VOLUME 113, ISSUE 41
Lobbyists give Senate group an earful
“It’s hard
to get a
good read
because
people
switch
(stances on
the lottery)
from time
to time.”’
VERNON
MALONE
SENATOR, D-WAKE
BY ERIN FRANCE
STAFF WRITER
RALEIGH Lobbyists furthered talks
with the state Senate’s lottery committee
Wednesday morning, voicing their feel
ings on the bill narrowly passed earlier
this month by the House.
Men and women in business suits and
with serious demeanors serenaded the 19-
member committee with their thoughts
on the bill the biggest topic in the early
months of this year’s General Assembly.
Some of them wanted the Senate to take
the House bill and run with it. But Senate
Majority Leader Tony Rand, a Cumberland
County Democrat, said the committee will
discuss the measure again next week.
“It’ll be a couple of weeks before we get
to it,” he said.
The House bill, which passed with a
one-person majority, would allot 50 per
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reshman Ashley Barbour prepares for the Pauper Players’ pro
duction of “Footloose” at Playmakers Theatre on Wednesday
dm night. The muscial, which tells the story of a high school student
who moves from Chicago to a small farming town, will be performed
April 29 and 30 and May 12 through May 14, with all shows beginning
Leaders anticipate
summertime work
Officials eye cuts,
1-precinct voting
BY GEORGIA CHERRY
STAFF WRITER
Summer will be all work and
no play for student government
officials.
And they’re excited about it.
Leaders will spend their time
planning and re-evaluating
policies as they prepare for the
upcoming year.
“There’s more simplicity in
the summer,” said Student Body
President Seth Dearmin. “It’s
easier to gain access to adminis
trators, and everything’s just more
laid back —a great atmosphere to
get things done.”
The Dearmin administration
plans to knock out preliminary
work on its platform this summer,
he said. By the beginning of the
semester, the new leader hopes to
organize his platform points and
divide them among committees.
Dearmin said his most specific
goal for the summer is to complete
work on establishing a single cam
pus voting precinct —a change
that must be approved by the
General Assembly.
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Seth Dearmin,
student body
president, plans
to knock out
platform goals
and get things
in order during
the summer.
For the past two years, student
government officials have lobbied
to turn the campus’s six voting pre
cincts into one.
Such a move could be especially
helpful with local elections on the
horizon. Municipal races typically
attract far fewer students than
state or federal elections, but stu
dent officials say a single precinct
could change that.
Dearmin said members of his
administration will travel to Raleigh
and lobby for the precinct.
They also will be there for
another reason: to fight against
the proposed 4 percent budget cut
for UNC-system schools.
“If our administration does any
thing this summer, we have to stop
the budget cuts from happening,”
said Adrian Johnston, student
body vice president. “It’s $29 mil-
SEE SUMMER, PAGE 5
www.dHionlinß.com
cent of net revenues from a lottery to
building new schools. TVventy-five percent
would go to college scholarships, and 25
percent would get put into what legislators
call an “education enhancement fund.”
Speaker Jim Black, D-Mecklenburg, said
he doesn’t think the House will pass a lottery
again if the Senate makes major changes.
But Sen. Vernon Malone, D-Wake, said
the chamber needs a thorough discussion
because some senators have changed their
minds in the past.
“It’s hard to get a good read because
people switch from time to time,” he said.
Malone, though generally supportive of
the bill, said he could reconsider his position
if opponents present a strong argument.
Elaine Mejia, director of the N.C. Budget
and Tax Center, sought to do exactly that.
SEE LOTTERY, PAGE 4
at 8 p.m. and a matinee show starting at 2 p.m. April 30. The UNC
performance is based on the 1984 film starring Kevin Bacon, but the
students added new songs to the score. The performances will feature
songs by some of the most recognizable performers of the 1980s, includ
ing Kenny Loggins and Sammy Hagar. For the full story, see page 10.
Outsourcing worries employees
Storeroom workers hope against cuts
BY LINDSAY MICHEL
ASSISTANT UNIVERSITY EDITOR
A change in the way University
researchers get their materials has
some worried that it could increase
the price of their work and others
concerned that it might cost them
their jobs.
The UNC Scientific Storeroom,
which supplies chemicals, gases
and other laboratory materials to
Activist efforts stalled
as semester nears end
BY KATIE CLINE
STAFF WRITER
The arrest of a Lenoir Dining
Hall cashier catapulted UNC stu
dents and Carolina Dining Services
employees into a marathon of activ
ism during the past month.
They conducted meetings. They
signed petitions. They stormed
South Building in protest.
“What happened this semester
is really an amazing consolida
tion of worker power and stu
dent power,” said Jillian Johnson,
student organizer for Service
Looking for the right numbers
A state lottery has been on the N.C. General Assembly's docket for 22 years, but it's never been able to get over the hump, and legislators say North
Carolina has suffered. The bill is closer to passing now than it has been in a long time, but it still must clear a special Senate committee and earn more votes.
m = One bill introduced into either the House or the Senate
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First bill to establish Easley elected with a pro-education Bill passed in the House, but is now
N.C. Lottery proposed lottery platform stalled in a special Senate committee
SOURCE: N.C. GENERAL ASSEMBLY
campus, will go up for bidding to
potential vendors next month.
University officials say these
companies will provide more cost
efficient transactions between
manufacturers and customers.
“I guess it’s just their idea of cut
ting the fat,” said storeroom man
ager Allen Taylor, who has worked
in the storeroom for 10 years.
Storeroom employees are
Workers United and a member
of Student Action with Workers.
But with the end of the semes
ter just days away, efforts have
slowed almost to a standstill.
Activists have put the spotlight
on creating a better work environ
ment through collective bargaining,
but officials said they have no time
table for change if it comes.
That worries many students
and workers, who say turnover in
the dining work force this sum-
SEE ARAMARK, PAGE 4
INSIDE
ON DISPLAY
Students get a shot at showing off their creative
handiwork in Lincoln Center, local schools PAGE 11
Student
Congress
mobilizes
its forces
Recruits students to fight
proposed UNC-system cuts
BY ERIN ZUREICK
STAFF WRITER
Student Congress members hit the ground run
ning Wednesday in their quest to prevent what they
see as a shortfall in the University’s financial future.
As UNC prepares for the possibility of a 4-per
cent budget cut, student govern-
ment officials are fighting back
by organizing trips to Raleigh
and encouraging students to get
in touch with their local legisla
tors.
The representatives’
Wednesday trip to the Legislative
Building took place less than
24 hours after Congress unani
mously passed a resolution to
condemn the proposed cuts,
which could cause UNC to see
a reduction of $29.4 million in
state funds.
Congress Speaker Luke Farley
said student officials mobilized
DTH/WHITNEY SHEFTE
quickly once they realized the devastating effects
the proposal could have.
“This is a brutal cut,” he said. “It’s the first step
toward a lower-quality education at UNC.”
SEE BUDGET, PAGE 5
skeptical about whether outsourc
ing their operation to a large com
pany will be in UNO’s best interest
or theirs.
The “fat” Taylor referred to
could include workers’jobs, said
Greg Hawkins, who has worked in
the storeroom for 24 years. If the
new vendor wants to cut costs, he
said, workers could be among the
first things to go.
“If you’re thinking about what’s
SEE OUTSOURCING, PAGE 5
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Vel Dowdy, a Lenoir Dining Hall cashier, was arrested in March and charged
with embezzlement. Her arrest added fhel to a campaign for workers' rights.
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FRIDAY Few showers, H 81, L 61
SATURDAY T-storms, H 74, L 49
THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2005
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Johnston
said the cuts
will hurt many
student efforts.
“We have been
looking at ways
that we can drive
the cost down. And
one of the ways...
is by taking out the
middleman.”
MARTHA PENDERGRASS, SERVICES
0