Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Jan. 22, 2002, edition 1 / Page 11
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®l)p Saily Star Hppl It's Time for Students to Speak Loudly on Tuition Tuition is on the rise, and we all need to listen up and speak out. The character of a Carolina edu cation is on the line. This Thursday, the UNC Board of Trustees will vote on a recommenda tion to increase tuition by S4OO for next year. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The Office of the Provost has identified a list of goals that it wants to fund with tuition increases. Those goals are more than lofty: they’re out-of-this world. That’s why the administration does n’t plan to stop with this S4OO. In fact, they’ve projected to try to meet their goals by increasing tuition by S4OO a year for the next five years. And even with that much new money - $2,000 in new tuition funds - they still won’t be able to meet their goals. That should make you suspicious: how much will tuition really increase over the next / y #6*o AD... Lf'tfl’hW ©O2. J Help Maintain Student Governance Since 1793, students at UNC have taken great pride in one of their most basic tenets: that of student self-governance. Though a constant source of pride for over 200 years, time has eroded enthusiasm for one of our most cher ished principles. Two Mark Townsend Guest Columnist centuries after its inception, there are few students who actively take an interest in student government. Such apathy is evident during our annual February elections. Around 3,000 students out of a total of about 24,000 even bother to vote. For most students, it is a struggle just to remem ber who our student body president is. So is it any surprise that the legislative branch of student government is also a recipient of poor voter turnout? For that matter, how many of you are aware that student government actual ly has a legislative branch? For those who are unaware that UNC student government has a leg islative branch (also known as Student Congress) or for those who are not clear of what Congress does, hopefully this will prove informative. Maybe, just maybe, this will encourage some of you to run for a seat in Congress. Student Congress is a unicameral body that takes on the legislative duties of student government. Congress com prises 37 elected students who repre sent the student body as a whole. Of the 37 representatives, 12 are graduate students from the various graduate schools. The other 25 are undergradu ates from both on-campus and off-cam pus. Student Congress is under the direc tion of the speaker of Student Business and Advertising: lanet Gallagher-Cassel, director/generai manager, Chiissy Beck, director ot marketing; Melida Heien, classified/customer service manager; Lisa Reichle, business manager; Nicki Davidson, retail sales manager; Nichole Assistant Editors: Brooks Firth and Nick Parker, arts 4 entertainment, Jon Dougherty, Maggie Kao and Lauren Ritter, city; Meghan Greene and Amanda Walther, copy; Whitney Freeman, Jaime Schumaker and Lauren Sumner, design; Mark Slagle, editorial page; Lauren Rippey, features, Mary Stowell, graph res, Adam Shupe, online, Kim Craven, photog raphy; Jamie Agin, Ben DeSantis and Aaron Fill, sports; Elyse Ashburn, Lucas Fenske and Jennifer Samuels, state 4 national; John Frank, Daniel Thigpen and Karey Wutkowski, university. Arts & Entertainment: Michael Abernethy and Ashley Atkinson, senior writers Trafton Drew, Elliot Dube, Brooks Firth, Jenise Hudson, Michelle Jarboe, Harmony Johnson, Graham Parker, Joanna Pearson, Allison Rostand Kristin Williams. Cartoon: Kristen Beckert, Leigh Fore, Adam Hall, Matt Purdy, Karen Spencer and David M Hie editorials are approved by the majority of the editorial board, which is composed of the editor, editorial page editor, assistant editorial page editor and eight editorial writers. The Daily Tar Heel is published by the DTH Publishing Corp., a non-profit North Carolina corporation, Monday- Friday, according to the University calendar. Callers with questions about billing or display advertising should call 962-1163 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Classified ads can be reached at 962-0252, Editorial questions should be directed to 962-0245. five years? There’s more that’s wrong with this picture. The recommendation being con sidered by the BOT was cre ated without enough time for adequate involvement from students, faculty and staff. We still have an oppor tunity to weigh in - that’s why you should vote in our opinion poll today on Student Central. But the rec- ommendation itself was formulated over a period of 12 days and three meetings, one of which was canceled due to snow. On this rushed timeline, our campus community had no time for thoughtful scrutiny or thorough review. A coalition of students has come together to fight for more student involvement in those decisions that Congress. Other leadership positions within congress are the speaker pro tem, the Finance Committee chairman, the Rules and Judiciary Committee chairman, the Student Affairs Committee chair man and the Ethics Committee chairman. During the first Congress meeting of the year, the leadership is selected from among those who were elected to Congress in the February elections. Under the guidance of the leader ship, Student Congress carries out its responsibilities. The responsibilities of Congress are three-fold. Our primary duty is to act as the purse strings of stu dent government. Every year, under graduate and graduate students alike pay what are known as “Student Activity Fees.” Congress allocates those fees amongst the numerous student groups on campus. That equates to over a quarter of a million dollars per year. Representatives in Congress decide which groups will receive money and how much money to allo cate to each individual group. That’s quite a hefty responsibility, especially for such an overlooked group. Another responsibility of Congress involves amending the Student Code. The Student Code is a compilation of rules by which student government operates. It encompasses the executive, legislative and judicial branches and even the Carolina Athletic Association. Congress has the power to add to, delete from and codify the Student Code. So if you are unhappy with student government and would like to institute change, the perfect way to do so is via laily Uar Hcrl Professional and Business Staff Plumber and Zedekiah Worsham. /Display Advertising: Erica Lundberg, senior account executive; Candace Doby, Heather English, Sarah Mobley, Andrea Sarubbi, Amy Scharf and Eryn Wade, account executives Courtnee Poole, display classi Campbell, business assistant. Customer Service: Kristin Chamblee, Holly Herweyer, Susan Ricker and Amanda Taylor, representatives. Marketing Group: Courtney Carrillo, Lauren Goodson, Josh Hall, Snannon Editorial Staff Scarbrough, Scott Sutton and Kristen Valle. Graphics: Gary Barrier, Ashley Campbell, Beth Galloway, Erica Keppler, Brian Wasson and Helen Yu. • Online: Valerie Aguirre, Lorraine Buchanan, Shaun King, Sarah Givan, Rachel Gurlitz, Gloria Holt, Jessica Lindsay, Kristen Oliver, Mary Patterson and Jessica Shellhamer. Photography: Sara Abrons, Laura Bernard, Patty Breneman, Brian Cassella, Brent Clark, Mallory Davis, Eric Escarsega, Victoria Frangoulis, Josh Greer, Jon Kirby, Greg Logan, Anne Meadows, Kate Mellnik, Jessica Newfield, Rebecca O'Doherty. Katie Riggan and Jessica Wooten. Sports: Rachel Carter, James Giza, Owen Hassell and Mike Ogle, senior writers David Andrukoms, Brandon Coward, Chris Gilfillan, Adam Hill, Gavin Off, Will Small and Randy Wellington; Sarah McConnaghy and Chris Richtei; sports copy. Watson. City: Jonathan Chaney, columnist, Chris Blow, Ben Brooks, Adrienne Clark, Erika Heyder, Jenny Huang, Jennifer Johnson, Tom Kingsley, Jocelyn Oberdick, James Russ, Colin Sutker, Matt Viser and Scott Warfield Copy: Lindsay Apple, Lisa Giencke, Kristal Jones, Hestei Kast, Laura Mayhew, Laurie Osborne and Jordan Williams. Design: Winna Bridgewater, Randi DeMagistris, Michelle Kuttner, Nicole Neuman, Justin Osborne, Tiffany Pease and Audrey Wilkinson. Editorial: Niel Brooks, Amy Dobson, Cate Doty, Daniele Eubanks, Jon Harris, Pat Hogan, Matt Mmchew and Mark Seeley, editorial board, Kenneth Chandler, Johanna Costa, Ben Dickens, Eugene Kim and Travis Raines; colum nists. Features: Heather Apple, Kirsten Fields, Emily Fleming, Veneta Georges, Kristen Heflin, J.F. n affect us most. The Coalition for Responsible Tuition Decisions has been meeting to discuss how it will ensure that the voice of the students is heard and respected. On Thursday, the BOT will be presented with this group’s perspective on the latest tuition proposal and some principles that need to be adopted by the University. We will demand that the JUSTIN YOUNG POINT OF VIEW University practice these policies when making future decisions that affect stu dents and all the constituents of this campus. The decisions on tuition will make a very influential impact not only here in Chapel Hill, but for other campuses in the UNC system as well. Additionally, the way in which these proposals are being considered doesn’t appropriately Student Congress. Lasdy, Congress is responsible for passing non-binding resolutions. Resolutions state the opinion of Congress and can range from a wide variety of topics; the topics can cover anything as unimportant as “Carolina football is great,” to something as seri ous as “UNC is opposed to tuition hikes.” Congress meets every Tuesday, either in committee meetings or in full Congress. Normally, committee meet ings average about an 1 1/2 hours in length, and full Congress meetings average about 2 1/2 hours in length. Combined with the regular Tuesday meetings, representatives are required to spend one, perhaps two, full week ends in February so that Congress can balance the budget for the upcoming school year. Officers in Congress put in more hours than other representatives. Other than that, the work required is what you put into it. If you are interested in running for a congressional seat, you must attend the candidates’ meeting. The candidates’ meeting will take place Tuesday at 7 p.m. in 100 Hamilton Hall. Hopefully, this has perked your interest and encouraged you to look into running for a congressional seat. At the very least, you now know that UNC does indeed have a legislative branch, and that they are actively seeking your par ticipation. If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail Elections Board Chairwoman Emily Margolis or myself. Mark Townsend is speaker of Student Congress. Reach him at townsend@email.unc.edu. fieds. Advertising Production: Penny Persons, manager; Kathryn Klein and Karen Stone, assistants. Classified Production: Cindy Henley. State & National: April Bethea, columnist Dan Blank, Emma Burgin, Nathan Coletta, Michael Davis, Chase Foster, Mike Gorman, Julia Lamm, Rachel Leonard, Jamie McGee, Michael McKnight, Wes Misson, Russ Thompson and Cleve Wootson University: Katy Nelson, columnist, Jordan Bartel, Tina Chang, Rachel Clarke, Brook Corwin, Philissa Cramer, Ben Davidson, Jamie Dougher, Kara Eide, Krista Faron, Deb McCown, Jenny McLendon, Meredith Nicholson, Eshanthi Ranasmghe, Joelle Ruben, Jeff Silver, Jessica Sleep, Addie Sluder, Ruthie Warshenbrot, Nikki Werkmg and Lamta Withers. Editorial Production: Stacy Wynn, manager Printing: Triangle Web Distribution: Triangle Circulation Services. ISN #10709436 Office: Suite 104 Caroline Union Campus Mall Address: CB# S2lO Box 49. Carolina Union U.S. Mall Address: P.O Bos 3257, Chapel Hill. NC 27515 3257 Viewpoints evaluate the impact that this will have on future students who may want to attend Carolina. Promises of financial aid can only do so much, and coupled with every tuition increase is the threat of limiting access to education for many students across the state. In fact, the number of applicants from the poorest counties of North Carolina has already dropped nearly 9 percent since 1996, and the number of applicants from the poorest high schools in the state has decreased almost 17 percent. If tuition continues to increase rapidly, we can expect a further decline in the number of appli cants from lower-income areas, making Chapel Hill an exclusive institution only for the rich. Higher education in the state of North Carolina must continue to be affordable and accessible to all people of the state. Tuition Increase Proposal Needs More Graduate Voice Neither lux nor libertas has been evident in the admin istration’s effort to raise tuition. Indeed, from a stu dent perspective, it’s hard to resist the urge to charac terize this “campus-based" initiative as something akin to a corporate directive. The chancellor’s hastily convened Task Force on Tuition scheduled most of its meet ings during final exams, Winter Break and the busy start-up to the current session. Provost Robert Shelton did not waver from a single-minded focus on faculty salaries as the justification for the raise, despite the request from Faculty Chairwoman Sue Estroff to avoid fram ing the need exclusively in these terms. For her part, Estroff underscored how this approach undermines faculty-student relations and mentioned that the previous tuition increase has resulted in salary increases of as little as S6OO a year for many faculty, hardly the amount needed to close the nearly SB,OOO gap between Carolina salaries and the peer average. Student representatives to the task force waited in vain for the proceedings to expand in two directions. First, they expected a discussion of a comprehensive solution to the problem of salaries - namely, what sources of revenue other than tuition raises can address this problem, so that it doesn’t become a perennial scapegoat that justifies perpetual tuition inflation? Second, more importantly, they wanted a debate of factors other than faculty salaries that might contribute to “excellence in (the) undergraduate experience” at UNC. On both counts, the task force has, so far, largely failed them. For graduate students and employees, this process is especially frustrating. In particular, the administration’s strict equation between faculty salary levels and quality undergraduate edu cation overlooks the crucial role of graduate teaching fellows and assistants in the fulfillment of the University’s teaching mission. A survey conducted last fall by UEls()a, the gradu ate employee union, indicates that half of all undergraduate courses at UNC are taught by graduate employees and almost two-thirds of all contact hours between teaching staff and students - labs, recitations and office hours, in addition to lectures - are covered by graduates. By definition, then, the quality of undergraduate education also depends on an outstanding and adequately-renumerated graduate and pro fessional corps. Why is this not a given, part of the common sense that forms the starting point of a discussion like this? Israel Is Ready to Make Efforts Toward Peaceful Concessions John Cox’s guest column on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (“First- Hand Glimpse of Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”) grossly misrepresents the root of conflict. If we wanted to play the game of who has suf fered the worst atrocities, Israel could mention a large slew of catastrophes it has suffered. But the blame game is not worth playing because it is not constructive. It is true that more Palestinians than Israelis have been killed in the past year. However, this is mainly because fewer Israelis are personally involved in violent confrontations. Also, Israel has outstanding intelligence, and its policy of targeted interceptions have stopped numerous deadly attacks from occurring and prevented immeasur able Israeli casualties. The Israel Defense Forces intercept countless Palestinian militants at check points attempting to enter Israel with bombs to murder civilians. As long as Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat disregards signed agreements calling for the dis mantling of terrorist organizations oper ating in areas under Palestinian sover eignty, Mr. Cox, roadblocks are a neces sity. Their aim is not collective punish ment of the Palestinian people - it’s to maintain the security of Israeli citizens. The killing of civilians is never the aim, and if an innocent Palestinian is caught in the crossfire, the Israeli mili tary conducts frequent investigations to discover any mistakes by its soldiers. Israeli casualties are not “accidentally” killed. They are deliberately targeted and murdered. 1 do not recall Hamas, an Islamic fundamentalist organization whose aim is to destroy Israel, ever conducting an internal investigation Decisions about your tuition are happening without your input, and we have to change that Here’s what you can do to change that: vote on the pro posal that will be presented to the BOT by logging onto Student Central and casting a ballot today. You can also find out more at http://www.unc.edu/stu dentgovt/executive and click on the link to tuition. In order to stimulate more dialogue on the issue and continue to raise awareness, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation will be hosting a tuition forum at 6 p.m. today in the main auditorium of the School of Social Work. All students are invited to comment and hear panelists discuss tuition and how it affects us all. Finally, you have an opportunity to let your voice be heard as students gather at 9:30 a.m. Thursday around the Old Well to express our concerns Marc David Guest Columnist concerning its suicide bombers. Israelis genuinely look forward to a time when teenagers can go to a disco without worrying about being the vic tim of a suicide bomb attack, when Palestinians are not sub jected to checkpoints, when the Palestinian economy and social structure is stable and Melissa Anderson Guest Columnist prosperous, when the state of Palestine lives peacefully beside Israel. But eradicating the status quo can only be brought about at the negotiat ing table, not through violence. Coexistence can only occur through mutual trust, and the Israelis do not trust Yasser Arafat. And why should they? He has never cracked down on sus pected terrorists. Even when militants are arrested by Palestinian authorities, they are frequently allowed to go free a few days later. Most recently, trust in Arafat was fur ther eroded when a 10 million to 15 mil lion dollar smuggled shipment of 50 tons of weapons was intercepted by Israel. Intelligence reports that these shipments were ordered by Arafat and headed from Iran to the Palestinian Authority. Why does the Palestinian Authority divert so much money toward weapons when it could use the funds to alleviate the suffering of its people? When Mr. Cox argues that the source of turmoil is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in 1948, he demonstrates a strongly deficient knowledge of Israeli history. The 1947 UN Partition Plan, which called for a homeland for both the Jews and the Palestinians, was rejected by the Arab world. Instead, a war to destroy the exis tence of Israel was launched. Arab leaders told the Palestinians to flee their homes with the idea that after a Tuesday, January 22, 2002 about tuition and also to call on the University administration to establish a system that will involve the students in those financial decisions that affect us the most. Two years ago students were very vocal, and they succeeded in lowering the tuition increase. This time should n’t be any different. We need students to speak out. The BOT needs to know that we care about our tuition - shut ting us out is unacceptable! The cost of a quality education at Carolina is always on the rise. But as long as we keep raising tuition without asking the hard questions, the state leg islature will keep cutting our funding. It’s time we learned our lesson: stu dents should be the last place we look for funds, not the first. Justin Young can be reached at jcyoung@email.unc.edu. Not surprisingly, levels of graduate compensation at UNC also lag well behind the average at peer universities. A recent survey by the Chronicle of Higher Education suggests that though some departments offer stipends that are competitive, others trail the average by as much as 30 per cent. There are similar gaps in tuition and fee waivers, health care coverage and childcare support. To be fair, the final proposal put for ward by Shelton did earmark 5 percent of the increase for graduate employees. But the revenues created will only raise TA stipends in a couple of departments up to the peer average, or provide all TAs with an increase of a few hundred dollars. For a five-year plan that is supposed to rep resent a more definitive solution to this problem, the proposal offers far too little to warrant our support. The more important issue that the task force’s failure raises for graduate employees is that of representation, or rather the lack of it. While graduate and professional students are invited to participate in a number of advisory committees within the University, they have no voice in any forum where ultimate decision-making power lies. For a group that plays such an important role in one of the University’s principle missions, this is clearly problematic. In this case, graduates and profes sionals have been asked to participate in a process where their concerns have been marginalized, where they have no vote in the final decision (there’s no graduate representative on the UNC Board of Trustees) and where the proposal’s effect on their ability to fulfill professional commitments is potentially quite significant. For many of us, this combination of low input and high impact is unacceptable. In the pursuit of academic excellence, and perhaps even more than faculty salaries, what should rise at UNC is a stronger commitment to inclusivity and participation in administration and governance. With respect to the tuition debate, this would mean a more systemic presence of students in settings where the University's admin istrative and financial agenda is shaped. Without this, UNC’s tired Enlightenment virtues of light and liberty, regularly invoked at Commencements and installations, will not redeem their meaning in the context where they should signify the most- within the University itself. Marc David is graduate student in anthropology, and a mem ber of UEISOa. He can be reached at mdavid@email.unc.edu. swift elimination of Israel, the people could resettle. I am not claiming Israel was an angel. It is true some Palestinians were forced from their homes. However, one must remember that this was a time of war, and Israel’s very existence was being threatened. But the fact remains that if there were no war initiated by Arab coun tries, there would have been no refugee problem. Also, a fact that is often overlooked is that a similar num ber of Jews living in Arab countries were forced to leave their homes between 1948 and 1951. However, they were absorbed into Israel and made full citizens. By con trast, the Palestinian refugees were deliberately kept in horrible conditions to gain international support and later serve as pawns in the negotiation process. Occupation is claimed to be the root of the conflict. However, this is an occupation that Israel never desired and that Israel is committed to ending through peaceful negotiations. Terrorism is obstructing dialogue and the only factor preventing an end to conflict. If a real peace is on the horizon, Israel is committed to making huge concessions. Israel’s willingness to make difficult concessions resulted in a peace accord with Egypt in 1978 and could have resulted in a peace accord with the Palestinians in July 2000 at Camp David. I think the Palestinians both need and deserve a state of their own. I regret the fact that such inept leader ship has left them without one. Melissa Anderson, a sophomore inter national studies major, can be reached at mmanders@email.unc.edu. 11
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