FACULTY

9/15/2020 11:26pm

(From left) Frank Baumgartner, Jennifer Ho and Sharon Holland discuss their collaborative "Intersectionality: Race, Gender, Sexuality and Social Justice" course at the Gray Squirrel coffee shop in Carrboro in 2016. Photo courtesy of Kristen Chavez, UNC College of Arts & Sciences.

Faculty of color consider leaving, cite lack of opportunities and toxic environment

By Sasha Schroeder

UNC faculty said they have considered leaving the University for peer institutions due to a lack of leadership opportunities and a toxic environment for faculty who are people of color. “The work that we do is not valued as much as work that other faculty do,” Jennifer Ho said. Jennifer Ho was the associate director of the UNC Institute for the Arts and Humanities — until she left in June 2019. “A lot of us were going to leave at a certain point because one, we couldn't get leadership positions, and two, who would want to stay in this climate?” Sharon Holland, chairperson of the Department of American Studies and ​Townsend Ludington distinguished professor, said.

Editors Picks

8/9/2020 10:59pm

Signs promoting social distancing and safety at the Die-In Protest on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020 as Jennifer Standish, a UNC graduate student in the Department of History, speaks outside of South Building on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. The protest called for UNC to transition to fully remote classes for the Fall 2020 semester after a letter of caution sent to Chancellor Guskiewicz by the Orange County Health Director Quintana Stewart.

UNC employees sue the University system over workplace safety

By Maydha Devarajan

Gary Shipman, a Wilmington-based lawyer, is representing UNC System faculty and staff in the midst of preparing a class-action lawsuit to delay in-person classes. In a response to Shipman, NCDOL General Counsel Jill F. Cramer and Deputy Commissioner of Labor Kevin Beauregard acknowledged the concerns of faculty and staff members. However, they stated it is the responsibility of the UNC System to develop policies and plans that reduce the risk of exposure of contracting COVID-19 — not the department. 

8/4/2020 9:09pm

Screenshot from the virtually Faculty Committee Meeting on Friday, June 19, 2020 to discuss the Carolina Roadmap.

'This road leads to a disaster': Faculty express reopening concerns in letters

By Maydha Devarajan and Preston Fore

UNC faculty have expressed concerns about the University's reopening, along with student leaders and campus workers. Through a public letter published in The Charlotte Observer and a letter from Chairperson of the Faculty Mimi Chapman, faculty have expressed their fears of returning to campus and of community spread of COVID-19.  “We are willing to do our part,” Chapman wrote. “But at this point, I believe that our University and perhaps the entire UNC System is being asked to turn straw into gold.”

6/29/2020 7:45am

Graphic of Heel Talk podcast

Heel Talk episode 12: Faculty and staff petition UNC against return to campus

By Evely Forte and Meredith Radford

In this episode, host Evely Forte spoke to DTH reporter and incoming Assistant Copy Editor Sasha Schroeder and incoming Assistant Online Editor Praveena Somasundaram to understand why many UNC faculty members, professors and teaching assistants are petitioning UNC administration about the fall 2020 semester because of the COVID-19 pandemic, what the petitioners are really demanding and how they hope the University will implement potential changes. 

6/23/2020 10:03pm

Screenshot of the Faculty Executive Meeting on Monday, June 22, 2020, where there was discussion on racial equity in the upcoming school year.

Faculty Executive Committee discusses fall semester, racial injustice at UNC

By Rachel Crumpler

Two UNC professors presented a roadmap for racial equity that has been in development for over a year at Monday's Faculty Executive meeting.  The roadmap calls for sustained actions over the course of three years, including renaming campus buildings in an inclusive process, establishing faculty advisory groups on racial equity and holding an annual UNC Board of Trustees meeting with Black and Indigenous faculty, and faculty of color. 

6/21/2020 11:33pm

The Graduate Student Petition and a previous Graduate and Professional Student Federation (GPSF) Meeting in Kerr Hall on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019.

Graduate workers continue to petition UNC, demand not reopen in-person instruction

By Rachel Crumpler

In a petition published June 12, graduate workers have expressed concerns about the safety and logistics of returning to campus for in-person instruction this fall. Workers demanded that UNC not reopen in-person this fall, does not layoff or furlough staff and grant them a one-year time-to-degree extension, among other demands. The University has said the Carolina Roadmap was developed with feedback from multiple parties, are working to refine the plan and will make "whatever adjustments are needed in real time.”

3/16/2020 9:24pm

DTH Photo Illustration. A student sits at a desk on March 16, 2020. UNC students and professors are preparing for online instruction.

From jazz to LFIT, UNC professors plan how they'll take their classes online next week

By Allie Kelly

With the transition to online learning coming up on March 23, UNC professors are planning on how to make their classes remote. For some areas of study like music and physical fitness, this online transition presents unique challenges.  The University has extended spring break by a week to give professors time to prepare for online learning. For some professors, this means figuring out how to teach instrumental music over Zoom. For others, this means seeking help from other professors across the country.