UNC system moves closer to eliminating DEI staff
The University Governance Committee for the University of North Carolina system’s Board of Governors recently passed a policy that may eliminate DEI positions at UNC schools.
If the policy is ultimately passed by the entire board, it will go into effect and require each of the public universities in the system to eliminate DEI officers.
A committee of the University of North Carolina system’s Board of Governors recently passed a policy that takes a step toward eliminating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) positions at UNC schools.
The University Governance Committee passed the policy unanimously and the proposal will go to the whole board for a vote later in May, as reported by The News & Observer. If the policy is passed by the entire board, it will go into effect and require each of the public universities in the system to eliminate DEI officers.
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Specifically, the committee repealed the “Policy on Diversity and Inclusion Within the University of North Carolina,” which is Section 300.8.5 of the UNC Policy Manual.
The policy extends a “nondiscrimination requirement” for state government workplaces to “university-led student orientations, training, or activities.”
According to The News & Observer, UNC system President Peter Hans stated that despite the potential elimination of DEI roles, the university system will continue to promote equality of opportunity.
“There is broad and deep commitment to that goal, and support for the UNC System’s longstanding efforts to reflect the diversity of North Carolina,” Hans reportedly stated. “We have well-established laws and policies that prohibit discrimination, protect equal opportunity, and require a safe and supportive learning environment for all students. We will uphold those responsibilities.”
Kevin Best of UNC Chapel Hill reportedly said in a statement that the university would review the policy change and work to implement it “if it is adopted in May.”
“As the Board of Governors noted, equality of opportunity in education and employment is a long-standing commitment of the University of North Carolina as a core value in service to our vibrant and growing state,” Best said, as reported by The News & Observer. “As part of that mission, UNC-Chapel Hill will continue to welcome people from all walks of life with a variety of experiences and perspectives who come here to learn, work and live.”
An advocacy group in North Carolina, the Carolina Partnership for Reform, concluded that the proposed policy would effectively eliminate DEI in the state.
“In sum, our initial review suggests the proposed [Board of Governors] policy will go a long way toward rooting out DEI bureaucracies -- and the race-essentialist worldview those bureaucracies push -- from the university system,” the group said in a statement. “The policy is centered on existing state law that is well-reasoned, and it expands the spirit of that law to also include university bureaucracies and university-led initiatives.”
Campus Reform has contacted UNC Chapel Hill, NC State, and UNC Greensboro for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
