250 years of probation

11/19/2012 4:05:58 PM

what i dont get is if a kid isn't smart enough to read a book then how is he smart enough to copy and paste?

11/19/2012 8:22:16 PM

they aren't. They had someone else copy & paste it for them.

11/19/2012 9:09:11 PM

Everybody does it, why UNC, why? why? why? why? why? why?

11/19/2012 11:53:58 PM

A state senator wrote a column saying there needs to be a formal investigation

http://carolinacolumns.com/thom-goolsby/sen-thom-goolsby-unc-academic-fraud-merits-criminal-probe-2

Quote :

"The UNC academic fraud scandal is like a pesky staph infection that just won’t go away for university officials — nor should it. As reporters at the Raleigh News and Observer continue to dig, they uncover more and more dirty little secrets. The latest problems swirl around a pus pocket called the Academic Support Program. For many years some football and basketball players, known to the University as “Special Admits,” were assisted by the Academic Support Program and allowed to take no-show classes in the Department of African and Afro-American Studies. Billed as lecture classes, the courses were offered by none other than the chairman of the department. The classes never met — leading one to wonder why the courses were scheduled at all. Mary Willingham, a reading specialist at UNC, worked in the Academic Support Program. She told reporters she met numerous athletes who had never even read a book, nor did they know what a paragraph was. Willingham reported numerous instances of academic fraud, but no administrator wanted to hear from her. Why would they? These student-athletes (the term “student” is used lightly here) played in the all-important category of revenue-producing sports. Such individuals are precious commodities at any major university because college sports programs bring in billions of dollars every year to the schools that maintain them. The money comes from many different places, including trademarks, endorsements, media revenues, postseason games and big money from alumni donors. It’s the gladiators who bring crowds to the arena and it should surprise no one that schools will do whatever it takes to field the best possible team. What is shameful is the continued smokescreen produced by the UNC administration around this scandal. Academic fraud has prompted no less than four investigations at UNC. One is currently being led by former Governor Jim Martin. So far the governing body of college sports, the NCAA, has not sullied its hands in the most recent fraud revelations. Governor Martin’s investigation should provide clear answers and solutions for dealing with the scandal. So far, administrators are using the former Republican governor’s inquiry as a dodge to avoid any comments. When asked about the problem, Chancellor Holden Thorp refused to talk, stating that everyone was focused on the Governor’s investigation and that’s all he had to say. Further, university officials repeatedly claim that FERPA does not allow them to discuss developments in the academic fraud case or release records to the public. FERPA is an acronym for the federal “Family Education Rights and Privacy Act.” The University claims this law does not allow them to release records or face the loss of federal funding. A few documents were disclosed, providing strong evidence as to the extent of the scandal. It is past time for a criminal investigation into these fraudulent activities. For far too long, academic scandals have been treated with the soft glove approach. The local district attorney’s office should begin an immediate criminal probe. If the DA does not wish to handle this matter, he should request that the Attorney General appoint a Special Prosecutor to handle this case. The reputation of the state’s flagship university is at stake and someone must take this matter seriously. Any prosecutor worth his salt would turn detectives loose on staff and administrators involved in the fraud and subsequent cover-up. If necessary, the General Assembly could consider legislation to make prosecuting this type of academic fraud easier. Additionally, the UNC Board of Governors should seriously consider asking for the resignations of current UNC Trustees who failed to safeguard academic integrity. They have shown little willingness to get to the truth of this scandal and cure the infection. When UNC comes to the General Assembly for more funding, university officials should expect that legislators charged with representing the taxpayers will demand answers. Thom Goolsby is a practicing attorney, law professor and was recently reelected to the N.C. Senate. He serves on the Senate Education/Higher Education Committee."

[Edited on November 20, 2012 at 2:44 PM. Reason : a]

11/20/2012 2:43:26 PM

IN DE FACE

11/20/2012 2:52:40 PM

11/20/2012 4:24:30 PM

Boom!

11/20/2012 4:48:02 PM

Republitard

11/20/2012 5:08:10 PM

He's got my vote.

11/20/2012 5:09:06 PM

this is the "fuck UNC" thread

lets avoid all the republitard and dumbocrat stuff, k

11/20/2012 5:24:47 PM

The GOLO comments are hilarious. They either go with these topics:

"Investigate all the UNC system schools. The Dukies (not a UNC system school) and Wuffies are obviously doing it too"
"This is a witch hunt by ABC fans to discredit the Flagship University. He's probably jealous he couldn't get into UNC law school and had to go to Campbell instead"
"The Republicans want to waste taxpayer dollars to grind an axe against the liberal UNC academia who support the President"

My favorite is the comment that the USA is doomed because a Senator wants an investigation. Apparently its un-American to not be a Tarhole fan.

[Edited on November 20, 2012 at 7:35 PM. Reason : ]

11/20/2012 7:34:47 PM

Also, I'm surprised nobody mentioned this, even though its not related to the ongoing scandal. Just another WTF moment:

http://www.wral.com/warrant-computer-crimes-search-leads-police-to-gun-in-unc-employee-office/11794702/

Cruising for kiddie porn/sex on his work computer with his wife, while he works as the head of IT for the School of Public Health. And he had a loaded 9mm in his office on school grounds. Winner.

11/20/2012 7:38:53 PM

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/sports-buzz/2012/11/ncaa-gives-ultimatum-to-players-in-um-investigation-canes-dolphins-marlins-heat-chatter.html#storylink=cpy

So will NCAA talk to all the former players from UNC or just believe willingham?

11/20/2012 11:39:44 PM

the comments saying that the NCAA is "threatening" the players are comical. What's the threat? is the NCAA gonna come in and take their NFL salaries? Is it gonna beat them up? jeez, people

11/20/2012 11:55:04 PM

Steve Kirschner: We want educational quality for student-athletes

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/11/21/2499208/steve-kirschner-we-want-educational.html#storylink=cpy

Quote :

"Finally, your readers should know that Mary Willingham [a university reading specialist who formerly worked with student-athletes, and who was interviewed for the article] was interviewed in the fall of 2010 as part of the joint NCAA/university review of the football program, so the NCAA is well aware of the statements she made at that time. Steve Kirschner "

Wait, now the Associate AD of UNC Steve Kirschner says that NCAA knows about the statement of Willingham and chose to ignore it? Ball's in your court,NCAA...

Quote :

"Basketball enrollments in African and Afro-American Studies decreased after 2009 because the number of players majoring in AFAM had decreased.Players continued to take some classes in AFAM as electives or to satisfy requirements of the College, but not to satisfy the requirements of a major. Thus, the decrease in enrollments. "

Does not compute. Can someone explain what he's trying to convey in the above quote?

[Edited on November 22, 2012 at 12:22 AM. Reason : ...]

11/22/2012 12:21:57 AM

"the AFAM scam was getting a little too obvious so we shifted student athletes to other majors but kept using some of the classes as eligibility crutches and hoped nobody would notice"

[Edited on November 22, 2012 at 1:25 AM. Reason : ]

11/22/2012 1:23:44 AM

I wish something would come from this, but it never will.

11/22/2012 2:35:24 AM

Orange DA wants outside review of Matt Kupec's travel expenses:

http://www.wral.com/Orange-DA-calls-for-outside-review-of-UNC-fundraisers-expenses/11802338/

11/22/2012 6:44:55 AM

Quote :

"Willingham said she met with university attorneys at their request in mid 2010, during the NCAA investigation, to discuss what happened in 2008. She said they thanked her for coming, and never talked to her again. She said she never heard from the NCAA."

Quote :

" Quote : "Finally, your readers should know that Mary Willingham [a university reading specialist who formerly worked with student-athletes, and who was interviewed for the article] was interviewed in the fall of 2010 as part of the joint NCAA/university review of the football program, so the NCAA is well aware of the statements she made at that time. Steve Kirschner "

Hey Steve, did the University Attorneys forget to tell the NCAA about these allegations? Maybe you guys left that part out.

The NCAA should really clear this tid bit of information up.

11/22/2012 8:11:39 AM

I want the NCAA investigated.

11/22/2012 8:59:11 AM

Quote :

"Amy Herman, Associate AD of Compliance has resigned"

11/29/2012 4:00:50 PM

^supposedly nothing to do with the NCAA investigation

11/29/2012 4:06:43 PM

"The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting on Thursday, Dec. 20, at 10 a.m. to receive the report from an independent academic review commissioned by Chancellor Holden Thorp. The review was conducted by former N.C. Gov. James Martin with assistance from Baker Tilly, a national management consulting firm with extensive experience in academic operations procedures and controls. Thorp asked Martin and Baker Tilly to explore any and all issues as they saw fit, with no restrictions. The University has cooperated fully. Martin and Raina Rose Tagle, a partner and National Practice Leader in Baker Tilly's Higher Education Practice, will present the report."

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/iteam/unc-report-to-be-public-on-dec-20

[Edited on December 7, 2012 at 4:22 PM. Reason : Don't you love it when this thread is at the top ]

12/7/2012 4:22:09 PM

Cake and tea will be serve after the report and nothing is going to happen after that.

12/7/2012 5:20:02 PM

The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.The University has cooperated fully.

12/7/2012 5:42:19 PM

They are going to retroactively award a national title for compliance.

12/7/2012 5:48:25 PM

12/7/2012 8:23:14 PM

Quote :

""The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting on Thursday, Dec. 20, at 10 a.m. to receive the report from an independent academic review commissioned by Chancellor Holden Thorp. The review was conducted by former N.C. Gov. James Martin with assistance from Baker Tilly, a national management consulting firm with extensive experience in academic operations procedures and controls. Thorp asked Martin and Baker Tilly to explore any and all issues as they saw fit, with no restrictions. The University has cooperated fully. Martin and Raina Rose Tagle, a partner and National Practice Leader in Baker Tilly's Higher Education Practice, will present the report." http://blogs.newsobserver.com/iteam/unc-report-to-be-public-on-dec-20"

Poor form from the university. They should've had it on Sunday the 23rd because no one would be paying attention to it with Christmas Eve and Christmas coming right up. Who taught these guys how to hide stuff?

12/7/2012 10:06:36 PM

^ They don't need to hide anything. The 94 year old man doing the independent review is going to come out and tell the world that he saw no problems.

12/7/2012 10:15:15 PM

Wonder if he knows what twitter is

12/7/2012 11:25:15 PM

#wellinever

12/7/2012 11:29:08 PM

why the fuck do they need a goddamn mutherfucking inde-fucking-pendant review?

BURN THOSE COMMIES TO THE GROUND MUTHER FUCKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FUCK!!!!!!!!

I hate them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What the fuck pull does a former governer have over their upcoming death penalty? I mean do they have to just drive around with cars and not ever show up to class and blatently cheat in order to get caught? OH WAIT THEY ALREADY FUCKING DO THAT SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FUCK THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

12/8/2012 2:19:08 PM

the SBI is still investigating them, so its not like Jim Martin is gonna determine the full extent of their fate

12/8/2012 2:25:53 PM

[link]http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fhttp://www.charlotteobserver.com%2F2012%2F12%2F08%2F3713391%2Func-got-warning-on-suspect-classes.html&aqs=chrome.0.57j58.13146&sugexp=chrome,mod=11&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8[/link]" target="_blank">http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2F[link]http://www.charlotteobserver.com%2F2012%2F12%2F08%2F3713391%2Func-got-warning-on-suspect-classes.html&oq=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fhttp://www.charlotteobserver.com%2F2012%2F12%2F08%2F3713391%2Func-got-warning-on-suspect-classes.html&aqs=chrome.0.57j58.13146&sugexp=chrome,mod=11&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8[/link]

Hm, just copy and paste the whole thing, cache isn't linking properly]

12/8/2012 5:26:59 PM

part 1 of 2

Quote :

"UNC got warning on suspect classes 2005 basketball team had heavy enrollment, then stopped independent studies For the first half of the last decade, independent studies offered by the Department of African and Afro-American Studies were a regular go-to class for men’s basketball players at UNC-Chapel Hill. In one year alone, when the team won the 2005 NCAA championship, basketball players accounted for 15 enrollments, university records show. Two years later, members of the team all but disappeared from those classes, which did not meet and typically required a paper or research project at the end. UNC-CH records show just one basketball player took an independent study from the department in the past five years. A university athletic department spokesman attributed the decline to a waning interest in African studies among basketball players. But evidence is emerging that officials within the department and within the academic support program for athletes started having concerns about independent studies in 2006, just as The New York Times published a lengthy story about an independent study scandal involving athletes at Auburn University. Former Gov. Jim Martin, who has been leading a probe into academic irregularities at UNC-CH, said in interviews that the former director of the academic support program, Robert Mercer, and a senior associate athletic director who oversaw academics, John Blanchard, both said they saw higher-than-expected independent study enrollments from athletes in the African studies department. UNC-CH records show more than 1,400 enrollments of athletes and regular students in that department from fall 2001 to summer 2006, with some professors listed as teaching dozens of them at a time. Blanchard and Mercer reported the enrollments to Dick Baddour, then the athletic director. They said they and Baddour took the information to the Faculty Committee on Athletics, but the committee told them there was nothing to be concerned about. “These people saw something wrong and (were) told, ‘Don’t worry about it. Everybody teaches their own way,’?” Martin said. Baddour, upon learning of Martin’s comments, largely confirmed that version of events. “The issue,” he said, “was there seemed to be more of that (independent studies) available in that department than elsewhere.” That appears to be where the momentum stopped for a deeper look into the enrollments and the African studies department. But the number of enrollments soon started to drop. Review: No problem Members of the faculty committee, which has oversight of athletic matters on campus, say they do not recall such a warning. But the chairwoman at the time, Lissa Broome, a law professor who is now the faculty representative to the NCAA, said she did remember a discussion about the Auburn University case. Committee minutes reflect some discussion about independent studies, and include a reference to the Times report, which was published July 14, 2006. In that case, an Auburn University sociology professor had offered 272 independent studies to students in one academic year. Many Auburn athletes used the courses to boost their grade point averages. “The committee has conducted a review of student-athletes registrations in independent study courses and has an interest in receiving current information in this regard,” the minutes of the November 2006 meeting said. Two months later, the committee reported: “No sense exists of a current problem.” Mercer was tasked with tracking independent studies. The discussion apparently never went beyond the faculty athletics committee, and the African studies department escaped a deeper look. It wasn’t until August 2011 that university officials launched a formal probe, after The News & Observer obtained a transcript of a football player who had received a B-plus in an upper-level African studies class before beginning his first full semester as a freshman. In May, the university probe reported that the class that Marvin Austin took never met, and was one of 54 such no-show classes within the department that had been billed as lecture classes but were being conducted as independent studies. The probe also found that the hundreds of independent studies the department offered over the years lacked accountability, with professors responsible for more students than they could keep track of, and unable to confirm that they had taught some of the students assigned to them. Independent studies are typically courses in which students develop a research project with a faculty member and spend the semester producing a lengthy paper or presentation. The university is now embroiled in four investigations, including one to determine whether the department chairman, Julius Nyang’oro, committed criminal fraud by accepting $12,000 for a class he never taught that was filled with football players. Nyang’oro resigned as chairman more than a year ago and was forced into retirement in July. Calls to his home went unanswered."

12/8/2012 5:36:51 PM

^^ That post is a hot mess

[Edited on December 8, 2012 at 5:38 PM. Reason : ^]

12/8/2012 5:36:56 PM

part 2 of 2

Quote :

"A surge in enrollments The new information about the events of 2006 raises more questions about how much concern some university officials and faculty had about academic standards being lowered to help athletes remain eligible to play sports. It also raises questions about university officials’ willingness to report what they knew about the problems in the African studies department. The internal probe from May, which was done by academic officials within the College of Arts and Sciences, the home of the African studies department, made no mention that there had been prior concerns about the department. A special faculty committee report released nearly three months later makes a reference about Mercer and Blanchard asking the faculty athletics committee about “the teaching” of independent study courses, and being told that “faculty members have great latitude to teach courses as they see fit.” Three weeks ago, reading specialist Mary Willingham, a former employee in the academic support program, told the N&O that her former colleagues in the program knew there was a problem with the independent studies roughly five years ago. That is about when the drop-off in independent study enrollments began. In academic years 2001-2002 through 2005-2006, the department averaged nearly 300 enrollments a year – 1,433 in five years – in independent studies. The records show huge numbers of independent study enrollments for particular professors. In spring 2002, for example, African studies professor Robert Porter was listed as having 70 independent study enrollments. The records say the instructor of record is “not necessarily (the) instructor of supervision.” In at least 20 other circumstances, either a professor or staffers in the department were assigned 20 or more independent study enrollments in a semester. During this period, football players accounted for 172 enrollments, or 12 percent, while basketball players accounted for 39 enrollments, or 3 percent. Those percentages are much higher than either team’s representation of the student body. It is not clear how many of the 1,433 enrollments involved athletes in other sports. In the subsequent five years, independent studies enrollments totaled 327 – more than 75 percent drop from the previous five years. Football players continued to take independent studies during that time, but at a much slower pace. Football players accounted for 68 of the enrollments, or 21 percent. Even during that period, professors were handling as many as 18 enrollments a semester, the records show. A reform adopted after the scandal has pushed that number down to no more than two a semester. ‘It’s not normal’ James Moeser was the chancellor from 2000 to 2008, which includes the time that the independent study enrollments were averaging nearly 300 a year. He said the enrollment numbers are clearly an indicator of a problem and should have been brought to the attention of the dean of the College of Arts & Sciences. “That’s excessive and it’s not normal,” he said. The dean at the time, Madeline Levine, said no one came to her with questions about independent study enrollments in African studies. She said the concerns of Mercer, Blanchard and Baddour should have come her way. She served as interim dean for the 2006-07 academic year. “I would have expected them to go to a particular senior associate dean, or to have gone to me, or to simply call the college and say, ‘We’ve got a problem,’?” said Levine, a Slavic literature professor. “If it had gone to one of the senior associate deans, then I would expect that that dean, with something as irregular as that, would have let me know.” Baddour said the faculty committee saw no problem with the independent study enrollments. He did not explain why they dropped so dramatically since then, but an athletic department spokesman, Steve Kirschner, said recently that after 2005, basketball players were gravitating to other majors because they had different interests. Other evidence shows the African studies department had been generous in enrolling athletes in independent studies. Consider the partial transcript of one of UNC-CH’s most famous athletes: football and basketball player Julius Peppers. Peppers’ transcript shows that he was allowed to enroll in four independent studies – the first in the summer after his freshman year in which he received an F, two D’s, two D-pluses, two C’s and one B. He got a B in that independent study, a class that was supposed to have been available only to “advanced undergraduate and graduate students,” according to UNC-CH registration records. Peppers received a B and a B-plus in the two others. The transcript, available by accident on a UNC-CH website earlier this year, shows only that he was enrolled in the fourth. Peppers, an African studies major who left without graduating, held a grade point average below a 2.0 in his first three years at UNC-CH. He is now a star defensive end for the Chicago Bears. The N&O has sought explanations for the independent study enrollment decreases since receiving the data more than a year ago. UNC-CH Chancellor Holden Thorp and other administrators declined to talk about it. Thorp was Levine’s successor as dean of the Arts & Sciences college, and he said he was unaware of any problems with independent studies until last year. Attempts to reach Porter and other professors in the African studies department who had high numbers of enrollments were unsuccessful."

12/8/2012 5:37:20 PM

yaaaaaaaaaaaaay

12/9/2012 9:17:00 AM

http://t.co/cpsMvsup


"There was nothing that came out later in the report that wasn't known in the first 60 days of the investigation in 2010," Davis said last month. "Nothing was new except for this ongoing academic issue that they've got that's been going on for over 20 years. The thing that probably was detrimental to me getting a job last year was that the NCAA hadn't had its final ruling until February."

12/9/2012 10:03:57 PM

hell yeah Butch, throw em under the bus

ps: I still want to see your Cleveland cell phone records

12/9/2012 10:05:31 PM

Thie gem from PackPride( no sarcasm)

Quote :

"For decades, UNC lived in a closed, protected system, where all a coach had to say was: "We are handling it internally" if a problem occasionally leaked out. And that was the end of it. The public and the media readily accepted this, believing that UNC was above question. UNC realized they could get away with anything. And they have. Now, the media is saying: "No, that's not good enough anymore. You are a public institution. We want the truth, and we are going to keep asking you for it until you give it to us." Congratulations to Kane, Curliss, and their editor. "

12/9/2012 11:51:42 PM

Nothing is going to happen to these assholes. The media can ask all the questions they want, and UNC will never answer for anything.

12/10/2012 7:44:52 AM

Quote :

"And in the meantime, university officials would do themselves and the public a favor if they were as candid as possible, right now, about the problems and the conflicts between the academic and athletics mission instead of responding to each new disclosure with apparent confusion over how problems just didn’t get addressed. That makes for skepticism on the part of the public, the members of which, by the way, believe UNC-Chapel Hill is a great university, and one that belongs to them. "

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/12/10/2537241/caution-lights-at-unc-ch-over.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/12/10/2537241/caution-lights-at-unc-ch-over.html

12/10/2012 11:28:50 PM

Shits about to get real guys, wake the fuck up...

12/10/2012 11:35:12 PM

Quote :

"Nothing is going to happen to these assholes. The media can ask all the questions they want, and UNC will never answer for anything."

the system, state, and merchants all stand to lose too much $ if UNC gets hammered. unfortunately, you are right. they're too big to fail (like BofA, Fannie May, GM, etc)

12/11/2012 8:59:54 AM

I don't think it will matter. 98% of Johnston county will still pay their money

12/11/2012 9:29:03 AM

Well Pan Am, Enron, MCI, Bear Stearns, Lehman Bros, WCW, Hostess, Woolworth, and Montgomery Ward were once "too big to fail" too.

12/11/2012 9:40:01 AM

Except UNC isn't about to go bankrupt, they are a huge source of revenue. Why would people in charge, especially people with ties to UNC, want to halt that cash flow?

We all know that if this happened at any other school that the penalties would have been much, much worse. They had to punish them but not by doing something that had enough teeth to impact the revenue stream. 8 - 4 but miss out on some local bowl game? Basketball immunity? Yeah, sounds like it worked out for them.

12/11/2012 10:37:25 AM

The prima facie evidence is there. AFAM started in 1992 with Prof Nyangaro. It is quite obvious with Peppers' transcript that this goes back to the early 2000s. If this goes on and Dan Kane continues burning them and the national media picks it up , this WILL get ugly. A matter of time...

12/11/2012 10:50:19 AM