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Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016
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Hurricane causes distress to locals Associated Press
GREENVILLE, N.C. | Anita Van
Beveren has been coming back day after day to watch the brown floodwater creep toward the rental home she shares with her two teenage children. While she got many belongings out, they couldn't move everything — a bicycle is chained to a back deck surrounded by water. "I cry and pray. There's nothing else to do," said Van Beveren, who is staying with friends. "We keep coming up here every hour. And every hour it's worse." Such is the vigil many are keeping on Van Beveren's side of Willow Street, which runs parallel to the Tar River and has largely served as a boundary between those who evacuated and those who stayed. The leafy neighborhood — one of many around North Carolina to suffer flooding after Hurricane Matthew — includes onestory homes and small apartment buildings that house a mix of families and students from nearby East Carolina University. North of Willow, houses and apartments were filling up with water even before the river was expected to crest Thursday. The flooding triggered by heavy rain from Matthew — which killed more than 500 people in Haiti — has left at least 35 dead in the U.S.
Associated Press
Mayor Pro-Tem Kandie Smith (left) and Mayor Allen Thomas embrace as they join about 1,000 people in a town prayer at the Greene St. bridge over the rising Tar River near the Town Commons in downtown Greenville, NC on Wednesday. The bridge was closed Wednesday as the Tar River came out of its banks from all the rains from Hurricane Matthew, which passed through the eastern part of the state a few days ago. Several preachers and town leaders prayed for the waters to not rise any higher and for town unity in these tough times. Some North Carolina rivers, like the Tar, continue to rise from the heavy rains, threatening property and forcing evacuations.
South of the street — and uphill from the river — homeowners expect their houses to be dry, and most stayed despite a mandatory evacuation. "People that are staying are pretty
comfortable because a lot of us were here for Floyd, and we know what's coming," said John Benson. He lives on a street that crosses Willow just uphill from a Dead End sign that marked the edge of
the floodwaters from Hurricane Floyd in 1999. The Tar River isn't expected to get as high this time. Joe Davis owns houses on another street that crosses Willow, including a rental property where
waist-deep water lapped at the foundation Wednesday. He watched a worker use duct tape and sheets of plastic to seal crawl space vents after placing sandbags at the doors. "This is my first time doing this, so we'll see how this works," said Davis, who bought the rental house several months ago. Wearing duck-hunting waders, Andrew Brauns strode through the murky water after working on Davis's rental house. He does maintenance for several property owners and said he put in several 15-hour days this week. "These are going to be our two worst houses actually," he said, pointing to the rental house and one across the street. "So we've really been trying to keep the water out. Under the houses, it can wash a bunch of the foundations away." Two tenants of another house surrounded by several feet of water — Carolyn Raby and Nicole Beauchene — walked up to survey the scene at the end of the street that dead ends near the river. They said their landlord has been letting them stay in another house he owns, but the ordeal has fried their nerves. "I haven't slept. I don't eat. The only normal thing I have is work and that's sad when work's your only normal thing to do," said Beauchene, who works at the sandwich shop Jimmy John's.
Student picks NIU for scholarships #Project NIU works to up its enrollment Nicole Scott Staff writer
DeKALB | An Elgin Community College graduate chose to complete his degree at NIU after being selected to receive a scholarship through a new undergraduate pathway program. Nick Casas, junior political science and community leadership and civic engagement double major, finalized his decision to transfer to NIU once he was accepted as part of the Elgin Community College Research Fellows Program.
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I have made dozens of connections with students, faculty [and] administrators at [NIU]... because of the [Elgin Community College Research Fellows Program].” Nick Casas Junior political science and community leadership and civic engagement double major i
The program is aimed to increase NIU enrollment, which is down 5.5 percent, by offering scholarships and academic opportunities for Elgin Community College graduates transferring to NIU. Casas said the program’s scholarship helped tremendously in providing financial assistance for tuition. “I have made dozens of connections with students, faculty [and] administrators at [NIU]… because
of the [program],” Casas said. “Opening that door to me was the single greatest thing that’s ever happened in my academic career.” Following the initial funding by the NIU grants committee, the program pilot launched in spring 2016. Casas, the program’s first member, demonstrated great success, and with the support of the program’s partners, Kristin Huffine, assistant professor at Center for Latino and Latin American Studies at NIU, and Antonio Ramirez, Elgin Community College’s faculty member, the community college’s foundation committed $20,000 in scholarships to the program. Scholarships for $1,000 will be dispersed to 10 students transferring to NIU a year for the first two years at Elgin Community College. The program will also pair students with peer mentors and participating faculty at NIU, as well as develop critical skills for their future professions through the hands-on research opportunities offered. “What I see is a fantastic opportunity for [Elgin Community College] students to gain hands-on research experience early on in their collegiate careers,” said Sean Jensen, Elgin Community College director of Transfer Services. “Whereas often in your freshman [and] sophomore years, you’re not able to get that hands-on experience.” Renique Kersh, associate vice provost for Engaged Learning at NIU, emphasizes the importance of connecting students to faculty and peers within their institution.
Outline continues #ProjectOutline | From Page 1
Courtesy Elgin Community College
NIU President Doug Baker (left) shakes hands with David Sam, President of Elgin Community College, after agreeing to a Business Dual Degree Program.
“If we can connect students in ways that make them feel like they belong and that this institution is an institution that welcomes them in our doors, then that leads to a student staying,” Kersh said. “We want students to stay, but more importantly, we want students to matriculate; we want them to graduate from NIU, and we want them to do so having gained certain skills so that they can be successful in their careers.” With adequate funding Kersh said she believes the program has the potential to increase enrollment
overtime, and since the program does not target any particular major, Kersh said she believes it will attract a larger number of students as early as this spring.
NIU’s enrollment • New freshman: 1,802 • New transfers: 1,728 • Other new undergraduates: 308 • Undergraduates: 14,079 • Graduates: 4,672 • Law students: 264 • 2015 enrollment: 20,130 • 2016 enrollment: 19,015
Baskerville said it’s vital people understand that black students can raise awareness for Black Lives Matter in a non-violent way. She believes racism is still present every day even though some people believe it no longer exists. Tribuana Jones, vice president of Black Student Union, said events like these are meant to unite students not provoke them but acknowledges some feel discomfort towards the demonstration of Black Lives Matter, which is OK because it shows there is a problem. Jones said anyone with questions about the movement or about symbols like the chalk drawings or students wearing signs can talk her or other members of the union. After the demonstration of freedom of speech, NIU sent a memorandum Wednesday to administration and faculty informing them students might wear slogan T-shirts, signs or other forms of expression throughout the week. The administration reminded employees this is permissible, but it is important to remember that classrooms serve the purpose of instruction and discussion of class-related material.