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WFU edges
up in universities' ranking
rankings
N.C. Taking Shot At Preventing Meningitis On College
Campuses
Mary Bengtson, student health services
Tighter
security or ECU this year
campus security
ACC picks
championship site
Lee Fowler, athletics
Towne
Players have a hometown feel
Park Scholar recipient
Commentary:
Food service gives way to golf basics
College of Veterinary Medicine
Letter
to the editor: Tax cuts: Do the math
Michael Walden, agricultural and resource economics
Ask Nancy:
It's not pot, but just what is this plant?
students
Silencers
without guns
women's center
N.C. Taking Shot At Preventing Meningitis On College Campuses
Aug. 19, 2004
WRAL
By Amanda Lamb
© Copyright 2004
RALEIGH, N.C. -- As students head to college, there is a lot to think about.
This year, for the first time, college freshman in North Carolina are getting information about meningitis. The vaccine to help prevent the disease is not required but highly recommended by health officials.
Each year, about 2,600 people contract meningitis, and 10 percent of those patients die.
Colleges and universities want students to know their options. Fact sheets about the disease are part of the plan to raise awareness.
At North Carolina State University, students learn about the vaccine in their freshman orientation.
This year, N.C. State's Student Health Services estimates about 15 percent of incoming students have received the vaccine. Although meningitis is rare, doctors say it is very serious.
"They need immediate treatment. There can be death from meningococcal meningitis. Those who survive can have disability and long-term consequences," said Dr. Mary Bengtson of N.C. State University.
Something as innocent as sharing a soda can transmit meningitis. Doctors say college students are more vulnerable because they live in close settings and they share things such as drinks.
Starting this year by law, colleges in North Carolina must inform incoming students about meningitis and the vaccine.
The law was authored by Paul Harrison who lost his daughter, Julia, a college student, to meningitis in 2001.
"I would encourage every family to get this vaccine for their college-bound kids. Nothing would make me happier," Harrison said.
Some students seem to be getting the message.
"My mom made me, because I was living in the dorm in close quarters, just to be cautious," student Megan Gray said.
"My aunt had a friend that died from it, so for my protection I decided to get one my freshman year," student Sharah Holt said.
The symptoms of meningitis mimic the flu with fever, vomiting and fatigue. Headache and a stiff neck are also symptoms of meningitis.
The vaccine is offered at most student health centers and costs up to $85. The vaccine lasts three to five years. Some insurance plans pay for it.
Aug. 20, 2004
Winston-Salem Journal
By staff writer
© Copyright 2004
Wake Forest University has been ranked 27th among 248 national universities in the U.S. News and World Report guide to "American's Best Colleges" for 2005.
The school was ranked 28th in last year's guide. Harvard and Princeton universities tied for first place in the annual rankings.
Winston-Salem State University ranked first among top public Southern comprehensive colleges that grant bachelor's degrees.
This is the fourth year that the school has been in, or tied, for first place.
Appalachian State University placed fourth among the South's top public master's-degree granting universities.
Schools provide information to the magazine on such factors as financial resources, graduation rates and alumni donations.
The formula used to calculate the rankings takes into account survey responses about a school's academic excellence from presidents, provosts or admissions officers at comparable institutions.
Duke University tied for fifth place among national universities with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ranked 29th and N.C. State University ranked 86th in the listing of top national universities.
The complete rankings can be viewed at www.usnews.com
Commentary: Food service gives way to golf basics
Aug. 20, 2004
Fayetteville Observer
By Jim Pettit
© Copyright 2004
Just wandering:
Sam Bankhead's dream is expanding, but his menu is shrinking.
Bankhead, who opened a combination golf shop, indoor practice range and cafe in Pinehurst's Olmstead Village in the fall of 2002, has moved to a temporary location in Southern Pines.
Nearby, land has been cleared for an 8,000-square-foot golf facility.
"It will have an indoor range, golf simulator, golf shop and golf fitness center," Bankhead said. "We have finished the design and have plotted it on the lot to submit to the town for approval. I think construction will start in 30 to 60 days."
It will carry the same name as Bankhead's previous venture, Putter Head's.
Food will be de-emphasized.
"I'm going to make sure to stay out of the restaurant business," Bankhead said, laughing. "I'm going to go with the best hot dog, cold beer and homemade chili, and that's all I'm going to serve. The food was good at the other place, but I didn't know much about the restaurant business and got deeper into it than I wanted to get. We were trying to be too many things to too many people."
The focus at Putter Head's will be on golf. Bankhead will give lessons, sell equipment (including some of his own design) and create a gathering place for his 800 members.
Bankhead is happy to show off drawings and plans. Just stop in at his temporary shop in the strip mall on U.S. 1 near El Chapala, which is across from the former Shoney's location.
That lucky dog
Lucky, the wounded Stedman dog rescued in January by Debbie Ramphal of Southport, is almost fully recovered. It was touch-and-go for a few months when infection from the buckshot wounds threatened to claim one or more of the dog's legs, but the generosity of Cape Fear region animal lovers made the difference. The dog, renamed Buddy, is fine.
"Very generous contributions made to Southport-Oak Island Animal Rescue in Lucky's name have made it possible for us to seek the care that this little one deserves," Ramphal says. "Numerous visits to N.C. State Veterinary School and Southport Animal Hospital have produced amazing results. He is now heartworm-free. The infection that was in his leg appears to be gone. He has all four legs and not a battle scar on him. We, as well as the veterinarians who have treated him, feel this is almost miraculous.
"We are happy to report that this wonderful little puppy has become the youngest member of our family. He is a happy, well-adjusted little boy whose biggest concern is hiding his food so that his other canine siblings don't beat him to it. He lives in our home, sleeps in our bed and plays happily with his brother and sisters. The 'scoundrel' in him still enjoys an occasional rummage through the garbage can, but he responds well to loving discipline.
"If not for the generosity and kindness of you who sent money and who kept us in your prayers, none of this would have come to fruition. We would not have been able to afford the quality of care that he has received. I wish it were possible to thank each of you individually."
The dog's recovery, I'm sure, is thanks enough.
Here and there
U-RECKN? I reckon not. No word yet from the owner explaining the origin of that tantalizing license plate, but this week's mystery plate is on a silver Lexus sport utility vehicle: SIRRPRIZ. What's the story behind this surprise?
Good to see the sign for Sammio's go up at the Raeford Road restaurant site that has housed numerous tenants, the last being South City Grille. The Hope Mills Sammio's has always been good.
Summer is fading. A Raeford Road nursery is having a plant sale: Buy one, get two free.
Tighter security or ECU this year
Aug. 20, 2004
Greenville Daily Reflector
By Kelly Soderlund
© Copyright 2004
Students living in ECU's residence halls this year should expect random identification checks, security cameras at all entrances and a zero tolerance drug policy.
The 5,113 students residing on campus will move into the 15 dormitories starting Thursday, officials said during a Tuesday news briefing.
University officials are anticipating a total enrollment, including distance-education students, of about 23,000, which is up from 21,756 last year. The residence halls are at 96 percent occupancy — a 1 percent increase from last year. About 3,400 of the dorm residents are incoming freshmen.
"For those students who do not have housing, there is still space available," said Todd Johnson, director of housing and dining services.
Circular shaped security cameras are positioned from the ceilings at the main entrance and exit doors.
"It's very tastefully done," said Johnson. "It's not something obtrusive."
The $400,000 camera system was implemented after two students reported rapes earlier in the year. A 19-year-old female reported she was raped at gunpoint Jan. 18 in her White Hall dorm room after she returned from a bathroom. An 18-year-old female student reported that she was raped inside a laundry room at Belk Hall on Feb. 17.
No charges have been filed in the incidents, said Garrie Moore, vice chancellor for student life.
The cameras will feed into the campus police department, where additional monitors have been installed.
"So we could review a tape if something happened," said Waz Miller, director of residence life.
ECU is the first university in the UNC system that has security cameras in all of its residence halls, Miller said. North Carolina State University is the only school with security cameras, which are at its largest dormitory, she said.
"We're kind of pioneering," Miller said.
The cameras are the largest part of the housing services' safety awareness campaign. Infomercials will be aired on the campus living station, resident advisers will address safety issues at floor meetings, students will receive magnets with safety tips and dorms will continue to enforce a zero tolerance policy.
Students found with drugs in their room will be removed from the residence hall, said Miller.
"I think it will help in promoting the whole safety effort," said Miller.
Random identifications checks will be conducted during the first two weeks of school to train students to always carry their ID cards when they enter their residence halls.
Housing officials also will form student security teams to patrol the perimeters of the dormitories between 9 p.m. and 1 a.m. to ensure the doors are not propped open.
Three teams will patrol the three dorms groups on campus. Officials hope to recruit students who live in the corresponding residence halls to make up the teams.
"We find the commitment is higher from the students if they're taking care of their own home," said Miller.
Along with all of the new safety initiatives, the university has put $7 million toward renovations and maintenance of the residence halls. Greene, White and Clement residence halls are now air-conditioned and next summer, Fletcher and Tyler also will have air-conditioning.
Belk is the only dormitory where air conditioning will not be installed. The university wants to leave an option for students who can't afford to live in an air-conditioned dorm, said Miller. The basement of Aycock Residence Hall was renovated into a multi-purpose area where classes possibly will be taught, said Miller. A number of dorms also received new carpeting, face-lifts to the bathrooms and new mailboxes.
"All in all, we've done a lot of work in just upgrading the facilities," said Johnson.
Aycock, Jarvis and Garrett residence halls will open at 9 a.m. Thursday. Clement, Greene, Jones, Slay, Tyler, Umstead and White residence halls will open on Friday with the rest opening on Saturday.
Towne Players have a hometown feel
Aug. 18, 2004
Garner News
By Marti Hall
© Copyright 2004
What is it about small towns that cause some people to want to rear generation after generation in the same locale?
What’s the appeal of Garner that germinates the desire to stay close to your roots? Is it the familiar face you see at the hardware store every time and the dependable wisdom you know you’ll always get? Is it the teachers that taught you how to read and now welcome your little ones with open arms? Is it the waitress that knows whether you drink decaf or regular and what time to expect you at the table? Is it the roar of the crowd for Friday night football at the high school stadium?
Hometowns, small towns in particular, provide us all with rich memories that shape our future and sometimes our destinies. And although the highways and byways of Garner are growing every year, there’s still a small town feel that gives comfort to the day. Like hearing the train’s long, low whistle as it passes through around 10:00 every night, audible across a good bit of the town. Or pausing to hear the tolling of the hour from the church bells at United Methodist Church on one end and the Lutheran Church on the other. Garner is a town where traditions of summer fireworks, parades, and evening’s on the ball field remain steady.
When Thornton Wilder wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning play “Our Town” in the 1930’s, he was capturing the universal small town feel that turns thoughts toward home again no matter where people roamed. And this weekend only, the Garner Towne Players will present the time honored play which has involved many, many people in Garner giving historical resources, talent and equipment.
And through a generous sponsorship by the Garner Centennial Celebration Committee all tickets to see the play are free. Show times are 8:00 nightly Thursday, Friday and Saturday with a matinee at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets have been available since August 9 at the Garner Senior Center, Town Hall and the Auditorium but there’s still time to get one and walk ins the night of the shows are welcome. There is a limit of four per person.
This play is somewhat different than others presented by the critically acclaimed Towne Players. There is no set and barely any furniture, but when it comes to the costumes and artistic expressions of the characters, letting imaginations work freely, the audience will not be disappointed.
Artistic director Beth Honeycutt says the author had the bare set in mind when he wrote the play. “Thornton Wilder gave a lot of information about the show when he wrote it about how he preferred for the set to be stripped away and the sound effects to be done more back stage. He thought people’s imaginations would be used more and be able to identify more with what was going on,” she said. “What he was trying to capture was this every small town in America feel.”
Honeycutt says the play has humor but also a serious theme. “It deals with universal issues in everything discussed. It’s set in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire, but it has a universal appeal about small towns and reminders about how they feel.”
Another difference about this play is the multi-media presentation the audience will experience before and during the acts. Historical pictures, dating back 100 years, of people and places in Garner will be shown on two side screens.
Honeycutt promises there will be plenty of familiar faces on stage to enjoy. “If you’ve ever been to a Towne Players show, you will see someone you know in the cast,” she said.
Local favorites Holmes Morrison and Frances Stanley share the part of “Stage Manager” telling the audience about the townspeople and their activities for the play within a play. Josh Hamilton, a 2003 Garner Senior High School graduate, plays the lead young character George. He will be familiar to the Garner residents who make a morning stop at Bushiban coffee shop. Just after the play he will begin classes at Louisburg College. Carla Ammons, 2004 GSHS graduate and Salutatorian plays the lead young character Emily. This month, Carla will begin classes at North Carolina State University on a Park Scholarship, a full four-year award. Both Josh and Carla were involved with GSHS theater throughout their years there.
In “Our Town,” the audience follows the Gibbs and Webb families from George and Emily’s childhood until they grow up and marry. The universal emotions of sentiment, surprise and tragedy are profoundly portrayed through their motions of daily life.
In a particular poignant moment at the end of the play, Emily ponders “Oh, earth you’re too wonderful for anyone to realize you. Do human beings ever realize life while they live it—every, every minute?”
“Our Town” is a reminder to all who live, love, laugh and cry in a small town to appreciate the neighbor helping neighbor attitude, the problem-solving chats on a front porch or in the grocery store and the strength in families who care about each other.
The play is free, the drama is real, and the acting is recognized for excellence; all that should make everyone grateful enough to go. Call 779-6144 for information or to arrange seating for large groups.
U.S. News ranks, and rankles, schools
Aug. 20, 2004
News & Observer
By TIM SIMMONS
© Copyright 2004
The names of North Carolina's best-known colleges and universities -- and some that aren't so well-known -- were sprinkled throughout a fistful of rankings released Thursday by U.S. News & World Report.
Duke and UNC-Chapel Hill claimed the fifth and 29th spots respectively in the magazine's annual ranking of general excellence. The schools held the same ranks last year.
N.C. State University was the only other Triangle university in the top 100 nationally, with a ranking of 86th -- down two spots from last year.
The report typically ranks No. 1 among college officials in the category of lists they love to hate. Although most say the findings aren't important, many were quick to peruse an early copy of the magazine article Thursday and offer their own spin.
"These U.S. News rankings reflect only one assessment of a university's quality," said UNC-CH Chancellor James Moeser. "Our focus is on overall excellence to benefit the people of North Carolina and beyond."
But for those who do care about the details, UNC-CH officials made it clear that they ranked fifth among public universities and claimed a spot as a leader in making education financially accessible to students.
A summary of the rest of the listings, which will be formally released today, shows:
* Duke: The Durham school ranked fifth nationally and fifth among private institutions. It also placed 22nd in a ranking of the nation's best engineering schools and second among schools that offer biomedical and biomedical engineering programs.
It also scored well in a ranking of schools based on the value of an education among those who receive financial aid -- about 38 percent of Duke's students receive grants based on need, according to the magazine. And Duke got a tip of the hat for how it guides freshmen through their first year of college.
* UNC-CH: In addition to its ranking of 29th overall, the report noted that only 24 percent of UNC-CH's graduates carried any debt after graduation. The average amount of debt was $11,519.
UNC-CH's Kenan Flagler business program was mentioned in several categories detailing the nation's best business schools. The authors of the report also were impressed with both UNC-CH's programs for first-year students and "senior capstone" projects for those about to graduate.
* NCSU: In addition to its ranking of 86th overall, the Raleigh school ranked 39th among the nation's top public universities. Its engineering program also placed 33rd in the nation for those where the highest degree is a doctorate. NCSU also was considered a good academic value, with 42 percent of its students receiving financial aid.
Its seminars and other small-group programs for freshmen were also recognized as outstanding examples of programs that lead to student success.
* Meredith College: The school down the street from NCSU ranked 16th among institutions in the South that offer a full range of undergraduate and master's programs but few if any doctoral degrees. It also warranted a special mention for the fifth-highest graduation rate among schools in its category at 68 percent. Meredith's educational value also ranked 14th among its peer schools.
* Other notable items: Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem ranked 27th in the nation overall; East Carolina University in Greenville and UNC-Greensboro finished in the third tier of schools on rankings of general excellence.
UNC-Asheville was ranked the fourth-best public liberal arts college in the nation; St. Augustine's College in Raleigh was listed among the fourth tier of schools in that category.
Campbell University in Buies Creek ranked 55th among schools that focus on undergraduate and master's programs in the South; N.C. Central University in Durham finished among the fourth tier of schools in that category.
Peace College in Raleigh ranked 31st among schools in the South that focus on undergraduate education. Raleigh's Shaw University was ranked among the third tier of schools in that category.
Letter to the editor: Tax cuts: Do the math
Aug. 20, 2004
News & Observer
© Copyright 2004
Larry, Curly and Moe are three citizens. Larry earns $100,000 and pays $30,000 in federal income taxes. Curly earns $40,000 and pays $10,000 in federal income taxes. Moe earns $15,000 and pays no federal income taxes.
A 10 percent across-the-board cut in federal income taxes is implemented. Larry's taxes are reduced by $3,000, Curly's are lowered by $1,000, and Moe gets no reduction because he pays no federal income taxes. Of the total $4,000 reduction in taxes, Larry gets 75 percent of the cut, Curly receives 25 percent and Moe gets nothing.
Although the above example is fantasy, it does bear a close resemblance to how the federal income tax operates. Due to the progressivity of the tax, the top 1 percent of households by income pay one-third of federal income taxes, the top 20 percent of households by income pay 80 percent of federal income taxes and one-third of all households pay no federal income tax at all. Any across-the-board cut will inevitably give more relief, in dollar amounts, to higher income households.
Unfortunately, this simple point was missed by Tom Teepen in his op-ed column "The truth about tax cuts" (Aug. 17), when he complained about upper-income households receiving the majority of income tax cuts enacted in recent years. Mr. Teepen: It's a matter of simple arithmetic!
Michael L. Walden
Raleigh
(The writer is Reynolds distinguished professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at N.C. State.)
Rights pioneer Campbell dies at 79
Aug. 20, 2004
News & Observer; Charlotte Observer; Wilmington Morning Star; WCNC; Winston Salem Journal; Access North Georgia, GA; Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, GA; Macon Telegraph, GA; Sarasota Herald-Tribune, FL; WSBtv.com, GA; WVEC, VA
By CINDY GEORGE
© Copyright 2004
RALEIGH -- June Elizabeth Kay Campbell, around whose kitchen table black leaders mapped Raleigh's civil rights movement, died Thursday morning, on her 79th birthday.
Considered by many to be the mother of Raleigh's civil rights struggle in the 1950s and 1960s, Campbell put a woman's touch on the strategy devised by black activists, most of whom were men.
She may be most remembered as the well-dressed, composed mother in a historic 1960 photo, walking her young son Bill through hostile onlookers to his first day at Raleigh's Murphey School -- the first time a black student attended a previously all-white Raleigh public school.
"She was the one who had the courage and the strength to not only apply for three of her children to integrate the Raleigh schools, but she was the one -- by herself -- who ended up having to take [Bill] to school, and ended up having to go and get him," said her eldest son, Ralph Campbell Jr.
Her husband, the late civil rights activist Ralph Campbell Sr., was employed with the postal service in Raleigh, and had been told he would be fired if he chose to escort his son to school over going to work that day.
"She and my father were partners in their relationships and the things they did on behalf of the community," Ralph Jr. said.
Ralph Sr. was president of both the local NAACP chapter and the Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association during the heat of the movement in the 1950s and early 1960s. He died in 1983.
June Campbell lived long enough to see her and her husband's efforts manifested in the lives of their children and proteges. Bill, their second son, became mayor of Atlanta. Ralph Jr. is North Carolina's state auditor and the first black person elected to the Council of State -- the group of department heads who, together with the lieutenant governor, are elected rather than being appointed by the governor.
"You don't just have that happen serendipitously," said Dan Blue, the only black speaker of the N.C. House, whom Ralph Sr. and June Campbell embraced in the infancy of his political aspiration. "That's a testament to June's strength and to her own smartness."
Born in Wilmington, June Campbell graduated from Washington School in 1944 and later attended Shaw University and N.C. State University. On New Year's Day 1946, she married Ralph Campbell. Ralph Jr. came along the next December. The mother of four was a lifelong member of St. Ambrose Episcopal Church in Raleigh.
The 'Oval Table Gang'
Over the years, many a politician sat around June Campbell's oval table, with its white, iron base, glass top, and cushions in yellow, her favorite color.
For two decades, the "Oval Table Gang" organized efforts to desegregate Raleigh city schools, support black candidates for office, plan demonstrations and fight redistricting that threatened to dilute black power.
The group met regularly from the early 1960s until Ralph Sr. died.
Members included Raleigh's only black mayor, Clarence Lightner; former State Sen. John Winters; former Wake County Sheriff John Baker, the Rev. Arthur Calloway, a longtime civil rights activist; State Sen. Vernon Malone; Wake County Commissioner Harold Webb; and Wake County Superior Court Judge Stafford Bullock.
Blue, one of the youngest surviving members of the gang, said the Campbell residence -- first on Edenton Street then on St. George Road -- was the place leaders retreated after public meetings.
Blue said June Campbell always made sure that whoever was assembled there was fed. He remembers enjoying lemonade, sweet tea, ice water -- and a few other beverages -- at that table, which remains in her kitchen.
"She was just an all-around lovely lady and a very strong person. Ralph Sr. was the one up front who got a lot of attention and coverage, but those who really knew June knew she was as solid as a rock, strong in that relationship, and as impressive and influential as Ralph Sr. was," Blue said.
After 31 years at St. Augustine's College, June Campbell retired in February 1992 as an administrative secretary to care for her ailing mother. She also plunged into Ralph Jr.'s campaign for state auditor, which he won that November, and often worked in his office downtown.
June Campbell was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March and succumbed to complications.
She is survived by her four children, Ralph Jr., Mildred Campbell Christmas and Edwin "Eddie" Campbell Sr., all of Raleigh, and Bill Campbell of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. She also leaves five grandchildren; a sister, Gloria Kay Greene of Alexandria, Va.; two daughters-in-law; and other family and friends. A sixth grandchild preceded her in death.
Services are scheduled for Monday. Visitation begins at 10:30 a.m. at St. Ambrose Episcopal Church, 813 Darby St. in Raleigh. The funeral service follows at 11:30 a.m.
Campbell will be buried in Raleigh National Cemetery beside her late husband.
Aug. 20, 2004
News & Observer
By ROBBI PICKERAL
© Copyright 2004
GREENSBORO -- Even with a two-year contract and a two-year option, there is
no guarantee that Jacksonville, Fla., will become the permanent home of the
ACC's football championship game.
But the Florida city will be the game's first home -- a choice that that the
conference made and announced Thursday. The inaugural game will be played at
Alltel Stadium on Dec. 3, 2005, beginning at 1 p.m.
The Gator Bowl Association has guaranteed the league $6 million to $7 million a year, according to league sources and The Associated Press. That's one reason ACC athletics directors and faculty representatives unanimously chose Jacksonville over six other cities, including Charlotte.
"Expansion was about a lot more things than just the finances, but the finances needed to work in order for expansion to be successful," ACC commissioner John Swofford said after a news conference Thursday. "And this is another instance in which the financial aspects of it work, and actually exceeded our projections."
The title game also is boosting the ACC's television revenue. It helped the league get a new seven-year, $260 million deal with ABC and ESPN earlier this year. ABC has the rights to televise the title game -- and to find a corporate sponsor to name the game, with the league's approval.
The championship game is the crown jewel in an expansion plan to make the ACC one of the nation's top football conferences. Under NCAA rules, the league can hold a title game with the addition of its 12th member, Boston College, in 2005. Miami and Virginia Tech joined the ACC this year.
The winners of two six-team divisions will meet in the title game.
All seven bidding cities -- Jacksonville; Baltimore; Charlotte; Miami; Orlando, Fla.; Tampa, Fla.; and Washington, D.C. -- offered more guaranteed money than the ACC expected, Swofford said.
The Jacksonville offer was the highest, Swofford said, although Heather Murphy, the press secretary for Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton, said that no city money was included in the financial guarantee to the ACC.
The Gator Bowl Association will run the game for the city, which reportedly is not charging the ACC for the use of Alltel Stadium.
Once the game expenses are subtracted, the money will be divided among the 12 ACC schools.
"It's not a windfall," UNC athletics director Dick Baddour said. "But with inflation and things like that ... hopefully it will help keep us ahead."
Other factors such as weather, stadium size, fan events and available hotel rooms influenced the decision, Swofford said, adding that Jacksonville got the game because of its "total package."
However, the commissioner said he doubted that the city's proximity to the ACC's two major football powers, Miami and Florida State, was a major factor.
The league's familiarity with Jacksonville also helped. Under a contract that runs through 2005, the Gator Bowl annually invites an ACC team; Swofford said that relationship would continue.
The winner of the title game, of course, will earn the ACC's automatic spot in the Bowl Championship Series. The Gator gets the second pick, which doesn't have to be the title-game loser.
But if the bowl does pick that losing team, it could wind up returning to Jacksonville roughly three weeks later. The league ADs expect to discuss the potential problem, because a team playing in the same place twice could reduce ticket sales.
However, Gator Bowl Association President Rick Catlett said that isn't a concern.
"In looking at the SEC championship game in Atlanta -- with those teams that have not been successful in the championship game that have then come back to the Peach Bowl -- the bowl game there has been very successful with those teams," Catlett said.
Each of the title-game teams will be allotted 8,000 tickets to sell, with an additional 4,000 to be shared by the two schools. The ACC also will be allotted 4,000 for its employees, corporate sponsors and other 10 schools.
The ACC asked that bids be submitted with the idea that tickets would cost $60, $75 and $100, but the league still must discuss and approve those prices. At any price, N.C. State athletics director Lee Fowler expects tickets to go fast.
"I think, given the history of the SEC and Big 12 games, there will be a need for tickets," said Fowler, chairman of the committee that studied the bids. "We anticipate shortages."
Alltel Stadium, also the site of the 2005 Super Bowl on Feb. 6, seats 77,487.
The city anticipates that the championship game will generate an annual economic impact of $50 million, "and that's comparable to the Florida-Georgia game [in Jacksonville]," Murphy said. The city also expects to recover "up to" $300,000 in annual revenue from stadium parking, concessions and other stadium-related items, Murphy said.
After Jacksonville hosts the game in 2005 and 2006, the ACC will have the option of extending the deal for two more years.
Charlotte Mayor Patrick McCrory, who described his city as "very disappointed," said that when the time comes, his city would bid again for the game.
Until then, ACC officials are excited about putting the game in Jacksonville -- perhaps for good.
"We feel like Jacksonville has terrific potential to be the home of this championship game," Swofford said. "That's why we're going there first. With things like this, you hope to get it right the first time around. ... Obviously, we're very confident about Jacksonville and their ability to host this game in a quality way."
(Staff writers Chip Alexander, A.J. Carr, Luciana Chavez and Lorenzo Perez contributed to this report.)
Aug. 20, 2004
Philadelphia Inquirer , PA
By Denise Cowie
© Copyright 2004
A class in floral arrangement looked like an easy "A" to Doug Croft when he was wrapping up his horticultural studies at Virginia Tech.
"I thought it wouldn't tax me too much," he recalled last week, as he led a group of aspiring floral designers through the gardens at Chanticleer in Wayne.
Though he didn't expect that class to have any impact on his new career, it turned out to be one of the most valuable.
"The elements of design and the principles of design you learn in floral arranging can be applied to designing a garden, too," he said. And to get the best out of flowers in the garden and the vase, it helps to know a thing or two about plants and their maintenance.
Not all flowers work well as cut flowers, Croft told participants in "The Arranger's Garden," a class sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. The class, which sold out so fast it had to be repeated a second evening, explored the joys of using your own cut flowers in floral arrangements.
That's where the concept of a cutting garden comes in - even if you think you don't have space for one.
"The philosophy used to be that the cutting garden should be on the 'back nine,' " Croft said. "The idea was that people didn't want to put all that effort into a garden and then cut the flowers," so they kept it separate.
But few people today have the luxury of tucking a cutting garden away out of sight, which means they are gradually disappearing.
"I think there has been a pretty steady decline" in the numbers of dedicated cutting gardens over the last 20 or 30 years, said David Ellis, director of communications for the Virginia-based American Horticultural Society, because today's homeowners have less time and space.
But people still want to be able to pick flowers from their own gardens. "There is a feeling of satisfaction you can get from being able to run out on short notice and gather up... flowers for your own house, or to take to somebody else's house," Ellis said.
Croft suggests integrating a cutting garden into the regular garden by planting sweeps of some perennials that can be judiciously thinned and annuals that will bloom again after cutting, and by using garden maintenance to harvest material that can be used for arrangements.
Prunings from a Hydrangea paniculata "Unique," for instance, became part of a fireplace arrangement in the gallery at Chanticleer last week. Or you might use the grasslike trimmings from amsonia when you whack it back by two-thirds after it flowers, or the flower stalks of hosta that are mainly a textural statement in the landscape, or the purple foliage of Physocarpus opulifolius "Diablo," which may be in need of a trim by late summer.
For the last four years, Croft has been in charge of Chanticleer's cutting garden, which supplies most of the flowers for the displays created by a handful of staff horticulturists for the garden's public spaces. (Savvy visitors make a point of visiting the rest rooms to check out the imaginative flower arrangements, which feature seasonal fresh flowers.)
"It was always important that the cut-flower garden be aesthetically appealing," Croft said, "but the flowers growing in it weren't always suitable for arrangements." That has changed under the leadership of R. William Thomas, who took over as director of the garden last year.
Now, Croft said, he is designing the garden in a more formal manner, using rows and blocks, and all the flowers growing in it have to be useful as cut flowers.
What does that mean? They have to be flowers that don't wilt easily, so they'll have a long vase life, and they have to have strong, long stems.
It means no more growing morning glories on the garden's lovely rustic trellises, for example, because their blossoms are fleeting. Instead, Croft is planting clematis and unusual annual vines such as the aromatic Vigna caracalla, or snail flower.
"Those are the biggest criteria," Croft said, but there are also texture, color, and fragrance, "which is not essential, but it certainly does make an arrangement more enjoyable."
To make sure Chanticleer stays on the cutting edge, Croft joined the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers, an industry group that conducts growing trials through North Carolina State University, to see how different species and cultivars perform as cut flowers.
This year, the cutting garden at Chanticleer became a trial garden, giving Croft access to the newest and best - such as Lobelia speciosa "Fan Blue," a floriferous new cultivar he used in last week's design class.
So what's growing in the cutting garden? Everything from A (astilbe) to Z (zinnias), including such difficult-to-grow charmers as double lisianthus and workhorses like Helianthus x multiflorus "Flore Pleno," a sturdy double yellow sunflower that usually doesn't need staking, though the plant is more than six feet tall.
This season, there's also a row of asparagus, which provides great greenery for floral displays (and is also doing a good job of attracting Japanese beetles away from the dahlias).
"Don't just think of ferns when you're looking for greenery," Croft told the class, suggesting holly, azalea, yew, helleborus, coleus and hosta as alternative sources. And don't always go with the obvious. If you've trimmed greenery from your Magnolia virginiana, for instance, you can turn it around to feature the leaves' silvery underside in your arrangement.
Croft doesn't stop at the cutting garden when he's looking for design inspiration. The neighboring vegetable garden, also in his charge, provided an entire arrangement for last week's class: leaves from two kale varieties; rosemary; purple ornamental peppers; rhubarb stalks; and red okra pods, which echoed the color of the rhubarb.
"Some people say that's the best use ever for okra," joked fellow staffer Laura Aiken. Okra is actually in the hibiscus family, Croft added, but its pretty yellow flowers would close up quickly if cut.
Color is all many gardeners think of when they choose flowers for an arrangement. But that's just one factor. How about form, texture and line?
Let your structure guide you, urged Croft. Consider the shape of the arrangement you have in mind, its function, and where it might be placed - whether it's for the table, where guests will see all around it but need to see one another over it, or for the foyer, where they might see just the front. And when you begin creating your design, take your cue from the garden.
"I'm trying to re-create the beauty of what's in the garden, but on a smaller scale," Croft said. "I am trying to create a combination of flowers, foliage, and container that is pleasing to the eye and accomplishes a sense of balance and harmony throughout... . I try to do this by combining different plant materials that work well together, and placing them such that the arrangement feels sturdy and each element can be appreciated in its own right and as a whole."
The result doesn't have to be complex.
Croft told the class of a dinner party he once planned, starring his own floral arrangement in a prized old family vase. When he set it on the table, however, water leaked everywhere - the vase was cracked.
After a frenzied search for an alternative container, Croft settled for a shallow bowl filled with water. He cut the heads off some flowers, floated them in the bowl, and added a candle.
"Everybody loved it," he said.
Ask Nancy: It's not pot, but just what is this plant?
Aug. 19, 2004
Fort Wayne News Sentinel, IN
By NANCY BRACHEY
© Copyright 2004
My mother and aunt have a flowering shrub that dies back to the ground each winter. Its leaves are deeply lobed and are amazingly similar to a marijuana plant.
The flowers have bright red, single petals arranged in a star pattern. The plant grows easily from the seeds in the pod. They got the seeds from my grandmother. We don't know what this plant is called or its botanical name, but it appears to be some type of hibiscus.
Since everyone comments that the leaves look like a marijuana plant, we want to assure them that it is not one, and to be able to tell them what it really is. My aunt is beginning to think she should dig it up and throw it away so she won't be arrested. Can you identify this plant?
That is a perfectly respectable plant you have, and everyone should continue to enjoy it without fear of arrest.
It is the Texas Star hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus), which is really dramatic and tropical-looking. But I can see how some people who aren't normally close to the marijuana scene might worry about the similarity of foliage.
I am not close to the marijuana scene either, but having been a student at N.C. State University a while back, know what pot (Cannabis sativa) looks like.
By now, you have seen a photo of Texas Star and confirmed its true identity. Garden centers offer it for sale fairly often, especially in late summer, when the vivid red blooms are in full flower. At that time, there is no confusion about its identity.
It is one of several hardy hibiscus that enliven the landscape in late summer and autumn.
Its deep red flowers are 6 to 8 inches wide, and possess a starlike shape on tall plants that can reach 10 feet. Plants die back to the ground in winter, but the hardy roots stimulate fresh growth in spring. This hibiscus likes moist soil and tolerates flooding. It's a good choice for a damp place in full sun.
Remedy for scale
Q. I have removed six variegated plants I think were ligustrum, They were infested with white scale for years. I used many different products, but could not stop the bushes from dying. I would like to replant in the same area. I am concerned about the new bushes picking up this problem, too. What is a good kind of shrub that will not pick up the scale bug, stay small, grow slow and is low-maintenance? Scale, an insect that spends much of its life under a hard shell, making it difficult to kill, affects ligustrum plants. However, lightweight, horticultural oil is an excellent remedy. It smothers the shell, trapping the insect inside.
These insects are all around, and you should not think you can eradicate them. It's the plant that attracts a particular insect, and ligustrum is a choice selection. But so are many evergreens, including azaleas and hollies.
However, without knowing what kind of sun or shade you have, it's hard to make a precise choice. Since you are keen to avoid a fresh invasion of scale, you should investigate boxwoods, barberry, pieris, daphne and abelia. Look over examples of these kinds of plants to see if their mature height and spread, the price and the sun-shade exposure suits your spot.
It's Time To ...
PICK OUT PLUMES
Select and pick good-looking plumes of ornamental grasses to use indoors in dry arrangements. Spray the plumes with hair spray to reduce shedding.
CONSIDER BULBS
Put on your thinking cap about the various bulbs you want to plant this fall for winter and spring beauty. Study the bulb catalogs arriving now and aim to choose something different this year.
PLAN TO AERATE
Hire and schedule someone to aerate your lawn in September as part of your annual lawn renewal.
Aug. 20, 2004
Frontpagemag.com
By Mike S. Adams
© Copyright 2004
The other day I woke up in a great mood. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and I was thinking about how I could make the world a better, more diverse place.
When I got to the office, I thought about the dozens of lawyers who had just signed up for my new pro bono legal network, designed to sue universities for enforcing unconstitutional speech codes. I thought about calling it the “be more tolerant of dissent or we’ll sue your butt off” network. A little self-censorship convinced me to change the “butt” to “tail.”
But then it hit me that, like a hypocrite, I haven’t done any pro bono work lately. It was then that I decided to write the following letter to ten women’s resource centers around the nation to offer my expertise on a topic often neglected in the postmodern academy:
Dear Women’s Center:
My name is Mike Adams. I am an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at UNC Wilmington, and a regular columnist for the Heritage Foundation’s Townhall.com. I am also a member of the NRA and a weekly commentator at NRANews.com. I am writing to offer my expertise, free of charge, to Women’s Centers around the nation that are interested in combating violence against women.
… It is my opinion that the response to the problem of violence against…female students has lacked a diversity of viewpoint. Specifically, there has been a lack of discussion about the possible benefits of gun ownership among women, particularly those who have been harassed, stalked, or otherwise victimized in the past.
As such, I would love the opportunity to visit your campus to talk about the following:
*The benefits and responsibilities
of gun ownership in general.
*The desirability of concealed carry permits for women.
*The basic rules governing the use of deadly force.
Since I am traveling extensively in the coming year, I believe that I will be able to coordinate a visit to your university sometime in the coming months. Again, the lecture would be provided at no cost to the university.
Please contact me immediately, if you think that you would be interested.
Below, I have summarized the responses of the ten women’s centers I contacted:
Bucknell University. No response. I suppose that they were unable to fit me in between the “safer sex” forum, the “sex discussed here” forum, and the “love your body” forum. The “love your body” forum helps to reduce STDs and pregnancies by encouraging women to gain weight and be happy with their own bodies, regardless of what a man thinks. “Love your body” day is often endorsed by university wellness centers, not to mention Pee Wee Herman.
Duke University. No response. Duke was apparently unable to fit me in between the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on September 1st, the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on September 15th, the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on September 29th, the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on October 13th, the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on October 27th, the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on November 10th, and the Women’s Revolutionary Knitting Forum on December 8th.. The Duke Women’s Center is committed to weaving the fabric of diversity for generations to come.
Emory University. No response. Between the “Creation and ritual in African ceramics” lecture, the “Biography of a pot” lecture, and the “Women in clay” lecture, Emory was truly busy molding the lives of their young students. But I really started to ferment when I learned that they found time for an “African beer tasting” event.
Georgia Tech. No response. This was despite their claimed emphasis in women’s “safety concerns.”
Princeton University. No response. They did, however, schedule an “athletics and homophobia” lecture and a “women of color” luncheon. Rumor has it the Princeton Women’s Center is changing its name to the Black Lesbian Pole Vaulting Center.
University of Alabama. No response. The university had already sponsored the following eleven events for the semester: faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, faces in the mirror, and faces in the mirror. Apparently, the women needed to spend the semester in deep reflection.
The University of Massachusetts at Amherst. No response. Despite a claimed interest in “empower(ing) women” and “stop(ping) oppression” they seemed uninterested. Women in Massachusetts usually defend themselves by yelling “shove it” instead of wielding a handgun.
Georgetown University. No response. Women in Georgetown feel empowered already. Hillary Clinton has a house near their campus.
Sarah Lawrence College. No response. This women’s center has hosted scores of exciting lectures over the years including the following: "The Murder of a Pakistani Muslim Immigrant Woman in Chicago,” “Secular Women of the Jewish Left and the Rise of Jewish Feminism,” “The Relationship Between Lesbians and Psychotherapy,” “Bon Bons, Lemon Drops, and Oh! Henry Bars: Candy, Consumer Culture, and the Construction of Gender,” “A Cultural History of Gender, Class, and the American Cigarette” (talk about penis envy), “New York African-American Lesbians and Religious Autonomy,” “The Hidden Lesbians in the Diaries of Anne Lister,” and “Women Hobos of the Depression.” That last one sounds like a real bummer.
North Carolina State University. Finally I got a response, indicating that N.C. state is “unable to offer a program on gun ownership at this time” for two reasons: 1) “the North Carolina statutes forbid guns on their college campuses” and, 2) “statistics indicate that a lot of people who attempt to protect themselves with a gun are often killed with the gun themselves.”
Of course, I never intended to argue that women should actually carry their guns to class. But I did intend to show that the benefits of gun ownership outweigh the detriments. In others words, guns thwart crimes more often than they cause accidents.
Oh well, at least I tried. After all, most of these centers will be sponsoring the Vagina Monologues later this year. That should be enough to scare most of the men away. So maybe they don’t need guns after all. Maybe I just need to see things from a woman’s perspective.