10
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2003
BOARD EDITORIALS
EATING THE MONEY
Carolina Dining Services and the University should take responsibility
for their mistakes and not look to student fees to cover the shortfall.
In middle school math, we all learned to watch
out for those pesky extra digits. Leaving off a
digit or adding an extra one would throw your
answers completely off track.
Unfortunately, the meter readers for Carolina
Dining Services didn’t pay attention to that impor
tant lesson.
In part by leaving off a digit while calculating util
ity payments, Carolina Dining Services now faces a
shortfall of $550,000.
Harris Teeter's decision not to open a store in the
new Ramshead Dining Facility also contributed to
the debt.
CDS also cites a decline in vending machine sales,
a phenomenon they attribute to a “global change in
buying patterns.”
The University should not ask students to pick up
the slack caused by a worldwide decline in demand
for Three Musketeers bars.
While students appreciate the new homemade
barbecue potato chips and shrimp with toasted pine
nut wraps available this year in Lenoir Dining Hall,
the plan to increase student fees by $24 to offset this
shortfall represents another troubling instance of
turning to students' wallets as emergency sources of
funding.
Student fees increase every year, and students
have come to realize this fact.
While growth with inflation is both reasonable
and expected, students have no responsibility to
carry the burden for employees’ simple mathemat
ical errors.
Student fees have a defined and specific purpose.
They are meant, for the most part, to fund activ
ities and organizations that serve members of the
student body and the University community as a
whole.
Using the fees to bail Carolina Dining Services out
of a sloppy budget only stands to add to an already
MAKING AN IMPACT
Although leaders have done a fine job making student government
more accessible to the UNC community, more work is needed.
UNC has a proud tradition of self-governance,
and this year, student government officials
are making sure people know it.
Honor and Integrity Week kicked off Monday as
a highlight of the campus’ yearlong Honor Carolina
Initiative, designed to inform students of tne new
changes in the Honor Code.
The week was organized by Honor Carolina co
chairwoman Judith Wegner, Student Attorney
General Jonathan Slain and outreach coordinator
Marc Hennes. Slain said the events were planned
jointly by students, faculty and administrators.
The Committee on Student Conduct worked
throughout the last year to amend the Instrument of
Student Judicial Governance, the document that
outlines UNC’s student judicial process. The revi
sions made by COSC were approved by the Faculty-
Council in January and by Student Congress and
Chancellor James Moeser in March.
Slain and his colleagues deserve a pat on the back
for their efforts to make students aware of what is
essentially a student-led project.
The student body’s ability to govern itself has
allowed many to have a positive impact on campus
life. It is important for student leaders to ensure the
system’s continuation by keeping the campus aware
of what opportunities are available.
This week’s events are a good example of students
proactively reaching out to each other to promote
the goals of their respective groups.
But the judicial branch isn’t the only part of student
government making its voice heard. On the whole, all
student government branches have done an effective
job of letting students know exactly what’s going on.
Student Body President Matt Tepper and his
administration have been reaching out actively to
the student body to promote their activities.
One major activity for the executive board this
EDITORS' NOTE: The above editorials are the opinions of solely The Daily Tar Heel Editorial Board and were reached after open debate. The
board consists of eight board members, the assistant editorial page editor, the editorial page editor and the DTH editor. The 2003-04 DTH
editor decided not to vote on the board and not to write board editorials.
READERS FORUM
Coulter opposition focused
on money, not speech
TO THE EDITOR:
Asa member of the student
body that has been paying a great
deal of attention to the Ann
Coulter dilemma, I have yet to have
a single question answered.
The supporters of Coulter’s
appearance proclaim her academ
ic value.
Other than allowing the
Carolina community to show its
appreciation of freedom of speech,
I fail to recognize its worth.
Nathan Denny’s Sept. 15 col
umn, along with Tom Jensen and
Justin Guillory’s Sept. 17 letter,
have given multiple examples of
her blasphemous speech.
Where are the examples of the
thought-provoking and academi
cally valuable words?
Being radical and outrageous
doesn’t make your thoughts a pos
itive contribution to the
University’s atmosphere.
Despite my personal objections
to Coulter, that isn’t the crux of my
concern, nor was it the focus of
Guillory and Jensen’s letter.
My apprehensions, which are
evidently shared by them as was
apparent in their letter, involve the
amount of money spent on a single
event.
I fail to see how such concerns
equate them and me with the
Committee for a Better Carolina.
While the Committee for a
troubling precedent of hijacking student fees out of
convenience.
Simply put, the University needs to eat the loss
and cover CDS’ shortfall using sources outside of stu
dents’ pockets.
The CDS fee request comes on top of requests by
several other campus departments to boost student
fees in order to recover money lost as a result of state
budget cuts in the last few years.
Unlike student fee increases, tuition hikes often
illicit organized student responses.
But the steady, consistent increase in student fees
is a silent killer that unfortunately eludes the notice
of many students.
Students may not lobby the N.C. General
Assembly over a $24 increase, but it plays a signifi
cant role in the growing financial load UNC students
must bare in the wake of a budget crisis.
If the money raised directly benefits the student
community, administrators can expect a warm
reception to marginal student fee increases.
Dumping the money into a blackhole that mere
ly covers for existing foul-ups errodes student body
trust and sets up a difficult road for future, poten
tially necessary increases.
It is realistic for CDS to incur significant costs in
providing a diverse and high quality dining opera
tion.
UNC students appreciate the genuine care that
CDS takes to deliver a superior campus dining
option and show their support by consistently buy
ing their products.
But students should bear absolutely no financial
responsibility for mind bogglingly basic accounting
errors, such as leaving off a digit, or a mystical
change in global vending machine demand.
However, if CDS ever threatened to get rid of the
shrimp with roasted pine nut wraps, then perhaps
we could work something out.
semester is encouraging members of the University
community' to register to vote in time for November’s
local elections.
Leaders have spent significant time reaching out
to other campus organizations to get them involved
in the voter registration effort, which is helping to
inform students about the drive as much as possible.
In addition, plans are underway to hold a candi
dates’ forum shortly before the election to ensure
students are informed about candidates' platforms.
The voter registration drive is one of many efforts
undertaken by campus leaders to motivate students
to get politically involved.
But while strong efforts have been made to
encourage student activity, there still have been some
weak spots.
Though all the branches of student government
have worked hard since the spring to plan a wide
array of activities involving different aspects of the
campus community, those efforts are meaningless
if they are not properly publicized.
And those lines of communication should not be
open only when there is positive news to report.
Student Congress has been criticized for allocat
ing student fee money to help pay for conservative
author Ann Coulter’s upcoming visit to the campus.
Many of the concerns centered on the large
amount of money given to a single student group
and what was perceived to be a lack of explanation
from Congress about the decision.
Congress has the potential to be more than a glo
rified piggy bank, doling out student fee money. Its
job is to serve students’ interests and it fails to do so
if students don’t know what their representatives
think.
Student leaders’ decisions have an important
impact in University affairs so be open and make
sure everyone knows about it.
Better Carolina has fought to pre
vent liberal views from being pre
sented at our university, Guillory
and Jensen’s complaint was the
amount of money being spent on
bringing in this right-wing
extremist, not the fact that
Coulter is speaking in the first
place.
Anyone that closely read their
letter would recognize such.
Meg Scott
Sophomore
History and
Peace, War and Defense
Moeser might not accept a
salary bonus if offered
TO THE EDITOR:
I am writing in response to
recent coverage in The Daily Tar
Heel regarding bonuses for chan
cellors in the UNC system.
UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor
James Moeser last week advised
faculty leaders that he had no fore
knowledge of the proposed bonus
es but that he “[did] not see how
[he] could possibly accept a bonus
in a year in which faculty and staff
are receiving no increases.”
I understand that he has also
expressed this sentiment to UNC
system President Molly Broad.
Although he is not inclined to
toot his own horn, I asked him if I
could share this information pub
licly, and he agreed.
I know that my faculty, staff and
Editorial Page
student colleagues (and The Daily
Tar Heel) will be proud that he has
taken this position.
Prof. Judith Wegner
UNC-CH School of Law
Chairwoman
UNC-CH Faculty Council
Discussion aims to explore
roles of females in athletics
TO THE EDITOR:
Since the passage of the 1972
Education Amendment, Title IX,
the status of women on American
school campuses has improved
considerably.
The language of the statute
“No person in the United States
shall, on the basis of sex, be
excluded from participation in, be
denied the benefits of, or be sub
jected to discrimination under any
education program or activity
receiving federal financial assis
tance” has been the subject of
much debate.
Many people who hear the
words “Title IX” think about sports
—and for good reason.
When Title IX passed in 1972,
female athletic programs generally
consisted of cheerleading, with
almost no athletic scholarships for
women, so the passage of the
amendment had serious ramifica
tions for women’s sports.
In 1997, the Women’s
Educational Equity Act Resource
Center reported that 15 percent of
ON THE DAY S NEWS
“The price of greatness is responsibility
WINSTON CHURCHILL. FORMER BRITISH PRIME MINISTER
EDITORIAL CARTOON
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LOCAL AFFAIRS
More than money at stake
in school merger decision
The sign announced that my
boat on wheels had entered
Orange County.
But as I was returning from
Virginia on Sunday afternoon, the
rural scenes outside the window
on N.C. 86 seemed odd. Sure, I’d
had prior ventures through north
ern Orange, but the landscape still
struck me as funny, if for no other
reason than its stark contrast to
the towns further south.
My scenic drive was a first
hand reminder of a wildly differ
ent portion of Orange County.
The rural north tends to be
more conservative and less afflu
ent than the progressive south,
which is distinguished by a sub
stantial tax base and an iiberliber
al reputation.
N6w, this perpetual tension is
re-emerging as the Orange County
Board of Commissioners discusses
merging the mediocre Orange
County Schools with the better
performing and cash-gushing
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools.
The issue popped up again dur
ing the commissioners’ January
planning retreat and since then
has been a hot topic. County staff
presented an analysis of a poten
tial merger last week, and while
the proposal is in the earliest of
stages, it will be considered seri
ously in the months to come.
While the effects and imple
mentation of any merger are still
frizzy, this much is clear: The
Orange County Board of
Commissioners is on a crusade to
address inequities between the
county’s two school systems.
Commissioner Moses Carey
proposed the merger as a way to
equalize funding between the two
districts. That’s a noble goal, but
the town schools have more
money because the towns’ resi
dents pay a special district tax.
all athletes were women in 1972,
but the number increased to 37
percent in 1995.
On the other hand, the Center
reported that the percentage of
women’s teams coached by women
dropped from 90 percent in 1972
to 48 percent in 1997.
Title IX also affects many other
areas of women’s —and men’s
well-being on campuses across the
country, and has far to go to reach
its goal of gender equity in educa
tion.
In 1994, 27 percent of women
earned a bachelor’s degree com
pared to 18 percent in 1971, and 44
percent of all doctoral degrees
awarded to U.S. citizens were
awarded to women compared to 25
percent in 1972, as reported by the
Women’s Educational Equity Act
Resource Center.
However, according to a report
by the National Coalition for
Women and Girls in Education, 81
percent of students report being
subject to sexual harassment in
2002.
Only 21 percent of full profes
sors were women at the time of the
report.
Just 20 percent of computer sci
ence and engineering degrees were
awarded to women.
Even sports only earned a C+
for the first 30 years of Title IX
implementation; men’s sports
received 65 cents of every dollar
spent on Division I and II sports
programs.
pa
MICHAEL DAVIS
OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE
Any merger would be accom
panied by a gradual plan to bal
ance educational funding through
a countywide tax.
But all this talk of a funding
imbalance is moot if other general
inequities among students are not
addressed. Last week, one com
missioner made the apt point that
officials should determine for
which exact equity they are striv
ing before the process continues.
Forget per-pupil dollars for a
minute. One can’t dismiss course
offerings, extracurricular activi
ties, quality of teachers and other
factors that determine school sys
tem standing. Money does not
solve all problems, and ideology
clearly stands in the way of many.
Take, for example, a woman I
overheard after last week’s report
presentation. Adamantly against
the merger, she insisted to a
reporter that CHCCS serves as col
lege prep, and that not all county
students want to go to college.
Fair enough, but all schools
should offer more opportunities
for higher education. The voca
tional aims of some students are
fine. Programs should continue in
those areas, but her argument
was backwards ranting.
On the other end, CHCCS like
ly will fight the merger because of
sheer elitism. They have one of
the highest-performing districts
in the state, and they won’t be
crazy about diluting an educa
tional powerhouse.
Interested in hearing more?
The Carolina Women’s Center is
sponsoring a Title IX talk and dis
cussion with Athena
Yiamouyiannis, the Executive
Director for the National
Association for Girls & Women in
Sport, to be held Tuesday, Sept. 30,
from noon to 1 p.m. in Toy Lounge.
Sylvia Hatchell, coach of our
women’s basketball team, also will
be on hand to provide comments.
All are welcome.
Diane Kjervik
Director
Carolina Women’s Center
CORRECTION
An Editor’s Note in the Readers'
Forum on Monday incorrectly
identified UNC junior Matt
Compton as a member of Student
Congress. Compton is not a part of
the organization.
The Daily Tar Heel regrets the
error.
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alj? la% ®ar Hppl
By Fitz Holladay wfhollad@email.unc.edu
“Ideological and
cultural rifts will
dictate what
happens with this
issue.”
With such contention, any
merger should be left up to public
referendum. Unfortunately, resi
dents will be unable to vote on any
such proposal, as N.C. General
Statute states that a county com
missioner-instated merger cannot
be determined by referendum.
Instead, one only can hope the
commissioners will listen to all
residents’ concerns. Discussions
will continue next month, when
two public hearings are slated.
Expect heated emotions from
parents, teachers and school
administrators. Educational
issues elicit some of the most
impassioned pleas from those
concerned with the three R’s and
every other aspect of learning.
While officials should explore
other options, such as equalizing
funds without joining the systems,
this merger proposal seems like a
substantive attempt at balancing
the town and county' schools.
Regardless of the distant deci
sion, all students should have the
same chances to learn and grow.
It’s clear that doesn’t happen in
Orange County, where north and
south are like night and day.
Unfortunately, that’ll continue,
to the detriment of the county’s
students. Ideological and cultural
rifts will dictate what happens
with this issue, and in the end,
two worlds will remain.
Contact Michael Davis
at davismt@email.unc.edu.
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