Ahead of the fall semester, the UNC Board of Governors met Thursday to discuss recent university controversy, finances, and the delegation of power on campus.
Following public scrutiny stemming from the Nikole-Hannah Jones tenure controversy, UNC System President Peter Hans said one of the board’s main jobs in the coming months will be to “rebuild trust in higher education.”
“We’re a state university, a public institution, in a loud and energetic democracy,” he said. “And that will often place us at the center of public debate. And while I may not always enjoy that attention, I welcome it as a real sign of investment in this place.”
Hans said he believes one of the ways to rebuild that trust and faith in university governance is to reassess how power is delegated on campus. To do this, the board unanimously passed a resolution that calls for a sweeping review of authority at all 17 UNC System campuses.
The resolution says each university must submit a “restatement” of authority to the Board of Governors, outlining exactly how its power is delegated from its Board of Trustees to the chancellor or other university officials.
Governor David Powers said, over the years, universities have adopted a “patchwork of decision making” that has led to inconsistencies in system governance. This resolution hopes to change that.
“The purpose of the review is to determine whether the current structure of decision-making sufficiently aligns responsibility and accountability,” Powers said. “The review process helps determine if and when changes to campus practices and or university policy are required to improve the effectiveness or clarity of the university’s policies and procedures.”
Each university’s restatement will be sent to President Hans for review and approval. If the restatement is deemed “inadequate” or no restatement is submitted by November 1, the resolution states that all delegated power will return to the Board of Trustees.
Chair Randy Ramsey said the Boards of Trustees used to have even more authority granted by the UNC System. This review of campus power might be a step back in that direction.
“I think that a good portion of the board believes the Boards of Trustees being the boots on the ground – the people that are interacting with the faculty and the leadership on our campuses each day – will probably have a better idea of what’s going on with campus than we have sitting in here,” Ramsey said. “I think this exercise is simply that. I believe it is good governance. It allows for transparency and allows us to understand exactly how these powers have been delegated or redelegated across the campuses.”
Also discussed at Thursday’s meeting: President Hans noted that this fall will mark the fifth consecutive year with no tuition increases. Additionally, the system office plans to consolidate its operations from three buildings into one in Chapel Hill, in an effort to save money and optimize space.
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