TO THE EDITOR:
Writing on behalf of the UNC-Chapel Hill faculty in reaction to UNC-system President Tom Ross’s dismissal on Jan. 16, Faculty Chairman Bruce Cairns expressed gratitude to Ross and sadness over his departure.
I know that this statement captured many of the immediate thoughts and feelings of the faculty upon hearing the shocking news of Ross’s unexplained termination.
But it may not have captured all of them. In addition to gratitude and sadness, I also felt alarm at the abrupt nature of the dismissal and the unwillingness of the Board of Governors to explain the reasons for it.
I felt this not just for Ross, who deserved better, but also for the students, staff, and faculty of the many campuses of the UNC system. This opaque action offers us little reason for confidence in the process that the board will use to select and evaluate Ross’s replacement.
Prof. Eric Muller
School of Law
