BOG Chairman Pays Visit to Campus

The visit was the second stop -- the first was at N.C. Central University's campus in Durham last month -- on a yearlong tour of all 16 UNC-system campuses.

Wilson is the first BOG chairman in recent history to tour each campus to facilitate communication between board members and students and to identify important issues on individual campuses.

Representatives from seven UNC-CH organizations -- including the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, the Black Student Movement and the National Pan Hellenic Council -- attended the meeting.

Wilson spoke to the attending student leaders about common concerns and issues emerging on campuses -- including effective communication, student representation and tuition fee increases.

Tuition increases are complex issues that the BOG must consider in reference to peer institutions, he said.

Wilson said he voted for every implemented tuition change after determining that the increases would not deter students from attending system schools. "I will only continue to support the bills if they include sufficient financial aid," he said.

The budget passed by the N.C. General Assembly on Friday included a provision that increased financial aid by $4.5 million, Wilson said.

"(Legislators) will talk to you, they will listen to you," he said. "At the moment, it's all abstract to (them). It would help them put a face on the impact of their budget.

"But you should never meet a member of the General Assembly without thanking them for the budget."

Wilson added that tuition does not represent the full range of student issues.

He said lack of adequate funding for staff salaries has been long overlooked. Many campuses have introduced supplementary increases for professors, but these are not sustainable.

Several student leaders, including UNC-CH Student Body President Jen Daum, expressed concern about the lack of a student vote on the BOG.

Some BOG members oppose a student vote on the board because state law mandates that all members of the board be elected by the General Assembly, Wilson said.

He said those members think that, under the law, there is no practical way to elect one student representative.

Getting a student vote is also problematic because student body leaders roll over annually while BOG members have four-year terms, Wilson said.

A legislative committee charged with studying the BOG and its composition could address the issue, Wilson said. The committee has not yet met.

Jonathan Ducote, president of the UNC-system Association of Student Governments, said Wilson's tour is beneficial for students in the UNC system.

"It speaks a lot about him, his tenure and commitment to students," he said.

Daum also said Wilson's tour of the system schools is "commendable but expected." She added that she hopes the tour will aid in developing a relationship that could eventually help students guide the legislative processes of the BOG.

Daum said she hopes that during his tenure, Wilson will return to the campuses and keep abreast of student issues.

"I have every faith in him."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.