16A
Tuesday, August 20, 2002
Board Editorials
Walking a Fine Line
Faced with budget challenges, University administrators should continue providing
departments with flexibility to make cuts and preserving freshman seminars.
As the school year begins, there are certain rites
and rituals UNC-system students and officials par
ticipate in.
Unfortunately, dealing with budget cuts handed
down by the N.C. General Assembly is fast becom
ing that one tradition everyone wishes would just
fade away.
But now that UNC-Chapel Hill has gained quite
a bit of experience in dealing with budget cuts and
the often-trying demands of die General Assembly,
the University is in a position to minimize the dam
age done to core programs and services even as
legislators continue debating the state budget.
One aspect of this year’s round of budget cuts
is that the heads of individual departments will
have control over how to trim the budgets from
their own programs. After scrutinizing their bud
gets, the administrators will determine what can be
cut and make recommendations to the provost’s
office. The provost and other senior University
administrators will then review the suggested cuts
and try to minimize their campuswide impact.
This flexibility will be a great help in reducing
the negative effects on students as the deans are
better able to determine what is a non-essential
class or position than someone higher up the chain
ofcommandL__^__________
The most visible aspect of this year’s cuts will
most likely be a greater number of students per class
because of a reduced number of sections. Some
classes, like freshmen seminars, have thankfully
been spared in this round of cuts. These seminars
are a great marketing tool for the University, serve
as a vital boost to the intellectual life on campus and
help freshmen adapt to University life by providing
them with a more open classroom environment.
Crusade for Understanding
University officials, in an effort to expand students' academic horizons, made the
right decision to select "Approaching the Qur'an" as this summer's reading book.
Not many people appreciate being asked to do
something against their will, especially if it appears
to conflict with their own beliefs.
This gut instinct has significantly colored the
reaction surrounding the University’s decision to
select “Approaching the Qur’an: The Early
Revelations” as the summer reading book.
The decision ignited a nationwide debate ques
tioning the reading’s appropriateness, the separation
of church and state and allegations that UNC admin
istrators are trying to convert students to Islam.
In the face of those questions, a court challenge
funded largely by the Virginia-based Family Policy
Network, political pressure from the N.C. House
and acidic criticism from numerous talking heads
on television news programs, campus administra
tors have stood by their original decision.
Good for them.
The decision to use “Approaching the Qur’an”
rests on one of the fundamental goals of higher
education - expanding students’ minds by expos
ing them to a broad range of new ideas.
In the wake of Sept. 11, national polls revealed
that most Americans knew next to nothing about
the Quran and Islam even though roughly a fifth of
the world’s population is Muslim. At the time,
there was an outcry for more information to deter
mine the reasoning behind attacks that claimed
nearly 3,000 lives.
“Approaching the Qur’an” critically analyzes 35
of the oldest and most-often-quoted suras, which
are short passages in the holiest book of Islam. The
suras are placed side-by-side with context explain
ing their literary and poetic significance and their
role in Islamic culture and history.
Michael Sells, who translated the passages from the
EDITOR’S NOTE:The above editorials are the opinions of solely The Daily Tar Heel Editorial Board, which were reached
after open debate. The board consists of eight board members, the assistant editorial page editor, the editorial page edi
tor and the DTH editor. The 2002-03 DTH editor decided not to vote on the board and not to write board editorials.
DTH Makes New Goals for Year
Welcome to the pages of the
2002-03 Daily Tar Heel.
We’re excited to be up and
running again, providing you with one
of the best college dailies in the coun-
try for another year.
Earlier this month our edi
tors met for a three-day retreat
to discuss the DTH’s goals.
We crammed 35 editors into a
small room for as many as 12
hours a day to hash out last
year’s strengths and weakness
es, as well as improved
approaches to coverage.
Among other things, we
worked out a mission state
ment to guide our coverage
- to be an independent, comprehensive news
source that vigorously gathers and accurately
presents information that affects the
University and its surrounding community
while responsibly trainingfuture journalists.
There are a few other things I
should tell you as you get to know this
year’s DTH. First, and probably most
importandy, we’re independent from
the University, meaning that we get no
funding and that we have no adviser.
Because of this, we play a different
role on campus than you might think.
Another aspect of this year’s cuts that will have
a serious effect on classes in years to come is the
hiring freeze placed on the faculty and staff.
This freeze comes at an especially bad time
because the University is about to go through a
time when more faculty than usual will be retiring.
Because this is one of the more serious draw
backs of the budget shortfall, University adminis
trators must continue lobbying the General
Assembly to fund as many positions as possible.
This further constraint on the UNC system is
only a small symptom of a larger problem.
The General Assembly needs to stop sending
mixed messages on its attitude toward higher edu
cation. On one hand, the state legislature says it
wants to make the UNC system the best in the
country.
But it remains difficult to see how the legislature
will reach this goal - especially when each year
brings more budget cuts.
There are some programs and departments at
this University that still have not recovered from
the budget cuts of previous years.
Though this year’s budget cuts will not take a toll
as large as initially feared, the General Assembly
needs to take a hard look at how it has allocated
money over the past three years. The state legisla
ture’s primary task is to allocate the revenue collect
ed by the state in an efficient and balanced manner.
Judging by two consecutive years of budget cuts,
though, the N.C. legislature has partially failed in
its responsibility to support higher education to the
fullest. The General Assembly needs to do all it can
to ensure that budget cuts do not become a tradi
tion students and administrators have to face each
school year.
Quran and explained their meaning, wrote in the
foreword that the book’s purpose is “to allow those
who do not have access to the Qur’an in its recited,
Arabic form to encounter one of the most influential
texts in human history in a manner that is accessible.”
University administrators, by finding a reading
related to the most significant issue of the day and
trying to satisfy some of the public questions raised
about the Quran and Islam, are only meeting the
public service requirement so vital to UNC’s mis
sion as the flagship university for the state.
Granted, it’s not a popular decision. Polls reveal
that a majority of N.C. residents oppose the read
ing selection.
But it is not the University’s place to kowtow to
fleeting public opinion and neglect the weighty
responsibility of academic freedom. Some of the
proudest moments in University history are when
administrators and students stood together firmly,
in the face of widespread public opposition, to
protest the Speaker Ban in the 1960 sand attempts
to stop teaching evolution in the 19205.
University administrators, though, have not
ignored criticism. They have responded to public
concerns by offering students unwilling to read
“Approaching the Qur’an” the option of writing a
one-page essay explaining their reasoning.
Most importantly, UNC officials have continued
the past practice of not taking attendance and not
issuing grades at the discussion sections. This pol
icy, which effectively makes the discussion sections
completely optional, served as the basis for a U.S.
District Court judge affirming the University’s right
to hold student discussions.
After all, sometimes it’s a good idea to go against
one’s instincts and experience something new.
We’re not a publicity rag for the
administration or student government.
When it comes to the news, our role as
professional journalists supercedes our
role as students. We strive to give cred
it where credit is due and
shed light in dark areas.
Many college papers don’t
cut financial ties with their
university because it’s a scary
risk to take. The DTH is a
nonprofit organization iunded
by advertising revenue -a
tough situation in this poor
economy. Our papers have
been smaller than ever, and
we have to make tough calls
when deciding how to use our
KIM MINUGH
EDITOR
limited space. If you’re interested in that
process, let us know and we’ll let you sit
in on one of our budget meetings.
It’s also important for you to know a
thing or two about our editorial page
and the Editorial Board. The news and
editorial sides share no connection
except that I am the final word as to
what prints. I am a strong believer in
the First Amendment, and whether I
agree with anything being said by a
columnist or the Editorial Board, I
won’t censor it unless it’s obscene or
Editorial Page
libelous. To maintain our objectivity in
coverage, no editors other than
Editorial Page Editor Lucas Fenske and
his assistant, Jon Harris, have any say
in what appears on this page.
The people who determine what
goes on this page, in turn, have no
effect on our news coverage. Fenske
and Harris stricdy oversee an eight
member Editorial Board that is the
institutional voice of this paper. The
DTH editor also sits on that board,
although this year I have decided to
stricdy act as a resource for the board
and will not vote when a consensus is
being reached. It’s just one way I feel I
can help ensure that bias does not seep
into our news coverage.
That’s a very brief introduction to
our paper. Our ultimate mission is to
serve our readers, so if you have any
questions about what we do or con
cerns about how we do it, please let us
know. It is my pledge to you that our
doors -and our ears - always will be
open, even if we don’t agree.
Minugh is a senior journalism and
history major from Mission Viejo, Calif.
She can be reached at
kminugh@email.unc.edu.
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Kim Minugh
EDITOR
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Summer Reading Represents
Chapel Hill's Zoo-Like Nature
Cruising back into town Sunday
morning and flipping through the
radio dial, I was immediately
taken back by the familiar Guns N’ Roses
anthem “Welcome to the Jungle.” As the
song blared on the radio, I
could not help thinking Axl
Rose was singing about UNC.
There are definitely plenty
of “lun and games” to be found
here on the Hill, and while
there are only a few wild ani
mals around these parts, wild
ideas abound.
Over the years, the University
has received a great deal of
attention for its left-of-center
stances on, well, just about anything. The
campus is awash daily with student activists
who want to free everything from Tibet to
convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal.
That reputation stretches as far back as
the 19605. During that time, state leaders
were debating where to build anew zoo,
and popular legend holds that U.S. Sen.
Jesse Helms, R-N.C., suggested that the
best option might be to simply put a fence
around Chapel Hill.
While Helms says he never made the
now-infamous “zoo” comment, Chapel
Hill’s reputation as a haven for hippies and
“far-out” ideas has stuck. And the most
recent controversy here at the University
lends even more credibility to that analogy.
For those of you who have been living
under a rock this summer or just in the
Readers' Forum
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A
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Alex Kaplun
MANAGING EDITOR
Daniel Thigpen
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Aaron Fitt
SPORTSATURDAY EDITOR
Kimberly Craven
PHOTO EDITOR
Sarah Sanders
WRITING COACH
dark abyss that is Carrboro, I am of
course referring to UNC’s controversial
summer reading program. This year, in
coming freshman and transfer students
were asked to read a book entitled
“Approaching the Qur’an” by
Michael Sells.
The program fell into the
national spotlight when a
Christian organization filed a
lawsuit against the University on
behalf of three UNC freshmen
who objected to the assignment
After that, television politi
cal pundits from Bill O’Reilly
to Robert Novak latched onto
the story, routinely bashing
MICHAEL
MCKNIGHT
RIGHT OF WAY
University officials for the reading.
Members of the N.C. House of
Representatives even weighed in on the
matter and passed a budget last week that
cuts funding for the program unless the
University gives equal time to other reli
gions. The move was largely symbolic,
but it nonetheless illustrates that state leg
islators are willing to tug on the leashes of
the “animals” here at the UNC zoo when
they get out of control.
University officials, along with other
self-proclaimed defenders of American
freedom rallied to defend the book,
claiming they were merely trying to
“enlighten” students about Islam and
were not in the business of saving souls.
University Chancellor James Moeser later
dismissed critics as just “blowing smoke.”
Editor’s Note: Viewpoints, which runs
Monday, will be about the summer reading
choice. Please submit any op-ed pieces on the
topic by Thursday. The pieces can be e-mailed
to editdesk@unc.edu or taken to The Daily Tar
Heel office in Suite 104 of the Student Union.
UNC Students Should Read
About American Life, Not
“Approaching the Qur’an”
TO THE EDITOR:
Dear Chancellor Moeser, the last time I
heard my brother Christopher’s voice will be
one year from this Sept. 10. As you know, he
was among those UNC alumni who perished
the next day.
Some time has passed, and my outrage which
came after reading that UNC had decided to
require the reading of “Approaching the Qur’an;
The Early Revelations” has tempered somewhat
I fully support fair, open exploration and dis
cussion on all issues which foster learning and
enlightenment, so long as all views are pre
sented and that leadership bias, in a University
setting, is nonexistent. That’s higher educa
tion’s responsibility. This issue, as presented for
freshman this year, is clearly lopsided.
Firsdy, let me say that it is incomprehensible
that UNC is supporting the “required” study and
discussion of a single religious belief. Aside from
the obvious religion and public institution con
flict, this is tantamount to rewarding the radical
Jon Dougherty
CITY EDITOR
Addie Sluder
FEATURES EDITOR
Beth Buchholz & Tiffany Pease
DESIGN EDITORS
Michael Flynn
OMBUDSMAN
While I don’t think anyone truly
believes University administrators are try
ing to convert students to Islam, I do
think UNC officials are missing some
thing by simply writing off criticism.
The nationwide backlash that the
assignment prompted is not a sign of wide
spread ethnocentrism in America as some
in the academic left might claim. Rather, it
is symbolic of a growing -but largely
unspoken - discontent among Americans
over the fact that Islamic world leaders
have shown little remorse and made few
condemnations of Islamic fundamentalists
responsible for the events of Sept 11.
N.C. native and evangelist Billy Graham
landed in hot water this week for being one
of the first American religious leaders to
publicly express this less-than-PC view.
While leaders of Islamic countries have
made the obligatory apologies for the ter
rorist attacks, they have done virtually
nothing to curb the tide of anti-American
sentiment that has swept these nations
since September. Call me Miss Cleo, but I
honestly don’t see them doing anything of
the sort in the near future either.
Until real change happens in the
Middle East, I think we can all expect
controversy anytime the Quran comes up
on the public radar screen.
Michael McKnight really is a closet Guns
N’ Roses fan, but that’s the only closet
you’ll catch him coming out of. Reach him
at mmcknigh@email.unc.edu.
elements of that religion. I’m at a loss to under
stand how passages of Islamic belief and subse
quent discussions will authentically enlighten
freshmen, specifically with relevancy to 9/11.
I will suggest that perhaps there would be
more relevancy in reading the Declaration of
Independence, Bill of Rights and perhaps the
New York Times’ “Portraits, 9/11,” which por
trays the lives of those who were murdered by
Islamic extremists last September. The profiles
are of men and women from various religions,
cultures and nations. They are people who
worked as cooks, window washers, service per
sonnel, leaders of industry, as well as religious
leaders and also include UNC alumni. How
much more appropriate to read of and then
discuss the lives of those who were a part of us,
who worked to make the “American Dream.”
Secondly, the University’s decision to put
the onus on a freshman to decide to explain
their objection to this institution’s directive, I
believe, is cowardly a:.d the attempt by UNC
to absolve itself of developing an all-inclusive
opportunity for dialogue on this subject, is
inexcusable. I know of one incoming freshman
whose older brother died along with mine. I
hope you take as much concern for his needs
as with those of the faculty who support this
inappropriate response.
Michael Quackenbush
Class of 1977
The length rule was waived.
Hhe Daily (Ear MM
Lizzie Breyer
PROJECTS EDITOR
Elyse Ashbum
STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
Nick Parker
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Cobi Edelson
GRAPHICS EDITOR