The Daily Tar Heel
Printing news. Raising hell. Since 1893.
Friday, March 29, 2024 Newsletters Latest print issue

We keep you informed.

Help us keep going. Donate Today.
The Daily Tar Heel

Jan Boxill, the former faculty chairwoman and a lecturer in the philosophy department, requested a hearing before the University Faculty Hearings Committee after the University told her of its intent to terminate her.

“On October 22, 2014, the University informed faculty member Jeanette Boxill of an intent to terminate her employment based on evidence accompanying the report,” Chancellor Carol Folt said in a release last month.

Boxill declined to comment for this story.

Boxill used her role as the academic counselor for the women’s basketball team to further the paper classes scheme.

Between 1999 and 2009, there were 114 women’s basketball players enrolled in paper classes and Boxill encouraged them to take these classes. In his report, Kenneth Wainstein said Boxill was fully aware of how the classes were conducted, including secretary Deborah Crowder’s role.

An investigation by The Daily Tar Heel revealed that Boxill also offered an irregular amount of independent studies.

She offered 160 independent studies between spring 2004 and spring 2012, and supplementary emails of the Wainstein report show players were encouraged by Boxill to take her classes.

In November, Marc Lange, chairman of the philosophy department, said he has only taught a handful of independent studies at UNC since he came to the University in 2003.

In an email to Crowder in 2006, former football counselor Cynthia Reynolds seemed excited to place her players in Boxill’s classes.

“Nice call on the Phil 30 (Boxill) correspondence course last semester,” the email said. “Didn’t know Jan was doing those.”

Faculty are now only permitted to offer two students independent study courses per semester.

Jean DeSaix, a biology professor and good friend of Boxill, told The Daily Tar Heel on the day of the Wainstein report’s release that she could not believe what she read about her friend.

“Jan is so, so ethical. It just — I don’t know. I can’t even make sense out of it,” she said.

“It doesn’t feel right to me.”

To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.