UNC’s Board of Trustees’ decision to “take no action” on Nikole Hannah-Jones’ tenure application has led a renowned chemist to decline professorship at the university, according to a letter from department faculty.

Over the past two years, UNC’s Department of Chemistry has been working to recruit Professor Lisa Jones – a leading African American chemist renowned for her work in biochemistry, analytical chemistry and biophysics.

Now, according to a letter addressed to UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz and signed by nearly 40 department faculty, “repercussions from Nikole Hannah-Jones’ tenure case is impacting our ability to recruit and attract a diverse and talented faculty person.”

Lisa Jones, a chemistry professor currently teaching at the University of Maryland, withdrew her candidacy to join the faculty at UNC after Hannah-Jones’s story was made public.

Her letter to department leadership, denying a position at UNC, reads: “The news this week that Nikole Hannah-Jones was denied tenure was very disheartening. It does not seem in line with a school that says it is interested in diversity. Although I know this decision may not reflect the view of the schools faculty, I will say that I cannot see myself accepting a position at a university where this decision stands. I appreciate all of the effort you have put into trying to recruit me but for me this is hard to overlook.”

The faculty letter addressing Guskiewicz said Jones’ decision to withdraw her candidacy “is a reflection of what our nation’s minority scholars will be saying about the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as they search for job opportunities or consider if this University is still the right fit.”

Hannah-Jones, who largely has not shared public comments about her ongoing tenure application, reacted to the letter and Jones’ decision on Wednesday.

“I’ve never met this sister, Dr. Lisa Jones, but the solidarity shown me by Black women in particularly during this crucible is something I will never forget,” wrote the Pulitzer Prizer-winner.

A report from NC Policy Watch on May 19 said the Board of Trustees chose to deny Hannah-Jones a tenured position and instead hire her on a fixed five-year term following “political pressure from conservatives.” The report, which cites an unnamed UNC trustee, said the decision to not immediately consider tenure for Hannah-Jones was politically-driven, as a result of the reporter’s work on the New York Time’s 1619 Project, studying the impact of slavery and race in the United States.

In an interview with NC Policy Watch Wednesday, mega-donor Walter Hussman Jr., for whom UNC’s journalism and media school is named after, said he had previously expressed concern to university leadership and at least one trustee member over the accuracy of Hannah-Jones’s work.

Hussman said he was concerned about criticism of her work by some prominent historians, as well as her writing on the issue of reparations to Black Americans for slavery. He said he was also concerned about how Hannah-Jones’s work could clash with his vision for the school and what it teaches.

In 2019, Hussman’s $25 million pledge to the university’s journalism school led to it being renamed the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media. In his interview, Hussman said there was no ultimatum or suggestion that his pledge to the school would be in danger if Hannah-Jones was hired.

“I haven’t said to Susan King, ‘Do not hire Nikole Hannah-Jones,’” Hussman told NC Policy Watch. “I never said that. I never said, ‘If you hire Nikole Hannah-Jones it could affect our commitment to the university or our donation.’ I never said that. I basically said, ‘Look, here are my concerns. Once I express them, they’re totally up to you.’”

As the fate of Nikole Hannah-Jones’ tenure application remains unclear, the possibility of pending lawsuits directed at the university seems more likely.

The NAACP Legal Defense Fund sent a letter to the university’s general counsel last Thursday stating that attorneys will file a lawsuit against UNC if the Pulitzer Prize-winner is not offered tenure by Friday, June 4.

Since North Carolina open meetings laws require the Board of Trustees to give a 48-hour notice before a special or emergency meeting, it appears that UNC will not meet that deadline, opening up the university for a lawsuit.

The law firm’s letter is the latest action in a series of community protests following the trustees’ decision to “postpone” its review of Hannah-Jones’ tenure application. Chair of the Board Richard Stevens said this postponement stems from the New York Times Magazine reporter’s lack of  a “traditional academic-type background.”

 

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