Special Projects and Investigations

Jennifer (left) and Kyle Czarnecki (right), respective graduate and undergraduate students at UNC, balance raising their son Tim (center) with course schedules.

Child care isn’t always easy to access for student parents at UNC

By Jenni Ciesielski | November 29

For many students, the first day of classes brings a rush of emotions — anticipation, excitement, uncertainty — for what the next few months will ...

UNC's affirmative action lawsuit moves forward with Supreme Court ruling

By Felicia Bailey | November 20

UNC has been fighting a lawsuit against its affirmative action practices for two years, but a precedent-setting Supreme Court ruling from June indicates ...

Pill bottles line the back shelves of Sutton's Drug Store on Franklin Street.

UNC tracks prescription drug use to try to keep students safe amid rising national abuse rates

By Cain Twyman | November 2

As prescription drug abuse among college-age students continues to increase nationwide, UNC has begun implementing safeguards to prevent abuse on campus. ...

UNC business student Elizabeth Crenshaw poses to illustrate how struggling with addiction interferes with academic performance.

Learning around addiction: Students dealing with addiction face classroom trouble

By Jenni Ciesielski | September 1

It was spring of 2013, and UNC student Elizabeth Crenshaw was ecstatic. At the time, she was a first-year at the University of Maryland, starting classes ...

Wainstein's report, NCAA notices and accrediting response paint different pictures

By Morgan Vickers , Samantha Sabin , Sara Salinas , Colleen Moir , Lauren Kent and Bradley Saacks | April 26

In October 2014, the public was given what was considered the end of UNC’s yearslong academic-athletic scandal: independent investigator Kenneth Wainstein’s ...

Middle income students miss family funds, school aid options

By Sara Salinas | April 25

For the typical college student, post-graduate salary means a lot of things: success, status, livelihood. But family income pre-enrollment could mean ...

Biology is consistently one of the most popular majors among female students

By Samantha Sabin | April 12

Since the 2011 spring semester, the biology department has been one of the most popular for UNC's female students, according to data from the University ...

Intersex conditions pose unique challenges for UNC, Duke doctors

By Danny Nett | April 12

When Georgiann Davis was 17, she underwent surgery to remove what doctors called pre-cancerous ovaries.

Column: Why a Gender Issue?

By Samantha Sabin | April 12

I hate being called a “mystery.” Every now and then I’ll have a seemingly heartfelt conversation with one of my male friends and it will happen: ...

Report: HB2 has cost Wake County more than $700,000

By Liz Bell | April 12

For Taylor Mingos, House Bill 2 revives the same problems his company faced four years ago when same-sex marriage-banning Amendment One was passed.

The UNC women's rugby team practices on Tuesday, April 5th on Hooker fields.

A level playing field for gender and athletics

By Trevor Lenzmeier | April 12

Long before she took office as the president of UNC’s club women’s rugby team, senior Lindsey Oliver was attracted to the sport for its uniqueness ...

Source: "Administration of Intercollegiate Athletics" by Erianne Weight and Robert Zullo.

Adding men's varsity programs tougher, but not impossible, thanks to Title IX

By Lauren Kent | April 12

If a male club team wants to go varsity at UNC, Title IX does not help them.

When IDs don't match: How new voter ID laws affect the transgender community

By Haley McDougal | April 12

When UNC junior Giulia Curcelli bought alcohol at Harris Teeter a few months ago, they presented their ID like anyone else — but then came the questioning. Curcelli, ...

The Yackety Yack included photos to show the class of 1902. Women could enroll starting in 1897, but there are no women shown in this class photo.

The road to a 60 percent female campus

By Sara Salinas | April 12

Female students have long outnumbered their male counterparts at UNC, but the road to 60 percent was far from clear and easy.

All-female hackathon aim towards creating an encouraging environment for women of all skill levels to pursue their interests in technology.

Pearl Hacks holds a Sponsor Fair from 11AM to 1PM at the lower lobby in Sitterson Hall on Apr.2.

Women STEM majors foresee a different kind of post-grad stress

By Morgan Vickers | April 12

For female STEM majors, the post-grad stress is more than just finding a job immediately after graduation. Few women reach high-ranking positions in the ...

Only about a third of CAPS patients are men

By Alexis Allston | April 12

At UNC’s Counseling and Psychological Services, the overwhelming majority of students who come to seek support are women – with males making up only ...

Garry Allen stands outside Shortbread Lofts on Rosemary Street, where he was arrested in September 2014.

Students, faculty battle substance abuse

By Cain Twyman | March 29

It was fall 2014 when Gary Allen, a UNC senior, realized he had a problem with alcohol. A trip he took quickly turned sour when he was arrested and charged ...

Alex Vasquez works on a tipped wage as a bartender at Four Corners. Recently non-tipped wages have gone up while tipped wages have reined the same.

Servers, bartenders work with $2.13 minimum wage

By Lauren Kent | March 7

Senior Alex Vasquez cannot count the number of times she’s been stiffed for a tip — or perhaps worse, the number of times a customer will leave only ...

Greek members quiet on talking LGBTQ issues

By Liz Bell | January 28

Many Greek members hesitate to talk about their chapter’s LGBTQ policies. Some cite not wanting to impact recruitment. Others don’t want to stir ...

LGBT defendants face bias in death penalty cases, but you wouldn't know it from the data available

By Lauren Kent | November 30

The capital punishment trial of Calvin Burdine in Texas is famous.