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www.dal/ygamecock.com FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24,2004 V°1'Since 1908 IN THIS ISSUE ♦ VIEWPOINTS feeeps and veeps in SC Steven Van Haren relates how the appearance of the VP candidate enlivens his neighborhood. Page 4 ♦ THE MIX Cookin’ — Southern style From Moon Pies to shrimp and grits, the South has its share of regional flavors. The Mix takes a culinary tour of down home tastes. Also, Schooner takes rock in a new direction on its latest release, melding uncommon sounds with ^distorted guitars. *Page 5 ♦ SPORTS ‘Pops’ good to go for USC Tim Frisby, a 39-year old walk-on, is cleared by the NCAA to play this season for the Gamecocks. Page 12 WEATHER ♦ TODAY ♦ SAT. High 87 High 84 Low 63 Low 64 FOR EXTENDED FORECAST, SEE PAGE 2. INDEX Comics and Crossword.7 Classifieds.10 Horoscopes.7 Letters to the Editor.4 Online Poll...4 Police Report.2 Board might reject Pharmacy merger By TAYLOR SMITH THE GAMECOCK The Health Affairs committee of USC’s Board of Trustees is expected to reject a merger of USC’s College of Pharmacy its MUSC counterpart because of accreditation problems, according to the board’s vice chairman. Herbert Adams, a trustee from Laurens, said a merged college would take too long to get accredited. “I am told that it would be four or five years before anything could occur,” Adams said. But Adams said board members would discuss several proposals, which he declined to elaborate on, which could ] have the two colleges merging. He added moi that MUSC was “in a bind” concerning ups its buildings and that hospitals involved of i in the merger were not keen on the idea inst of dealing with both campuses. In November, USC President mis Andrew Sorensen proposed the idea of hap merging the pharmacy school of USC any with the with the pharmacy school at pha the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. at The plan was considered because, at Cap the time, both schools were lacking deans and the merging of the two 4 schools would defray administrative Grc costs in the shadow of higher education budget cuts. ROCK THE VOTE MORGAN FORD/THE GAMECOCK Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards speaks to a capacity crowd at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center Wednesday night. Edwards came to campaign for Sen. John Kerry. VP candidate promises plan to pay tuition By GABRIELLE SINCLAIR THE GAMECOCK Promising students a plan to guarantee college tuition, vice presidential candidate John Edwards fired up a sweaty crowd of hundreds Wednesday at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center near Five Points. Columbia Mayor Bob Coble introduced Edwards, who was born in Seneca. “I told you I’d be back,” Edwards said, to cheers. Edwards focused his speech mostly on Bush’s presidential record and sending jobs overseas, when he got his biggest response. “Here’s what would be good for the American economy — to outsource George W. Bush," he said. Edwards slammed President Bush’s policy on Pell Grants and said he and Sen. John Kerry, who hasn’t visited South Carolina sii^e debating in Greenville “I told you I’d be back.” JOHN EDWARDS VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE earlier this year, had a plan to help students. “If you give us two years of public service to your community, we’ll give you four years of college,” Edwards said. If elected, he promised a plan to bring down the cost of health care and to bring prescription drugs into the United States legally. Third-year political science student and College Republican member Adam Piper said Edwards’ and Kerry’s message was misleading. “Here are two men who have more flip-flops than you see on Myrtle Beach,” ♦ Plea^ see EDWARDS, page 3 )espite the prospect of saving iey, USC pharmacy students were :t because of the possible relocation he statewide school to Charleston :ad of staying in Columbia. There were a lot of ^presentations of what was going to :>en,” Adams said. “There was never consideration to get rid of the rmacy (college) at the school.” "he Health Affairs committee meets 11 a.m. in the campus room of stone House, n other business: ► At 1:30 p.m., the Building and unds Committee will discuss > ♦ Please see PHARMACY, page 3 Bands perform to boost turnout ycmi By THOMAS CHANDLER THE GAMECOCK From angry hardcore to bouncing pop, a broad sampling of Columbia’s rock bands performed for Columbia locals Wednesday night at Armed Chair Production Group’s “Rock the Vote” concert at Trustus Theatre. Patrick Kelly, who co organized the event with fellow USC student Ben Compton, said he hoped to boost voter awareness and bring young people to the landmark theater, which hosts Armed Chair’s work. f rr i ii Ulan 1IIV.U1UV.11 a L ldUlV.1 flanking the entrance registered new voters and provided handouts with key political issues and candidate stances. Emcee Sumner Bender kicked things off with the night’s slogan, “If you don’t vote, you don’t matter.” Infinite, a new band in Columbia with a mixture of alternative and rap rock sound, opened. Kelly said his inexperience in the music scene had been the biggest obstacle to pulling the event together. They contacted Black Candle Music Promotions, which provided three of the heavier acts on the bill: Deleveled, Sterling Y and Mourning After. Infinite and Samwise came from Fast Forward Productions, owned ♦ Please see VOTE, page 3 MENINGITIS WINDSOR COWART/THE GAMECOCK Naomi Hayes, head nurse at the Thomson Student Health Center, gives a Meningitis vaccination to Dawes Cooke, a a second-vear physical education student. USC treats 1,400 to prevent disease By ALEXIS STRATTON THE GAMECOCK USC health officials have screened nearly 1,400 students for meningitis immunizations and treated about 90 percent of them after a first-year student was diagnosed with the potentially deadly disease on Monday. “I think we’re over the hump on that,” said Bill Hill, director of USC health services. Hill also said about 200 students have come in for vaccinations since Monday, and he expects that number to increase. The Thomson Student Health Center will have about 1,300 doses of the vaccine available for immediate use, and Hill said officials can get more if they need it. Palmetto Health Baptist Hospital spokeswoman Tammie Epps said Kirkland Darby, a first-year business student diagnosed with the disease on Monday, has been upgraded to good condition. Darby’s roommate, Mitchell Kiser, and another friend took Darby to the hospital Monday morning. Housing Director Gene Luna said doctors told him that every hour Darby lives through the illness can be considered an improvement. The Health Center will stop free screening and distribution for the antibiotic at 6 p.m. today since the preventative antibiotic is only effective for approximately five to seven days after close contact. The Health Center will also provide information to students and visiting parents this weekend about getting vaccinated. In order to meet the influx of immunization requests, the Health Center will be operating under extended hours this week and next week. Hill emphasized, though, that students who were in close contact with Darby —sharing respiratory or throat secretions, such as drinking from the same glass or smoking the same cigarette — within a week before his diagnosis should be sure to come to the Health Center before 6 p.m. on Friday. “The vaccine is inappropriate (for that treatment) because it takes 10 or 14 days for antibodies to build up in body,” Hill said. Hill also said that, despite rumors, ♦ Please see MENINGITIS, page 3 _ Rule change nixes Carolina Classics By JON TURNER THE GAMECOCK The USC athletics department disbanded the Carolina Classics Wednesday in response to new SEC guidelines. Carolina Classics is a student organization made up of 33 women who introduce prospective athletes to campus. Sports Information Director Kerry Tharp said the changes in the NCAA guidelines came in response to a number of abuses at other schools. “In light of some things that happened earlier, the NCAA has taken a close look at how recruiting weekends, especially in football and basketball, are handled,” he said. Tharp also said the SEC is being a leader to address those changes in recruiting standards, requiring every school to submit a report on the subject by Dec. 1. “The SEC has kind of gotten out ahead,” he said. Sophomore quarterback Syvelle Newton said he thought the women were a helpful addition to a recruiting weekend. “It’s good for the program to have girls that are involved, that know the campus and can show people around,” Newton said, ♦ Please see CLASSICS, page 3 ARTS AN D SCIENCES Interim dean presents plan By JACOB DAVIS THE GAMECOCK l The interim dean of the College of Science and Mathematics spoke to a group of students and faculty members Thursday, making the case why he should become dean of the new College of Arts and Sciences. John Skvoretz presented a slideshow and participated in a question and answer session in the Russell House Theater Thursday afternoon. Skvoretz is the third of four candidates to speak. Skvoretz holds a bachelor’s degree in Math and Sociology from Lehigh University, and has his doctorate in sociology from the University of Pittsburgh. “I’ve held a lot of university posts, but thankfully I don’t need to explain where they were, since they’ve all been here,” Skvoretz said. Skvoretz came to ,USC as an undergraduate program director in sociology in 1976 and held the position until 1984 when he became the chairman of the sociology department. He was briefly the interim chairman of sociology in 2000 before returning to the College of Liberal Arts, becoming an assistant dean in 2002. Skvoretz’s slideshow also displayed what he jokingly called some of his “memorable moments in administration.” As a junior faculty member, he was responsible for scheduling the courses of “opinionated” senior faculty members, which Skvoretz said was “much like herding cats.” He also listed some of his accomplishments, including using excess tuition funds to back merit raises and his involvement with the university committee, which initiated the value-centered management 4 program at USC. The VCM issue was heatedly debated at the presentation of dean candidate Joe Glover of the University of Florida last week. In response to fears that the merger of the colleges would leave professors scrambling for “a limited pool of dollars,” Skvoretz pointed to his leadership during the past year under VCM. He took credit for not allowing a “Hobbesian War of all against all” to break out in the college. Skvoretz also pointed to his establishing procedures to explicitly incorporate equity consideration in all raise considerations. This is to ensure that faculty members who are outstanding in their fields have their work recognized in considerations of their salary. Skvoretz also outlined his plans to ♦ Please see DEAN, pag.e 3