As the federal government tightens standards for educational student visas, UNC officials are warning international students that they need to be more aware of their situations. In response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the Department of Immigration and Naturalization Services changed the way it processes information concerning international students.
In response to the results of departmental studies and data obtained from peer institutions, some officials believe that teaching assistants at UNC-Chapel Hill might not be receiving their fair share in salary. Members of the TA Task Force met Tuesday afternoon as part of an ongoing effort to ensure that TAs at UNC-CH are appropriately compensated. Five key issues were identified at the meeting, and task force Chairman Steve Allred said the committee must focus on these issues before Jan.
Area residents are hoping for another chance to appeal to the University's governing body today about a move they say will disrupt their neighborhood. Several members of the Elkin Hills community are planning to attend a Board of Trustees committee meeting today to protest the location of the Campus Services Support Facilities project. The project in question will move the existing Printing, Ground, and Environment, Health and Safety buildings from their location on Finley Golf Course Road to the Giles Horney lot in the Elkin Hills area.
Some Muslim students said rising curiosity among students about Islam has made the events of Islamic Awareness Week take on a greater significance. As a part of Islamic Awareness Week, which began Monday and ends Friday, members of the Muslim Student Association have been gathering to educate and to raise awareness about the Muslim faith. A speech Tuesday night in Bingham Hall titled "Race Relations in Islam" was one of the many events planned throughout the week.
"Simply, we must lead. We must aspire to the highest levels of performance and service." Chancellor James Moeser offered those words Oct. 12, 2000, during his installation remarks at his first University Day celebration. In his speech that day, Moeser reiterated his desire to make UNC-Chapel Hill the best public university in the nation.
Student government officials held Wednesday the first in a series of discussions designed to elicit feedback from the University community. Student Body President Jen Daum said the executive branch of student government invited leaders of select student groups to attend the discussion sessions to voice opinions and concerns regarding student government. "Basically we're holding forums with leaders of different campus groups to find out how we can collaborate and more effectively work with other student organizations," Daum said.
University officials said Tuesday that they will resume pushing UNC's proposed $130 million cancer treatment center next year after legislation to provide funding for the project failed to gain traction in the N.C. General Assembly. Jeffrey Houpt, dean of the UNC School of Medicine, said planning for the center will continue as normal and then be evaluated when the legislature's next session begins in January. "We will continue design for the center and then go back in January and see where the interest level is," Houpt said.
Youth Vote Coalition, a national organization seeking to increase student voter turnout, has begun its campaign on UNC-Chapel Hill's campus. Megan DeSmedt, Youth Vote coordinator at UNC-CH and N.C. State University, said the program aims to get students more involved in the voting process. "Basically, we're working to get young people aware of the elections," DeSmedt said. "The bottom line is we want to increase turnout at the elections." DeSmedt said Youth Vote has three goals it hopes to fulfill in the upcoming year.
Rowdy behavior in the student section at the Sept. 14 Texas football game has prompted University police to increase security levels for Saturday's game, officials said Wednesday. University police Maj. Jeff McCracken said that the increased security is a necessary precaution and that more officers will be concentrated on the student section. "There were a number of fights at the Texas game," McCracken said. "The behavior of some in the student section was ridiculous."
Only two names will appear on the ballot in next week's special election for Student Congress, officials said Tuesday. With only a week remaining before the election to fill four empty seats in Congress, only two candidates have taken the necessary steps to ensure their names make the Sept. 24 ballot. The two candidates are Michael Spinks, a graduate student in the curriculum in folklore, and John Surface, a graduate student in the curriculum in Russian/East European studies. If elected, both candidates on the ballot will represent District 5.
