The UNC System wants to ensure new degree programs prepare students for successful careers. University of North Carolina System President Peter Hans will overhaul the standards for creating new degree programs. Campuses will now weigh the public interest when adding the programs — and decide whether the degrees help students find work and repay their...
North Carolina’s public schools and universities are asking the General Assembly for millions more to deal with COVID-19 challenges. The House Select Committee on COVID-19 education working group met for the first time in months to hear updates on how the state’s various education systems are handling the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. N.C. public schools and...
University of North Carolina leaders, students, and faculty are blaming each other for the growing number of COVID-19 cases on campuses. But it’s unclear where the fault lies. Plenty of fingers were pointed at the UNC System, who left the blueprints for reopening with campus officials. Others blame the campus leaders for trying to squeeze...
UPDATE, Monday, 4:06 p.m. UNC Chapel Hill officials announced the university would move to full online instruction on Wednesday and “reduce residential intensity.” Four COVID-19 outbreaks reported last week at UNC Chapel Hill won’t shut down the flagship university campus. Yet. Officials are dealing with the “clusters” — defined as at least five positive coronavirus...
North Carolina is home to one of the biggest union battles in the South. Mission Health in Asheville is fighting efforts to unionize 1,600 registered nurses. The clash pits HCA Healthcare, the largest hospital system in America, against the National Nurses Organizing Committee, the nation’s largest registered nurses’ union. If the nurses successfully unionize in...
Every North Carolina student, from kindergarteners to post-graduates, will have new health and safety rules to follow this fall. COVID-19 has complicated the traditional school day for all students, teachers, and faculty. Schools and universities are finalizing plans to provide an education with the infectious disease in mind. The fall reopening plans are as far-reaching...
The University of North Carolina Board of Governors is keeping tuition and fees the same no matter what happens with COVID-19. But while UNC insists the value of classes remains high — even when those classes are held via Zoom — students tell Carolina Journal this isn’t the college experience they paid for. Tuition and fees...
Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. Here’s this week’s review: End of session: The General Assembly closed out the week with several failed attempts to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes. With six vetoes on the calendar, five...
While the University of North Carolina System has a new president, the N.C. Community College System is left seeking applicants for its top job. The UNC Board of Governors on Friday, June 19, unanimously elected NCCCS President Peter Hans to lead its 17-campus system. Hans, who took the community college job in 2018, is a...
Each week of the General Assembly’s short session, CJ staff will look back at several important bills lawmakers handled. Elections: An election bill awaits Gov. Roy Cooper’s signature. House Bill 1169, Bipartisan Elections Act of 2020, sends money to the N.C. State Board of Elections for COVID-19 expenses, and includes temporary reforms to absentee and vote-by-mail...
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many questions with precious few answers. It’s tough to debate otherwise. A dearth of data, beyond the numbers of confirmed cases and deaths, allowing people to make reasonable decisions about their safety — and returning to some sense of normalcy — is clearly problematic. It’s just one aspect as a...
