10
Tuesday, October 31, 2000
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comments about
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Contact the
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Kelli Boutin
EDITORIAL PACE EDITOR
Kim Minugh
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Ginny Sciabbarrasi
CITY EDITOR
Board Editorials
Access Denied, Part II
Registration problems left some juniors high and dry Saturday.
The system should be streamlined -and registration redone.
It happened again.
Problems cropped up last Saturday as
juniors attempted to register for their spring
semester classes. The Student Central Web
site temporarily crashed -and some students
received the wrong PIN from the Office of
the University Registrar.
It’s time for added changes to the way the
University handles registration -and repa
rations to juniors issued the wrong PIN.
The headaches came just a week after
seniors faced similar difficulties with their
registration process. Afterwards, the
Registrar and Administrative Information
Services (AIS) promised that they had isolat
ed the computer problems and assured
juniors that they had nothing to worry about.
They were wrong.
The University Registrar has done an
admirable job making the registration
process easier over the last few years, mov
ing from Caroline telephonic registration to
Web registration. But the process could be
streamlined even more.
Eliminate the PIN. When students regis
ter, they are forced to give their UNC-issued
Personal Identification Number (PID) and
their Personal Access Code (PAC) before
entering Student Central. That’s enough to
establish their identity. There’s absolutely no
need for another password.
In reality, most UNC students only visit
their adviser to obtain their PIN. But there’s
still a way to corral students into Steele
Education for All
A court ruling mandating pre-kindergarten programs for at-risk
children ensures all students an equal shot at a good education.
The North Carolina Constitution’s
promise to provide equal educational oppor
tunities to all of its children has just been
taken one step closer toward realization.
Last week, Wake County Judge Howard
Manning Jr. ruled that North Carolina’s
obligation to equal educational opportunity
does not begin at kindergarten, but whenev
er the children’s needs are not being met.
Manning’s decision could impact up to
40,000 of the state’s children who are not
currendy enrolled in preschool programs
and could not be unless the state made it
financially feasible for them to do so - which
is exacdy what Manning’s decision has man
dated.
Children who would qualify for the pro
gram are those deemed “at-risk”, usually
determined by whether the child qualifies for
free or reduced lunch -a full 40 percent of
North Carolina’s school children.
There is no magic age where the state’s
obligation to its children automatically kicks
in. And Manning was right to recognize the
significance of pre-kindergarten programs on
the emotional and intellectual development
of the children who participate in them - par
ticularly those who might not be getting that
early help at home.
The program will no doubt be cosdy - the
Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system
spends about $5,600 per pupil in a similar
Readers' Forum
Senior Class President
Stands Behind Aquarium,
Asks for Student Support
TO THE EDITOR:
This letter is written in response to
Ashley Stephenson’s column entitled “Fish
Tank Idea Moronic on Many Levels” that
ran in the Oct. 23 edition of The Daily Tar
Heel.
As we say in the aquarium business, her
article just doesn’t hold water. Ms.
Stephenson begins her critique of the
aquarium with the profound statement that
she doesn’t “like fish;” or “eating them,”
“smelling them” or “swimming in places
where they live.” After careful study, I am
pleased to inform Ms. Stephenson drat the
installation of the aquarium will require her
to do none of these things. In all serious
ness though, Ms. Stephenson’s column,
while a bit crude, did raise important ques
tions about the gift that should be
addressed. While final plans and specifics
are still being worked out, I can assure you
that students will not be able to jump into
Matt Dees
EDITOR
Office Hours Friday 2 p.m. -3 p.m.
Kathleen Hunter
STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
T. Nolan Hayes
SPORTS EDITOR
Will Kimmey
SPORTSATURDAY EDITOR
Building without the headaches of the PIN.
Academic departments could place a stop
on students in the program to prevent them
from registering without visiting their advis
er. Once the student makes the perfunctory
visit, the adviser can take the stop off in the
office. That eliminates the chance of errors in
the issuance of the PIN - making the process
even more foolproof.
But for some juniors, the damage has
already been done. They jumped through
the right hoops to get their PIN and had a
schedule of classes planned out. They logged
on Student Central at noon and waited for
the network to come back online. When it
did, they were greeted with the error mes
sage, in red, that their PIN was incorrect.
Calling the Office of the University
Registrar to get anew PIN proved frustrat
ing. Phone lines were tied up with other
juniors issued the wrong PIN.
The result -some juniors ended up regis
tering late for classes that they needed. And
many of them had already filled up.
The solution - wipe the slate clean. Give
all juniors an equal chance at classes by toss
ing out Saturday’s registration and holding a
new one.
Juniors: Call Associate University
Registrar Donna Redmon at 962-8289 and
let her know how you feel.
Sophomores: Call and confirm your PIN.
It could save you from a long ordeal this
weekend.
program. But providing every child in North
Carolina with the same educational founda
tion is a significant enough policy to warrant
those extra dollars for the much-needed
extra help.
In a state that prides itself on public edu
cation, it’s a shame this matter had to be
decided in the courts and not in the legisla
ture. But now that the decision has been
made, it is of utmost importance that the state
follow through with gusto, providing all of its
children the best education possible.
This means following Manning’s guide
lines on educational policies that are proven
to work, like smaller classroom sizes and
one-on-one time with individual tutors.
But it also means understanding the fun
damental principle that all of North
Carolina’s children must be given the same
opportunities to succeed, be they in Hoke
County or the city of Cary. And if it means
spending $5,600 per child to do it, then the
decision is just as easy as if it cost nothing.
Quality public education for all of North
Carolina’s children should be a given.
Let’s hope the state doesn’t find itself in
court again, fighting something it should
have done a long time ago.
Public education in North Carolina is not
a privilege reserved for the only wealthy, but
a right for all residents - even those under
the age of 5.
the tank, overfeed its inhabitants or commit
any other of the atrocities mentioned in
Ms. Stephenson’s article. We are also cur
rently developing a feasible and long-term
maintenance plan for the aquarium. And
that’s exactly what it is: an aquarium, not
an oversized tank from K-Mart like Ms.
Stephenson’s piece implied. Further, this
was the gift chosen by the seniors who
voted. While turnout was not ideal, more
seniors participated in the gift selection
process this year than in any other year in
recent history.
In conclusion, the aquarium will be a
striking addition to the new Union, and the
senior class administration is counting on
the support of fellow seniors to make it a
reality. The more people support the gift,
the cooler it will be. On that note, we take
Ms. Stephenson up on her offer to kick in a
plastic scuba diver.
We’ll even name it Jumbo to make her
happy.
Jason Cowley
President
UNC Class of 2001
Opinion
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■y THATS >
ou ? \
Looking to Bridge the Racial Gap
Most of those who place themselves in
the public spodight manage eventu
ally to say or do something that they
regret. I am not an exception.
About seven weeks ago, I found myself
with 200 words of blank space at the end of
my column. As my deadline approached, I
used that space to comment on the unbal
anced racial situation in one of my history
classes.
Specifically, I was concerned about the lack
of black students in my Civil War class, which
has about 100 students but only one black stu
dent.
My intent in mentioning my class was to
point out the growing trend in America
towards racial self-division, and to offer a few
conjectures as to the possible sources of the
problem.
Increasingly in recent years, blacks and
whites have moved in subtle ways to isolate
themselves from each other.
In the college classroom, this tendency now
threatens to create a system of de facto segre
gation, as many black students choose classes
that emphasize black history while most white
students select “traditional” courses.
More importandy, the growth of racial self
division in recent years has made it more dif
ficult for black and white Americans to trust
and understand each other. This lack of trust
inhibits our ability to live and breathe togeth
er as one people - an American people -
even as we cherish the diversity of heritage
that makes America unique.
Because I am extremely concerned that
racial self-division will have dire conse
quences in coming years, I was hopeful that
my comments would prompt readers to think
seriously about the issue.
Unfortunately, the way in which I made
my remarks might have accomplished the
opposite of what I intended. Some of my
comments were insensitively worded and
vaguely argued, and I found myself surprised
and saddened that many black students at
UNC had been hurt and offended by them.
Specifically, many readers were bothered
by my reference to African-American Studies
40 as a “lightweight” course - they felt that I
was suggesting that black history is somehow
inherently less challenging than traditional
history classes. This was not my intent. For
PURSUE Program
Helps the University
Achieve Diversity
TO THE EDITOR:
I want to thank The Daily Tar Heel for
commending the PURSUE program
(“Granting Opportunity,” Oct. 27) for its
role in creating opportunities for minorities
in graduate programs. I cannot emphasize
enough the need for programs such as this.
Asa recent graduate of this University
and as a Native American, I am keenly
aware of how under-represented minorities
are in higher education, at both under
graduate and graduate levels. I often found
myself being not only the sole Native
American in my classes, but also the only
minority. Asa school that is committed to
the state of North Carolina and its people,
UNC should be more diversified at all lev
els. This includes not only the graduate
level but also the undergraduate, staff and
faculty levels as well.
In order to create a “stronger ethnic
community in graduate programs,” as the
Sefton Ipock
PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR
Cobi Edelson
DESIGN EDITOR
Saleem Reshamwala
GRAPHICS EDITOR
CRAIG WARNER
HARSH LIGHT
the record, I believe strongly that the history
of African-Americans is an integral and
important part of American history, and that
the accomplishments of blacks are worthy of
study in their own right.
I also believe that such study should not be
confined to a specific department of African
studies. My concern with African American
Studies 40 and similar classes is that they can
serve as an excuse to trivialize the history of
African-Americans, and to separate it from
the larger study of our common American
history and culture. The reasoning is: “We’ll
just teach the basic white stuff here in
American History, since black history is cov
ered in AFAM 40.”
This reasoning creates a system in which
only a small minority of (mostly black) stu
dents learn about black history -and in which
academia fails to prompt meaningful dialogue
between blacks and whites. Such division can
only foster increased misunderstanding and
decreased trust.
During the past seven weeks, I have been
repeatedly informed that African American
Studies 40 is a serious study of black history in
America. I have no reason to doubt that this is
the case, and I sincerely apologize to those
who felt maligned by my earlier column.
The numerical and ideological division that
I believe African American Studies 40 helps
to breed is my true concern, and has been
from the beginning.
“E Pluribus Unum” is a vital American
creed: “out of many, one.” America is based
on the belief that different peoples can come
together, give assent to our fundamental
ideals (equality, freedom, inalienable rights)
and become fully American- even while
maintaining their individual cultural identities.
The continuing division between black and
editorial stated, we must first increase eth
nic visibility in the undergraduate commu
nity. This involves aggressive recruitment
by the University and the minority students
themselves. It is not only a desire but an
urgent necessity that UNC become a better
representation of the people that it serves.
And it is opportunity (which PURSUE
is graciously creating) that is key to helping
achieve diversity at UNC. If no opportuni
ty is offered, then it is difficult to enrich this
school, this state and its people with the
unique and vitally important perspectives
offered by minority students.
Jake Brayboy
Research Technician
Pathology
A Vote for Ralph Nader
Could Hand Election
To George W. Bush
TO THE EDITOR:
Students might be wondering whether
they should vote for A1 Gore or Ralph
Cate Doty & Lauren Beal
MANAGING EDITORS
Josh Williams
ONLINE EDITOR
Brian Frederick
OMBUDSMAN
Laura Stoehr
SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR
white Americans threatens this ideal because
it creates a gap of understanding that prompts
members of both races to view each other
with suspicion.
Such distrust means that each ethnic group
hesitates to embrace commonly held
American ideals as the center of a shared
political and cultural life. Thus, a distincdy
American unity across racial boundaries
becomes impossible.
The understanding gap wreaks havoc in a
number of ways. For example:
Today, American whites have essentially
declared racism a vanquished legacy of the
past. They acknowledge that some individuals
are still racists, but insist that racism is more a
case of “how we were” than of “how we are.”
Accordingly, many whites regard black
complaints of continued racism as mere
excuses and complaints and are offended and
frightened both by expressions of black out
rage and by government efforts to give black
Americans preference in education and hir
ing.
Simultaneously, black Americans insist that
white racism in America remains a powerful
and destructive force.
Citing taxi-cab pass-overs and “driving
while black” arrests, many black Americans
believe that the evidence of overwhelming
racism in America is so obvious that those
who deny it are in fact themselves guilty of
racism.
So who is right? The answer is that neither
black nor white Americans are “seeing things”
- both have an understandable grasp of the
situation in America. (I’ll look at racism next
week.) But because of the gap in understand
ing, both blacks and whites distrust each
other. The result is misdirected antagonism
and missed opportunities.
Thanks to my readers, I have no doubt that
African American Studies 40 is a difficult and
valuable class. But the academic separation of
black and white students (even done voluntar
ily) cannot possibly help to bridge the gap of
understanding between blacks and whites in
America.
Maybe now we can think together about
what will.
Craig Warner is out of space. Write him at
cmwarner@email.unc.edu.
Nader. Here are a few things to consider.
Without a doubt Nader makes some
telling points against Gore, but he is dead
wrong in arguing that the two parties are
nothing but Tweedledum and Tweedledee.
The environment: Can anyone doubt
that Gore would deal with such matters as
oil drilling in pristine Alaska preserves dif
ferently than Gov. Bush, whose sorry envi
ronmental record in -Texas speaks for itself?
It is crystal clear that the precious right
of choice for women would be staunchly
protected by Gore, but subject to invasion
in a Bush administration.
On the all-important matter of Supreme
Court appointments, Gore may be counted
on to appoint justices of a moderate to lib
eral kind, while Bush has spoken admiring
ly of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas,
the most conservative members of the court.
Admirable though Nader’s views on
some matters may be, one must take seri
ously the consequences of a vote for Nader
which could throw the election to Bush.
Samuel H. Baron
Professor Emeritus of History
(Ehr Saihj (Ear Mrrl
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