Download PDF of series here: https://hew.aveltsagency.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/HEW-MakingGovernanceWork-series-web.pdf
Paul Fulton: A discussion of UNC System governance
By Paul Fulton
Our universities have set this state apart. If we don’t pay attention to our universities’ future, then we’re not paying attention to our state’s future. They are one and the same. Today, our universities tell a complicated story with world-class highs, but also headline-dominating lows. In recent years, the turmoil has risen… READ MORE
History of UNC governance: ‘Lot of cooks in the kitchen’
By D.G. Martin
Former UNC System President Margaret Spellings spoke for many North Carolinians concerned about the state’s public multi-campus university when she questioned, “You know, are we organized for success? “So we’ve got a Board of Trustees and a chancellor (on each campus), and a President and a Board of Governors (for the System),… READ MORE
Thorp and Goldstein: Principles for governance reform
By Holden Thorp and Buck Goldstein
Introduction: Universities falling short? We are honored to help introduce an ambitious series of articles on university governance and hopefully begin an important conversation that directly impacts the future of higher education in the United States. Over the last decade, we have been intimately involved in the subject as… READ MORE
Burr and Bowles: Strengthening the UNC System for future generations
By Richard Burr and Erskine Bowles
The University of North Carolina (UNC) System’s 17 institutions have given generations of students a top-tier education. Our universities have achieved a standard of excellence at a fraction of the cost of public institutions in other states. And they have built a bright, talented workforce, as the majority of… READ MORE
Lou Bissette: Building a perfect Board of Governors
By Lou Bissette
I am very proud of the UNC System. Our 17 institutions constitute the finest public university system in the nation. I have been fortunate to serve a combined 17 years, first on the Board of Western Carolina University and then on the UNC System Board of Governors. Lately, we have seen a… READ MORE
Hugh McColl: Give our universities room to work
By Hugh McColl
States need certain ingredients to be great. They need globally competitive industries like biotech, international financial centers like Charlotte, and an arts and entertainment community that gives families a reason to stay. But the most important ingredient is a world-class education system. In North Carolina, that educational excellence has always been led… READ MORE
Gordon Gee: Put the skunk on the table
By E. Gordon Gee
As chief executive at five universities—with five different governing schemes and prevailing philosophies—I have learned one overriding truth about university governing boards: They love you until they don’t. Governing boards typically have power to appoint and to fire presidents and chancellors. Thus, these leaders spend their time trying to avoid the… READ MORE
Belle Wheelan: Stay in your lane
Proper governance of the University of North Carolina System is not a new issue. At a July 2017 meeting of the UNC Board of Governors in Asheville, Dr. Belle Wheelan, president of the agency that accredits all 16 public universities in North Carolina, spoke to board members about their role. “We ask you… READ MORE
Don Flow: Accountability, not activism
By Don Flow
The UNC System is the most important institution in North Carolina. It is the distinctive difference between our state and every other southern state. It sets us apart. It is at the heart of what has enabled us to flourish relative to our neighbors. But it hasn’t achieved its excellence by accident…. READ MORE
BOG Governance Committee takes up… governance
By David Rice, Higher Ed Works
CHAPEL HILL (Feb. 20, 2020) – Following scandals involving individual UNC Board of Governors members who intervened in campus decisions and two East Carolina University trustees who tampered with a student election, the Board’s Governance Committee launched a discussion of proper governance. In the first discussion of what Committee Chair… READ MORE
Jenkins and Smith: Stable leadership to move NC forward
By Dale Jenkins and Andrea Smith
North Carolina’s not just growing, it’s thriving. Ranked by Forbes as the Best State in America for Business in 2019 for the third straight year, and boasting one of the highest net migration rates in the U.S, the Tar Heel State’s future is bright. But we’ve got work to… READ MORE
Spellings: Organizing for success
By Margaret Spellings
North Carolina’s competitiveness is rooted in its education ecosystem. The UNC System is the state’s most important asset. In just a few months, a new President will be at its helm, and governance – how this massive and complicated enterprise is led and managed – will be one of biggest issues he… READ MORE
Martin: Diversity in the classroom and the boardroom
By Jim Martin
Even at its most refined, governance is messy. There’s no perfect process that can guarantee the right decision. The closest we can come is to make sure every voice is in the room arguing about what’s right. Diversity of thought is a bedrock principle of this country. Nothing drives discontent more than… READ MORE
Hunt: It’s time to reform University governance
By Jim Hunt
Every day during the 16 years I served as Governor, I saw how important the University of North Carolina system is to our state. But today this great oak of higher education is suffering from a deep and growing disease within: too much narrow, partisan politics. This is a Democratic and a… READ MORE
Lots of ideas to make UNC governance work
By Paul Fulton, Higher Ed Works
When we launched our “Making Governance Work” series more than six weeks ago, we said we didn’t intend to stipulate outcomes. But a bipartisan consensus emerged that we need to pay attention – and possibly make changes – to the boards that govern our public universities. The essays from… READ MORE