CHAPEL HILL (October 21, 2021) – In high school in Hamlet, college seemed a long way off for Camila Perez. Perez was undocumented until she was 15 years old, she says in the accompanying video. “So thinking about college kind of seemed like a far concept, just because I knew I would have to face… READ MORE
Somos Carolina: ‘A family’
CHAPEL HILL (October 21, 2021) – Helping Latinx students prepare for college isn’t just about filling out forms. It’s also about helping them feel comfortable with themselves. And that’s what Somos Carolina (We Are Carolina) is all about. “I would describe it as a family – it’s an organization that helped me feel less alone… READ MORE
SUMMIT: A critical conversation on Latinx education
CHAPEL HILL (October 12, 2021) – The 2020 U.S. Census revealed that Latinx people now account for more than 10% of North Carolinians – and if Latinx students don’t succeed, North Carolina won’t succeed. But a virtual summit Wednesday and Thursday will discuss the current state of Latinx education in North Carolina and ways to improve… READ MORE
Nikole Hannah-Jones: What are we afraid of?
CHAPEL HILL (July 1, 2021) – It took five months and nationwide embarrassment, but the UNC Chapel Hill Board of Trustees eventually got it right when members voted yesterday to grant tenure to Nikole Hannah-Jones. After more than two hours in closed session, the board voted 9-4 to grant tenure to Hannah-Jones, who was recommended… READ MORE
UNC board will be a smidge more diverse
RALEIGH (March 31, 2021) – State legislators made the UNC System Board of Governors slightly more diverse with their appointments this month, increasing the number of female, Black and Democratic members by one each on the 24-member board. The state Senate made seven appointments to the board. Senators reappointed BOG Chair Randy Ramsey of Beaufort,… READ MORE
UNC System Governance: Look like North Carolina
RALEIGH (Feb. 17, 2021) – As state legislators begin to consider their 2021 appointments to the UNC System Board of Governors, we revisit the series Making Governance Work that we shared last year before the coronavirus pandemic took hold. A Higher Ed Works webinar Feb. 11 featured Belle Wheelan, President of the Southern Association of… READ MORE
King Prather: We are all ancestors of ourselves
By N. King Prather My insides have been in knots since I heard Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama, on Jan. 6, say that today is the day “we kick ass and take names.” His audience included a significant number of hate groups, and not long after, these groups assaulted the U.S. Capitol. I have roots… READ MORE
2020: Coping with COVID
Yes, it was a year like no other. More than anything, 2020 was a year of change and continuous adjustment. COPING WITH COVID Higher education in North Carolina adapted in so many ways: A treatment for COVID-19 was developed. 50,000 classes shifted online in two weeks. A professor shipped virtual-reality headsets to students. 700 laptops… READ MORE
HELP WANTED: Teachers of Color
RALEIGH – What’s wrong with this picture? Last year, 53% of the public school students in North Carolina were students of color – yet nearly 80% of their teachers were white.1 “North Carolina’s educator workforce has been unable to match this rich diversity,” says a new report from the Developing a Representative and Inclusive Vision… READ MORE
Creating a college-going culture
RALEIGH (Sept. 24, 2020) – As much as it’s about specific policies or strategies, increasing college enrollment is about creating a college-going culture, national education leaders said in a virtual meeting hosted by NC State University’s Institute for Emerging Issues. NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson, who moderated the discussion, noted that higher education is trying… READ MORE