RALEIGH, N.C. — As North Carolina’s public university system considers a vote on changes to its diversity policy, the system’s flagship university board voted Monday to cut funding for diversity programs in next year’s budget. did.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Board of Trustees approved changes to divert $2.3 million in diversity spending from state funds to public safety and police during a special meeting dealing with the university’s budget.
The board’s vote only affects UNC-Chapel Hill’s diversity funding and could result in the loss of its diversity office.
UNC would join other prominent public universities that have cut spending on diversity, including the University of Florida in Gainesville, which announced in a March memo that it would reallocate funding toward faculty hiring.
But unlike universities that implemented funding cuts after the state Legislature passed a bill banning state universities from spending on diversity programs, UNC “set the course” for funding cuts before the North Carolina General Assembly intervened. ,” said Budget Committee Chairman Dave Boreek.
“We’re moving forward and, you know, we’re taking a leadership role on this. That’s how I see it,” Boryek said Monday after the vote.
Boryek said the change will take effect on July 1, the start of the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Boryek said all potentially affected jobs are expected to occur after that date, but he doesn’t know how many jobs will be affected.
But the decision whether the spending cuts will eliminate UNC’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion will depend on the university’s flexible management plan, run by Interim President Lee Roberts and his team.
In the diversity office, 12 staff membersIncluding the chief diversity officer, according to the website.
UNC spokesman Kevin Best said in an email that a proposed budget, including a $2.3 million amendment, will be presented to the University of North Carolina Board of Regents in the future.
The vote to shift more funding to public safety comes as pro-Palestinian protests continue on the UNC campus and several arrests have been made in recent weeks.
Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Marty Kotis said law enforcement already has to respond to protests, but more funding is needed to protect universities from “greater threats.”
“It’s important to consider the needs of all 30,000 students, not just the 100 or so students who want to disrupt the university’s operations,” Kotis said. “You’re taking away someone else’s resources.”
But Boryek, who is running for state auditor in Tuesday’s runoff, said the timing of the reallocation was “coincidental” and that internal discussions about cutting diversity spending have been going on for nearly a year.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court last year struck down affirmative action in university admissions (UNC was sued over its admissions policies), the Board of Regents has continued to weigh in on how to handle university diversity programs. He said that he had been considering the matter.
Directing more funding to public safety was also a concern of the board following the mass shooting on the UNC campus in August that left a faculty member dead.
“It makes sense that we can take money that might not be being used productively and put it toward something more productive, which is providing public safety,” he said.
Before North Carolina’s short legislative session began, Republican House Speaker Tim Moore told reporters he was interested in pursuing anti-DEI legislation, but he wanted college boards to review their diversity policies first. .
at least 20 states Republican bill proposals have been identified that seek to limit diversity and inclusion programs at some public institutions, including universities.
All eyes are now on the UNC Board of Governors. The board’s 24 members are scheduled to vote on changes to the diversity policy next week after the UNC Board of Trustees’ University Governance Committee voted last month to repeal and replace the rule.
This change would change the 2019 regulations that define diversity, equity, and inclusion. Roles of different DEI positions Those jobs will likely disappear if the policy is repealed in the state’s 17 schools.
Once approved, changes will become effective immediately.
