New @theassemblync.bsky.social: UNC-Chapel Hill trustee John Preyer, perhaps most widely known for his role in the Belichick hire, has resigned from the board www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

A mid-December meeting with McClatchy executives left union leaders stunned and deeply alarmed about how the company wishes to implement A.I. in the newsroom, Status has learned. Details in @status.news: www.status.news/p/mcclatchy-...

Breaking: The U.S. has carried out a “large scale strike” on Venezuela, capturing President Nicolás Maduro and flying him out of the country, President Donald Trump said in a social media post early Saturday. Follow updates here:

Syllabi for all courses in the UNC System will now be considered public records and soon must be made available online, under a rule issued Friday by system President Peter Hans. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

Jim Hunt was elected to an unprecedented four terms as governor.

New: The UNC System could make all course syllabi public records and openly available online. The system frames the potential move as a benefit to students. But critics say it could put professors at risk and violate their intellectual property rights. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Data Science and Society has been up and running for just three years. Now, it will merge with the School of Information and Library Science in a change tied to artificial intelligence. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

A 2020 plan to build a merged data science school at UNC-CH failed, @koriedean.bsky.social reports. The new plan excludes computer science and statistics departments. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

RIP to K&W. Grew up going to the one in Burlington and my grandma even hosted our family Christmas there circa 2015 🎄

I don’t know what kind of deals y’all think there are at Southpoint but I can guarantee none of them are worth sitting in the mile-plus of standstill traffic trying to get off the exit that I just passed

BREAKING: U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents will be deployed in the Raleigh area on Tuesday, Democratic legislative sources briefed by Gov. Josh Stein’s office told The Assembly and INDY on Monday. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

New @theassemblync.bsky.social: It appeared UNC-Chapel Hill administrators’ preferred plan to raise in-state undergraduate tuition by 3 percent was dead. Then it rose again. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...

Tale of two trustee boards: NC State trustees approved an 3% tuition increase for in-state students with no debate or discussion. Compare that to the lengthy two-day, painstaking affair at UNC-Chapel Hill.

NEW: UNC-Chapel Hill WILL raise in-state tuition by 3%, or $211, for 2026-27. Follows two days of extensive, convoluted debate by trustees and a committee asking for a new proposal from staff. Administration stuck to their initial plan, which got 6-5 approval today. (Four trustees absent.)

UNC-Chapel Hill interim Provost Jim Dean said at a faculty meeting just now that UNC will continue pursuing accreditation with SACSCOC for its 2027 reaffirmation. But Dean added that he's "really impressed by the work" the Commission for Public Higher Education is doing so far.

New: Elon University will open a private school for children with dyslexia next fall, the result of a "visionary investment" from donors who have funded similar programs at three other universities — including Vanderbilt. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

UNC Charlotte is applying to join the Commission for Public Higher Education, making it the first UNC System school to publicly get on board with the effort by several states to start a new accrediting agency. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

First rule of NC journalism: Cook Out will never return your calls

New: UNC Charlotte is the first UNC System school to publicly say it’s pursuing accreditation with the Commission for Public Higher Education. In a letter obtained by @theassemblync.bsky.social, Chancellor Sharon Gaber outlined possible benefits & “unknowns.” www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

Records released by UNC-Chapel Hill on Monday appear to poke holes in some—but not all—of the claims the university’s former provost made in a lawsuit against the Board of Trustees. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

Breaking News: The Trump administration was ordered to release billions of dollars in backup funds for SNAP, the nation’s largest anti-hunger program, after the administration said the government shutdown meant it couldn’t tap contingency funds.

New @theassemblync.bsky.social: Roughly 1.5 million U.S. college students are among those expected to lose SNAP benefits this weekend. NC community colleges are already feeling impacts and working to bridge the gap through campus resources, like food pantries. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

New (and my first byline @theassemblync.bsky.social!): What does “academic freedom” mean? As many professors around the country feel their rights are being threatened, UNC System faculty leaders want to more clearly define the term for NC’s public universities. www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

North Carolina’s current congressional map already heavily favors Republicans and is being challenged in court for alleged racial gerrymandering.

Some news: Yesterday was my last day @newsobserver.com. It’s bittersweet to leave, but I’m looking forward to staying on the most interesting beat in my home state. Next week I’ll join @theassemblync.bsky.social, where I’ll continue covering higher education across North Carolina!

Junior Anna Yi’s quote delivered TikTok viral views and an on-air appearance during the Tar Heels’ loss to Clemson.

Could have spent the afternoon watching the train wreck that is UNC football. Decided to protect my peace and enjoy some bluegrass instead

UNC reinstates suspended professor, finding ‘no basis’ he pushed political violence. “No basis to conclude” Dwayne Dixon “poses a threat to University students, staff, and faculty” or engaged in conduct violating policy. (Via @koriedean.bsky.social) newsobserver.com/news/local/e... #nced #ncpol

New in depth story from me today. Hundreds of thousands of people spent their careers in public service in North Carolina, and like current state employees, a late state budget affects them, too. #ncpol #ncga www.newsobserver.com/news/politic...

New: UNC has paid nearly $1 million for PR support since last year, with some work focused on the university’s reputation. The firm found stakeholders believed “Carolina has lost its ‘Way.’” With @shelbyswanson.bsky.social & @jwatsonfisher.bsky.social: www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

NC State University sues Monsanto, manufacturer of PCBs, over Poe Hall contamination. NC State alleges Monsanto marketed PCB mixtures to the building industry as being safe despite knowing they were toxic. (Via @koriedean.bsky.social) www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e... #nced

UNC has placed a professor on administrative leave while it investigates his alleged ties to an anti-fascist group. He says he hasn't been part of the group since 2018. The group says it disbanded in 2019. Details from @koriedean.bsky.social.

In case anyone is in the market there is a Harris Teeter Harry the Happy Dragon coin ride for sale on Facebook marketplace

Latest update to former UNC Provost Chris Clemens’ lawsuit against the Board of Trustees: board Chair Malcolm Turner is out with a statement calling the complaint a “baseless assault”

NEW: Former UNC Provost Chris Clemens sued the Board of Trustees in part for using Signal to discuss university business with auto-delete on. Two sources say Clemens himself has done the same — though it's unclear if he or another user turned on the setting. www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

The suit accuses the board of “systematically hiding matters of grave public concern behind closed doors.”

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...

Enrollment is up at all UNC System schools, except one that ‘took a hit’ from Helene. UNC System enrollment set a record with 256,438 students this semsster. All UNC schools increased enrollment except UNC Asheville. (Via @koriedean.bsky.social) www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e... #nced

Some colleges are backtracking on institutional neutrality in the wake of Charlie Kirk's murder, and Clemson University has suggested its professors do not have the full protection of the First Amendment when mocking or celebrating his death. www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

New: Tuition in the UNC System could go up next year for the first time in nearly a decade, with campuses allowed to propose increases of up to 3%. But not everyone will pay more due to the state's fixed tuition mandate for current students. www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

📧 In today's Under the Dome newsletter: Our state is no stranger to high-profile litigation, and consequential cases over governmental power, gerrymandering and voting rights continue to play out at the state and federal level.

Nature is healing

While FL broke the news about a new six-state accreditor, 800+ pages of public records & other docs show the UNC System was at the center of the project for more than a year. My last scoop with @theassemblync.bsky.social (co-published with @chronicle.com) www.theassemblync.com/education/hi...

NEW: ECU Chancellor Philip Rogers announced this morning that the university will cut $25 million from its budget over the next three years, citing enrollment trends and the looming demographic cliff as key factors www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

JUST IN: A federal judge gave Harvard University a landmark victory in its fight against the Trump administration, siding with the Ivy League school in its effort to restore more than $2 billion in federal funding for research frozen by the White House. https://cnn.it/4nhK5va

This @shelbyswanson.bsky.social preview of UNC’s biggest-ever gamble on football — which kicks off tomorrow in primetime — is just chock-full of great reporting and quotes. “It’s either he’s gon’ be Beli-check or Beli-choke.” www.newsobserver.com/sports/colle...

The mural was not a class project or assignment, but was created by students in an “Art as Social Action” course last spring.

This year’s contribution to @newsobserver.com’s annual tailgate potluck party 🏈 (it was a popular option, clearly)

With higher education facing a difficult environment under the Trump Administration, it's been a boon for one group -- lobbyists. @koriedean.bsky.social reports. (This is a gift link.)

My latest, which includes interviews with UNC and Duke’s in-house federal lobbyists about this moment for higher ed and how they’re continuing to advocate for their campuses (and spending lots of money to do it):