Reimagining The Campus Visit

Virtual Reality Improves College Access The university campus tour is a generations-old rite of passage for eager—and nervous—high school students who have their sights set on the horizon as they prepare to leave the nest. Imagine the thrill for a Walter Williams High School junior, on her way from Alamance County to Boone for the …

A Class Portrait: 2018’s Marian Drane Graham Scholars

What will the class portrait of North Carolina’s next generation of education and civic leaders look like? If we’re lucky, something resembling 2018’s group of Marian Drane Graham scholars. For six weeks this summer, six resourceful and charismatic students from the UNC System have been embedded across different state agencies, where they’ve helped research solutions …

Strategic Plan Performance Agreements: Putting Words in Action

If you think of the stereotype of a strategic plan, it’s a lot of splash and not much substance. After a big launch, it’s rare to hear much of it ever again. But at the UNC System, that’s anything but the case. Almost two years after the UNC Board of Governors unanimously approved the strategic …

Remembering President C.D. Spangler

On July 22, 2018, UNC System President Emeritus C.D. Spangler, Jr. passed away at age 86. On the U.S. Senate Floor, Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Richard Burr (R-NC) delivered a stirring tribute in his honor. Read Senator Burr’s comments: You can watch Senator Burr’s remarks here.  WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) …

UNC System Announces the Passing of President Emeritus C.D. Spangler, Jr.

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJuly 23, 2018   UNC System Announces the Passing of President Emeritus C.D. Spangler, Jr. CHAPEL HILL – The University of North Carolina System (UNC System) announces the passing of President Emeritus C. D. Spangler, Jr. In a statement made today, UNC System President Margaret Spellings reflected on his legacy: “C.D. Spangler, …

UNC System names four NC graduates as 2018-19 Presidential Scholars

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJuly 17, 2018   UNC System names four NC graduates as 2018-19 Presidential Scholars CHAPEL HILL – UNC System President Margaret Spellings announced on Tuesday that four recent UNC System graduates will serve as Presidential Scholars for the 2018-19 academic year. The Presidential Scholars serve a one-year appointment and provide a wide …

Commencing with the Future: The Final State of the University Address Looks Forward

On Monday, President Spellings wrapped up this year’s State of the University tour with one final address, hosted by the Triangle’s four institutions: North Carolina Central University, the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, North Carolina State University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Coming on the heels of graduation season, …

UNC System President Announces Launch of Student Success Innovation Lab

CHAPEL HILL, NC – UNC System President Margaret Spellings today announced the launch of the Student Success Innovation Lab, a newly created initiative that will help fund and evaluate cost-effective innovations that drive improvements in student success. “We know it’s not enough to get students into school. This initiative will leverage our System platform for …

Nancy J. Cable Named Chancellor of UNC Asheville

CHAPEL HILL – The University of North Carolina Board of Governors elected Dr. Nancy J. Cable as the new chancellor of UNC Asheville during a special session of the board held today. Dr. Cable will assume her new duties on August 15.  “I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Cable to UNC Asheville and to our …

Teaching Students Today Leading Teachers Tomorrow

UNC SYSTEM FACULTY FELLOWS EXPLORE UPPER ADMINISTRATION The UNC System emphasizes that it is one University, comprised of 17 unique institutions. As President Margaret Spellings is fond of saying, “Our institutions are individually remarkable, collectively extraordinary.” We are many, but one. This paradox can present its fair share of conundrums: how does the UNC System …

Fifty Named to NC Governor’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Internship Program

CHAPEL HILL – Fifty students representing nine public and private institutions from across North Carolina have been named to internships through the North Carolina Governor’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Internship Program. “This program is absolutely crucial in helping to link talented students from our state’s historically African American institutions with Fortune 500 corporations through …

Saving Ocean Fisheries, One Bait Cake At A Time

Cammie the crayfish lives in a water filled aquarium inside a lab at Kepley BioSystems. Cammie likes to attack a white block of cake whenever it is dumped into her tank. The white, chalky block isn’t your standard piece of cake. And that’s the whole point of this story. “What you’re watching, that cake, is …

Inventor, innovator, winner.

NC State University Professor Ruben Carbonell wins Board’s Max Gardner Award Dr. Ruben G. Carbonell honored with 2018 O. Max Gardner Award from University of North Carolina on Vimeo. Ruben Carbonell, Frank Hawkins Kenan Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering at North Carolina State University, has been honored with the O. Max Gardner Award, the most significant university-wide …

GEAR UP North Carolina to partner with N.C. School of Science and Mathematics

Federally funded program will give low income high school students greater access to AP offerings CHAPEL HILL – A newly announced and federally-funded partnership between GEAR UP North Carolina and the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM) will provide low income and rural high school students across the state with greater access to Advanced …

UNCG Police Officer Taylor Trantham named Officer of the Year

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE UNCG Police Officer Taylor Trantham named Officer of the Year UNC System President Margaret Spellings Highlights Efforts to Strengthen Campus Safety CHAPEL HILL – The University of North Carolina System has named University of North Carolina at Greensboro Police Department Officer Taylor Trantham as its 2018 Officer of the Year. Officer Trantham …

Service Learning Provides Lessons In and For the Community

If it’s been years since you set foot inside a college classroom, you might be surprised to find that, sometimes in this new era of learning, they’re empty. The students aren’t cutting class. Instead, they’ve turned the community into their classroom. Teaching and learning are no longer cloistered behind ivy-covered campus walls. A wealth of …

Reading. Writing. Arithmetic?

Finding Math Pathways for Every Student In elementary school, students learn that reading, writing, and arithmetic are the pillars of any robust education. But by the time these elementary school students have grown into university-bound students, their sights set on careers in the not-too-distant future, many find themselves questioning the wisdom of a singular well-rounded, …

Protecting Firefighters

Every day, firefighters risk their lives as they run into burning buildings and face the deadly power of wildfires — and also as they deal with the long-term effects of smoke, soot and toxic chemical exposure. Cancer now ranks as their leading cause of death, according to the International Association of Firefighters. NC State experts …

Celebrating a Life of Service and Devotion

Dr. Robert Canida Received the Erskine B. Bowles Staff Service Award UNC Pembroke Administrative Leader Honored “This is what you do as a humanitarian. You serve others.” These poignant words express Dr. Robert Canida’s guiding philosophy, one that makes no distinction between professional responsibility and altruism. As the director of the University of North Carolina …

Speaking math

Imagine spending an entire lifetime reading one sentence — that’s the kind of problem Joaquín Drut faces every day. The UNC physicist works with numbers too large to compute in an effort to better understand the way our universe works. Sometimes a single word acts as a powerful tool for communicating a whole world of …

New report highlights need for reform and improvement in educator preparation programs

University launches statewide advisory board to chart path forward A new review released by the University of North Carolina System takes a close look at the System’s undergraduate teacher preparation programs with an eye toward effective literacy instruction. The report highlights areas of strength, including strong relationships between schools of education and local school districts …

WCU search committee named to recommend next chancellor

CULLOWHEE – Western Carolina University announced Thursday, Dec. 21, the appointment of a 22-member search committee that will recommend a successor to Chancellor David O. Belcher. The search committee includes representatives of the WCU Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, administration and students, as well as alumni and community members. The committee includes one non-voting member …

UNC System Hosts First Behavioral Health Convening, Addresses Services on UNC Campuses

The University of North Carolina System hosted the first Behavioral Health Convening recently in Winston-Salem, NC. The event gathered more than 100 health professionals, faculty and staff from all of the 17 UNC institutions. Keynote speakers included, Dr. Nance Roy, Chief Clinical Officer of the JED Foundation; Dr. Betsey Tilson, director of the NC State …

Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar named acting Chancellor of Western Carolina University

CHAPEL HILL, NC – University of North Carolina President Margaret Spellings announced today that Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar has been named acting Chancellor of Western Carolina University. Morrison-Shetlar, who is currently serving as Provost, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, and tenured biology professor at WCU, will assume the role of acting Chancellor on January 1, 2018. …

NC Teaching Fellows Commission Selects Partner Institutions

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Five North Carolina schools have been selected as partner institutions for a new initiative aimed at supporting students preparing for a teaching career in the fields of science, technology, engineering, math or special education. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina State …

A model of education, service

Chadwick receives UNC system award for public service Dr. Gregory Chadwick, dean of East Carolina University’s School of Dental Medicine, was awarded the 2017 Gov. James E. Holshouser Jr. Award for Excellence in Public Service on Friday, Nov. 3. The UNC Board of Governors bestows the honor each year on one faculty member from the …

Higher Expectations for Performance

In crafting the Strategic Plan, shared goals were established for moving education in the state forward, and leadership at each university worked to define specific goals based on institutional plans and priorities. The agreements make up a pact to achieve individually-defined metrics for each institution.