The board of trustees at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, voted unanimously on Monday in favor of disbanding its diversity, equity, and inclusion program and diverting the millions of dollars in funding toward campus security, according to a report.
The UNC trustees’ decision to redirect $2.3 million in DEI funding came amid tumultuous anti-Israel protests on campus and growing backlash against DEI nationwide, the Raleigh News & Observer reported on Monday.
David Boliek, chairman of the UNC board, told the outlet that he believes "there’s administrative bloat in the university," adding that "any cuts in administration and diverting of dollars to rubber-meets-the-road efforts like public safety and teaching is important."
Trustee Marty Kotis in Monday’s board meeting denounced the anti-Israel protesters for destroying campus property, taking down the American flag, and forcing police officers to put up gates on campus.
"North Carolinians are watching all this, and they are not happy," Kotis said in the meeting. "I think it’s imperative that we have proper resources for law enforcement to protect the campus. And that means our property, and that means our flag as well."
"It’s important to consider the needs of all 30,000 students, not just 100 or so that may want to disrupt the university’s operations," Kotis told the News & Observer.
The UNC Board of Governors, which oversees all 17 public universities in North Carolina, will vote next week on whether to restrict DEI programs statewide, according to Fox News.
The University of Florida in early March became the nation’s first major university to do away with DEI by firing all of its DEI staffers.
"DEI is toxic and has no place in our public universities," Florida governor Ron DeSantis (R.) wrote on X. "I’m glad that Florida was the first state to eliminate DEI and I hope more states follow suit."