T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y
The Chronicle
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2011
ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTH YEAR, ISSUE 53
WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM
Bell re-elected for 6th term as Program for mayor, sales tax increases pass int’l scholars Half-cent increase for transit, quarter-cent increase for education by Yeshwanth Kandimalla
starts this year by Margot Tuchler
THE CHRONICLE
THE CHRONICLE
Durham County voters elected Durham Mayor Bill Bell to a sixth consecutive term and also voted in favor of two tax increases Tuesday. Results posted by the Durham County Board of Elections indicate that Bell—incumbent since 2001 and the second mayor in the county’s history to be elected to a sixth consecutive term—was elected with nearly 82 percent of the vote, trouncing his opponent, Rev. Sylvester Williams, who garnered just 17.6 percent. At press time, 98 percent of voting precincts had reported results. Upon approving both referenda on the ballot, Durham County residents will eventually see a sales tax hike from 6.75 to 7.50 percent. The revenue from the half-cent and quarter-cent increases will fund public transportation and education, respectively. Voter turnout was recorded at slightly more than 17 percent. “We’re going to continue down the path that we’ve started, continuing to revitalize downtown and revitalize our inner-city neighborhoods,” Bell said. “I will continue working with our city manager about the depth of our challenges, including reducing crime and improving law enforcement.”
Thanks to a large donation, Duke can now support select international students who would have otherwise been unable to attend the University. A $20 million gift—donated by University Trustee Bruce Karsh, co-founder and president of Oaktree Capital Management, LLC and Trinity ’77, and his wife Martha in 2008—has made it possible for four international freshmen to enroll this year as part of the Karsh International Scholars Program. The scholarship program, which is in its first year, meets the full financial need of its students and sponsors up to four years of extensive summer research funding, among other trips and opportunities during the year. The program helps address a void in financial aid for international students, given that the University is not need-blind for international applicants and there is only a limited amount of financial aid available to international students. The scholarship program will bolster Duke’s international numbers by making the international admissions process closer to being need-blind, said Barbara Wise, associate director of the Office of Undergraduate Scholars and Fellows. “We hope that this program will encourage
SEE ELECTIONS ON PAGE 6
TYLER SEUC/THE CHRONICLE
Re-elected Durham mayor Bill Bell, left, shares the podium with John White, right, director of public policy at the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce, at Beyu Caffe during the election celebration Tuesday night.
SEE SCHOLARSHIP ON PAGE 6
Two hybrid-electric buses added to Duke bus fleet by Katya Prosvirkina THE CHRONICLE
Commuting between campuses is about to get a little greener. Duke Parking and Transportation Services are introducing two hybrid-electric buses on the C-1 and C-2 bus routes traveling between East and West campuses Nov. 14. The Duke bus fleet of more than 30 buses currently consists largely of older vehicles—ranging from 1994 models to decade-old buses. In conjunction with plans to acquire eight standard diesel buses, Duke is looking to update the
New DukeEngage program unexpectedly canceled, Page 3
transit system to meet modern needs, Sam Veraldi, director of Parking and Transportation Services, wrote in an email Monday. At a cost of $1.8 million, the two new hybrid-electric buses will serve to both increase capacity and decrease carbon emissions. The purchase falls in line with the University’s Climate Action Plan, which seeks to minimize University emissions and reach carbon neutrality by 2024. The pair of buses, which are manufactured by a subsidiary of Volvo called Nova Bus, have an “accordion” segment built into their de-
sign. This allows for a significantly increased capacity of up to 30 additional people. “We have plans to achieve climate neutrality as an institution by 2024,” said Casey Roe, outreach coordinator for Duke Sustainability. “Although only 25 percent of the emissions come from transportation, Duke has always wanted to make its fleet more efficient.” The Duke Sustainability office worked with Duke Parking and Transportation Services to add more environmentally-friendly buses to
ONTHERECORD
“We don’t want to be known as the Netflix or Hulu of Duke.” —DSB President Dominik Davalos on free movie streaming. See story page 3
SEE BUSES ON PAGE 8
Duke beats Clemson in PKs, Page 9