Editorial: The Editorial Board does not approve of Lee Roberts' chancellorship

Lee Roberts said it best himself: “I’m not an academic.”

Due to his severe lack of qualifications, soaring student disapproval and the student-exclusive nature of the election process, the Editorial Board does not approve of Lee Roberts as UNC’s chancellor.

Former chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz, now president of Michigan State University, stepped down from his role after the Fall 2023 semester. With a hole in the University’s administration, UNC System President, Peter Hans, named Roberts as interim chancellor, to start his role Jan. 12.

Many on campus were surprised, given that someone seemingly unequipped for the job would be replacing a chancellor who had seen the campus through Silent Sam, two gun-related incidents and a host of other issues during his five year term. After a tumultuous first semester, the UNC Board of Governors unanimously elected Roberts as UNC’s chancellor on Aug. 9, a decision which never seemed representative of the student body. 

While Roberts served as interim chancellor during the Spring semester, the search for a permanent chancellor began. A 13-person chancellor search committee in charge of selecting candidates for the permanent chancellor position was announced in February.

Former student body president Christopher Everett was the only student member, with no graduate student representation on the committee. On April 2, the committee hosted a forum for graduate students to express their opinions on the search, but Everett was the only member present.

From the outset of the Roberts administration, students have felt their opinions on who leads UNC’s campus have been ignored. This only continued after Roberts received criticism for his role in police response to pro-Palestine demonstrators on April 30. A letter by the Southern Student Action Coalition opposing Roberts’ election to permanent chancellor has garnered over 700 signatures since it was first posted on Aug. 14.

Everett’s presence on the committee appears to merely serve as an illusion for students' voices being heard, especially given Roberts’ dismal approval ratings. A poll on Aug. 19 by The Daily Tar Heel showed that only about 8 percent of the students polled approved of Roberts. The chancellor and all other leaders of the University are responsible to the students they represent, whose voices have been continually ignored.

While student body presidents are elected to represent students, there are times when the student body can — and does — speak for itself. This is one of those times. The vast majority of the student body has made it abundantly clear it does not approve of Roberts, and this committee discounted that. Our campus deserves a chancellor who prioritizes its students over a flag. Watching as police trampled and attacked student protests at the behest of Roberts was a devastating sight. We deserve better.

Roberts has experience primarily as a finance manager for private equity firm SharpVue, and as North Carolina’s state budget director. While important management roles, neither are directly applicable to taking the helm of the country’s fourth best public university, nor is his four year professorship at Duke.

His apparent lack of experience pales further when compared to Kevin Guskiewicz’s more substantial resume. Guskiewicz has held the title of professor, director of various undergraduate and graduate programs, department chair and dean. He worked at UNC for 24 years before becoming chancellor — simply comparing their LinkedIn profiles reveals the gulf of difference between their resumes.

In a polarized political climate, it is easy to turn Roberts’ position into one of a political nature. However, even from a politically neutral perspective, he is still unqualified to serve as our chancellor. A leader to one of the nation’s top public schools should require genuine qualifications. It’s ironic that at a university that enforces honor code violations against students taking courses without the proper prerequisites, Roberts is able to lead UNC without professional prerequisites — any history of academic leadership.

Since becoming interim chancellor, Roberts stated countless times that his goal was to interact with students and see how he could best serve them. Saying you want what’s best for students is an easy claim to make, but actions speak louder than words. We want transparency and genuine input in the chancellor position. We deserve a qualified chancellor who is truly committed to the wellbeing of the entire UNC community. Lee Roberts is not that.

@dthopinion | opinion@dailytarheel.com