The UNC System Board of Governors approved a change to the system president’s role in selecting chancellor candidates, as well as announced record enrollment for the 2020-2021 academic year.
The board had a mix of members meet either in Chapel Hill or virtually Thursday morning to tackle a full agenda during its first gathering of the new school year.
The item with the most discussion was a vote to approve a policy change to chancellor searches. The Board of Governors passed a motion 20-4 in favor of an amendment allowing the system president to choose up to two candidates during a chancellor search beyond those vetted by the Campus Search Committees. Those two would go through the typical interview process, but the board will be required to send at least one of those candidates back to the president for final consideration. A motion made Thursday changed the amendment from requiring both of the president’s selected candidates from making it to the final consideration.
Some board members expressed concern about this policy change leading to chancellorships becoming a “dumping ground for former politicians” and giving too much power to the president. System leadership, including President Peter Hans and Board Chair Randy Ramsey, said the amendment is meant to retain and promote talent already within the UNC System.
Hans said while it would give his position more discretion in the decision-making, he gave an “absolute pledge” to maintaining collaborative search processes between himself, the system and the individual campuses.
“I believe we can develop stronger, deeper pools of candidates,” he said. “The president isn’t obligated to add names or to choose any particular candidate. In fact, where it would be beneficial, it could be done in a transparent way. I deeply value the input of campus search committees and all their constituency groups. I have every incentive for a smooth and collaborative search.”
Ramsey said he “adamantly” supported the amendment and thanked the board for its deep discussion following the vote.
“I believe this process will allow our president, in consultation with the board, to promote from within and identify talent early on for our university and our school of Science and Math,” said Ramsey. “We as a board talk about making change across our system. This would allow us to do that.”
Hans clarified the policy change will not be applied to the ongoing searches for chancellors at East Carolina University and Fayetteville State.
The system president also opened Thursday’s meeting by revealing the university system’s enrollment for the current academic year, which increased by around 1 percent compared to 2019-2020.
“In this state of disruption across our nation and across our world, I think it’s extraordinary news,” said Hans on the enrollment growth amid the pandemic. “The fact our institutions were able to welcome a record-breaking class of new students is remarkable, and I simply cannot say enough about the faculty, staff and students themselves.”
13 of the UNC System schools are still offering in-person instruction, while UNC, North Carolina State and East Carolina have all transitioned to fully-remote learning semesters due to outbreaks of COVID-19. UNC-Charlotte is yet to announce their long-term plans for the semester, but Hans said more clarity for instruction is expected to be shared next week.
The president commended campuses for their work adjusting in the fall semester, including those who moved online. He said adapting to the conditions presented shows resiliency to the system’s core values and encouraged students to continue their hard work.
“You will have many mask-less days ahead of you,” said Hans. “For now, stay safe, study hard and know we’re proud of you.”
In addition to these actions, the board also approved allocation of remaining CARES Act funding and adopted a resolution on protecting student mental health. A recent survey of system students, which was examined by the Committee on Strategic Initiatives, found 48 percent are experiencing depressive symptoms, an increase compared to last fall. The two strongest symptoms are feelings of isolation and challenges with distanced learning. A full report will be presented to the Board of Governors in March.
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