Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina people and programs cited recently in the media:
Regional Coverage
Louisville President Jim Ramsey says early tip led to ACC push
The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Ky.)
Armed with a slick, spiral bound book that failed to convince the Big 12 to extend an invitation to the University of Louisville a year before, President Jim Ramsey said the school aggressively pursued a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference during a whirlwind courtship that ended last week with a proposal from the league. …Over an intense 11-day-period during which Jurich and Ramsey worked allies within the conference, they met by teleconference with ACC Commissioner John Swafford and University of North Carolina Chancellor Holden Thorp.
Defense rests case in Ronell Wilson death penalty hearings
The New York Post
Defense attorneys rested their case yesterday, saying that a half-dozen of their experts had proven that their client, convicted of murdering two NYPD detectives, is mentally handicapped and should be spared execution. …Among the litany of tests administered to Wilson by the various experts was one that involved "using a ruler." "That Mr. Wilson was not able to do," University of North Carolina psychology professor J. Gregory Olley testified last week.
State and Local Coverage
Storied program claims another title (Editorial)
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Basketball might be the biggest attraction around here, but soccer is still very much a big deal. And the University of North Carolina women’s soccer program has been a beacon of excellence for decades. The Tar Heels brought the national championship home to Chapel Hill last weekend with a 4-1 victory over Penn State in San Diego. It’s not too much of a drought – North Carolina last won the title in 2009 – but nonetheless it is a welcome return to the top for a storied athletics program.
A little luck, a lot of perseverance led UNC to 22nd championship
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
When she was about 8 years old, Caitlin Ball served as a ball girl at Fetzer Field for North Carolina women’s soccer games. …She dreamed of a scene that became reality on Sunday, when Ball and her UNC teammates celebrated the Tar Heels’ 22nd national championship, and first since 2009, after a 4-1 victory against Penn State at Torero Stadium at the University of San Diego.
Related Link:
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/uncnow/unc-women%E2%80%99s
-soccer-savors-improbable-championship
It's a Wonderful Life
"The State of Things" WUNC-FM
The iconic Frank Capra film has captured the hearts and minds of people around the world. It’s the quintessential American Christmas movie. Now, the Playmakers Repertory Company is bringing a stage adaptation to Chapel Hill. “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play” is showing through December 16th at the Center for Dramatic Art on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Host Frank Stasio talks about the production with Mark Lewis, the music director for the production; Nelson Eusebio, the director; and actors Ray Dooley, Brandon Garegnani, Katja Hill, Todd Lawson and Maren Searle.
UNC Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/5700/66/
State, city leaders approve Dix park
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The vision for a major urban park on the edge of downtown achieved a long-sought breakthrough Tuesday when the state and city approved an agreement to preserve 300 acres at the Dorothea Dix Hospital campus. …It’s not clear that the legislature can or would try to block the deal. Norma Houston, a lecturer at the UNC School of Government, said the legislature has broad powers, but “it has been loath to pass legislation to invalidate a legally valid contract.”
Colleges should require diversity training (Letter to the Editor)
The Chapel Hill News
Kudos to the trustees of UNC for supporting gender neutral housing to protect students from bullying – particularly LGBTQ students. However, that any student is being harassed by other college-age students is cause for concern. It seems that bullying behavior, like other childhood trappings, should be left behind by the time a student enters college. (Linda Patterson, Pittsboro)
Durham working on new towing rules
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Even as a battle over the issue plays out in state court, city officials are preparing a rewrite of the rules that in Durham govern how tow-truck operators can haul off cars and trucks against an owner’s will. …But appellate judges to date have left “unanswered” the question of whether a tow company relying on those common-law doctrines can legally enforce its fees, Shea Denning, a University of North Carolina School of Government professor, said in a 2011 blog post.
Wilmington 10 documents may show prosecutor was biased
WNCN-TV (NBC/Raleigh)
Newly-released records in the so-called Wilmington 10 case may show the prosecutor at the time intended to pack the jury with KKK members to ensure civil rights activists would be convicted of arson and jailed. North Carolina's NAACP released 40-year-old, hand-written jury selection notes at the Wilson Library at UNC Chapel Hill Tuesday. The organization says the notes were written by former district attorney Jay Stroud.
NEA grant to help fund HIP Music Festival
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Mallarmé Chamber Players has received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts that will help support a new music festival early next year. The $10,000 grant will support the North Carolina HIP Music Festival, to be held Jan. 27-Feb. 3. …Mallarmé is teaming with the music departments of UNC Chapel Hill and Duke University, along with several local and national music ensembles, to present the festival.
Stage set for Rogers Road assistance
The Chapel Hill News
Mark Dorosin, county commissioner and managing attorney with the UNC Center for Civil Rights, said leaders need to talk with the community about it now, not after development and investment have changed the neighborhood. That’s what has happened in Northside, another historically black neighborhood near downtown Chapel Hill, he said. There, the neighborhood has changed and older residents have been pushed out before anyone thought about preservation, he said.
Meeting our obligation
The Chapel Hill News
The Historic Rogers Road Neighborhood Task Force was formed to coordinate the efforts of Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Orange County in fulfilling their obligation to remedy the burdensome effects of the county landfill on the Rogers Road community. (Bethan Eynon is a Community Inclusion Attorney-Fellow at the UNC Center for Civil Rights.)
Tasty gifts to please the palate (Column)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
As we’re nearing the holiday finish line, here’s your gift-giving mantra: Keep it simple. Keep it practical. Food gifts can be great choices for people who appreciate consumables that don’t add to the clutter around the house. Tailor the gifts for people with special needs, including friends and families with nut allergies, gluten or lactose intolerances. (Suzanne Havala Hobbs is a registered dietitian and a clinical associate professor in the department of health policy and administration in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill.)
Issues and Trends
UNC strategic committee behind on proposals
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
A working group of the University of North Carolina Strategic Directions Committee will have its work cut out for it over the Christmas holidays. The group has fallen behind in its effort to complete draft reports detailing proposals to increase degree attainment, improve educational quality, provide service the people of North Carolina, maximize efficiencies and ensure state schools remain accessible and financially stable.
College student loan debt is on the rise in North Carolina
The Fayetteville Observer
…Student loan debt is on the rise, a national study shows. An estimated two-thirds of seniors who graduated in 2011 had debt averaging $26,600. In North Carolina, rising tuition, state budget cuts and the economy's strain on families have more students turning to loans, which worries some policymakers who predict a debt-laden workforce could hinder a long-term recovery.