EDITOR’S NOTE: As state legislators returned to Raleigh recently for their 2021 session, Winston-Salem businessman Don Flow shared the following thoughts with legislative leaders. By Don Flow America is in the midst of enormous turmoil, with rural whites and urban blacks caught in the same undercurrent. Although they express their frustration and anger in different ways… READ MORE
A modest ask of state legislators for 2021-22
CHAPEL HILL (Nov. 19, 2020) – Anticipating a difficult budget year, the UNC System Board of Governors adopted budget and legislative priorities for 2021-22 today that reflect the core mission of the University System, but also its intention to reduce employees. “I think we’ve been very modest with our ask,” board Chair Randy Ramsey said…. READ MORE
2019: The turmoil continues
Turmoil continued through 2019 among the leadership of individual UNC campuses and the UNC System itself. A new state budget for 2019-21 still hasn’t been adopted; raises for K-12 teachers and higher education faculty are still on hold. And the fate of a statue continued to divert energy from the university’s more noble pursuits. Yet… READ MORE
Who would apply?
ELIZABETH CITY – Randy Ramsey is just settling in as Chair of the UNC Board of Governors. But he deserves credit for wanting to rein in at least one rogue board member for launching personal investigations outside the board’s processes. Ramsey is also co-chair of the committee overseeing the search for yet another UNC System… READ MORE
Plenty of tricks, not many treats
RALEIGH – Perhaps it’s appropriate the 2019 General Assembly adjourned on Halloween, because the inability of the legislature and the governor to come to terms on a budget for the next two years leaves North Carolina with a sense of foreboding. Here’s where we stand: The legislature passed a budget that included average raises of… READ MORE
NC student debt on the rise
Student debt is on the rise, both in North Carolina and across the nation. More than 45 million Americans now owe a collective $1.6 trillion.1 Once upon a time, North Carolina prided itself on low tuition and low student debt among its graduates. But as the chart above illustrates, as tuition has risen, debt among… READ MORE
The stakes are too high
By Emma Singletary BattlePresident/CEO, Higher Ed Works In a recent column titled “North Carolina ranks high in college funding,” John Hood reminds us that the N.C. Constitution requires that the benefits of our public colleges and universities “as far as practicable, be extended to the people of the state free of expense.” Hood acknowledges that between 2008 and 2018,… READ MORE
Mourning with Charlotte
CHARLOTTE – It’s not just another day in America. We join the UNC Charlotte community in mourning the loss of life Tuesday of two students. We hope for the recovery of the four students who were injured and healing of the entire UNC Charlotte community. We join schools across the nation in feeling the loss of… READ MORE
Reward all our teachers
RALEIGH (May 2, 2019) – The 2019-21 state budget the N.C. House is moving to approve this week continues to award healthy raises to K-12 teachers and makes some strategic investments in higher education, especially in the area of capital. But it doesn’t do nearly enough for our public colleges’ and universities’ human capital. House… READ MORE
Statement from former members of UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees
UNC-Chapel Hill is our nation’s oldest public university and among its finest. The UNC System is the state’s most important asset. Strong, accomplished leaders have helped UNC be a catalyst for growth that has made a positive impact in every corner of our state. Today, however, the University faces challenges created by the very people… READ MORE