breaking news from unc: former provost chris clemens is suing the university for open meetings and public records violations during their discussion about delaying tenure votes www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

the turmoil at the school of civic life and leadership has gotten bad enough that the university hired a law firm to investigate www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

The Assembly has won its first nationwide Edward R. Murrow Awards. Read the award-winning reporting recognized by the awards in the thread below: www.rtdna.org/2025-nationa...

Congratulations to @byjordangreen.bsky.social on winning the August Sidney Award for highlighting the growing threat of neo-Nazi accelerationism in America for @theassemblync.bsky.social with support from @rawstory.com!

North Carolina universities are partnering with ChatGPT and Google, and some have created new policies about using AI platforms. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

We’re hiring a higher ed reporter @theassemblync.bsky.social! It’s one of our core focus areas and a busy time for North Carolina’s colleges and universities. Come work with @themhartman.bsky.social and me! www.theassemblync.com/assembly-job...

In 2008, I wrote this story about Zena Cardman. Today, she launches for the space station. 🥹

The Assembly obtained two internal UNC documents that show various options the Tar Heels have explored to fund revenue-sharing. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi... @theassemblync.bsky.social @themhartman.bsky.social

BREAKING: The UNC System is launching a new accreditor with Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas called the Commission for Public Higher Education The goal is to create a “streamlined, non-ideological” accreditor, Hans told me in an exclusive for @theassemblync.bsky.social

U.S. Lawmakers Urge Duke to End Partnership With Wuhan University www.theassemblync.com/education/hi... @eringretzinger.bsky.social

Guilford College faculty hatched a radical plan to run the school by Quaker-inspired councils. Some alumni say the college needs to make tough business decisions first. “This kumbaya stuff is for the birds now.” t.co/w0YHLYpqv3 @themhartman.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social

The state Supreme Court said 260 ballots cast by overseas voters who never lived in NC should be thrown out in the Griffin-Riggs race. One problem: @BryanRAnderson found that several of them DID live in NC. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/politics/nc-...

NC’s GOP state treasurer tells @bryanranderson.bsky.social that Trump’s tariffs present a series of bad choices for NC businesses. “Countries and companies will be much more hesitant to trust that U.S. policy will remain constant.” www.theassemblync.com/newsletter/t...

Rep. Chuck Edwards’ town hall in Asheville was one of the most intense events I’ve ever covered. This was his press conference at the end:

UNC-Chapel Hill transferred $21 million from other funds to the athletic department last year–and that was before it agreed to spend millions of dollars more on Bill Belichick. @theassemblync.bsky.social @axios.com @themhartman.bsky.social @zeanes.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

“We’ve done over 3,500 interviews everywhere in North Carolina over the last 30 years. And no one has ever said that there is anything unique about a couple of vowels in Durham,” says the expert. Your move, Jason Isaacs. indyweek.com/culture/abou...

Some exciting news for The Quad, @theassemblync.bsky.social's higher ed newsletter: We're hosting our first live event! Join us on 3/25 for an exclusive look at how the Trump administration’s first moves are playing out at North Carolina’s colleges and universities.

I've covered my share of N.C. higher education stories over the years. I can tell you, you do not want to miss this conversation. Premium subscribers get into events like this, all our higher ed team's great coverage and everything in the archive. A steal. www.theassemblync.com/premium/

The Assembly has been selected as one of six newsrooms in the first cohort of the NOTUS Washington Bureau Initiative. Read the full announcement below. www.theassemblync.com/internal/the...

Last week, the head of UNC-Chapel Hill’s cancer center sounded calm about potential cuts to NIH grants. Cancer research has bipartisan support, and “uncertainty in federal funding is not new,” he said. These week, he sounded a little less sure. www.theassemblync.com/newsletter/t...

Nearly 15 years after Hasson Jamal Bacote first filed a claim under the Racial Justice Act, a judge ruled last week that racism not only significantly affected Bacote’s case, but pervaded every death penalty case ever tried in Johnston County. www.theassemblync.com/politics/cou...

“The Army in 2023 estimated it was spending $8 million to change Fort Bragg’s name to Fort Liberty.” 🤷🏻‍♀️ @paulwoolverton.bsky.social www.cityviewnc.com/stories/defe...

UNC System president to UNC-CH trustees: “Instances continue to occur where members of the board appear to act independently of their campus’s administration in matters squarely within the responsibility of the chancellor.” www.theassemblync.com/education/hi... @themhartman.bsky.social

Welcome to @theassemblync.bsky.social!

UNC System Lobbyist Urges Calm Amid Trump’s Directives “We’ve tried to just, you know, tell our folks just to stay calm at this time, and we’ll see where this is going,” Elizabeth Morra told @eringretzinger.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

As of the latest data available, North Carolina's six FAA-staffed air towers had just 178 certified air traffic controllers. Combined, that's 57 air traffic controllers short of meeting an industry agreed-upon standard. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/business/nor...

Dozens of Duke University students signed up for a free trip to China. Even the university was surprised by what happened when they got there. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi... @theassemblync.bsky.social

I got the scoop everyone has been dying for just in time for the first Carolina-Duke game. Here's the untold story of the Duke student who made @diddukewin.com www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

The Duke student who made “Did Duke Win?” didn’t realize he was building a tool for opposing fans to gloat any time Duke lost. @themhartman.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

i've got a new story up about the science of reading in the unc system educator prep programs it's a fascinating case where the system implemented a reform that every single person i spoke with supports. yet it took eight years and some are still hesitant www.theassemblync.com/education/sc...

Over the years, Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page made himself chief spokesman for the idea that "every sheriff is a border sheriff," arguing for the necessity of the immigration-related crackdowns President Trump has now endorsed. #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/bri...

Jefferson Griffin is asking the court to do something experts say no court has done: throw out thousands of votes not because voters did anything wrong, but because he believes a state agency did. More from @blackmuse.bsky.social @jeffreybillman.bsky.social: www.theassemblync.com/politics/ele...

this week in the quad, @eringretzinger.bsky.social did important reporting about h-1b visas. i, meanwhile, tried to figure out why colleges keep putting down bricks for me to trip over www.theassemblync.com/newsletter/t...

Commuting by train in the Triangle isn’t ready for prime time, @ccourtneybohl.bsky.social found out the hard way. indyweek.com/news/wake/i-...

Where did North Carolina’s legislators go to college? @theassemblync.bsky.social did some digging to find out. Featuring fewer Tar Heels than I expected, but still a lot, and a small-but-mighty Wake Forest Law contingent.

New Year, New Quad! Celebrate our four-month anniversary with: 🔹@themhartman.bsky.social's analysis of where the General Assembly went to college 🔹Reactions to my story on UNC-CH trustees' texts regarding admissions 🔹What @theassemblync.bsky.social is planning for higher ed coverage in 2025

NC taxpayer money for crisis pregnancy centers hit more than $12 million in 2023. These facilities don’t face the same privacy regulations or oversight as medical clinics, and less than a quarter of those state funds went to support pregnant people, @theassemblync.bsky.social found.

Before running to be a judge, Billy Strickland II was a bull rider turned farmer turned beaver trapper turned lawyer. He was also a frequent political donor. Judicial candidates and judges in NC can’t donate to other candidates. But @theassemblync.bsky.social found many broke that rule.

Gov. Roy Cooper commuted the sentences of 15 death-row inmates today. One of them is Hasson Bacote, whose case I wrote about earlier this year: www.theassemblync.com/politics/cou...

As a holiday treat, we put some of our favorite stories of 2024 outside the paywall. Please check them out! www.theassemblync.com/internal/ass...

@eringretzinger.bsky.social has a scoop about unc trustees texting admissions about applicants they know. when john preyer heard one applicant was waitlisted, he wrote, “… so that is hard to see as middle of pack unless there is a bunch of Asians involved?” www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

"I said, ‘I’m not trying to make you feel big or anything but you have a white beard and white hair and I’m kind of trying to find a Black Santa for next year.’” @cornwhizzle.bsky.social @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/culture/blac...

At least six UNC-Chapel Hill trustees asked senior staff members at the university for information on specific applicants or the admissions process, according to more than 100 pages of texts obtained by @theassemblync.bsky.social. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

Young people cast fewer provisional ballots in North Carolina than in 2020, but they’re still more likely than other groups to see those votes thrown out. @GretzingerErin explains: t.co/DegYbkMhif

This Giving Tuesday, we hope Triangle residents — boomers, Gen X, millennials, and zoomers alike — will consider investing in community reporting by becoming a member of the INDY Press Club. Support the free press & help keep this press free for all readers! indyweek.com/join/

Good deal on a good gift for the North Carolinians in your life 👇🏻

After two years and $72M in spending, Project Kitty Hawk's enrollment goals have been cut by half, and a state audit released last month found the UNC System had violated “federal and state laws, rules, and regulations” that require it to monitor the nonprofit.

Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Brown all give their surrounding communities a "payment in lieu of taxes." Duke doesn't, and now there's a campaign to change that. indyweek.com/news/durham/...

A coalition of labor and local organizers wants Duke University to voluntarily pay the city $50 million annually. The campaign builds on long-simmering tensions. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...