UNC students air concerns at ?ve-year-plan forum

Despite concerns about time constraints, UNC-CH students were still provided an opportunity to give their input about the future of the UNC system at a forum Tuesday.

This fall, the UNC-system Advisory Committee on Strategic Directions was tasked with mapping out the next five years for the state’s 16 public universities.

System administrators want the plan in place early next year when the N.C. General Assembly convenes, said Kimrey Rhinehardt, system vice president for federal relations.

UNC-CH’s Student Government hosted the forum at the Campus Y to air student concerns in hopes they will be incorporated into the strategic plan.

“We had been asking for this event for some time from the board,” said Matt Hickson, a member of UNC-CH’s chapter of the N.C. Student Power Union, a student advocacy group.

But Hickson said he’s concerned the development of a plan that will affect the future trajectory of the UNC system is occurring too quickly.

“This plan is already being written,” Hickson said. “There’s not a whole lot of time for this input to be meaningfully heard.”

UNC-CH Student Body President Will Leimenstoll echoed Hickson’s concerns and said the short time frame could lead to less student participation.

“I wish that this would have been given to us earlier,” Leimenstoll said to students during the forum.

Rhinehardt said it will be difficult to sell the plan to the legislature, which will include so many new members, including ones who are not familiar with the university system.

“If you look at the General Assembly’s makeup, half of them are in their first or second terms,” she said.

Roughly 40 students attended the event. Attendees split into five groups to focus on the five goals of the strategic plan — degree attainment, public service, academic quality, efficiency, and affordability and accessibility.

Junior Corey Crawford took part in the public service group and said he thought the discussions allowed the group to raise new ideas and voice concerns.

“I think it’s important people know what the student body thinks,” he said. “Other people can bring forth ideas other people wouldn’t have.”

Alecia Page, student body president for Western Carolina University, said students should attend events her university and others are holding. WCU will hold a series of forums in the next few weeks to allow students to voice their concerns.

“If we are going to make changes, we need to make sure the students who already there are comfortable with those changes.”

Contact the desk editor at state@dailytarheel.com.