Uhr Baily Oar Brrl
CORRECTION
Due to a reporting error,
Wednesday’s pg. 5 article
‘Commissioners hear school
funds requests’ incorrectly states
that the Chapel Hill-Carrboro
City Schools' 2008-09 budget is
$6.8 million. That is the mini
mum increase the district says it
needs to continue operations at
present levels. The district’s full
budget request is for $61,193,360.
The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for
the error.
CAMPUS BRIEFS
Starbucks gives free coffee,
promotes campus location
Starbucks handed out free
samples of coffee Wednesday at
Lenoir and Rams Head dining
halls.
The promotional hand-out
occurred in anticipation of the late-
May opening of Starbucks' Rams
Head location.
The new Starbucks, which will
open in the space previously occu
pied by End Zone Sports Cafe,
originally was slated to open in
September 2007-
Construction delays prevented the
coffee shop from opening on time.
Students continue to protest
workers' rights violations
Today marks the beginning
of the second week of protest for
students camping out in South
Building.
Members of Student Action
with Workers said they will stay in
the administrative building until
Chancellor James Moeser signs
onto the Designated Suppliers
Program.
The protestors want the
University to stop contracting with
apparel manufacturers that violate
workers’ rights.
Visit University News at daiivtar
heel.com for the full story.
UNC a cappella group to
perform at Memorial Hall
The Loreleis, one of UNC’s
all-female a cappella groups, will
host their spring concert at 4 p.m.
Saturday in Memorial Hall.
The 16-member group was
established at UNC in 1981 and
regularly tours nationally and
internationally.
The group’s new CD, On The
Record, will be released at the con
cert.
Public radio station requests
opinions on local news issues
North Carolina Public Radio,
also known as WUNC 91.5, is ask
ing residents of Chapel Hill and
Carrboro to join its new Public
Insight Network, intended to help
the station's journalists better cover
local topics.
*lt’s a way for us to cover the
news from the ground up," said
Yasmeen Khan, a Public Insight
Network analyst.
‘We’re building a network of
people with different hobbies,
interests and expertise."
The station will request commu
nity input on such topics as green
development, immigration and
workplace injuries, Khan said.
“This information helps us
determine what’s important to lis
teners in a given story and shows
us angles and topics we might not
have found otherwise."
CITY BRIEF
Local students raising money
to visit civil rights sites
While most students learn about
the civil rights movement in a his
tory class, a group of local students
will have the opportunity this sum
mer to learn about it first-hand.
Ten chaperones will accompany
local middle and high school stu
dents to Atlanta to visit the King
Center, the Georgia Aquarium, and
Morehouse and Spelman Colleges.
Although the trip is being par
tially funded from donations by
the police department, one of the
stipulations is that the students
also raise money.
Visit City News at dailytarheel.
com for the full story .
STATE BRIEF
Forty-nine former Edwards
supporters endorse Obama
Barack Obama’s campaign
announced Wednesday the endorse
ment of 49 of John Edwards’ most
prominent N.C. supporters.
The group included Edwards’
former National Genera) Chairman,
Ed liiriington. Many cited Obamas
commitment to change, as well as
his efforts on behalf of working
Americans and against special
interests as foundation for their
support
These lawyers, business leaders
and public officials join the ranks
of three N.C. superdelegates as
Obama supporters U.S. Reps.
David Price, Mel Watt and G.K.
Butterfield, ail Democrats.
From staff and wire reports.
Country star to play benefit
BY NASH ROBERTS
STAFF WRITER
Sometimes, it’s more about who
you know than what you know.
This holds especially true for
Reece Holbrook, who was 2 years old
when he was diagnosed with child
hood leukemia in September 2004.
Soon after, Reece’s parents
Chad, UNC’s associate head baseball
coach, and Jennifer, Roy Williams'
administrative secretary joined
with friends from the North Carolina
athletic community to start the
Reece Holbrook Golf Classic.
The charity was organized to
help cover the cost of Reece’s leu
kemia treatments.
On April 30, the Classic will
incorporate anew event outside
of the golf tournament —a perfor
mance by country music star Vince
7 was shocked when he talked to that guy straight. That was a real situation,
and he told him the truth." jerin jones, JUNIOR. ON ’DATING DOCTOR’ DAVID COIEMAN
VNhLk . ■ffißiii - - H| Bj l
DTH/SAM WARD
David Coleman, the "Dating Doctor" that Will Smith played in ‘Hitch," signs posters and copies of his book after his lecture in the Great
Hall on Wednesday. Coleman told students how to know if there is a reciprocity of interest in a relationship and how to handle a breakup.
LOVE DOCTOR ON CALL
Coleman gives out dating advice to students
BY SETH WRIGHT
STAFF WRITER
Students seeking love advice got their
answer Wednesday night, even if it hurt.
“Dating Doctor’ David Coleman, the real
life inspiration for the 2005 movie “Hitch,"
gave dating wisdom to more than 150 stu
dents in the Student Union’s Great Hall.
“I realize I look a lot more like Kevin
James than I do Will Smith," Coleman said.
James plays the fumbling love-struck client,
while Smith is the suave dating doctor.
He started the two-hour show by telling
the audience that he would be honest, even
if it sounded harsh.
Coleman bluntly told one upset audience
member that his ex-girlfriend was no longer
interested and wanted to pursue other men.
Jerin Jones, a junior who attended the
speech, said she was surprised that he lived
up to his promise.
“I was shocked when he talked to that guy
Impact of local currency mixed
BY AMY EAGLEBURGER
SENIOR WRITER
When the NCPlenty, a local cur
rency used in Chapel Hill, Carrboro
and Pittsboro, started up six years
ago it was hailed as an innovative
way to support the local economy
—but the results have been a
decidedly mixed bag.
Weaver Street Market was one
of the first businesses to accept foil
payment for goods in the alternative
currency. The currency flooded in,
but the store found that it had few
ways to use the currency itself. Once
dollars are traded in for Plenty's, they
can’t be changed back into dollars.
“They tended to accumulate
here," said Ruffin Slater, general
manager of Weaver Street Market.
“We don’t have a lot of ways to
recycle them."
Eventually the store found a
T-shirt maker in Carrboro that
accepted Plenty's, and now Weaver
Street only accepts half payment in
the currency.
“When you get the Plenty you
have to spend it," Slater said.
The NCPlenty started up in
2002 with about a dozen stores
accepting the currency. The full
Plenty is worth $lO but the cur
rency also comes in half-Plentys
and quarter-Plentys.
More than 150 businesses and
individuals in Carrboro, Pittsboro
Top News
Gill at Memorial Hall.
“The first year was humongous,"
said Chad Holbrook.
"We got celebrities like Michael
Jordan, Mia Hamm and even Peyton
and Eli Manning to help out"
The Holbrooks' golf classic since
has become an annual event, now
aimed at raising money for the N.C.
Children's Hospital’s Division of
Pediatric Hematology-Oncology.
“The Chapel Hill community
reached out and opened up their
arms and took us in," Jennifer
Holbrook said. “It's just been
incredible."
Today, Reece Holbrook is in
remission from his leukemia
after coming off of treatment in
November 2007.
“He’s an incredible kid. He’s obvi
ously my hero for what he’s been
straight," she said. “That was a real situation,
and he told him the truth.”
Students were given a 30-minute period
to ask questions during Colemans presenta
tion, the last event of the year presented by
the Carolina Union Activities Board’s per
forming arts committee.
Some students asked questions such as
why males never returned calls or what it
means when men call daily to talk about
other women.
One student asked why women expect
men to read their minds, even when they
say it’s not necessary.
Coleman answered each question easily,
as if he had heard it a thousand times.
Coleman told male audience members
how to tell if a woman is interested in them
through signs such as prolonged eye contact
or sustained proximity.
He also clued in male students on the
best Valentine’s Day gift to give a woman.
and surrounding areas accept the
currency for some percentage of pay
ment. But usage has dropped signifi
cantly since the introduction.
‘There just doesn’t seem to be
as much in circulation," said Vance
Remick, one of the owners of the
Pittsboro General Store. He esti
mated that at the beginning, 20
to 30 customers per week would
come in and use the Plenty to make
their purchases. Now less than five
customers per week do.
With local currency, consumers
have to adjust what they want to what
they can get Users of the Plenty have
to seek substitutes for goods, even if
the goods are not perfect substitutes
or are more expensive.
“It might not be the best for
immediate personal economy, but
it's best for the community," said
Susan Witt, executive director of
the E.F. Shumacher Society, which
advocates for the use of local cur
rency. “If your full goal is to get
the cheapest now, then the local
economy is not for you."
The inflexibility of the currency,
while somewhat frustrating at
times, has brought in new custom
ers, one of the promised benefits.
“(Customers) would come use
them at the store when they weren't
necessarily going to come down to
the store," Remick said. “Because
they have the Plenty they will come
ATTEND THE CONCERT
Him: 8 pm. Wednesday
Location: Memorial Hall
Info: www.unchealthcare.org/events
through," Jennifer Holbrook said.
UNC athletics and the Nashville
country music scene collaborated to
make Gill’s performance possible.
The concert was put together
with help from Kevin Stallings, for
mer assistant coach to Roy Williams
at Kansas and now head coach of the
men’s basketball team at Vanderbilt
University in Nashville. Tenn.
Stallings, whose son Jacob is an
incoming UNC baseball recruit, is
good friends with Gill.
‘Kevin went to Vince and asked
him if he would do the event" Chad
Holbrook said. “Vince called back
the next day and said he’d only do it
He said to give her flowers the day before
and attach a small note reading. “No
one as special as you should have to wait
another day."
“You are about to have some serious sex,"
Coleman joked about women’s response to
this gift.
Coleman made his audience laugh with
sex jokes and ridiculous pick-up lines.
“Hey, baby, come sit on my knee," he said.
“Not my left knee. Not my right knee, but
my wee-knee."
Marie Monroe, chairwoman of CUAB's
performing arts committee, said a miscom
munication prevented the performing arts
committee from properly advertising the
event resulting in 300 empty seats.
But Coleman said he prefers smaller
crowds so he can better advise and connect
with his tight-knit audience.
“Life goes by too fast,” Coleman told a stu
dent. ‘Don’t ever settle."
Contact the University Editor at
udesk@unc.edu.
in. It just makes sense to do this."
His only suggestion to improve
the Plenty was for more customers
and more businesses to use it
Mary DeMare, one of the gen
eral managers at the Chatham
Marketplace, a farmers' coopera
tive, echoed that sentiment. The
store chooses to take 100 percent
payment in Pientys, even though it
would be an admittedly better deci
sion to accept a smaller portion.
“I really feel like the Plenty is an
underutilized resource for the area,
and I would like to use it as much
as possible,’ she said.
As to the long-term success of the
Plenty, the odds are not favorable.
Ed Collom, a sociology professor at
the University of Southern Maine,
said that 80 percent of local curren
cy' systems eventually shut down.
“Even if the thing flops they’re
gaining new customers,’ Collom
said of the businesses involved. “I
can’t imagine that there are small
businesses out there that have seri
ously gotten hurt by participating in
local currency."
The key to success is the enthusi
asm of the community for the cur
rency, Collom said. There are risks,
but for the NCPlenty members, it’s
worth the community reward
Contact the State & National
Editor at stntdek@ unc.edu.
THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2008
on one condition, if he wasn’t paid."
Though this is the first time a
concert has been incorporated into
the Classic, its planning committee
hopes to indude more concerts if die
Memorial Hall show is a success.
“I am definitely a Vince Gill fan,
and yes, I certainly plan on attend
ing the concert" Williams said.
Former UNC basketball star
Eric Montross will be present to
introduce Gill.
“These events have been some of
the most satisfying things I have ever
been involved with," Williams said.
“Seeing young Reece go through
these last three years and do so
well will always bring a smile to
my face."
Contact the Arts Editor
at artsdesk(a unc.edu.
2 UNC study abroad
partners face scrutiny
BY LAUREN BERRY
SWF WRITER
As the University pursues its goal
of becoming a leading global insti
tution, increasing the percentage
of students who study abroad has
been a key part of UNCs resume.
But an inquiry- to see if study
abroad providers receive preferential
treatment from universities could
reduce students’ program options.
Associate Dean for Study Abroad
Bob Miles said the office will cut ties
with two providers, should ques
tionable practices be found.
The Institute for Study Abroad at
Butler University and the Institute
for the International Education of
Students combine to make up 25 of
UNC’s 184 study abroad offerings
by third-party- providers.
The investigation, conducted by
the state attorney general’s office of
New York, is aimed at uncovering
agreements that limit options and
increase prices for students.
“I don’t feel that we are beholden to
anyone," Miles said. “If there is some
thing that comes out of this investi
gation, we would have to take a hard
look at not using that provider*
Five study abroad providers and
15 schools received subpoenas in
August and January, respectively.
Land
trust
seeks
support
BY JOSEPH R. SCHWARTZ
SENIOR WRITER
A local affordable housing leader
is cautioning the Chapel Hill Town
Coundl that his organization needs
funding, not more homes that they
are ill-equipped to sell and main
tain.
Robert Dowling, executive
director of the Orange County
Community Land Trust, has been
raising the issue for about a year
now, but spoke up most recently
at Monday night’s meeting on the
redevelopment of Town House
Apartments into the more luxuri
ous Residences at Grove Park.
Council members, adhering to a
comprehensive plan, asked develop
ers to either make 15 percent of their
units affordable to low- and moder
ate-income buyers or to provide a
payment in lieu. The land trust, cre
ated in 2000, is charged with selling
and maintaining those units.
Grove Park developers are pro
posing to make 15 percent of the
bedrooms in the complex, 52 total,
affordable and to put them in one
or two-bedroom condos.
But rather than locking into this
plan. Dowling is pushing for the
council to leave payment in lieu on
the table because Grove Park units
are too small for families and because
the land trust is already beginning
to see an increase in available units
overwhelm its six-person staff.
“I'm asking (the council) to allow
flexibility to the developer such
that they could make the decision
once the building gets under way,"
he said, noting construction is at
least a year away leaving them with
enough time to assess demand for
affordable condos.
No matter which course they
choose. Dowiing and council mem
bers said Grove Park raises a separate
question about how the land trust
can maximize its potential impact
The group Is projecting it will need
to sell 28 units this year. 84 next year
and UO two years down the line, but
they only have two realtors, though
they want to hire two more.
“We simply don’t have enough
staffing capacity to sell all those
units," Dowiing said, noting that they
currently have 17 units to show.
“I wanted to basically alert the
council that if they rely on us to
implement their inclusionary hous
ing policy, they have to be cogni
zant of the stresses that are on this
organization and all the volume
that’s coming on us."
While council member Bill Strom
said he is cognizant of that, he is
undecided on Grove Park.
Most important to him, he said,
is the community goal of creat
ing as much affordable housing
as possible, adding that the land
trust might need to contract with
outside realtors to achieve that.
“It’d be a shame to not be receiving
these units, and I’m interested in an
organizational model that can grow
and manage to make this a success,"
he said. “That said. I'm interested in
creating some flexibility if need be "
Contact the City Editor
at citydesk@unc.edu.
Miles said he did not know if
UNC would be subpoenaed.
“Right now I have no concern
about the agreements that we have,"
Miles said. ‘I can say that I have not
been offered any inducements nor
has anyone in my staff that may have
caused us to choose a provider."
The subpoenas ask how and by
w-hom agreements are made with
providers and any benefits schools
might receive, said John Milgram,
press secretary for New York State
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.
Milgram said he cannot say if
more subpoenas will be issued
because the inquiry is ongoing. He
compared the process to the attorney
general’s investigation into similar
practices in the student loan indus
try, in which multiple rounds of sub
poenas have been issued.
UNC’s study abroad office works
with IFSA-Buder on its Cooperating
Programs in the Americas offerings
in Argentina and Chile, in addition to
programs at Cambridge and Oxford
universities. Seventeen IES programs
are offered to UNC students in places
ranging from India to China
Study abroad advisers said that
students often come to them with
SEE STUDY ABROAD, PAGE 13
3