WINSTON-SALEM (March 8, 2023) – While there are always differing opinions about how much teachers should be paid, I believe most North Carolinians agree that having quality teachers in every classroom is important, our students need to perform better, and teachers should be paid more. I wrote a short piece for Higher Ed Works last… READ MORE
Paul Fulton: UNC School of Civic Life is not a done deal
By Paul FultonSpecial to The PilotMarch 6, 2023 In response to Connie Lovell’s column Feb. 25 (“New UNC School Will Give Students Critical Thinking Skills Needed in Life”): The notion of adding conservative faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill is a popular one, given public perceptions. However, my own grandchildren who have graduated from Chapel Hill tell… READ MORE
What to do with an extra $3B?
RALEIGH (March 1, 2023) – North Carolina will finish the current budget year with $3.25 billion – 10.7% – more revenue than it budgeted for the year, state economists reported last month. The consensus report from economists for the General Assembly and the Governor’s Office attributed the additional funds to a smaller-than-expected decline in individual… READ MORE
UNC System keeps tuition constant for 7th year
RALEIGH (February 23, 2023) – Public officials seldom attract attention when they don’t change something for seven years. But in an era when the public complains about the cost of higher education, the UNC Board of Governors voted today to keep tuition for in-state undergraduates at the state’s 16 public universities the same for a… READ MORE
A leader in principal
RALEIGH (February 23, 2023) – Being a school principal has been called the toughest job in America. But Bonnie Fusarelli is there to help. Fusarelli, a professor and faculty scholar in the Department of Educational Leadership, Policy, and Human Development at NC State University, has run training for future principals and superintendents for 20 years. … READ MORE
Case study in UNC board overreach?
CHAPEL HILL (February 21, 2023) – There’s a case study in overreach by a UNC System governing board taking place before our eyes in Chapel Hill. Administrators and faculty alike were blindsided Jan. 26 when the UNC Chapel Hill Board of Trustees adopted a resolution – which was not listed on the meeting agenda –… READ MORE
Guskiewicz walks a tightrope
CHAPEL HILL (February 21, 2023) – Kevin Guskiewicz is walking a tightrope. With the surprise adoption last month by the Board of Trustees at UNC-Chapel Hill of a resolution asking the university to “accelerate” creation of a School of Civic Life and Leadership1 – followed by a “flabbergasted” response from bewildered faculty2 – UNC’s Chancellor… READ MORE
Art Padilla: Universities and DEI, Part 1
RALEIGH (February 17, 2023) – More than half of North Carolina’s 100 counties have lost population since 2010. Those who live in fast growing metropolitan areas like Raleigh, Charlotte, or Wilmington seldom grasp the poverty and lack of opportunity that exist just a few miles from their homes. Yet, instead of boldly focusing on these and other difficulties… READ MORE
Universities and DEI, Part 2: What’s new?
The exquisite irony in our polarized scenarios is that universities have had DEI-like entities and official statements about university commitments to civil rights laws in place for decades. The stationery in the UNC President’s office has declared institutional support for equal opportunity and affirmative action since the early 1970s. Perhaps the words have changed to… READ MORE
Universities and DEI, Part 3: Draconian options and board duties
The draconian hand of a central university board and the “nuclear option” of legislation or loyalty oaths or policy statements prohibiting what are, or are thought to be, inappropriate questions are not helpful here. We could benefit from less meddling by university boards and much less micro-management by our legislatures. Recruitment of top administrators is… READ MORE