CHAPEL HILL – Former UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt spent time with the Higher Education Works Foundation recently to reflect on her six years as chancellor and what the future holds for Carolina.
She recited her proudest moments – graduations, national championships and a world championship in the form of a Nobel Prize….
She also recounted her most difficult decisions – but some weren’t as difficult as you might think. The hardest part, she says, was prioritizing student aid and faculty raises during a period of constricted budgets.
Asked whether she has any regrets about her time as Chancellor, Folt offers a refreshing response.
Among her greatest accomplishments, she lists revamping the curriculum in every single school at the University to make learning more hands-on….
Asked about her greatest disappointments, she lists translation of the University’s work to the public, funding for public universities and competitive salaries for faculty and staff.
It’s no secret where Folt drew her energy as Chancellor: “Where students are, it is always a good day,” she says. “… And I love taking selfies!”
Asked what the future looks like for Carolina, Folt points to an evolving mixture of students, increased reliance on philanthropy and research partnerships with the private sector. She stresses that universities can’t rest on their laurels, and that a global perspective is increasingly important for students.
CarolinaFan says
She was amazing under pressure in a no-win situation. Some other university will be so lucky to have her. Carolina’s great loss.
Richard Griggs says
It pains my very soul that this state lost one of the very best chancellors we have ever had at any institution in the state. As a 1974 graduate of UNC-CH I realize how important it is to retain top quality educators, and Carol Folt is one of the best. I wish her all the success in the future.
Doug Cole says
I’m glad she’s gone. She permitted left-wing activists to break the law by tearing down Silent Sam and get away with it, then added insult to injury by having the pedestal torn down in the middle of the night when she resigned in a hissy-fit huff. Fortunately, the Board of Governors showed her the way out of South Building soon after this final fiasco. Good riddance! She did more to divide the people of the state from the UNC community than any Chancellor in my memory. Even though I have two degrees from UNC, its hard for me to feel good about the place anymore, and it was under her watch that it happened. You wouldn’t believe the number of Carolina alumni who feel the same way.
Doug Cole
BA Economics 1975
MBA 1977
Scientia Vinces says
Data to back up _any_ of these assertions?