UNC-Chapel Hill eliminated the most positions and redirected the most funding of its statewide peers as it worked to comply with the North Carolina System’s new policies regarding diversity on campus, according to a report on the changes.
Leadership for the flagship campus submitted its report to the UNC System Board of Governors — which met in committees on Wednesday — about the changes required after North Carolina’s public higher education system repealed its policies on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in May. The Chapel Hill university, as well as the 16 other system schools, had a deadline of September 1 to submit its updates on the completed cuts and position changes in order to comply.
According to the report, UNC cut 20 positions, with the most coming to central administrative roles as the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion was disbanded. Among those eliminated roles are vice provost for equity and inclusion, which was held by Leah Cox — although she is still employed by the university. The School of Medicine experienced the most position cuts out of the professional schools, including the elimination of its Office of Rural Initiatives and its vice dean of diversity, equity and inclusion role. Other schools with eliminated positions include the Eschelman School of Pharmacy, the Adams School of Dentistry, the Gilling School of Public Health, the School of Education, and the School of Information and Library Sciences. UNC said the changes will lead to $5,389,202 savings, which will be directed to some of the job transfers, hiring efforts for the affected schools, and various programs.
Beyond position cuts, UNC shared dozens of other programmatic changes it made in order to comply with the new policy, which is called Equality Within the University of North Carolina. They include the closing or renaming of offices and programs with diversity and inclusivity as key components of their missions.
Additionally, Carolina reported 27 position “realignments,” which included updating job titles and responsibilities for faculty and staff who focused on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts before the policy change.
“Our plan is compliant with the new UNC System policy,” Senior Director of UNC Media Relations Kevin Best said in a statement on Wednesday. “It includes the dissolution of the University Office for Diversity and Inclusion and the reassignment of its personnel and programs to other divisions of the university that support the success, well-being and sense of community that help our students, staff and faculty thrive. We have an unwavering commitment to provide a welcoming environment for all North Carolinians.”
The UNC System became the latest of public education systems to eliminate initiatives and jobs dedicated to DEI efforts on campus or in their states with its policy change in May. At the time, UNC System President Peter Hans described the change as re-focus of having “institutional neutrality” on such issues as race and identity by administrators — encouraging instead for discussion on the topics to be driven in the classrooms. Others, including state lawmakers, UNC trustees, and general opponents of DEI efforts, have described the goals of such initiatives as being political and exclusionary. Supporters, meanwhile, describe them as necessary to supporting minority representation and wellbeing regarding campus life or operations.
In total, the UNC System saw 59 positions eliminated and 131 roles redirected by the changes. The changes will save more than $17 million, $16 million of which will be redirected to other payroll or services. More details about the changes, and the school-by-school report of the compliance to the updated policy, can be found on the UNC System’s website.
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