I'm happy for Chancellor James Moeser that he looks back at his time at Carolina and sees an improvement in Town-Gown relations, as WCHL reported recently. I'll admit that the Chancellor seems to have stopped lobbing bombs at the town, which seemed to be his M.O. when he first arrived almost 8 years ago. He also seems to have developed a trusting friendship with the Mayor of Chapel Hill.
But other than last year's series of public PR sessions on Carolina North, I haven't seen the University solicit or engage the direct input of the people that will be affected by their growth. In fact, I see very little communication with the local government entities that are responsible for the future and well-being of our community (which includes UNC). When I look at this list of the Chancellor's accomplishments, I don't see any mention of Orange County or the local community that hosts and sustains Carolina.
So y'all fill me in, what am I missing? What grade would you give the outgoing UNC Chancellor?
PS: Slight correction to the WCHL story, I think the bond issue mentioned by Chancellor Moeser was for expansion of the main campus, not Carolina North.
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We've yet to see...
I'd say B+
I think Chancellor Moeser has done a more than adequate job over the last eight years. He has raised a tremendous amount of money from private sources, he has overseen the largest building program in the University's history and he has managed to get several major funding programs from the legislature which has enabled the University to not only keep but improve its national and international standing. While I think he has worked to improve Town-Gown relationships, there is still a significant amount of improvement which can be had.
Regarding his successor I think the University is going to need someone with even greater leadership abilities. I think it will need someone with a bold vision for the University's future whose leadership style draws all those around him(her) to passionately embrace that vision while energetically striving to see it become a reality. With federal and state budgets burdened by years of accumulating debt and with the private sector and citizens struggling with an uncertain economic future, I think it will take a person with incredible leadership skills to pilot the University through the shoals and reefs that lie ahead. The next chancellor will need to be an A+.
Solid
I also saw many examples of reaching out to neighborhoods in the last few years and steps taken to share information.
Multiple Positive Experiences with Moeser
A few of my observations on the Chancellor:
When I received my Master's Degree in 2004, he did not finish speaking at Kenan Stadium and hightail it out of town. In fact, he was one of the first people greeting me and my family on the lawn by Wilson Library. He was congratulating students and parents individually, asking them about their majors, classroom experiences, and future plans.
At the VA Tech basketball game, several faculty and graduate students who won distinguished teaching awards were honored at midcourt at halftime. Moeser shook the hand of every award recipient, but then turned to the Dean Dome and vigorously exhorted the crowd to get out of their seats and give the award winners a standing ovation.
Coming from an undergraduate experience where the university President seemed more focused on raising money and economic development concerns, and was rather aloof and distant from students and faculty, I see these episodes as evidence that Moeser embraces the primary mission of UNC wholeheartedly.
Another area where I think Moeser has excelled is in the development of theCarolina Performing Arts series, which includes providing tickets to students for $10. (similar in spirit to the Carolina Covenant, I think)
Quickly, let me say that director Emil Kang has built a national-level, first-rate arts series at UNC. A key part of Kang's success has been working in an environment that supports the recruitment of unusual, up-and-coming and more "out of the mainstream" performances. I get the sense that Moeser has given Kang the freedom to pursue the best performances to bring to our area, rather than simply the most popular ones.
Which brings me to my final point, which Fred touched on above. The day Eve Carson was identified as the victim of the shooting near campus was also the evening of the Joshua Bell concert at Memorial Hall. Everyone was still in shock, and Chancellor Moeser walked out before the performance and addressed the crowd.
Moeser confirmed the sad news and spoke personally about how much he thought of Eve, and what a positive contributor she had been to the campus. He acknowledged the shock that everyone was feeling, and that he and Kang had discussed earlier in the day whether or not it would be appropriate to go on with the concert. Moeser said that he felt in a time of great grief, when it is difficult to put many things into words, the concert could not have been more needed as an opportunity for reflection and remembrance.
Joshua Bell and pianist Jeremy Denk followed Moeser's lead, and simply did not speak until their encore. Bell acknowledged that as an outsider to the community, there was nothing he could say of value in the face of such senseless tragedy. Picking up on Moeser's comments, he added, we have Mozart, Prokofiev, and others to say through music the things we cannot find the words to speak. He then said they would play one more piece dedicated to the life of Eve Carson, and asked the crowd to hold its applause at the end.
The performers provided a deeply moving, healing moment for the community, but it was clearly Moeser's leadership that set the tone.
OK gown, but town?
Y'all have listed many admirable qualities of James Moeser in his capacity as a leader for the University community. Since I graduated 7 years before he came to Carolina, I can't pass judgment on that. He does seem supportive of academic freedom and of addressing important cultural challenges. But I note that some of the accomplishments listed (such as growing the campus) aren't necessarily seen as good things by all of us.
The story on WCHL specifically has the Chancellor citing improved relations between the school and the community. I just don't see much evidence of this. If anything, he may have restored communications to the level of basic civility that existed during the brief Hooker era, but Moeser had to work to do that because of the incredible "collateral damage" he caused in his first few years as Chancellor.
The Chancellor's Interview
No surprise, but the Chancellor in an interview in today's CHH sees things a little differently than Ruby does here or in her WCHL "Commentary."