uncnews.unc.edu

National Coverage

FDA Procedures Draw Scrutiny
The Wall Street Journal
Controversies about cholesterol drug Vytorin and diabetes drug Avandia are reigniting debate over what evidence the Food and Drug Administration requires to approve drugs -- and may generate pressure on the agency to raise its bar. ..."The FDA needs to have more teeth," says John Buse, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a president of the American Diabetes Association.

South Carolina: It used to be Edwards country
The Christian Science Monitor
Constance Kilgore voted for John Edwards four years ago, but the former senator, a South Carolina native, was scarcely on her mind Monday as she listened to the three leading Democratic candidates speak at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day rally here. ..."He's not doing anything else with his life right now. He doesn't have an office. He doesn't have a job," says Ferrel Guillory, an expert on Southern politics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Regional Coverage

How surfing helps cystic fibrosis patients
The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, Calif.)
Lately I have been writing about different problems caused by surfing. Eyes, ears and skin are some of the primary danger zones from years of sun, wind and saltwater exposure. ...They hoped the extra salt would draw water out of lung tissue onto the airway, providing a thin layer of liquid to ease mucus out of the lung," says Richard Boucher, who directs the cystic fibrosis center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and led the American study.

Sharpening skills, networking key to keeping jobs
The Hartford Business Journal (Connecticut)
No matter how secure you may believe your job to be these days, the economic news lately has been worrisome enough that even the most career-confident person is a little nervous. ...Echoing that advice is Shawn Graham, a career adviser at the University of North Carolina and author of "Courting Your Career: Match Yourself with the Perfect Job" (JistWorks, $12.95). He says that many of this year's graduates may find it tough to land their dream job on the first try.

Hand-Held Cell Phone Ban Considered By Legislators
The Dispatch (Ocean City, Md.)
Driving while text messaging and talking on cell phones may be the norm for many Maryland motorists, but a recently proposed Senate bill that opts to ban the use of hand-held cell phones while driving could bring that habit to a screeching halt, that is if it is passed. ...Preliminary results from a University of North Carolina study, however, indicated that telephone use is only the eighth most distracting activity that drivers engage in, with distraction from activities like changing radio stations and eating more prevalent.

State and Local Coverage

Carolina First raises $2.38B
The Herald-Sun (Durham)/Chapel Hill Herald
Chancellor James Moeser announced Thursday that UNC's eight-year Carolina First Campaign has ended with a whopping $2.38 billion -- the fifth largest money-raising effort ever completed in higher education and the largest university fundraiser in the South. A $9 million private pledge to the UNC School of Pharmacy -- and a matched donation from the board of North Carolina's University Cancer Research Fund -- pushed the campaign well past fundraising goals.
UNC News Release:
http://uncnews.unc.edu/news/campus-and-community/pharmacy-school-
pledge-pushes-carolina-first-total-to-2.3-billion.html
Related Links:
http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2008/01/21/daily31.html
http://www.wchl1360.com/details.html?id=5675
http://wunc.org/tsot/archive/college-wealth-gap/view

UNC trustees debate ways to lure grad students
The Chapel Hill Herald
The UNC Board of Trustees attempted to tackle a seemingly circular question at its meeting Thursday morning: Is it better to offer more financial incentives for graduate students or increase faculty salary in graduate departments? The board broached the subject of competitive stipends during a presentation on UNC's graduate student support.

A chance to be innovative (Editorial)
The Chapel Hill Herald
Innovation, according to the dictionary, is something newly introduced or the act or process of bringing in something new. When it comes to its proposed new Innovation Center on the planned Carolina North campus, the university is asking the Chapel Hill Town Council to innovate as well.
Related Link:
http://www.newsobserver.com/politics/story/902631.html

Chancellors in demand (Under the Dome)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The committee looking for UNC-Chapel Hill's next chancellor might have some competition in the marketplace. A flurry of vacancies in higher education recently make for an interesting search climate, particularly in the South, consultant Bill Funk told the search committee at a meeting in Chapel Hill on Thursday.
Related Links:
http://www.heraldsun.com/orange/10-918699.cfm
http://media.www.dailytarheel.com/media/storage/paper885/news/2008/01/25/
University/Search.For.Chancellor.Continues.At.Meeting-3168265.shtm

Wealth flows to Duke, UNC
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The growth of endowment funds at Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill outpaced most colleges in the country among those who oversee funds of more than $1 billion, according to an annual survey released Thursday. A combination of investment returns and new gifts increased the endowment at each school by more than 30 percent, according to the National Association of College and University Business Officers.
Related Link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/25/education/25endowments.html?scp=1&sq=endowments&st=nyt

N&O will cut 16 advertising jobs, outsource services
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The News and Observer Publishing Co. will cut as many as 16 jobs from its advertising department and begin sending some of that work overseas. ...People might not like outsourcing, but the newspaper industry is right to look for ways to trim costs, said Philip Meyer, Knight Chair in Journalism and professor at UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

CMS athletic eligibility panel faces questions
The Charlotte Observer
The two-day-old committee studying ways to better verify athletic eligibility in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools already faces at least two key questions: Why won't the meetings be open to the public? And what is CMS doing to make sure parents of all students -- not just athletes -- provide accurate information about where they live? ..."It does not appear that the superintendent would be justified in saying every meeting, beginning to end, is closed," said Ruth Walden, a media law professor at UNC Chapel Hill.

Businesses want water regulation done fairly
The News-Argus (Goldsboro)
For many of the nearly 100 residents attending Wednesday's state Environmental Review Commission meeting, the discussion about future water allocation featured a handful of recurring themes -- stop blaming outdoor landscaping industries, educate everyone about conservation, provide incentives for people and businesses to adopt true conservation measures, eliminate red tape currently restricting innovative solutions and encourage responsible development patterns. ...One, Dr. Dave Moreau, director for the University of North Carolina's Water Resource Research Institute, spoke on the need for regular assessments of the state's water resources and how those are being used -- water quantity, as well as water quality reports.

Playgoers may have doubts about 'Parable' meaning
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
...Jeffrey Blair Cornell portrays Father Flynn. He is in his 13th season with PlayMakers Repertory Company and is director of undergraduate studies in the UNC Chapel Hill Department of Dramatic Art, where he also teaches.

Issues and Trends

Two more universities may join North Carolina Research Campus
The Independent Tribune (Kannapolis)
More universities could be partnering with the North Carolina Research Campus. ...Six UNC campuses - UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State University, N.C. Central University, N.C. A&T University, UNC Charlotte and UNC Greensboro - all have research centers at the campus.
Related Links:
http://www.charlotte.com/business/story/461888.html

Students ask: University of Charlotte?
News 14 (Raleigh/Charlotte)
The UNC Charlotte Student Government Association debated a resolution Thursday aimed at changing the school’s name. A resolution which came before the Student Senate is calling for the university to change its name to the University of Charlotte. ...“[UNC Chapel Hill] is getting a lot of recognition for things we have been doing lately, well not just lately, for the last 5-10 years,” said (Darren) Moorehead.