Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:
National Coverage
UNC Chancellor Vows Major Reforms on Athletics
Inside Higher Ed
Holden Thorp, the chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, says that in his last year in the position, major reforms will be announced for athletics at the institution, placing "academics first," The News & Observer reported.
Critic: Celebrities in Health Campaigns Could Go Either Way
"World News with Diane Sawyer" ABC
Gwyneth Paltrow lent her voice (and tears) to Stand Up to Cancer's United Kingdom launch, prompting almost 200 news articles by noon today, but do celebrities like Paltrow really help the public health campaigns they stand behind? …Dr. Tom Linden, a medical journalism professor at the University of North Carolina, said neither Rayner nor Chapman "won" the BMJ head-to-head. He said he thinks celebrity endorsements can go either way.
Scientists Go Deep On Genes Of SARS-Like Virus (Blog)
National Public Radio
…Yesterday scientists at Britain's Health Protection Agency partially decoded the new virus's genetic sequence. They've placed the virus on the family tree of coronaviruses. And even given it a temporary name, which I have to warn you is quite a mouthful: London1_novel CoV 2012. The virus appears to be most closely related to a cluster of bat viruses, and "it is genetically very different than SARS," Ralph Baric, a microbiologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, tells Shots.
Students try to navigate voting laws, registration hassles (Blog)
The Houston Chronicle
For young voters busy registering for classes, registering to vote isn’t always their No. 1 priority. Tack on changing registration laws and voting can turn into a struggle. …In an election season when student votes will help swing the presidency, it’s hard to deny the laws have partisan influence, said Kareem Crayton, professor of law at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an expert on voting rights.
Regional Coverage
Nashville entrepreneur offers lower rates on small-dollar loans
The Tennessean (Nashville)
Every year, millions of Americans in a pinch turn to short-term loan products, such as payday and auto title loans. …Online short-term lending is a growing industry, and improved technology enables lenders to reduce some of the costs in issuing small-dollar loans, said Kim Manturuk, a researcher at the University of North Carolina Center for Community Capital.
Scholars begin to weigh in on ‘Gospel of Jesus’s Wife’
The Boston Globe (Massachusetts)
A week after Harvard professor Karen L. King announced she had identified what she believed to be a fourth-century fragment of papyrus portraying Jesus as married, her finding continues to generate sharp debate — and significant skepticism — in academic circles. …“My view is, the jury is out still, but it’s not looking good for authenticity,” said Bart Ehrman, a New Testament scholar and professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
State and Local Coverage
Thorp: UNC's standards for athletes will rise
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp said Wednesday the university is planning to strike a new – and possibly ground-breaking – balance between athletics and academics at one of the nation’s leading public universities. Among the coming changes: tougher admissions requirements for athletes. Thorp also said in an interview with News & Observer reporters and editors that faculty members will have more oversight of classes that athletes take once they are on campus.
UNC to launch search for new chancellor
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The search for Holden Thorp’s successor at UNC-Chapel Hill will begin next week, trustee Chairman Wade Hargrove said Thursday. A committee will meet Oct. 5 with UNC President Tom Ross to begin its search for the next chancellor at the Chapel Hill campus. That committee, expected to include trustees, faculty, staff and students, will ultimately recommend at least two candidates to Ross, who will make his choice. The UNC system’s Board of Governors will then officially elect the next chancellor.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/5595/68/
Judge's order formalizes his decision in UNC case
WRAL-TV (CBS/Raleigh)
A judge has issued an order for North Carolina to provide media outlets with unredacted documents regarding football players who committed NCAA violations for receiving improper benefits. Superior Court Judge Howard E. Manning Jr. issued the order Wednesday, which formalizes his decision from last month.
Related Links:
http://www.heraldsun.com/view/full_story/20283652/article-
Judge-orders-UNC-to-hand-over-documents
http://triangle.news14.com/content/top_stories/664560/judge-orders-
unc-to-provide-media-documents-in-football-probe
Drum circle for residents of senior living community
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
…“There’s no question that music memory is one of the things most maintained by people with dementia,” said Dr. Philip Sloane, a professor in the Department of Family Medicine at UNC-Chapel Hill. Dr. Daniel Kaufer, a professor of neurology at UNC, said people with Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases face challenges when communicating.
Fundraiser held on slain UNC student's birthday
WTVD-TV (ABC/Raleigh)
A community is giving back on what would have been Faith Hedgepeth's 20th birthday. The UNC sophomore was murdered in her off-campus apartment over two weeks ago.
Related Links:
http://chapelboro.com/CHPD-Releases-Communication-Recordings-From-Mornin/14344704
http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/09/26/2371664/police-release-radio-recordings.html
Judge weighing UNC whistleblower case
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
A judge could rule in 45 days whether UNC-Chapel Hill violated the state whistleblower act in a housekeeper’s sexual harassment case.
Issues and Trends
UNC panel ponders economic, demographic changes
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
North Carolina needs more workers with education beyond high school at a time when the population is increasingly diverse and the state has a long horizon of fiscal challenge. That’s the landscape facing the UNC Advisory Committee on Strategic Directions, a group of about 30 higher education, business and political leaders who began work Wednesday on a roadmap for the state’s public universities.
Related Links:
http://www.heraldsun.com/view/full_story/20282511/article-UNC-committee
-charts-course-for-system%E2%80%99s-future?instance=search_results
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20120926/ARTICLES/120929722?tc=ar
http://triangle.news14.com/content/664539/state-leaders-begin-
work-on-new-direction-for-unc-systemv
UNC students shape businesses to fill social needs
The Associated Press
A competition being held this week by North Carolina's public university system pits 31 student-led teams who are presenting business plans for enterprises that would both generate profits and help the needy. …College students are interested in social businesses because their generation is uniquely steeped in the self-branding and freelance culture of today's business world and also possesses the can-do optimism of youth, said Prof. James Johnson Jr., who teaches social entrepreneurship at the UNC-Chapel Hill business school but is not involved in the competition.
Student Veterans Plan Suit Against UNC
WUNC-FM (Chapel Hill)
An advocacy group says it plans to file a lawsuit against the UNC system, alleging inconsistent and unfair treatment of veterans. Jason Thigpen is president of Student Veterans Advocacy Group.