Progress on UNC Race and Inclusion Efforts

UNC Chancellor Carol Folt sent an open letter on Monday sharing the university’s progress on their race and equity initiatives.

The university announced a list of programs to improve “equity and inclusion” on campus after a town hall meeting in the fall when student protest movements articulated their demands.

Folt said that university leaders will participate in training about racial bias and institutional racism. She also promised to have plans in February for a dedicated space for black students. Student protests have called for a black student union.

Folt wrote that counseling and mental health services will be reevaluated to provide more equal access for all students.

In the letter, Folt mentioned the Task-Force on UNC- Chapel Hill History and their work to create the Carolina Hall Exhibit, which “will explore race in the history of the University.” The task-force was created in response to calls to rename Saunders Hall, which was named for William L. Saunders, a former North Carolina Secretary of State but also a local leader of the Ku Klux Khan. The Board of Trustees renamed the building Carolina Hall last summer.

The letter highlighted efforts to encourage degree completion and student success through the Thrive@Carolina initiative. The university is also working on a website to serve as the main page for the university’s efforts on race, equity and inclusion.

These initiatives are seen partially as a response student protest on campus including a rally in the fall in support of the protest movement that began at the University of Missouri. The university then held a town hall style meeting where many of the student demands were announced.