Community Forum 2015

The 2015 WCHL Community Forum, held on April 23,  was a huge success.  Though the event is over, the issues continue to be important.  For that reason, recordings of each hour are available below.  You can listen here or download and listen on your own device.

Thank you to our sponsors for making the day possible.

The 2015 Community Forum was presented by

 Supporting Sponsors

Town & Gown – 8am

Local officials from the towns and the university open our 2015 Community Forum with a discussion of the connection between the entities and how they work together while working on their own.

 

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Carol Folt

Chancellor of UNC

 

 

 

Earl McKee

Orange County Commissioner

 

 

 

Lydia Lavelle

Mayor of Carrboro

 

 

 

Mark Kleinschmidt

Mayor of Chapel Hill

 

 

 

Tom Stevens

Mayor of Hillsborough

 

 

 

 

UNC Under Fire – 9am

How is the university working to answer tough questions being asked by residents of the Tar Heel state?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Joel Curran

UNC Vice Chancellor For Communications and Public Affairs

 

 

 

Jim Dean

UNC Vice Chancellor and Provost

 

 

 

Mitch Kokai

Communications Director, John Locke Foundation

 

 

 

Jenny Surane

Daily Tar Heel Editor-In-Chief

 

 

 

 

Safety and Tolerance – 10am

What groups of people feel safe and included in our community?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Chris Blue

Chapel Hill Police Chief

 

 

 

Stephanie Perry

Orange County Justice United

 

 

 

Charles Blackwood

Orange County Sheriff

 

 

 

Winston Crisp

UNC Vice Chancellor For Student Affairs

 

 

 

 

Affordable Housing – 11am

Who can afford to live here?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Mark Marcoplos

Marcoplos Construction

 

 

 

Delores Bailey

Executive Director at EmPOWERment, Inc

 

 

 

Tish Galu

Orange County Justice United

 

 

 

Daniel Eller

Eller Capital Partners

 

 

 

Donna Bell

Chapel Hill Town Council Member

 

 

 

 

Poverty: Hunger and Wages – 12pm

We live in a highly-educated and affluent area, but we also have high poverty numbers. What are we doing to help those in need?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Gene Nichol

UNC Law Professor

 

 

 

 

John Dorward

Inter-Faith Council Executive Director

 

 

 

Nancy Coston

Orange County Social Services Director

 

 

 

Vimala Rajendran

Chef-Owner, Vimala’s Curryblossom Cafe

 

 

 

 

Bernadette Pelissier

Orange County Commissioner

 

 

 

 

Budget – 1pm

What decisions are being made to continue paying for the life that we have developed in our community?

Listen to the discussion below:

George Cianciolo

Chapel Hill Town Council Member

 

 

 

Mia Burroughs

Orange County Commissioner

 

 

 

Damon Seils

Carrboro Board of Aldermen

 

 

 

Bonnie Hauser

Orange County Activist

 

 

 

 

Sports – 2pm

UNC has been under an intense microscope recently. What steps are being taken to remedy issues? Are athletics too influential?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Deborah Stroman

UNC Professor

 

 

 

Bradley Bethel

Writer and Filmmaker

 

 

 

Amy Perko

Executive Director, Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics

 

 

 

Barry Jacobs

Orange County Commissioner

 

 

 

 

Chapel Hill Development – 3pm

Why is it so hard to develop areas of Chapel Hill? What steps are being taken to encourage businesses to locate here? Where do we stand with Ephesus Fordham and Obey Creek?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

David Schwartz

Co-founder, Chapel Hill Alliance for a Livable Town

 

 

 

Jeanne Brown

Obey Creek Compass Committee

 

 

 

Ben Perry

Obey Creek Developer

 

 

 

Maria Palmer

Chapel Hill Town Council Member

 

 

 

Aaron Nelson

President & CEO, Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce

 

 

 

Dwight Bassett

Chapel Hill Economic Development Officer

 

 

 

 

Carrboro Development – 4pm

What is going to happen at 300 East Main Street – with the Arts and Innovation Center, and with Cat’s Cradle?

Listen to the discussion below: 

 

Philip Szostak

CAIC Architect

 

 

 

Bethany Chaney

Carrboro Board of Aldermen

 

 

 

Jackie Helvey

Carrboro Activist

 

 

 

 

 

Laura Van Sant

Main Street Properties

 

 

 

Steve Balcom

Splinter Group

 

 

 

Aaron Nelson

President & CEO, Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce

 

 

 

 

K-12 Education – 5pm

How do our schools measure up? What should we be doing differently to maintain a high-quality public education? What are we doing about wages for teachers and staff?

Listen to the discussion below:

 

Graig Meyer

NC House of Representatives

 

 

 

Kristin Hiemstra

East Chapel Hill High School Counselor

 

 

 

James Barrett

Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education

 

 

 

Darrell Allison

President, Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina