KAVITA PILLAI

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Legacy too broad to confine

By KAVITA PILLAI | April 28

In the months since stepping down as UNC-system president, Molly Broad often can be seen walking the UNC-Chapel Hill campus with a backpack in tow. While few students might notice her, it is impossible to walk across campus without noticing her greatest legacy, which is growing each day. Broad ended her tenure in the General Administration on Dec. 31, 2005, after eight years. During her time at the head of the table, the state passed a $3.1 billion bond referendum for higher education, the fruits of which can be seen as construction cranes tower over campus life across the system.

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Bowles sets new course

By KAVITA PILLAI | April 28

Four months ago, a two-time failed senatorial candidate found his dream job. When Erskine Bowles took the helm of the 16-campus UNC system in January, he inherited a healthy university that recently had seen rapid enrollment growth and the passage of the largest bond referendum in higher education history. In only four months, Bowles' legacy already can be predicted. With a 17th campus on the way - the N.C. School of Science and Math - his focus is clear: use the university system to accomplish the goals of an entire state.

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Bowles budgets initiatives across board

By KAVITA PILLAI | April 12

GREENSBORO - Though UNC-system President Erskine Bowles' inauguration will take place today, the impact of his first four months in office already can be felt. Bowles said his inaugural address will focus on initiatives to improve K-12 education in the state. "It's going to be 90 percent of what I talk about," he said.

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Board approves dental school, new member

By KAVITA PILLAI | April 12

GREENSBORO - UNC-system President Erskine Bowles said Tuesday that a planned $700 million research campus in Kannapolis hinges on his ability to negotiate. Bowles told the system Board of Governors that he and the project's backer, Dave Murdock, owner of Dole Food Company Inc., disagree on four specific issues. He said Murdock wants the university's funding of the project to take place during a three-year time span, rather than the five-year span being proposed. Bowles said the two need to work out governance issues.

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DNA results ready in Duke lacrosse case

By KAVITA PILLAI | April 11

DNA test results on 46 of 47 members of the Duke University men's lacrosse team that were released Monday show the players' innocence of rape allegations, defense attorneys claim. Results of the tests were turned in to the district attorney's office. No one from that office was available for comment Monday. Robert Ekstrand, a Durham attorney representing a majority of the team, said in a statement that the results show no matches between DNA taken from the accuser and the players.

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Attacks renew political tensions

By KAVITA PILLAI | March 22

Whether the March 3 hit-and-run in the Pit can be placed in the same category of violence as the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks is a point of contentious debate. But both events, Muslim leaders say, highlight the need for discussion and understanding, especially on diverse college campuses such as UNC. At universities nationwide, Sept. 11, 2001, marked a shift in dialogue by bringing greater attention to Islam.

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Student crime shocks NCSU

By KAVITA PILLAI | February 28

A little more than one year after the UNC system made final recommendations to improve campus safety, two N.C. State University freshmen were arrested on charges related to an early morning crime spree that shook the entire campus. The students, James Darnell Lyons, 18, and Timothy O'Brian Williams, 19, were charged Thursday with 10 counts total, five for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. They also are being charged with armed robbery.

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First Amendment case a long time coming

By KAVITA PILLAI | February 21

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to announce today whether an almost six-year saga involving the strength and breadth of certain First Amendment protections will come to an end. The case is Hosty v. Carter. It involves three student journalists at Governors State University in Illinois who sued the university in January 2001 for the actions of a dean who wanted prior approval of the student publication, The Innovator.

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Hike talks create waves

By KAVITA PILLAI | February 10

In an unsurprising move, the UNC-system Board of Governors took another step Thursday toward passing tuition and fee hike proposals for the 16 system schools. The BOG's budget and finance committee approved tuition increase requests from all campuses, though the action was not without debate. Committee member Ray Farris demanded that the approval motion be split, separating the nonresident tuition proposal for UNC-Chapel Hill into its own motion. The move allowed Farris to cast the only vote against the $1,100 out-of-state hike, which he called unreasonable.

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UNC-system schools lagging in construction

By KAVITA PILLAI | January 31

Time is money, which is why UNC-system schools can't afford to get behind on construction during this last stretch of the largest bond program in higher education history. But two system schools, N.C. Agricultural & Technical State University and Elizabeth City State University, have suffered setbacks, subjecting them to increased oversight from system officials. "We have schedules that we monitor very closely," said Jeff Davies, vice president for finance for the UNC system. "If a campus begins to deviate from those schedules, we pay closer attention to them."