This year was not easy.
But we got through it, day by day.
We began the year with a fatal school shooting on Aug. 28. Students mourned the loss of Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the UNC Department of Applied Physical Sciences, in community and University-led vigils.
Students processed the trauma of being in lockdown for 190 minutes. Some students rallied against gun violence, and others fell into the arms of their community on campus.
Just 16 days later, on the afternoon of Sept. 13, a man brandished a gun in the Student Union, sending students into a second lockdown. The back-to-back incidents set the tone for a tumultuous year of tension between students and the University.
On Oct. 7, Hamas attacked Israel and an Israeli military campaign following, with thousands of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip. On campus, UNC's chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine partnered with students, faculty and community members to hold vigils for victims of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza as well as several demonstrations calling for the University to divest from Israeli and Israel-supporting companies.
Kevin Guskiewicz stepped down as UNC's 12th chancellor days after the start of winter break. After working at the University for 28 years, the chancellor, informally known to students as "Kevin G," officially ended his tenure at the University in early January.
As the end of the winter break rolled near, the Franklin Street staple Linda's Bar and Grill closed its doors after 47 years of service. Hundreds of students, alumni and members of the community flooded to the restaurant to get one last bite of cheesy loaded tots. The restaurant's founder, Linda Williams, and her daughter, Kim Scott, are searching for a new owner to reopen the bar.
The spring semester started with the instatement of Lee Roberts as UNC's interim chancellor.