The following statement was developed by an informal group of faculty members at UNC regarding the future of athletics at UNC, and has been endorsed by 112 faculty members.
At a time when both the emphasis on Division I athletics and the scandals that are associated with the athletics enterprise have presented new challenges to many universities across the country, we the undersigned faculty at UNC encourage the Board of Trustees, the chancellor, the athletic director and the entire UNC community to join with us in working to ensure that the athletics program operates in ways that enhance and complement the University’s core mission:
“The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the nation’s first public university, serves North Carolina, the United States, and the world through teaching, research, and public service. We embrace an unwavering commitment to excellence as one of the world’s great research universities.
Our mission is to serve as a center for research, scholarship, and creativity and to teach a diverse community of undergraduate, graduate, and professional students to become the next generation of leaders. Through the efforts of our exceptional faculty and staff, and with generous support from North Carolina’s citizens, we invest our knowledge and resources to enhance access to learning and to foster the success and prosperity of each rising generation. We also extend knowledge-based services and other resources of the University to the citizens of North Carolina and their institutions to enhance the quality of life for all people in the State.
With lux, libertas – light and liberty – as its founding principles, the University has charted a bold course of leading change to improve society and to help solve the world’s greatest problems.”
(Approved by the UNC Board of Governors, November 2009)
Sports are worthwhile activities in themselves, and a robust athletics program underscores the University’s commitment to excellence across the spectrum of human endeavor. Fielding competitive teams can help build community cohesion among students, faculty, staff, alumni, and all who have interests in the University. We are justly proud of UNC’s record of integrity and success in intellectual and athletic life. In light of recent developments, however, we insist that the pursuit of athletic excellence at UNC-Chapel Hill must rest on a foundation of academic integrity and should always reflect the following three principles:
1. Institutional Openness: The University should confront openly the many conflicts created by its commitment to winning in the athletic arena. The University must commit itself to honest, open, regular conversation about the divergent imperatives, and competing values, that drive athletic and academic success. All data needed to understand the athletics department, and to address the issues raised by its operations, should be readily available.
2. Educational Responsibility: The University should commit itself to providing a rigorous and meaningful education to every student. All students should be integrated fully into the life of the campus, and they should be well prepared for life after college. All students – those who participate in sports and those who do not – should be permitted and encouraged to take full advantage of the rich menu of educational opportunities available at UNC.
3. Mission Consistency: Athletics must be integrated into the common enterprise of the University. Faculty committees and administration must be empowered to oversee athletics and ensure that it supports and remains in alignment with the University’s core missions. In times of hardship, the University must consistently work to preserve these core missions, even if such preservation comes at the expense of athletic success.
Signed:
Alain Aguilar (Exercise and Sport Science)
Sahar Amer (Asian Studies)
Dima Arinkin (Mathematics)
Cemil Aydin (History)
Rita A. Balaban (Economics)
Lucia Binotti (Romance Languages)
William Barney (History)
Margaret Bentley (Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Susan Bickford (Political Science)
Stanley W. Black (Economics)
Carole Blair (Communication Studies)
W. Fitzhugh Brundage (History)
Chad Bryant (History)
Melissa Bullard (History)
Jane Burns (Women’s Studies)
Kathryn J. Burns (History)
Emily Burrill (Women’s Studies)
Neal Caren (Sociology)
Patrick Conway (Economics)
Richard Cramer (Sociology and Academic Advising)
Tyler Curtain (English and Comparative Literature)
Jane Danielewicz (English and Comparative Literature)
Kathleen Duval (History)
Geni Eng (Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Paul Farel (Cell and Molecular Physiology, School of Medicine)
Joseph S. Ferrell (School of Government and Secretary of the Faculty)
William Ferris (History and American Studies)
Emma Flatt (History)
Gregory Flaxman (English and Comparative Literature)
W. Miles Fletcher (History)
Richard Froyen (Economics)
Darryl Gless (English and Comparative Literature)
Adam Goldstein (Family Medicine, School of Medicine)
Beth Grabowski (Art)
Lawrence Grossberg (Communications)
Kevin Guskiewicz (Exercise and Sport Science)
Karen Hagemann (History)
Jacquelyn Hall (History)
Anne Hastings (Sociology)
Elizabeth Hedgepeth (Exercise and Sport Science)
Joanne Hershfield (Women’s Studies)
Jonathan M. Hess (Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures)
Glenn Hinson (Folklore)
Brandon Hunziker (History)
Sharon L. James (Classics)
Kenneth R. Janken (African and Afro-American Studies)
Michelle King (History)
Jonathan Kotch (Maternal and Child Health, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Lloyd Kramer (History)
Charles Kurzman (Sociology)
Miriam Labbok (Maternal and Child Health, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Christopher J. Lee (History)
Wayne Lee (History)
Michael Lienesch (Political Science)
Lisa Lindsay (History)
Lewis Margolis (Maternal and Child Health, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Bonnie Marks (Exercise and Sport Science)
Steven K. May (Communication Studies)
John McGowan (English and Comparative Literatures and Institute for the Arts and Humanities)
Terence McIntosh (History)
Louise McReynolds (History)
Elliott Moreton (Linguistics)
Dennis Mumby (Communication Studies)
Fred Naiden (History)
Raul Necochea (Social Medicine, School of Medicine)
Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja (African and Afro-American Studies)
Sergio O. Parreiras (Economics)
Andrew Perrin (Sociology)
Karl Petersen (Mathematics)
James V. Porto (Health Policy and Management, Gillings School of Global Public Health)
Christopher R. Putney (Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures)
Roberto Quercia (City and Regional Planning)
Cynthia Radding (History)
Donald J. Raleigh (History)
Peter Redfield (Anthropology)
Donald Reid (History)
Tom Reinert (English and Comparative Literature)
Andrew Reynolds (Political Science)
James B. Rives (Classics)
Jack Roush (Speech and Hearing Sciences, School of Medicine)
Walter Rucker (African and Afro-American Studies)
Michael Salemi (Economics)
Maria Servedio (Biology)
Iqbal Sevea (History)
Daniel Sherman (Art)
Sarah Shields (History)
Tanya Shields (Women’s Studies)
Jay M. Smith (History)
Keith W. Sockman (Biology)
Deborah Southall (Exercise and Sport Science)
Richard Southall (Exercise and Sport Science)
Jeff Spinner-Halev (Political Science)
Vincas P. Steponaitis (Anthropology)
Kevin G. Stewart (Geological Sciences)
Debby Stroman (Exercise and Sport Science)
Randall Styers (Religious Studies)
John Sweet (History)
Richard Talbert (History)
Jane Thrailkill (English and Comparative Literature)
Silvia Tomášková (Anthropology and Women’s Studies)
Michael Tsin (History)
Zaragosa Vargas (History)
Adam Versenyi (Dramatic Art)
Ariana Vigil (Women’s Studies)
Sean Washburn (Physics and Astronomy)
Ben Waterhouse (History)
Harry Watson (History)
Judith Wegner (School of Law)
Jonathan Weiler (Global Studies)
Ellen Welch (Romance Languages)
Heather Williams (History)
Cecil Wooten (Classics)