UNC has formally ended its association with the James B. Hunt Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy. The Board of Governors approved the split at their Thursday meeting.

The center, which opened in 2001, focuses on education strategy, policy and educational improvements on a state and national level. Originally, the institute was not affiliated with UNC-Chapel Hill, only the UNC system, which gave it a greater level of autonomy.

The decision for UNC and the Hunt Institute to split was mutual, said UNC Provost Jim Dean.

“I think everybody on both sides thinks that this is a reasonable outcome, although it probably sounds odd to talk about it that way, but I think it does make sense for the institute to be able to go its own way,” said Dean.

The Hunt Foundation Board, the institute’s support organization, approved the split in February. Former Governor James Hunt, chairman of the organization, said the split would allow the institute to have a “more ambitious agenda” in the future.

Dean said they gave the institute the option of aligning their work more closely with the university, something they were not interested in doing.

“I think it’s pretty clear from reading the report that the institute’s work was never really that closely related to the work of this university,” said Dean.

The decision comes after the Board of Governors ordered a review of centers and institutes in the UNC system last fall.

UNC also conducted reviews of the Carolina Center Public Service, Carolina’s Women’s Center, Center for Civil Rights, and Center Faculty Excellence per request of the Board of Governors. All of these centers will remain open.

“I think it’s fair to say, somewhat informally, I’m pretty impressed by the work these centers are doing. They are doing important work and they are doing it well,” said Dean.

The Board of Governors also ordered the closing of the UNC Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity last February. Opponents accused the Board of Governors of making a partisan decision to close the center but members of the BOG have refuted such accusations.

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