***UPDATE: Carrboro’s Board of Aldermen passed a resolution to change its title to Town Council at its meeting on Tuesday November 19.***
After being known as the Board of Aldermen for 50 years, the elected officials for Carrboro’s governing board are slated to change its name at their Tuesday meeting to a more inclusive title.
When Carrboro officially became a town in 1911, its governing board was named the Board of Commissioners. In 1969, the General Assembly approved the change to Board of Aldermen.
But recently, Carrboro leadership has been seeking to make the entire town code gender neutral and changing from the title of Board of Aldermen is one step toward achieving that goal.
The board discussed and tentatively approved a name change at its meeting on November 12. The members in attendance unanimously agreed to change its name to the Carrboro Town Council after a public hearing session, which included the display of online submissions and comments about a potential change.
Randee Haven-O’Donnell said she remembers routinely correcting or reminding others of her preferred title as Alderwoman. She said her experiences are just some of many examples of why to change the group’s title.
“Some of us who have been sitting on this board have really felt the pinch as being referred to as an Alderman,” Haven-O’Donnell said. “I’m saying this because folks don’t realize that gender neutral [titles] matter.”
There was a discussion of creating an original title for the group to be named but the choice would require a submission of the idea for approval by the state general assembly.
Alderwoman Bethany Chaney voiced concern about delaying a decision further. She said also confusion about the title of Aldermen already leads to questions by residents, which a more common title would eliminate.
“People often ask us, ‘what is an Alderman,’ because it is not a well-known term,” said Chaney. “We all say, ‘well, it’s like being on a town council,’ so why don’t we just be a town council? There is value in Carrboro being unique, but I don’t think making the name unique is what [creates] that value.”
A resolution to change the group’s name to a town council is on the board’s consent agenda for its Tuesday meeting. If passed as expected, the title will go into effect at their December 3 meeting.
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