UNC Waits For Qatari Response

UNC's negotiations with Qatar over the creation of a satellite business school have solidified with the submission of a detailed budget to which officials say they hope to receive a response this month.

Provost Robert Shelton said he expects Chancellor James Moeser to make a decision on Qatar soon after a response from Qatari officials. Moeser could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

UNC sent the budget to the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development in late December proposing about $28 million in annual costs plus a management fee of 23 to 30 percent to cover indirect costs.

The budget makes provisions for a number of items, including faculty salaries, technology and financial aid.

It also includes funds to hire professors to replace faculty abroad and to provide a paid leave for returning faculty. "I think it's a reasonable budget. ... It's a good point to have to start discussions," said Robert Sullivan , dean of the Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Officials representing UNC and Qatar also discussed the amount of a one-time gift, according to notes made by Shelton. The notes indicate that Moeser requested $35 million but that lawyer Dean Dilley, who represents the foundation, countered with a $10 million offer.

Shelton said the gift is important because it provides the possibility for benefits for UNC students. Although he said he does not know where the gift would go, he named the creation of a scholarship as one example.

The process of developing the budget spurred intense debate among faculty and administrators at UNC.

Nancy Suttenfield, vice chancellor for finance and administration, suggested that the proposed budget did not include all necessary costs. "(Roger Patterson, associate vice chancellor for finance and administration,) and I are both very troubled by ... a highly conservative approach that doesn't allow Carolina to come away whole if the negotiations result in less than this request," she wrote in an e-mail to Moeser on Dec. 4. Suttenfield did not return phone calls Wednesday.

The main sticking point Suttenfield expressed in her e-mails was a lack of compensation for safety and security. She expressed a fear that both the main campus and the campus abroad would be targets of terrorist activity. "The University strives to be the #1 public university," Suttenfield wrote. "The relationship with Qatar will be another step in that direction, but it will also make the University a target."

Ultimately, the final budget includes more than $200,000 for risk assessment and trained security officers with expertise in international terrorism.

Qatari officials also requested that UNC establish a pre-engineering curriculum in which it would offer preparatory classes while another school would offer professional level work.

University officials drafted a separate budget for this proposal, including about $5 million of annual direct costs.

Shelton said the budgetary discussions are one of several elements that might affect Moeser's decision.

"These are all part of the negotiations -- (Moeser) will take it all in and see if enough of the parameters are where they should be," he said."If they are, we will go forward, and if they aren't, we won't."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.