Trustee Ralph Meekins Speaks Up Against Diversity Overreach
One voice of courage and conscience spoke up this month in the debate over diversity at UNC. Trustee Ralph Meekins, a Shelby attorney, said, “I am totally against” the Board of Trustee’s vote May 13 to remove from the UNC budget $2.3 million for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs and to redirect the money to […]
Two Coalition Founders Look at What’s Happened at UNC
Image source: https://www.unc.edu/discover/carolina-celebrates-the-class-of-2024-under-the-lights/ Events have come fast and furious at UNC the past few weeks: protests, the police response, graduation and – unfortunately – more ill-advised and ill-timed actions by the Board of Trustees. Today we share different perspectives on these events from two of the Coalition for Carolina’s founders: Dr. Mimi Chapman, professor in […]
Don’t short-circuit chancellor search
The following content was created by Public Ed Works. We requested permission to republish it. RALEIGH (May 8, 2024) – There’s a process to choose chancellors at UNC System campuses. Follow it. If there was any doubt university leadership has become hyper-politicized in recent years, state House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger […]
Dr. Mimi Chapman: Why Diversity Matters
Dr. Mimi Chapman, pictured with her father, is a Co=founder of The Coalition for Carolina. My dad was a WWII veteran. I think about him so much now that he is gone because of the lessons he taught me and sometimes the lessons we learned together. Prior to the war, he had attended a junior […]
UNC Needs a Full and Frank Discussion on Diversity BEFORE the Board of Governors Acts
With little notice and no discussion, a UNC Board of Governors committee last week recommended eliminating jobs and programs that promote diversity at all 17 campuses. The Coalition for Carolina believes there must be a full, frank and open debate on the issue before the full Board of Governors acts in May. We need, above […]
Trustees Chair John Preyer Got the Memo, But Didn’t Get the Message
The UNC System sent a loud and clear message to the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees, but Chair John Preyer clearly doesn’t get it. A Jan. 12 memo to the trustees from UNC System President Peter Hans and Board of Governors Chair Randy Ramsey told the board, as one trustee said, “to stay in our […]
The Coalition Response to Kotis’ Attack and Lee Roberts Video Clips
Just a few hours after our March 20th webinar where UNC Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts engaged in an open and respectful conversation with the Coalition for Carolina, trustee Marty Kotis, once again, pulled out his political hatchet and started swinging away at us. In his attack, Kotis misrepresented our coalition, called former UNC System President […]
Roger Perry Responds to Marty Kotis’ Attack on Our Webinar with Lee Roberts
Just a few hours after UNC Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts engaged in an open and respectful conversation with the Coalition for Carolina, trustee Marty Kotis, once again, pulled out his political hatchet and started swinging away at us. Kotis misrepresented our coalition, called former UNC System President Margaret Spellings a “RINO” and dismissed Chancellor Roberts’ […]
A Big Step Forward: UNC System President and Board of Governors Rein in Trustees at Carolina
UNC President Peter Hans and the UNC System Board of Governors have taken significant – and laudable – action to support sound leadership to UNC-Chapel Hill. In an “Administrative Memorandum” to Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts and trustees’ Chair John Preyer, President Hans and BOG Chair Randy Ramsey: The memo from is dated January 12, the […]
Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts Vows to be Fair, Open-Minded and Nonpartisan
Lee Roberts told the Coalition for Carolina last week he will be fair, open-minded and nonpartisan as UNC’s interim chancellor. In a wide-ranging 75-minute webinar, Roberts also said: More than 200 people watched the webinar live. Dr. Mimi Chapman and Roger Perry, two of our co-founders, moderated and posed questions to Roberts. You can watch […]