Dwight Stone served on the UNC Board of Trustees for six years. Now, he will serve the UNC community in a new way: as a member of the UNC System Board of Governors.

The Board of Trustees recognized Stone at its final meeting of 2019 in November. It passed a resolution honoring the former chairman and thanking him for his work.

Stone spoke to the board shortly after to offer his gratitude. He spoke about what UNC meant to him while growing up in Dunn and said it was an honor to be one of its leaders.

“Having grown up in a small town in eastern North Carolina,” Stone said, “all I ever really wanted to do since I was 11 [years-old] was to graduate from this university. Having been provided the opportunity to serve it as a trustee and as chairman was something beyond my wildest dreams.”

Stone graduated from UNC in 1973, and all three of his children are also alumni. He was a member of the university’s search committee for its chancellor in 2012 and in 2019.

Stone said while not everyone on the board shared the same views, he said he holds immense respect for his peers, and was honored to serve the university alongside them.

“Everybody gets to speak their mind,” Stone said, “and I think the one thing about our board is we listen. I respect everything that everybody brings to this board and I can’t thank you enough.”

Stone will now serve on the Board of Governors, overlooking all the UNC schools beyond the Chapel Hill campus following his appointment in November. Before he left, though, he urged all those within the Carolina community to continue making the university better.

“I look and I see lots of administrators, professors, students and alumni,” Stone said to those gathered for the meeting. “I congratulate you and thank you for the work you do everyday to make this place great. I will challenge you to work even harder because this place deserves it.”

Stone’s term for the Board of Governors will end November 2021.