| |
|
A good start
Erskine Bowles, UNC system, BOGNo nervous-Nellie new guy
Erskine Bowles, UNC system, BOGUNC-Greensboro drops speech charges against students
Free speech policy, UNC system$350 million going out in second round of buyout of tobacco quotas
Blake Brown, federal buyout of tobacco quotas
North
Carolina Nanotechnology Conference set for March 9-10, in High Point
Robert McMahan, nanotechnology conference
Articles
of Faith: Women’s Day Service Set
Robert Young, CHASS, activities/events
NCSU
police looking for two robbery suspects
Jon Barnwell, Campus Police
Clean
stormwater starts with you
Cooperative Extension
Slaying
charge now a capital case
Lauren Michele Redman's murder
ABB
moves testing lab to Florence
Centennial Campus companies
Hargreaves
clinches new berry deals
Plan breeding negotiations
Obit.:
Nan Hussey Smith
NCSU Supply Store
North Carolina Nanotechnology Conference set for March 9-10, in High Point
Jan. 18, 2006
Carolina Newswire
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
PTEN is proud to announce the first annual North Carolina Nanotechnology Conference. This invitation-only event is designed for industry entrepreneurs and executives, federal agency program managers and research scientists from across North Carolina. Keynote speakers will address nanotechnology industry trends and initiatives, with session presentations focused on general materials and medical science applications. Publicity surrounding the conference will serve to introduce the nanotechnology industry and its importance to the Triad area and North Carolina.
Conference Agenda:
Thursday, March 9, 2006
Dr. T. James Rudd, Program Manager: SBIR, National Science Foundation
Mark Modzelewski, VP Strategic Opportunities, NanoDynamics; co-founder of Lux
Research and founder of the NanoBusiness Alliance.
Presentations by North Carolina nanotechnology companies
Nanotechnology Leadership Dinner
Friday, March 10, 2006
Breakfast Keynote: Nido Qubein, High Point University
Special presentation by High Point nanotechnology accelerator
Keynote: Dr. Anthony Atala, Director, Institute for Regenerative Medicine,
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (confirmed)
Presentations by North Carolina nanotechnology companies
Lunch Keynote: Robert McMahan, Ph.D., Senior Advisor to the North Carolina
Governor for Science and Technology
Attendees/Target Market: – Nanotechnology entrepreneurs; program managers from
federal agencies, branches of the military and original equipment manufacturers;
research center directors; venture capitalists and private equity investors
as well as state and federal representatives who influence public policy regarding
the emerging nanotech industry.
Conference sponsorships available
Bios: Atala, McMahan, Modzelewski, Qubein
Dr. Anthony Atala
Anthony Atala is the Director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative
Medicine at Wake Forest University Health Sciences and the Chair of the Dept
of Urology. He is a surgeon and expert on regenerative medicine and tissue
engineering. His research focuses on growing new human tissues and organs
(inc. kidney, blood vessels, heart, cartilage, bone, muscle, bladder, liver,
pancreas) to repair or replace tissues or organs damaged by age, cancer,
trauma, or abnormal development.
Dr Atala currently serves as a member for: the Board of Directors of the Soc. of Regenerative Medicine, the Board of Governors of the Tissue Engineering Society, the Scientific Advisory Board of the Regenerate International Conference and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Bladder Foundation. He is an editor for several journals, inc. the Journal of Rejuvenation Research, The Scientific World, Tissue Engineering, New Techniques/Technologies, the Journal of Urology and the Journal of Laparoendoscopic & Advanced Surgical Techniques: Endosurgery & Innovative Techniques.
Dr Atala has held numerous visiting appointments worldwide and has received numerous awards and honors, inc. the US Congress funded Christopher Columbus Foundation Award, bestowed on a living American who is currently working on a discovery that will significantly affect society, the Gold Cystoscope Award for contributions to his field, and was named by Scientific American as a Medical Treatments Leader of the Year for his contributions to the fields of cell, tissue and organ regeneration.
Dr Atala has led or served several national professional and government committees, including the NIDDK working group on Cells and Developmental Biology, and the NIH Health Bioengineering Consortium. He is the editor of 5 books, has published more than 200 journal articles or book chapters, more than 250 abstracts, and has applied for or received over 180 national and international patents.
Dr. Robert McMahan
Dr. McMahan is Senior Advisor to the Governor of North Carolina for Science
and Technology and the Executive Director of the North Carolina Board of
Science and Technology. In this role he advises the Governor, the Secretary
of Commerce, the General Assembly, and the Boards of Science and Technology
and Economic Development about science and technology matters and supports
and advises the state government on science, technology, entrepreneurship
and technology-based economic development. He also serves as the primary
liaison to the University of North Carolina System, the SBTDC, the NC Community
College System, other private colleges and universities, key agencies such
as the Biotechnology Center and MCNC, and associations such as CED, NCTA
and NCBIO with regard to these issues.
Prior to this he was a Senior Technology Strategist for In-Q-Tel, a private venture capital organization funded by the CIA and NIMA, where he was part of a team responsible for developing a technology investment strategy for the CIA, and then deriving, molding, and structuring individual investments and technologies within the portfolio. Before joining In-Q-Tel, he was Executive Vice President of Engineering / Research and Development for the Swiss-based, mid-cap GretagMacbeth, LLC, where he was responsible for the company’s worldwide research, engineering, and product development activities and for the creation and operation of the company’s Advanced Technology Laboratories in the Research Triangle Park. He joined GretagMacbeth after its acquisition in 2000 of McMahan Research Laboratories, the advanced technologies company for which he was President & CEO and which he founded in 1987 in Cambridge, MA and expanded to the RTP in 1989. Dr. McMahan has been involved in the creation of a number of technology startups, and has participated in equity and LBO capital raises.
In addition to his duties with the state, Dr. McMahan also currently holds the positions of Research Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he teaches and conducts research in cosmology, instrumentation, and the large scale structure of the universe, and Adjunct Professor of Technology and Management at the North Carolina State University College of Textiles. Dr. McMahan received Bachelors Degrees in Physics and in the History of Art from Duke University in 1982, a Ph.D. degree in Physics from Dartmouth in 1986, and a postdoctoral fellowship from the Harvard University / Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Center for Astrophysics. He has published over forty papers in scientific and engineering journals, sits on a number of state and corporate boards and commissions, and holds multiple patents in the field.
F. Mark Modzelewski
F. Mark Modzelewski joined NanoDynamics in May 2005 as Vice President of Strategic
Opportunities. In 2004, he co-founded Lux Research, a research and advisory
firm focusing on nanotechnology. In 2003, he founded The Benet Group, a private
equity firm focused on developing early stage, bio-nanotechnology companies.
In 2001, he founded the NanoBusiness Alliance, the first nanotechnology trade association, and continues to serve as its Executive Chairman. Prior to the formation of the Alliance, Mr. Modzelewski served as Vice President, Business Development for Opion, a surveillance and marketing technology company, Director of Niehaus, Ryan & Wong, New York, and an account leader at Golin/Harris International. He is currently a member of the Nanotechnology Technical Advisory Group to the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and previously served as a special assistant to Secretary Cisneros (HUD) and Secretary Glickman (USDA) during the Clinton administration. Mr. Modzelewski is a graduate of Boston University and received a J.D. from the University of Denver College of Law.
Nido Qubein
Nido Qubein is president of High Point University, an accredited undergraduate
and graduate institution with 3,000 students from 50 countries and 36 states.
He has written numerous books and recorded scores of audio and video learning
programs including a bestseller on effective communication published by Nightingale-Conant
and Berkley. He is an active speaker and consultant addressing more than
100 business and professional groups around the world each year. He doesn't
just talk business, he lives it. He is an entrepreneur with active interests
in real estate, advertising, and banking. Qubein is chairman of an international
consulting firm and recipient of the highest awards given for professional
speakers including the Cavett (known as the Oscar of professional speaking),
the Speakers Hall of Fame, and Sales and Marketing International's Ambassador
of Free Enterprise. Toastmasters International named him the Top Business
and Commerce Speaker and awarded him the Golden Gavel Medal. He served as
president of the National Speakers Association which has a membership of
4,000 professionals and is the founder of the National Speakers Association
Foundation where the highest award for Philanthropy is named for him. Nido
Qubein has been the recipient of many honors including the Ellis Island Medal
of Honor, a Doctorate of Laws degree, and induction into Beta Gamma Sigma,
the honor society for business leadership. Nido Qubein’s business savvy led
him to help start a bank in 1986 and today he serves on the board and executive
committee of a Fortune 500 financial corporation with 100 billion-dollars
in assets and 25,000 employees. He is also chairman of a national public
relations company, chairman of Great Harvest Bread Company with 210 stores
in 40 states, chairman of Business Life, Inc., and chairman of the Miss North
Carolina USA program. He serves on the boards of several national organizations
including the YMCA of the USA which oversees 2,600 YMCA’s across the country.
His foundation provides scholarships to 48 deserving young people each year.
To-date the Qubein Foundation has granted more than 600 scholarships, worth
over three million dollars.
Jan. 18, 2006
News & Observer
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
First, Erskine Bowles met with leaders and faculty members and students from all 16 constituent campuses of the University of North Carolina system of which he is the new president. Then he vowed to conduct business openly and said he'd direct the withdrawal of proposed legislation that would have made it more difficult to get public information out of the system.
He also has met with staff of the system's Chapel Hill-based General Administration. Indications are he may look at some appropriate trimming of positions in that office. All these are positive signs from a leader who clearly understands the system's mission to serve the state.
Now another good signal: In meetings with legislators, Bowles credited lawmakers with being most generous to the UNC system -- which they, and beyond them the taxpayers they represent, indeed have been. That was a good stroke, given that such appreciation has not been expressed enough. The president also sounded a call for cooperation with the community college system, which he previously acknowledged had played a crucial role in passing a multibillion-dollar bond issue a few years back. And he said he'd be talking to members of the General Assembly regularly.
Bowles' effort at reaching out is well-aimed and well-timed. It suggests that he will have an active presidency, and perhaps that he won't hesitate to remind individual campuses that they must keep their fences mended not just with big donors, but with all taxpayers who look to the state's public campuses to meet their needs. Some of them could stand to hear that reminder on occasion.
In his first speech to his Board of Governors on Friday, Bowles really hit home in making the case for adequate investment in all levels of education. Without it, he said, the state and the country are heading for an economic crisis. That means UNC campuses have to raise their graduation percentages, an important measure of their effectiveness, and that they must prepare to enroll more undergrads in the years to come.
It's also encouraging to hear the president vow to keep tuition low. While tuition in the UNC system remains a bargain by some definitions, it has risen dramatically in the past few years. North Carolina is not an affluent state, and it's inexpensive college educational opportunities have been of benefit to everyone.
Meanwhile, here's a tangible step Bowles could take toward bringing the system together, and to send a positive message to all campuses: orchestrate the dismantling of political action committees at UNC-Chapel Hill and at N.C. State University which contribute money to politicians in pursuit of distinct campus agendas. This is an unsavory role for campus boosters to play, putting them squarely in the pay-to-play money game, and separating them from other campuses that don't have their financial clout.
It also would be a good idea for Bowles, through the UNC system Board of Governors that selected him to replace Molly Broad upon her retirement from the post, to end the business of individual campuses having lobbyists in the Legislative Building. The system needs to speak again with one voice. And so far, Erskine Bowles has been refreshingly loud and clear.
$350 million going out in second round of buyout of tobacco quotas
Jan. 18, 2006
Winston-Salem Journal
By David Rice
© Copyright 2006
More than $350 million will soon hit the mailboxes of farmers in North Carolina and former quo--ta owners in the second round of checks from a $10 billion federal buyout of tobacco quotas.
Officials at the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced yesterday that it would issue more than $950 million in the second installment of the 10-year buyout that Congress approved in 2004.
"Approximately $1.9 billion in payments will have been paid to tobacco quota holders and producers when this second round of payments ends," Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said in a prepared statement.
"These funds are helping tobacco farmers transition to the free market and mark the end of the federal tobacco-marketing program."
Though the first round of payments went out last summer, the payments are due on or about Jan. 15 each year, officials said.
Blake Brown, an agricultural economist at N.C. State University, said that about 38 percent of the buyout money comes to farmers in North Carolina and will help the rural economy.
"This is the second step in this process of transition, and it is a significant impact," Brown said. "Farmers are in a position now where they have to think carefully about how to use their resources ... to better themselves in the future."
Starting next Monday, farmers and quota holders can also sign up with private lenders to receive lump-sum payments for the remaining eight buyout payments.
The buyout legislation allows farmers and quota owners to sell the stream of payments to a lender at a discount through what is known as a "successor-in-interest" contract. In return, the farmers receive a lump-sum payment up front.
Officials said that third parties bought lump-sum contracts from 89,000 farmers last year that were worth $1.5 billion.
Because the second payment came so soon after the first, Brown said that some farmers might still consider the lump-sum option for their payments from 2007 through 2014.
"A lot of farmers will continue to think about that this year," he said.
• David Rice can be reached in Raleigh at (919) 833-9056 or at drice@wsjournal.com
Articles of Faith: Women’s Day Service Set
Jan. 18, 2006
Southern Pines Pilot
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
Abundant Life Ministries Church of God in Christ will hold a Women’s Day service Sunday, Jan. 22, at 10:30 a.m.
Guest speaker is Patricia D. Lofton of Faith Temple Church of God in Christ in Wilmington. She is jurisdictional supervisor for the N.C. Second Jurisdiction.
Abundant Life is located at 306 Stevens St., Raeford. For information, call 910-875-8483.
Holy Convocation
Greater Glory Pentecostal Deliverance Ministries Inc. will have a Holy Convocation convening Jan. 22-29. Various guest speakers are scheduled. Service time is 7:30 nightly at Greater Pentecostal Deliverance Headquarters located at 180 Cotton Street in the Jackson Hamlet Community of Pinehurst.
For more information, contact Administrative Secretary Vickie Kelly at 910-281-0369.
Beaver Creek Baptist
Beaver Creek Baptist Church will celebrate Baptist Men’s Day on Sunday, Jan. 22, at the 11 a.m. worship service.
The Widows/Widowers Group will meet Friday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. at Southwest Grill in Sanford.
Conference
The second annual “Ignited by Truth Catholic Conference” will take place Saturday, Feb. 14, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Raleigh’s Cardinal Gibbons High School, 1401 Edwards Mill Road, across from the RBC Center.
Patrick Madrid, book author, publisher of Envoy magazine, and TV host on the EWTN will articulate the importance of evangelizing with charity. Other speakers are scheduled throughout the day. Psychologist, Dr. Ray Guarendi, will talk on Christian parenting; Alex Jones will reveal how study of the early church fathers led him and many others to conversion; Elizabeth and Mark Matthews will share their journey of faith through the challenges with their autistic son, Patrick.
Dr. Richard Gildersleeve, bioethicist and theologian, will uncover the pearls of wisdom in the Catholic Catechism. N.C. State English Professor, Dr. Robert Young, will give his insights on living the Catholic life in a modern world. A student workshop on life issues will be presented by Pro-Life Action League’s Annie Scheidler. A preview of Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of Christ” movie will also be presented.
“Whether you’re a Catholic who is wanting to increase your faith or a non-Catholic interested in learning about Catholicism, this conference is for you,” said a spokesman.
Adult tickets are $20 in advance and $30 after Jan. 25. Student tickets are $10 in advance and $15 after Jan. 25. The admission price includes lunch. To purchase advance tickets, visit the Ignited by Truth Web site at www.ignitedbytruth.com.
NCSU police looking for two robbery suspects
Jan. 18, 2006
News 14 Carolina
By Gretchen Bartelt
© Copyright 2006
(RALEIGH) -- Becoming a biologist isn't easy, but no matter what freshman Marlena Taylor does, she's always thinking about her safety when walking around N.C. State.
“I never travel alone at night, that's just silly,” Taylor said. “I always try to have a group of friends with me.”
Taylor said she doesn't want to get caught in the same situation that one of her classmates experienced early Friday morning.
“One guy was a distraction technique while the other guy came up from behind and caught him off guard,” said Sgt. Jon Barnwell of the N.C. State Campus Police.
"
Him" is a student who was walking under a pedestrian bridge when a stranger
asked him for directions. He was then robbed at gunpoint.
Crimes like that don't happen often at N.C. State and campus police say they are preventable if students use caution.
“Since we are a university environment, students tend to feel very safe and that leads to complacency,” Barnwell continued. “Folks tend to take chances on campus that they normally wouldn't take anywhere else.”
This pedestrian bridge is where the robbery occurred
If a student does get in to trouble, there are more than 400 emergency boxes placed strategically around the campus. All you have to do is push the button and you are immediately linked to an officer.
Students also have the option to use an escort service. It's nice when they have to walk alone which is something Taylor says she doesn't do.
She added, “I am very concerned. You get emails from police about robberies or getting assaulted and I don't want to be one of those people so I try very hard to stay safe.”
Emergency call boxes are located around campus
Campus police are still looking for the two male robbers. If you have any information, call campus police at (919) 515-3000.
Clean stormwater starts with you
Jan. 18, 2006
Charlotte Observer
By DAVID FOGARTY
© Copyright 2006
Stormwater is water from rain or melting snow that does not soak into the ground.
In last week's column, we talked about how this runoff from parking lots, roads and roofs, harms water quality, erodes streams and causes flooding. This week we will take a look at what homeowners can do to help address this stormwater issue.
Q. Does stormwater come from my property?
Probably so. The next time you are home during a rain shower, watch where the rainwater goes. If water flows off of your lawn and driveway into a road, ditch or creek, the answer is "yes."
Q. How can I do my part to reduce stormwater impacts?
There are two things you can do to help with stormwater problems. The first approach is to eliminate possible sources of pollution in your yard that are easily carried away by stormwater during a rainstorm. This is a positive step toward improving water quality. The second approach is to reduce the amount of water flowing off your property.
Here are three questions to ask yourself about potential sources of pollution in your yard:
• Are any car or truck wastes being carried away by stormwater?
Oil stains on your driveway and outdoor spills of antifreeze or other automotive fluids are easily washed into streams and lakes during a rainstorm. Routine maintenance can prevent your car from leaking. If you change your own oil, be careful to avoid spills and collect waste oil for recycling. Store oily car parts and fluid containers where rain and runoff cannot reach them. Never dump used oil, antifreeze or gasoline down a storm drain, in a ditch or on the ground.
• How do I keep animal wastes from becoming a pollution problem?
Droppings from dogs, cats and other pets can be troublesome in two ways. First, pet wastes contain nutrients that can promote the growth of algae if wastes enter streams and lakes. Second, animal droppings contain bacteria that can cause disease. The risk of stormwater contamination increases if pet wastes are allowed to accumulate in animal pens or are left on sidewalks, streets or driveways. Instead of allowing pet wastes to accumulate or sending them to a landfill, consider flushing the wastes down the toilet or burying them.
• Do I keep yard and garden wastes out of stormwater?
If left on sidewalks, driveways or roads, grass clippings and other yard wastes will wash away with the next storm. Although leaves and other plant debris accumulate naturally in streams and lakes, homeowners can contribute excess amounts of plant matter, leading to water that is unattractive or green with algae. Burning yard waste is not an environmentally friendly alternative -- and in some areas, it is illegal. Fortunately there are some easy options. Bag leaves and grass for municipal pick-ups. Better yet, sweep clippings back onto the grass, and compost leaves and garden wastes on your property for use in mulched areas or gardens.
Q. How can I reduce the amount of water flowing off my property?
Your house roof, like pavement, sheds water. If downspouts from roof gutters empty onto grassy or natural areas, the water will have a chance to soak into the ground. Aim downspouts away from foundations and paved surfaces. For roofs without gutters, plant grass, spread mulch, or use gravel under the drip line to prevent soil erosion and increase infiltration of water into the ground. Consider using cisterns or rain barrels to catch rain for watering your lawn and garden in dry weather.
Q. Are rain gardens appropriate?
Often runoff can be diverted to localized low spots in your yard. These areas, when planted with water-tolerant vegetation such as redbuds, St. John's Wort, Cherrybark oak and sweet pepperbush, are called rain gardens. Rain gardens naturally filter water and provide an effective means for putting surface water back into groundwater. Rain gardens work best in sandy soils. In clay soils, rain gardens can be engineered by adding a layer of sand and gravel under the soil.
For more information on how homeowners can address stormwater issues, contact the Cooperative Extension Office. Next week we will take a look at community stormwater efforts and the new Phase II stormwater regulations.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Fogarty is director of the Gaston County Cooperative Extension
Office. You can reach him at (704) 922-2130 or dfogarty@co.gaston.nc.us. To learn more
about the Cooperative Extension, visit www.ces.ncsu.edu/gaston.
Slaying charge now a capital case
Jan. 18, 2006
News & Observer
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
One of the men accused in the November murder of Lauren Michele Redman might face the death penalty.
The first-degree murder charge against Byron Lamar Waring, 19, was declared a capital case on Tuesday. That means if he's convicted, Waring will be sentenced to death or to life in prison without parole.
Autopsy results released last month revealed that Redman was stabbed 28 times. The 2001 East Wake High graduate was found early Nov. 8 in the breezeway of her West Raleigh complex, the Dominion Walnut Creek apartments on Walnut Creek Parkway.
Police also have charged Joseph Daniel Sanderlin, 24, with Redman's murder. George Bradford Sasser, 25, was charged with accessory after the fact for allegedly warning Waring and Sanderlin about the police investigation, and with an unrelated charge of attempted robbery.
According to police, Sasser lived at Redman's apartment but had moved out before the stabbing. Information in a search warrant shows that in an interview with police, Waring said that he went to Redman's apartment on Sasser's behalf to collect a debt.
UNC-Greensboro drops speech charges against students
Jan. 18, 2006
Herald-Sun
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- University of North Carolina at Greensboro officials have dropped charges against two students accused of speaking outside of designated "free speech zones" on campus, the school's lawyer said Tuesday.
Students Allison Jaynes and Robert Sinnott were accused of violating campus policy by helping to organize a rally of about 40 people Nov. 16 in front of the campus library.
When a school official told Jaynes to move to a free speech zone, she refused and was later charged, along with Sinnott, with a campus violation. The punishment could have ranged from a warning to probation with restrictions, said Jaynes, a senior physics major.
The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education based in Philadelphia said public pressure forced the university to drop the charges and take another look at its free speech policy. The organization co-authored a study that said UNC campuses had a number of problems with free speech.
But university counsel Skip Capone said the institution wasn't trying to abridge free speech. The zones predated most employees at UNC-G and were created in the 1970s during Vietnam protests so students wouldn't be blocked from their classes, he said.
A committee approved Nov. 14 will study the issue because of court decisions against restrictions on speech, Capone said. The committee is being formed now, he said, and will include students and faculty.
Jan. 18, 2006
Charlotte Observer
By MARY C. SCHULKEN
© Copyright 2006
CHAPEL HILL - Erskine Bowles may be the happiest working man in North Carolina.
"To say that I am excited, that I'm enthusiastic, that I'm am ecstatic to be here would be an understatement," the UNC system's new president told the Board of Governors.
Watching him at his first Board of Governors meeting last week, it was hard to argue. This was no nervous-Nellie new guy. He was as at ease as anybody I've ever seen in a new job: grinning, nibbling a muffin, dropping crumbs on his tie and watching his board members like a hawk.
It's easy to imagine how far that confidence and enthusiasm might carry the state's public university system toward urgent needs like unity, fiscal discipline and legislative clout.
Next to the governor, UNC system president may be the most powerful office in the state. Bowles' experiences here and in other places set him apart from others who have held the job.
He's not an academic. He's a Wall Street investor who sits on corporate boards. He ran the Small Business Administration. He served as President Clinton's White House chief of staff.
He's not a stranger. He chaired the state's Rural Prosperity Task Force. He mounted two strong but unsuccessful bids for the U.S. Senate. Plus, he's a North Carolinian.
That means Bowles won't have to worry, for now, about his political standing or look over his shoulder (for a while, anyway.) He has a timely window to challenge the UNC system's conventions and constituencies and get away with it.
Already, he has put ambitious issues on the table.
• He wants more students to graduate. Four- and six-year graduation rates at the state's 16 campuses are abysmal except at UNC Chapel Hill.
• He wants to join the UNC system and the state's community college system at the hip. He introduced Martin Lancaster, state community college president, not once, but twice, calling him -- "the person I want to have the most seamless relationship with other than Crandall (Bowles' wife.)"
• He wants universities to think and act more like businesses. His goals/results planning model will not be popular on campus. But it will be respected in Raleigh where legislators increasingly eye the university system's outstretched hand with skepticism.
A few observations:
• Bowles seems determined to bust up turf throughout the university system.
• He seems concerned about fiscal pressures on research universities like Chapel Hill, but even more concerned about the integrity of undergraduate education across the board.
• He has asked the 16 campuses to work as a centrally governed team, not pursue individual goals -- an apparent reference to Chapel Hill's failed effort last year to set its own tuition rates.
"I committed to the chancellors that I would work to get the resources they need, because they are the ones on the ground who have to make these things happen," Bowles said. "In return, they committed to me -- gave me their word -- that they would work together."
Mary C. Schulken
Company to move testing lab to Florence
Jan. 18, 2006
WIS (SC), Myrtle Beach Sun News (SC), Hilton Head Island Packet (SC), The State (SC)
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
Florence-AP) January 18, 2006 - A maker of circuit breakers used in the utility
industry is moving its North American testing lab to Florence where it has
a plant.
Asea Brown Boveri is moving the lab from the campus of North Carolina
State University in Raleigh.
No new jobs are expected as a result of the move, but Florence County economic development director Joe W. King says it shows the company's commitment to the area.
ABB moves testing lab to Florence
Jan. 18, 2006
Florence Morning News (SC)
By ANDY COLE
© Copyright 2006
FLORENCE - The world's leading producer of circuit breakers used in the utility industry is moving its North American testing lab to Florence.
Asea Brown Boveri, or ABB, has been in Florence since 1980. It's in the process of moving its testing lab operations from the campus of North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C., to Florence.
The company makes high-tech circuit breakers and automation equipment for electric utilities.
"This is a big deal for us," said Tom Rassau, managing director of ABB's Florence plant. "It's going to be where we test all of our new equipment and where we do research."
The company's testing lab will focus on electric power grid reliability, transmission and distribution solutions, and technologies for monitoring electric grid systems, among other things.
Moving the lab to Florence won't add many jobs to ABB's payroll, but it does indicate the company's commitment to the area.
The move has implications beyond the jobs ABB will be bringing to the Pee Dee, said Florence County Econcomic Development Director Joe W. King.
"This is a really big coup for Florence County," King said. "You've got to look at the type of worker at ABB - really high-tech, very well-educated people, and they're bringing their North American testing lab here."
King said expansions like the one at ABB give the area prestige and make it easier to attract other high-tech industries.
"Any time you have an existing industry expand, three things happen," he said. "First, new jobs are created.
Second, there is new investment, but third, other companies see Florence County and the Pee Dee region as a place to do business."
He said having a major global company like ABB bring its North American research facility to Florence is something to highlight to potential industries, and ABB's involvement in the community is a good example to other companies.
"ABB has always been a low-key company in Florence," King said. "But I think Tom Rassau is going to take it up a notch. He's really community-minded, and he encourages his people to be involved."
Hargreaves clinches new berry deals
Jan. 18, 2006
Freshinfo (UK)
By staff report
© Copyright 2006
Hargreaves Plants has signed two valuable contracts with plant breeders in the US to bring exciting new varieties of soft fruit to the UK market.
After almost two years of negotiation, Hargreaves concluded an agreement with North Carolina State University. Paul Taylor, ceo of Hargreaves Plants said: “North Carolina is one of the leading berry fruit breeding centres in the US. Director Jim Ballington and his new assistant Gina Fernandez have exciting programmes in strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. We are very optimistic of finding good material for the UK and EU.”
The second deal is with the University of Arkansas to work on its blackberry material. “We have a very large territory and the novel range of primocane material is certain to be suitable for the UK and all over Europe,” said commercial director Rupert Hargreaves.
Hargreaves feels that the introduction of primocane blackberries will expand EU production by several months and further accelerate consumption.
“This exclusive contract adds a whole new dimension to our business,” said Hargreaves. “We are importing thousands of populations in seeds and will be undertaking the selection of new varieties in the UK and other relevant countries.”
Hargreaves now expects to trial more than 60 new cultivars this spring.
Jan. 18, 2006
News & Observer
NAN M. SMITH, Raleigh, Jan. 15. Funeral 2 p.m., Thursday, funeral home chapel. Burial, Montlawn Memorial Park, Raleigh. Arrangements by Mitchell Funeral Homes. For a more detailed obituary, contact News Services at 515-3470.