UNC Opens New Office in Washington, D.C., Touts Experiential Learning and Government Relations

UNC has officially opened a new office in Washington, D.C., which the university is dubbing “Carolina in the Capital.”

The 10,861-square-foot office space, located just a short walk away from the U.S. Capitol Building at 101 Constitution Avenue Northwest, “will support a variety of functions, including educational programming for undergraduate and graduate students, alumni relations and engagement with government partners,” according to a release from the school on Thursday.

UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts participated in the space’s official ribbon cutting. He was joined by other university leaders, like UNC Student Body President Devin Duncan, Chief Strategic Officer Chris McClure and Vice Provost for Global Affairs Barbara Stephenson.

“Carolina in the Capital is a state-of-the-art facility that reflects our commitment to creating experiential learning opportunities for our students and faculty,” Roberts in the university release. “The space is designed as an immersive learning environment where students can translate classroom knowledge into hands-on experience, which has never been more important.”

Image via UNC-Chapel Hill.

UNC says more than 60 percent of its approximately $1.6 billion in research funding comes from federal sponsors, including the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation in the Washington area. The university has also identified the Washington area as the home of the largest concentration of out-of-state alumni in the country.

“For years, students and faculty have relied on temporary or borrowed spaces across the city,” UNC shared in its release. “The new office provides a permanent home where students can gather, learn and build community while living and studying in Washington.”

During his tenure as chancellor, Roberts has made frequent visits to Washington — ramping up that outreach during President Donald Trump’s second administration. In May of 2025, Roberts told Chapelboro’s Aaron Keck of his visit to the capital to advocate for federal funding of university research amid broad cuts to the government’s spending. Roberts said the North Carolina delegation in Washington was “enormously supportive.”

“We have an active presence in Washington,” Roberts said in February of 2025. “We not only have our own federal relations team, but the UNC System does as well. [We have a] strong presence, really robust dialogue with the North Carolina federal delegation and other crucial policymakers.”

Featured image via UNC-Chapel Hill

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UNC Opens New Office in Washington, D.C., Touts Experiential Learning and Government Relations

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