Carolina Alumni Review - January/February 2008

Helmets Share Their Feelings

It’s not always the highlight-film hit that gives a football player a concussion — the less scary-looking impacts matter, too, according to UNC researchers.

They reached their conclusions after reading data from sensors embedded in the helmets of Tar Heel players over three seasons.

They found out a lot more about what’s going on in a player’s head when they factored in the direction from which the hit came, the player’s position, even whether it occurred in a practice or a game.

You can see more detail in Fromthe Hill Online at alumni.unc.edu.

Davis Gets Raise and Extension at Close of First Season

On the eve of the Duke game, which would not corrected, establish the real priorities of the Univer-give Carolina four football victories in Coach sity.” Friday said the raise was “an increase far in excess Butch Davis’ first season, Davis was given an of that presently provided the president or any chancel-eighth year on his contract and a $291,000-a-year raise. lor and substantially greater than the yearly compensa-

In a statement, Athletics Director Dick Baddour ’ 66 tion of an English professor.” said Davis was approached in midseason about the pos- Hodding Carter III, University Professor of leader-sibility of a raise and extension. “We were aggressive in ship and public policy and currently on the Knight pursuing Coach Davis last year before Commission, said: “We just bid against the season ended, and we wanted to a mythical salary to keep a guy we be ahead of the curve this year,” the had just given a very good contract ... statement read. Baddour said he saw a really fine contract to a coach that progress toward the rebuilding of the may prove himself. But I would say football program in competitiveness, that it’s a little premature. Big-time player recruiting and a renewed football has the potential of, and the excitement among fans. record of, doing more to corrupt the “My family and I felt like Chapel mission of higher education.”

Hill was the right place last year and Trustees Chair Roger Perry ’ 71 are even more convinced after being told the newspaper: “It’s lamentable here for one season,” Davis said. “I’m that that’s what it takes to compete. appreciative of the show of support Unless we unilaterally disarm our pro-from Dick Baddour, the administra- gram, we are going to have to stay tion, Chancellor Moeser and the competitive. ... This is an issue that’s Board of Trustees. I’m confident we much, much bigger than just us.” will continue to make progress in all Trustee Bob Winston III ’ 84 told phases of the football program. the paper he believed academics

“This should put to rest any specula- ^A^THLETIC^C^{OMMUNICATIONS}remained UNC’s overwhelming prior-tion of where I’ll be coaching in the future.” ity. “I believe that if you look at [UNC’s] reputation ...

Criticism followed from two prominent UNC and where we have focused the vast majority of our voices, one a former co-chair of the Knight Commis- time and resources, it is clear that we believe the aca-sion on Intercollegiate Athletics and the other a cur- demic mission is the most important mission of the rent member of it. University, and it will continue to be so,” Winston said.

Former UNC System President William Friday ’ 48 Davis’ initial compensation package paid him (LLB), who regularly warns against what he sees as the $286,000 in base salary from the University, plus an excesses of college athletics, told The News & Observer: expense account, a media services supplement from “This salary action establishes a level of compensation Learfield Communications, a Nike apparel contract, so dramatically out of balance with the compensation and a Rams Club-paid supplement and bonuses. of the faculty of the University that I hope and trust the Alumni speak out about this story, first posted online trustees and the [Board of Governors] will meet their and included in December’s “Out of the Blue” e-newsletter, obligation to correct the excessive imbalances, which, if in this issue’s Letters department, starting on page 18.

Tuition continued from page 3

chair of the campus tuition task force, she had said the ranges the task force came up with looked “very steep.” She supported making the exact uses of the tuition increases transparent and working harder to make tuition more predictable for out-of-state students. The task force recommended that parents and students be informed in their admissions packets that tuition and fee increases should be expected.

“I recognize that increases are appropriate for the institution, but I’m also concerned about students who came to Carolina based on one expectation about what the tuition would be,” Carson said.

Trustee John Ellison ’ 69 said the increases are necessary for keeping the University in line with its academic goals and to make it competitive with its peer institutions.

“It’s not that we meant to increase tuition as much as inflation or less than inflation,” he said. “Inflation isn’t defined as the consumer price index. It’s defined as what other schools are doing.”

Carolina consistently is rated one of the best bargains in American public higher education. Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine has ranked UNC first in academic quality at an affordable cost for five straight years. Before the November action, tuition had been raised five of the six previous years.