Graham: Grad schools should cut foreigners

Should North Carolina's graduate programs cut back on the number of foreign students?

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Graham thinks so. At a debate Saturday, he said state colleges need to focus more on helping "home-grown North Carolinians" get graduate degrees.

"The other thing we have to do in North Carolina is stop subsidizing so many people in our university system that come here from other countries to achieve master's and Ph.D. level education," said Graham, a Salisbury lawyer.

Graham's two Republican opponents disagreed.

Former Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr said state businesses need "the best and the brightest" regardless of where they're from. State Sen. Fred Smith of Clayton said he didn't want to micromanage state schools.

Linda Dykstra, dean of graduate schools at UNC-Chapel Hill, said state colleges could not fill their seats without some foreign students, especially in physics, math and computer science.

"We have a hard time identifying enough high-quality students who are interested in pursuing particular areas," she said. "In order to fill the workplace needs of our state at the university, we draw on international students."

According to the Statistical Abstract of Higher Education, 10 percent of graduate students at UNC schools are foreign, compared with 4 percent at private schools in North Carolina.

Among those seeking medical, legal and professional degrees, 0.4 percent at UNC schools are foreign; compared with 3 percent at private schools.

Dykstra said that UNC accepts a smaller percentage of foreign students than of North Carolina residents.

That is because admissions officers do not interview them in person or over the phone, know as much about their previous colleges or know the people who wrote their letters of recommendation.

"We're more cautious," she said. "It just takes a closer level of scrutiny."

Many legislators endorsed

A pro-business group has made its first round of legislative endorsements.

The political action committee of the N.C. Forum for Research and Education endorsed all but one Republican and 13 Democrats in the state Senate for re-election. It endorsed 25 Democrats and all but three Republicans in the state House.

The endorsements were based on the senators' voting records on business issues, how business-friendly they are compared with their district and their effectiveness in office.

In the Senate, the favored Democrats include President Pro Tem Marc Basnight and Majority Leader Tony Rand and Sen. Kay Hagan.

The Republicans included Senate Minority Leader Phil Berger and Sens. Tom Apodaca and Harry Brown.

The one Republican not endorsed was Smith, presumably because he is running for governor and not for re-election.

In the House, the group endorsed Minority Leader Paul Stam and Reps. Nelson Dollar and Marilyn Avila.

It did not endorse Reps. Joe Boylan, Carolyn Justice and Ken Furr.

Among Democrats, the group endorsed Majority Leader Hugh Holliman and Reps. W.A. "Winkie" Wilkins and Bruce Goforth.

It did not endorse House Speaker Joe Hackney.

Um, remember me?

Gov. Mike Easley, testifying Thursday before the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, described the governor of Alabama "Bill Riley" as his "very good friend."

The governor of Alabama is Bob Riley.