the aldermen could exclude the
United Way from the campaign if they chose. “We certainly
respect their right to make that decision,” she said.
Alderman Alien Spalt said the Oct 10 resolution had the sup
port of the entire board. “It received unanimous support,” Spalt
said. “Our board is not in support of discrimination and has taken
stands against it in the past So this is consistent with the past”
The board opposes the first component of United Way’s
two-tier antidiscrimination policy. All member organizations
must meet the first her, known as the minimum standard. This
standard does not state that the member must not discriminate
based on sexual orientation.
The second tier is called the best practices standard. This
standard encourages members to adopt discrimination poli
cies similar to the one United Way uses internally, which man
dates that discrimination based on sexual orientation is pro
hibited, Williams-Stover said.
Gist said the board is not alone in taking issue with the pol
icy. “I know a lot of people are upset about it, and I under
stand their being upset," she said.
Spalt said he also has heard from some residents about the
See SCOUTS, Page 4
lenger for the state Senate, who spent 16
years working in child development,
responded to Lee’s pilot analogy with
one of her own. “I’ve seen little children
grow up to attain their vision of being
successful young adults,” she said. “I
learned that potential is even greater
than experience."
N.C. Senate Republican candidate
Bill Boyd, who was diagnosed with can
cer in 1996 and has since been cured,
spent his time in the limelight talking
about insurance policy.
“I found out about die North Carolina
One More Day
Today: Partly cloudy, 71
Friday: Cloudy, 74
Saturday: Cloudy, 77
Thursday, October 19, 2000
health care system the hard way,” he
said. “If elected, I will support legislation
to make insurance companies account
able. The forms need to be readable.”
Candidates aspiring for seats in the
N.C. House spoke out about issues such
as the UNC-system bond issue, traffic and
health care. Republican Will Towne and
incumbent representatives Joe Hackney,
D-Orange, and Verla Insko, D-Orange,
all voiced their support for the $3.1 billion
higher education bond, which would give
See CANDIDATES, Page 4