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STATE 8 NATION
Cary ranks in list of top 10
safe cities across the nation
Cary is the only Tar Heel town to
make the top 10 list of safest cities
in the country.
According to the Morgan Quinto
study, Cary ranks third of 120 cit
ies with a population of 75,000 to
99,999 residents and fifth in the
overall ranking 0f350 cities.
Town officials give credit to the
demographics of the town as well as
to the actively involved police force.
“We’ve got a well-educated, well
employed citizenry, and Cary is full
of people that have jobs to go to,
and they’re making money and tak
ing care of their family and homes,”
said Mayor Ernie McAlister.
“You don’t have some of the
high crime that usually goes hand
in hand with the unemployed and
disenfranchised.”
Two-thirds of Cary residents
have at least a college degree, 50
percent of Cary households have
children and the median income is
one of the highest in the states, said
Susan Moran, public information
officer for the town of Cary.
She also said the police depart
ment focuses on community policing
and tries to end potentially problem
atic situations before they develop.
Moran and McAlister both
praised the citizen-police program
that trains community members
for special events policing, which
increases community involvement
and allows the sworn police officers
to focus on bigger issues.
Study emphasizes Charlotte
airport's impact on region
CHARLOTTE - Anew study
reaffirms the centrality of Charlotte-
Douglas International Airport to
the regional economy, pegging the
airport’s annual economic impact
at $lO billion and crediting the
facility with creating 100,000 jobs
in the central Carolinas.
The analysis by Edd Hauser, direc
tor of the Center for Transportation
Policy Studies at UNC-Charlotte,
was released Monday and updates
a 1997 study that said the airport
had a $4 billion annual impact and
generated 72,000 jobs.
Hauser called the updated fig
ures “conservative,” adding that the
previous study might have under
estimated the airport’s total eco
nomic impact. “We consider this to
be a very accurate estimate that will
stand up to any scrutiny,” he said.
Though Charlotte and its sur
rounding suburbs are only the
37th largest metropolitan area
in the country, a US Airways hub
helps make Charlotte-Douglas the
nation’s 19th-busiest airport in
terms of passengers. The airport
had 524 daily departures in 2004,
the vast majority on US Airways.
Ex-aide for DeLay pleads
guilty to bribery conspiracy
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Michael
Scanlon, a former partner to lobby
ist Jack Abrampff, pleaded guilty
Monday to conspiring to bribe pub
lic officials and agreed to cooperate
in a widening criminal investigation
of members of Congress.
Scanlon, a former aide to Rep.
Tom DeLay, has been cooperating
in the Justice Department probe
since June, one of his attorneys,
Plato Cacheris, said after the plea.
Scanlon entered the plea before
U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal
Huvelle and was ordered to pay
restitution totaling more than sl9
million to Indian tribes that he
admitted had been defrauded.
In an eight-page statement of
facts, Scanlon agreed that he and
an unidentified person referred to
as Lobbyist A “provided a stream of
things of value to public officials in
exchange for a series of official acts.”
The items to one unidentified
congressman or his staff includ
ed all-expenses-paid trips to the
Northern Marianas Islands in
2000 and a trip to the Super Bowl
in Tampa, Fla., in 2001.
WORLD BRIEFS
Prime minister says he split
from party in name of peace
JERUSALEM Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon said Monday he gam
bled and broke away from his hard
line Likud Party because he did not
want to squander peacemaking
opportunities created by Israel’s
pullout from the Gaza Strip or waste
time with political wrangling.
Sharon, whose split from Likud
electrified Israeli politics and set the
stage for likely March elections, ruled
out unilateral withdrawals from the
West Bank, however. He also said
he remains committed to the inter
nationally backed “road map” plan,
calling for a negotiated peace deal
culminating in a Palestinian state.
Sharon’s decision to form a
new party he described as liberal
cemented his transformation from
the hawkish patron of Israel’s
settler movement to a moderate
peacemaker reconciled to the inev
itability of a Palestinian state.
From stuff and wire reports.
Charity organizers dance in success
Marathon signees reach all-time high
BY WHITNEY KISLING
STAFF WRITER
Billy Idol might be dancing
with himself, but the 2006 UNC
Dance Marathon participants
won’t have to.
More than 850 people have
registered to dance at the mara
thon— the highest number for the
eighth annual event, which consists
of 24 straight hours of dancing to
raise money for the N.C. Children’s
Hospital. The event kicks off at 7
p.m. Feb. 24 in Fetzer Gym.
This record is probably the result
of the new option of team dancing,
“There was no community effort just a year ago,
but now you see involvement at various levels.” dale pratt-wilson, activist
Iran
DTH/JULIA BARKER
Dale Pratt-Wilson (left), an outspoken advocate against underage drinking and drug use, chats with Isabel Geffner, executive director of
The Community Backyard, on Nov. 14 at Foster's Market. Pratt-Wllson remains resolute in her goals despite resistance from some locals.
NO TURNING BACK
BY DANIEL JOHNSON
STAFF WRITER
In the year and a half since Chapel Hill
resident Dale Pratt-Wilson decided to speak
out about underage drinking, her home has
been vandalized and her methods questioned,
but she has been turning heads —and sym
pathetic ears to her cause.
Pratt-Wilson’s committee for alcohol- and
drug-free teenagers has grown from one
angry mom in May 2004 to a coalition of law
enforcement agencies, mental health profes
sionals, school administrators, town leaders,
residents and parents, all sharing frustra
tion about what they see as complacency
in Chapel Hill and Carrboro toward what
Pratt-Wilson calls an epidemic of underage
drinking.
- “Our community was in denial,” Pratt-
Wilson said, noting that Chapel Hill teenag
ers self-reported abusive drinking in excess of
the national average, according to a Centers
for Disease Control use risk behavior survey
conducted in February in the Chapel Hill-
Carrboro City Schools system.
Pratt-Wilson isn’t modest about what
she sees as the group’s success, pointing
to increased parent awareness and collab
orative efforts in the community to educate
teens and adults about the dangers of under
age drinking.
“There was no community effort just a year
University power plant
gets green light to build
Council attaches
strings to plan
BY KAYLA CARRICK
STAFF WRITER
Town and University tensions
mounted at the Chapel Hill Town
Council meeting last night as the
group approved UNC’s application
to upgrade power generation capa
bilities at its cogeneration plant.
The council was split between
wanting to delay the discussion
until its Jan. 9 meeting and pro
ceeding with a decision.
Upon further discussion, offi
cials struck a compromise.
The application for the special
use permit modification for the
plant was approved under a reso
lution that requires UNC to follow
specific conditions including oper
ation that promotes public health
and general welfare.
Council members added anoth
er stipulation during the meeting
requiring the University to partici
Top News
said Chris Walker, public relations
director for dance marathon.
“Now, you can actually register
as a team,” he said. “(Dancers) can
sign up ... as a class even as a
floor of friends in Hinton James
(Residence Hall).”
Not only has team dancing raised
registration numbers, but Walker
said he thinks it also will increase
the amount of funds raised.
“Hopefully it will encourage fund
raising because the teams will be able
to fundraise together,” he said.
Organizing activities such as
car washes to raise funds is diffi-
ago, but now you see involvement at various
levels, all working to bring people out of the
dark,” she said.
And the group’s reach is poised to expand,
thanks in large part to a grant provided by
the Office of National Drug Control Policy
and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration to the Community
Backyard, a group that coordinates youth
mental health and substance abuse services
for Orange and Chatham counties.
The funds will be used to support Pratt-
Wilson’s committee and the development
of others like it, with special emphasis on
expanding efforts into Latino and faith
based communities.
Isabel Geffner, executive director of the
Community Backyard and a prominent
member of the committee, said she sees the
grant as an important resource for reaching
at-risk communities.
“Our coalition is doing a great job reach
ing white, middle and upper-class stakehold
ers in our community, but we need to reach
into public housing and organizations like
El Centro (Latino) and El Future,” she said,
referring to two prominent nonprofits in the
local Hispanic community.
Despite such shortcomings, committee
task forces have been influential in changing
the way institutions address the problem.
Stephanie Willis, health services coordi
pate in the town’s carbon reduction
program.
The stipulation was enough to
sway opposing council members.
“The only reason to delay
the decision is to make sure the
University participates in carbon
reduction,” Mayor Kevin Foy said.
“This particular application is
not about carbon. I think it’s prog
ress to support the University’s
request in exchange for support in
efforts to reduce carbon levels.”
The facility provides electrical
and steam energy to campus.
The University applied to build
anew steam-powered turbine
generator, replace cooling towers
and construct five new buildings
to house equipment, among other
items. The construction will allow
the facility to use the steam pro
duced to create additional electri
cal energy.
UNC officials pleaded with the
council to approve the resolution,
noting the project’s time sensitivity.
SEE PLANT, PAGE 6
cult for just one person and can be
executed more efficiently by a large
group, Walker said.
“As an overall committee we
don’t set monetary goals,” said
Peter Attwater, the marathon’s
overall coordinator.
“We’re just trying to unite
Carolina’s campus behind our
cause and help as many families as
possible.”
Event coordinators do not dis
close the amount of money raised
beforehand. Instead they opt for a
surprise revelation at the event.
In addition to raising funds for
the marathon, each dancer commits
to raising $75 for the N.C. Children’s
Hospital. But many choose to raise
nator for the city schools, cites access to bet
ter resources such as blood alcohol content
testing devices and more training for mental
health counselors at high schools as proof
that community efforts already have had an
impact.
Willis recently designed a brochure for
students and parents outlining districtwide
policy and consequences for children caught
using drugs or alcohol during school, but she
said the problem is mainly a parent-kid issue,
which she credits Pratt-Wilson’s committee
with addressing.
“(Pratt-Wilson) got out there and started
rattling people’s cages until they took notice,”
Willis said.
The Town Council, which formally
endorsed several of the committee’s core
goals last December, included a keg registra
tion policy among its most recent legislative
requests.
Even with the increased attention, how
ever, some students say they aren’t seeing
much change.
A1 Mask, student body president at Chapel
Hill High School, said he thinks more needs
to be done to address the problem within the
schools. He said students often are going off
campus to drink or drink alcohol from water
bottles they bring to school.
SEE PRATT-WILSON, PAGE 6
College depression sees spike
Experts say some
not seeking help
BY JULIE TURKEWITZ
STAFF WRITER
“It’s a hopeless feeling, you feel
trapped. No matter what you do,
there is no escape,” says Nureena
Faruqi, a junior English major
from Durham.
Faruqi is battling clinical depres
sion.
Since middle school she’s dealt
with overwhelming feelings of sad
ness, excessive crying and irregular
sleep patterns.
“I know I’m not alone. I know a
good amount of people in college
suffering from depression,” she
says.
In 2004,15 percent of college
students reported being diagnosed
with depression at some point in
their lives, according to a report
by the American College Health
Association.
That is a 5 percent jump from
2000.
At UNC, the number of students
seeking help from Counseling and
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2005
much more, Walker said.
Last year, the 600 dancers
helped raise more than $184,000.
Dancers participating in the gru
eling event receive support from
moralers volunteers who try to
keep the 850 dancers awake and on
their feet for the 24 hours.
Marathon committee mem
bers also are enlisting the help of
the donors in the community and
beyond.
“We’ll need the support of
local restaurants and businesses,”
Walker said.
Event coordinators are looking
for food donations to serve every
dancer six meals.
‘We’ll need to increase our num
Psychological Service has risen
every year for the past seven
years.
Since the 2000-01 academic
year, the number of students
receiving services from CAPS has
increased from 2,228 to 3,837
students in 2004-05, a 72 percent
increase.
“It’s frustrating because I reach
a point every year where I have to
go to my teachers and say, ‘This is
what I’m dealing with, this is why
I’m missing class,’” Faruqi says.
Her depression extends beyond
teen angst or moodiness.
“A lot of friends don’t under
stand. They say, ‘Just motivate
yourself,’ but at some points I can’t
even get out of bed.”
Her academic performance has
plummeted and her social life has
been interrupted.
“I would love to be involved on
campus,” she says. “But I often don’t
because I get so overwhelmed.
Depression affects more than 19
million American adults. And sui
cide, depression’s ugly byproduct,
is the second leading cause of death
among college-age people.
A number of factors, such as
“Now, you can
actually register as
a team.... Hopefully
it will encourage
fundrasing.”
CHRIS WALKER, public relations
ber of donations and maybe (the
increase in dancers) will allow us
to spread outside the immediate
Chapel Hill area,” Attwater said.
Team dancing also has led to
more diversity, because many dif-
SEE MARATHON, PAGE 6
UNC
readies
support
for flu
Experts to help
detect, monitor
BY RICHARD M. COE 111
STAFF WRITER
In the event of a possible or
imminent flu pandemic, Chapel
Hill would be a center for prepa
ration as well as a crucial player
in restoring order throughout the
state.
Specifically, the Department of
Emergency Medicine at the UNC
School of Medicine and UNC
Hospitals would contribute to both
the detection and the monitoring
of an outbreak.
“The way we are going to dis
cover that the flu is here is through
the surveillance systems in the
hospitals,” said Debbie Crane,
public affairs director for the N.C.
Department of Health and Human
Services. “They are going to be cru
cial from the very beginning.”
The N.C. Hospital Emergency
Surveillance System is the first
surveillance system of its kind in
any state and has enhanced North
Carolina’s ability to detect the
presence of influenza, severe acute
respiratory syndrome and other
deadly viruses.
NCHESS patient data from
emergency rooms in hospitals
around the state is analyzed at a
central location the Department
of Emergency Medicine at the
UNC School of Medicine, said Amy
Ising, technical team lead for the
NC DETECT System, the group
that reviews the data.
Once members of NC DETECT
have received the data, they are
able to look for patterns that might
indicate the beginning of a pan
demic, Ising said.
“The analysis tools that we pro
vide are used by epidemiologists
at the North Carolina (Division) of
Public Health,” she said. “The com
munication is essential for contain
ment efforts and monitoring.”
The system transfers data every
12 hours on a regular basis but is
capable of doing so every 15 min
utes, Crane said.
The emergency medicine
department wouldn’t be the only
operation in Chapel Hill working
overtime in the event of an influ-
SEE FLU, PAGE 6
CAPS demand rises
Student use of CAPS services has gone up
by about 72 percent since 2000-01.
4000
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HI
2000- 2001- 2002- 2003- 2004-
01 02 03 04 05
SOURCE: CARS DTH/AUNE ALEXANIAN
increasing academic pressures,
have caused the rise in diagnoses,
says Keith Anderson, a psycholo
gist and member of the board of
directors at ACHA.
But the primary force behind
the increase, Anderson says, is that
more students with pre-existing
problems are applying to college.
“We’re letting in more kids who
have been depressed,” he says.
Because of this, the number of
SEE DEPRESSION, PAGE 6
3