The UNC System’s one big request for the legislature
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- UNC seeks $158.5M in enrollment funding to cover record student growth.
- UNC plans AI literacy framework to guide classroom use and academic policy.
- Duke Gardens are open to the public on weekends, with parking constraints.
Hello, subscribers, and welcome to this week’s edition of Higher Stakes, The News & Observer’s one-stop-shop for higher education news. I’m Jane Winik Sartwell. Let’s get into it!
How to enjoy Duke campus this spring
It is March! I have never been more ready to shake off the doldrums of winter and venture out into balmy air to see dandelions and daffodils. A few weeks ago, I wrote about a report that named Duke University one of the nation’s most beautiful college campuses — in large part due to its natural biodiversity. The university’s cherry blossoms in its 55-acre garden are expected to pop into bloom this month.
But are the Duke Gardens open to the public this spring?
The answer is yes, in part, and with many caveats. The Duke Gardens are undergoing a major construction project dubbed Garden Gateway, which “will greatly enhance the visitor experience,” the university says. The construction began in February and is expected to go through the spring.
Because of Garden Gateway, the main entrance, visitor center and parking lots are closed. There is no visitor parking during the week, but on the weekends, limited visitor parking is available in H Lot. A temporary pedestrian entrance is located at 2000 Lewis St., one block north of the main entrance. Dogs are permitted only before 10 a.m. and after 5 p.m.
If you’re able to navigate these complex construction constraints, it may be worth a visit. Plus, the Duke Chapel is open to the public daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can also schedule a guided or self-guided tour of Cameron Indoor Stadium, where the No. 1 ranked men’s basketball team plays.
Happy almost spring!
A new name for what’s become of UNC’s area study centers
At UNC-Chapel Hill, leaders in international studies are working to create a new umbrella organization for what remains of the slashed area study centers. Now, that has a name: The International Program for Scholarship, Innovation, Training and Education, or INSITE.
Graeme Robertson, director of the Center for Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies at UNC, spoke to the university’s Faculty Council on Friday about his hopes for the program.
“We will continue to be centers of excellence that are deeply rooted in the regions and play close attention to interdisciplinary work and to the regional perspectives from around the world,” Robertson said. “The new aspect of INSITE is going to be to build on our collective knowledge and connections, to develop opportunities for research and learning that span regions and span problems that are transnational in nature and span different regions.”
Robertson emphasized the need for support from university leadership and his fellow faculty members.
“We really need the chancellor and the provost’s office and university as a whole to show the world that they believe in this,” Robertson said. “If people believe that university believes in this, then we have a chance. If people don’t buy that part of it, then we have no chance. That’s just a reality.”
The UNC System’s one big legislative ask
This fall, the UNC System saw its largest fall class ever, and the system says it needs expanded enrollment funding from the legislature to keep up with it — to the tune of $158.5 million. Instead of asking for a broad set of budget requests in the upcoming legislative short session, the university system is focused solely on this funding, which it didn’t get last year.
Enrollment funding pays for the costs of teaching and providing services to students, beyond what is covered by tuition. The UNC System saw record-high enrollment and increased retention this year. The lion’s share of that enrollment growth happened in engineering, biology, nursing, and business programs. But to continue serving students at the same level, the system will need more money.
Without the enrollment funding, NC State University students could see bigger class sizes and longer class waitlists, undermining their ability to finish their degrees on time, NC State Chancellor Kevin Howell said at the UNC Board of Governors meeting last week.
“Enrollment growth funding is the most important thing that any of us can be focused on at this moment,” Howell said. “Oftentimes, we look at it as money going to the university. It’s not the case here. This is money that benefits the state of North Carolina.”
The system’s request includes three buckets of enrollment funding: the $46.4 million it didn’t get last year, $107 million for this year, and $5 million for NC Promise schools (Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, UNC Pembroke and Western Carolina).
UNC professors still don’t know what the heck to do about AI
Generative artificial intelligence has been around in its mainstream form for about four years now, but professors are still grappling with how to handle it in the classroom. It’s a question that sort of needs an answer, like yesterday.
At UNC-Chapel Hill’s faculty executive committee last week, Jeff Bardzell, vice provost for artificial intelligence, stopped by to talk about a possible way forward.
Bardzell laid out what he sees as the current student experience: “While I’m in college, I’d better learn AI if I want to have any kind of career, but if I use AI in my classes, I’m a cheater and might even find myself in an academic misconduct hearing.”
Any possible policy shouldn’t “uncritically accept and reproduce Silicon Valley AI narratives,” but should think about how exactly AI fits into the specific discipline at hand.
He pitched a four-part AI literacy framework that would teach students AI concepts, methods, ethics, and responsible use. A program like this would alleviate pressure on professors to “teach AI,” and instead allow them to focus on the question: “Is AI enmeshed in the substance of my course, and if so, how so, and which pedagogical choices are best positioned to support learning?”
“One way or another, this university needs to act coherently on AI in the curriculum,” he said in his presentation. “This cannot wait five years.”
Headlines you don’t want to miss
- Students say NC State cybersecurity course left them in debt and without prospects by me
- UNC-Chapel Hill scraps secret recording policy in surprise reversal by me
- What led to UNC’s cuts to global studies centers? A look behind the curtain by me
- UNC System’s new definition of academic freedom approved over faculty objections by me
- Here’s what NC public universities cost after first tuition hike in 9 years by me
- NC State wants Poe Hall lawsuit thrown out and handled through workers’ comp by me
- How a college lark turned into K-Ville, one of sport’s enduring traditions by Shelby Swanson (a must-read)
- Duke basketball plays up to No. 1 ranking. Observations from win at Notre Dame by Chip Alexander
- Women’s hoops roundup: UNC, NC State stay alive for ACC Tournament top seeds by Jadyn Watson-Fisher
- Duke lacrosse accuser Crystal Mangum to be released from NC prison Friday by ABC-11
What I’m reading
- A letter from Lady Belltower by Esha Singaraju at the Daily Tar Heel
- UNC System pilots new optional ‘Foundational AI Skills Course’ by Lydia Winstead at The Daily Tar Heel
- President Price sees financial, tech pressures as chance to rethink humanities and libraries by Mia Taubenblat at The Duke Chronicle
- Higher education roundup: 5 federal moves that shaped February by Sarah Diaz and Annie Eilers at The Duke Chronicle
- Gentrification and development around NC State: solutions and causes by Jackson Davenport at The NC State Technician
Thank you for reading. If you have questions, comments, or just want to chat about higher ed, please feel free to reach out. My email is jane.sartwell@newsobserver.com. I’d love to hear from you.
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– Jane Winik Sartwell
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