Chair John Preyer and his allies on the UNC Board of Trustees have a history of bullying, harassing and intimidating long-time UNC leaders – even forcing some to leave Carolina.
This time, the bullies got called out.
They planned a secret, closed-door meeting where they would pummel and pillory Bubba Cunningham, who has been our highly respected Athletics Director since 2011, over his department’s finances.
But they miscalculated.
Within days, UNC Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts defended Cunningham: “Our Athletic Director is one of the most senior, well-respected, well-regarded, admired athletic directors in the country.”
View Roberts’ comments here:
Then, as The News & Observer reported:
A social media post during an evening jog on May 13 first caught David McKenzie’s attention. The Triangle-based lawyer immediately hopped off the treadmill at Duke Faculty Club and grabbed his computer to learn more.
McKenzie had just read that the UNC Board of Trustees was planning to discuss athletics matters in closed session.
He said, “The closed session part really got my attention…. The smell test did not pass.”
Two days later, McKenzie filed a complaint in Orange County Superior Court accusing UNC and its Board of Trustees of violating the state’s Open Meetings Laws.
He was right. Now, UNC has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle his claim.
And, “at the next Board of Trustees meeting, UNC must make a statement in open session acknowledging the lawsuit, reaffirming the board’s commitment to adhering to the Open Meetings Act and clarifying the matter has been resolved.”
“If they’re gonna take the public’s money, they gotta do things in public,” McKenzie told The N&O.
Read the full story here: https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/acc/unc/article290256859.html#storylinky
A Pattern of Bullying
This wasn’t the first time that a respected, long-time UNC leader was targeted by Preyer and his allies on the board.
Their actions led Kevin Guskiewicz to leave after 30 years at UNC and five years as our 12th chancellor. As we reported when he left last December:
The last four years have been brutal….
Consider his first faculty meeting following his permanent naming to the position. He had to describe, if not defend, a ridiculous settlement with the Sons of the Confederate Veterans to keep a contested Civil War statue permanently off our campus.
Then came the tenure battle of Nikole Hannah Jones and the threatened firing of the Chancellor for supporting her and the faculty….
Fast forward to February 2023 when he was lambasted by the BOT and directed to “accelerate the development of a School of Civic Life and Leadership.”
Read our post here: https://coalitionforcarolinafoundation.org/i-understand-why-chancellor-kevin-guskiewicz-is-leaving-unc/
We know of numerous instances where respected, veteran faculty members and administrators have been subjected to mistreatment by the trustees – in open session and behind closed doors. A number of good people have left. The turnover at the top has been tumultuous and damaging to Carolina.
We won’t name those individuals. Unlike Preyer & Co., we respect them and their contributions to UNC.
This latest incident makes us question whether these trustees have read their own governing documents about their limited authority and the state’s open-meetings law.
UNC has to pay $25,000 for their folly.
Trustees volunteer a lot of time to UNC. They deserve appreciation for their service.
However, when they disrespect other university leaders, established processes and the law, their behavior must be called out and challenged.
Being a public university does have its drawbacks; allegedly one of these hindrances to enacting liberal policies and showing open support for not hiding behind a closed meeting is the Republic party’s control of the state legislature. As long as the public in North Carolina continues to vote to support the party in power, it will be a struggle on the part of UNC faculty to educate the public as to the university’s role as caretaker of the state’s public interests.