UNC – Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt came back from the holidays knowing she was ready to make two decisions that she describes as separate but will be forever intertwined. She would be moving on from her role as chancellor, which she has held since 2013. And she would order the removal of the remaining pedestal of the Confederate monument on the campus known as Silent Sam.
Folt spoke exclusively with WCHL on Tuesday after making the surprise announcements in a message to the campus community at 5 p.m. Monday. The UNC System Board of Governors voted, after this interview was conducted, to accept Folt’s resignation on an accelerated timeline. Rather than allowing her to finish out the semester, as Folt planned. The board said the resignation is now effective January 31.
Folt said she spent the holidays talking with her family about her role as chancellor in running the university, interacting with students and ushering the university through its largest ever fundraising campaign.
“And I felt pretty certain that I needed to make that decision,” Folt said on Tuesday. “That I decided that 2019 was the time for me to move to my next. And that I thought that with all the momentum going here, it would be excellent for the new chancellor.”
For the second decision, to remove the remnants of Silent Sam, Folt said it came down to public safety.
“Over the holiday, it was a chance – when we weren’t having the issues of safety so directly – for all of us to think about it,” the chancellor said. “I had the report from the safety panel that led us to understand fully the real risks and stresses to a campus that is under constant threat of disruption.”
Folt and the UNC – Chapel Hill Board of Trustees brought a recommendation forward to the UNC System Board of Governors in December for the construction of a new $5 million facility to house the monument and allow for exhibit and teaching space. The Board of Governors rejected that proposal and assigned five members to work with the campus to bring a new plan to the board in mid-March.
Folt said on Tuesday that removing the monument was the right move for the campus and might open new options for the Board of Governors to consider.
“I think it will be very helpful for the campus,” Folt said. “Because I think now the campus can feel safer, we can go about the business of this university – which is very important – and it does give probably more space for the Board of Governors as they go through their own deliberations about what they believe should take place.”
Chair of the Board of Governors Harry Smith said in a press conference following Tuesday’s vote to accelerate Folt’s departure that he would have preferred the process that was in place be followed.
“The fact that we may not like governance and process doesn’t give us the right to usurp it,” Smith said. “And whether you have the authority to do it or not, isn’t congruent with the fact that we should follow the proper process and procedures that we had laid out and was working really, really well.”
Folt said Tuesday removing the remnants of the monument from campus was under her purview.
“I’m making this decision based under my authority as chancellor to really take responsibility for campus security.”
Folt had maintained that the campus preference would be for the entire monument to be moved to an off-site location. But that desire was complicated by a 2015 law that limits the movement of “objects of remembrance.” The chancellor said she did not act outside of the law when ordering the removal of the monument’s remaining base.
“One is legally removing an intact monument, which I don’t have,” Folt said. “This is not an intact monument, these are pieces of a monument that no longer exists. That’s one thing. I’m not destroying them, I moved them to a secure location.”
The chancellor added the pieces “are securely placed right now. It was done very carefully and very professionally. And I think we did it in the right speed because we’re able to go on about the business of the university at the start of the term.”
Next Chancellor
As far as normal university operations and setting things up for whoever is the next chancellor, Folt said much had been accomplished during her tenure.
“When you go back to just the business of the university, every single one of our metrics is as high as its ever been,” she said, listing applications, research funding and fundraising as examples.
Folt’s tenure began with the long-running paper class scandal and finished with the controversy over Silent Sam. But she said controversial issues are to be expected when leading a university.
“The normal is that there will be,” Folt said. “But are you prepared to do it, do you have the right people in place is always the bigger question. And it’s never just unequivocal, ‘everything’s fine.’ That wouldn’t be realistic.”
There has been increased attention on governance in the UNC System as the Board of Governors has appeared more eager to get into the operations of campuses rather than solely setting policy. But Folt said she anticipated highly qualified candidates will still be interested in the opening at UNC – Chapel Hill.
“All of higher education is in a different place than they were 10 years ago,” Folt said. “There’s much more tension at every school. We are dealing with our governance structures; we’re dealing with political systems; we’ve got sexual assault issues; we’ve got changes in the way we run our athletics program. Everything is different.
“Universities need to be aware of all that too. And what we need to do is run great universities in the face of that kind of pressure and find a way to do it well.”
But, in the face of all of those challenges, Folt reiterated that she felt UNC – Chapel Hill was well-positioned for a new chancellor to be successful.
“If you’re looking for a new chancellor, that wants to come to a great institution that is still on the way up,” Folt said, “this is a wonderful, wonderful opportunity.”
Folt said one of the things that made UNC – Chapel Hill an attractive option was the relationship with the surrounding community.
“We made amazing partnerships with the mayor,” Folt said. “We have done more building down there; that is an incredibly dynamic place.”.
File Photo of Chancellor Carol Folt via Blake Hodge
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