Sources: Dartmouth's Folt to be named UNC's first female chancellor

Two sources familiar with the University’s chancellor search have confirmed that Carol Folt, interim president at Dartmouth College, will be named UNC’s first female chancellor Friday.

UNC-system President Thomas Ross will present Folt to the Board of Governors at a 2 p.m. meeting Friday. Folt is expected to be present at the meeting and give remarks to the board.

In response to rumors that the next chancellor might be a woman, Chancellor Holden Thorp said in an interview Thursday afternoon that naming the school’s first female chancellor would be a “great thing.” He added that the candidate is very qualified.

“It’s somebody that I didn’t know very well until the process, but since I’ve gotten to meet that person I’ve been really impressed, and think they have a great reputation around the country,” Thorp said.

UNC will present a significant change for Folt, who currently leads a private, Ivy-League university with 4,200 undergraduates and 1,900 graduate students. Folt joined Dartmouth in 1983 as a faculty member in the department of biological sciences, and has since served as provost and dean of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences, among other positions.