Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Jan. 29, 2001, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
2Hjp iaiUj ®ar MM . I V ASHLEY STEPHENSON CCI Must Get Back on the Right Track Michael Hooker would be embarrassed. In February 1998, UNO’s former chancellor unveiled the Carolina Computing Initiative to the dismay of some and cheers of others. | He envisioned a campus of students Jwho, with laptops tucked snugly in tHeir knapsacks, would emerge from this institution with computer know how and technological street smarts. He painted the picture of class rooms filled to the brim with debates held over raised laptop screens. And it’s a shame to watch his vision go straight to hell in the hands of those who have perverted the original inten tions of the CCI to cover their asses. 1 You can imagine my surprise when Marian Moore, vice chancellor for information technology, casually men tioned that CCI officials weren’t really pushing for laptops to be incorporated into faculty lesson plans. “The CCI was never about taking your laptop to class every day,” she told The Daily Tar Heel. You’ve got to be kidding me. That’s exacdy what this initiative is all about. When Hooker dropped the bomb about making laptops a requirement for freshmen starting in 2000, he took serious heat. A group called People for Computational Freedom argued one vendor shouldn’t have a monopoly on laptop sales. Others wanted the logis tics of cost spelled out, ensuring that the requirement did not divide the campus into haves and have-nots. Some said it was too much too soon. And Hooker had answers for all of them. Perhaps the vice chancellor missed a column Hooker wrote in March 1998 when he outlined the pur pose of the CCI and the importance of laptops for all students. “Universities everywhere are encouraging their fac ulties to become computer literate and to incorporate technology into the classroom,” he wrote in Trusteeship Magazine. “Yet with half of any given class lacking the basic tools, we set ourselves up for failure.” I’d like someone to tell me how you incorporate technology into the class room without making technology part of the classroom. Hooker didn’t five to see his vision through. And he’s not here to fix the problems that higher-ups are ignoring. Moore also has made no bones about the fact that she won’t be assess ing the program anytime soon. Just a hunch, but if I were a head honcho, I’d be keeping an eye on a fledgling computer initiative at one of the largest public universities in the country. But that’s just me. Moore is treating the CCI like an irresponsible college dude with a cock er spaniel puppy. Sure it will help him pick up chicks, but if he leaves it alone without food or water, that mutt goes down for the dirt nap. The time to evaluate this program is now. We need to know who’s using these laptops in classes. Which profes sors are still looking for ways to incor porate the technology? Which profs don’t know how to turn on a laptop? Who’s doing it right, or wrong? Moore and friends haven’t carried out Hooker’s vision, and they know it. That’s why the definition of CCI con veniendy changed last week. And their new definition is how Hooker described failure. The impetus behind the CCI was about competition with peer universi ties, as UNC has a jones for keeping up with the Joneses. But deeper than that was the idea that students would graduate with cutting-edge skills in tow. If students aren’t using computers in classes, if the CCI is not about “taking laptops to class” then someone tell me why we rewired classrooms and made students pony up the dough. And while I suspect that laptops make terrific plates or doorstops, I bet we could think up some better ways to put them to use. Administrators need to return to Hooker’s vision. Otherwise, I’ve got a better name for our computer plan. Carolina Cheats Initiative. Columnist Ashley Stephenson can be reached at ashley2l@email.unc.edu. Those who reply using required laptops during class get a dollar. Local Police Benefit From Collaboration Chapel Hill, Carrboro and University police have been working together, bridging communication gaps with radios, scanners and other tools. By Stephanie Furr Staff Writer On Jan. 9, Chapel Hill sent a description to all law enforcement agencies in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area by the area 911 dispatch. The information informed Carrboro police that Dwayne Russell Edwards, a suspect in a sexual assault in Chapel Hill, would be return ing to his apartment by car. Using the information, Carrboro police were able to stop Edwards before he even reached his home. The arrest was a break in the investigation of three sexual assaults in the Carrboro and Chapel Hill area and, police felt, removed a '• ".-j z'** Tju< k|^9S9|^hSß jfii* Bj ■ ■ Tfl ■ 1 |f ' : U 0 \ A U in ? JL I. iJPH / JGtejBBSH gg||pr 4 , l lk ' Jm DTH/ARIEL SHUMAKER Fifteen-year-old singer/songwriter Alysson Light practices for her show Friday night at the Carrboro Arts Center. Light's song "Liquid Eyes," off her CD titled Water, has become the number one downloaded rock song in the area on mp3.com. Symposium Highlights South Africa's Struggles Speakers from South Africa lectured about their roles in civil rights advocacy and experiences of oppression. By Ben Davidson Staff Writer Native jurists and attorneys chroni cled South Africa’s struggle with free dom at a symposium at the School of Law on Saturday. The symposium, Apartheid to Democracy, honored the work of law Professor Kenneth Broun in South Africa and featured speakers who played a role in bringing democracy to the country. Some of the topics discussed were the land rights of blacks during apartheid, the role of blacks in the post-apartheid economy of South Africa and the devel opment of social rights in Africa. Broun’s work educating attorneys through the Black Lawyers Association of South Africa led to the publication of Dance Marathon Wins Charity Game The UNC charity beat out nine other local charities in a fund-raising competition at Performance Chevrolet. By Ben Gatling Staff Writer The UNC Dance Marathon survived a full day of fund raising Saturday by calling supporters to raise more money - $5,617 - than nine other area charities. In a game similar to CBS’ “Survivor,” 10 area charities competed with each other at Performance Chevrolet, 1810 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd., to raise the most money and win a big-screen tele- University & City violent criminal from the street. It also highlighted a relationship that many residents don’t consider very unusual anymore: the interaction of at least four agencies in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area. In addition to the col laboration of the two municipal agencies, the UNC Department of Public Safety also partici pated by investigating Edwards’ background as a University employee. “Obviously the severity of this crime is not something we encounter everyday,” said Maj. Jeff McCracken of UNC police. “But it’s not that uncommon to have a criminal in this com munity who breaks the law in several agencies.” The agencies often work on cases, especially in crimes such as car break-ins, where the offenders will strike in both municipalities. his book, “Black Lawyers, White Courts: The Soul of South African Law,” in which he chronicled the oppression of black lawyers in South Africa’s legal system. “I’m very pleased with this sympo sium,” said Broun, a former Chapel Hill mayor. “We were very fortunate to get such distinguished speakers.” Presenters included judges and justices in South African courts and lawyers who have fought apartheid in South Africa. Lecturer Albert Sachs, who lost his right arm in a car bomb explosion in 1988, was exiled to England for his role in South African civil rights advocacy. He spoke on the formation and admin istration of the South African Truth Commission, a committee formed to dis cover the perpetrators of racial atrocities. Similar stories of violence and oppression marked the fives of many of the speakers. Speaker Justice Moloto, who was a victim of government-pro moted discrimination, said the entire See SYMPOSIUM, Page 6 vision. Contestants representing each of the 10 charities frantically called and plead ed with residents on the phone to pledge money for their respective charities. At the end of each hour between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., the charity with the least amount of money was eliminated from the game, said Jill Farrell, market ing director for Performance Chevrolet. “We’ve had people coming by all day to help the charities,” she said. “We’ve had a tremendous response from the community." Farrell said Performance organized the event after hearing about the tremendous needs of area charities. “We had a stack of charities request ing donations from us," she said. “We When an offender is at large, the agency puts out information by way of the 911 dispatch ser vice so that every police department in the area “We’ve all known each other so long that when problems do arise we are able to address them and get over them. ” Jane Cousins Chapel Hill Police Spokeswoman with the Orange County Sheriff’s office in some cases. “In my experience, while it may be unusual, it’s the norm for us," Carrboro Police Chief Carolyn Hutchison said. She said the long-term relationships of the agencies helped smooth out any differences. See COOPERATION, Page 6 Officials Examine Asbestos Risk Health officials say the asbestos present in several UNC buildings does not pose a major health threat. By Robert Albright Staff Writer A common building material with potentially hazardous exposure risks is opening people’s eyes about their health safety at UNC. Asbestos, which lurks in the ceilings and inner workings of many older University residence halls and class rooms, is used as a fireproof and sound proof insulating material. But because health problems are pos sible when someone inhales disturbed asbestos fibers, experts recommend that UNC faculty and students take precau tions when working and living around the substance, even though officials say chances of harmful exposure are low. Gil Velez, asbestos coordinator for UNC’s Health and Safety Office, said the highly scrutinized building material does not pose a threat as long as asbestos invited eight of them and then called two more to participate in this event.” Casey Copp, the representative of the Red Cross, said the Red Cross would use the money from its second-place fin ish for victims of fires in the community. “I’ve been working hard all morning raising money,” Copp said. “Frankly, I’m tired.” Copp was not the only contestant mshing to call supporters to raise funds. Chris Evans, representative of the UNC Dance Marathon and winner of the contest, said he chose to represent the marathon merely for name recogni tion. “I would say about one percent of the See PERFORMANCE, Page 6 Law and Order The police forces of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, UNC and Orange County all work together to solve crimes in the different jurisdictions. receives the information. The Carrboro-Chapel Hill area and the UNC campus are served by four nearby agencies including the Chapel Hill Police Department, Carrboro Police Department, UNC police and the independent police of UNC Hospitals. The agencies also work SOURCE: LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS CHHS Sophomore Surges in Online Pop-Rock Charts Alysson Light says she has been influenced by the music of "powerful women in rock" such as Heather Nova and Joni Mitchell. By Warren Wilson Staff Writer By now, it shouldn’t be any surprise when a Chapel Hill musician gains national acclaim. But one can’t avoid being amazed when introduced to Alysson Light, the 15-year-old singer/songwriter and pianist whose self-penned “Liquid Eyes” reached number 18 on mp3.com’s acoustic pop-rock chart as ofjan. 21. Light said people are often stunned by the fact that she is only a sophomore at Chapel Hill High School. “I love sur prising people like that,” she said. But, unlike commercial pop stars who can use their youth as a selling point, the anonymity of the Internet requires Light’s music to stand on its own. It does, according to mp3.com users - “Liquid Eyes” has stayed in the top 50 downloads for two months. “(‘Liquid Eyes’) is based on a girl I knew who had a very haunted kind of face,” Light said. “She has something that could make her supernatural and more powerful, but also less human ” Light’s “hit” song, and the additional eight songs on her second album, Water, were written in a week last August. Her father, a UNC professor of cell and molecular physiology, recorded the album at home. The songs on Water are stark and hypnotic, creating a hauntingly pretty sound that sets her apart stylistically as well as chronologically. She also has been an anomaly on the North Carolina Singer- See LIGHT, Page 6 is not “pulverized” or crushed by hand. According to reports from Velez, three diseases are associated with a high levels of asbestos exposure. These diseases, which can take 20 years or more to devel op, include lung cancer; asbestosis, a type of lung scarring, and mesothelioma, a cancer in the lin ing of the chest “People hear the word ‘asbestos’ and they get fran tic,” Velez said. “If someone turns the fibers into a pow der by crushing them up, then there is obviously a problem.” But Velez said asbestos usually appears in surfacing materials such as ceilings and floor tiles that are very difficult to crush. Rebecca Casey, assistant director of marketing in UNC’s Department of Housing and Residential Education, said asbestos exists in Parker, Teague, Avery and all four South Campus residence halls. Although officials say asbestos is con tained and exists at safe levels in these buildings, Casey said the housing depart- m rm, DTH/JEREMIAH SHACKELFORD UNC Dance Marathon organizers shout support at a "Survivor"-style charity fund-raiser held Saturday that raised more than SIO,OOO. Monday, January 29, 2001 ment has given residents a fact sheet about asbestos and exposure risks. “We haven’t experienced complaints because we keep residents well-informed,” she said. But freshman Jessica Ghent, who lives in Ehnnghaus Residence Hall, said “The biggest misconception is when people think if asbestos is there, it has to be removed. ” Gil Valez UNC Asbestos Coordinator Ghent learned of the asbestos in her room’s ceiling when she arrived in August But Ghent, whose family has a past with lung cancer, said she would have liked to receive information about the hazardous substance prior to moving in. But senior Amit Sharma, a resident assistant in Hinton James Residence Hall, said he has not heard many stu dents on his hall complain about See ASBESTOS, Page 6 3 she worries about the asbestos in her room’s ceiling. “I like where I five, but my roommate and I make sure we wash all the dishes in our room twice because we’re worried about the (asbestos) fibers.”
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Jan. 29, 2001, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75