The NC State Board of Trustees met for the first time since November on Friday. Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees Ed Stack gave an update on the chancellor search and Chancellor Randy Woodson addressed President Donald Trump’s recent executive orders and their impact on the University.

Stack said the chancellor search advisory committee met in January to discuss how the process had been so far. He said the feedback the committee has received since the start of the search has been “incredibly positive” and points to the University’s good reputation in the academic community.

The committee also met Wednesday to begin discussing the pool of candidates, which Stack said is “very strong, very diverse.” He said the candidates include sitting presidents, provosts, deans and some other “nontraditional,” options. 

“All the diversity that you could possibly want in a candidate pool is there,” Stack said. “I think that we will be able to judge that candidate pool and consider that candidate pool as we move forward and come out with a phenomenal chancellor. Very excited about the rest of the process.”

Chancellor Randy Woodson acknowledged the impact of Trump’s recent executive orders on the University, particularly related to federal funding. Woodson said the first priority is to understand the federal agencies that fund NC State research and how policy changes might impact funding streams.

Woodson said the University has received a few “stop work orders” — when an agency says to stop contracted work until they can further evaluate the impact of the executive order — but that the orders have not been relative to the overall federal budget.

“We’ve all been working to think through the potential impact of some of these changes in our federal government on NC State. The first priority for us is to understand each of the federal agencies that fund research in our University and how changes in policy will impact those funding streams.”

Woodson also acknowledged the UNC System’s suspension of DEI-related mandated course credits. He said the administration was working to implement the directive across campus.

Chair of the Faculty Senate Herle McGowan addressed the suspension in her report. She said the academic institution is supported by the three pillars of academic freedom, tenure and shared governance. She emphasized the need to discuss academic freedom in light of the current political climate, noting that it is critical to the success of faculty, students and the state of North Carolina.

“Unfortunately, the idea of academic freedom is often misunderstood or even distrusted,” McGowan said. “This is currently playing out in the mandate that Chancellor Woodson mentioned earlier, that UNC systems must change their curriculum — curriculum that was carefully and thoughtfully developed by a collaborative of faculty experts. The particular focus of this meeting are those aspects of the curriculum, both general education and major requirements, that include the concepts of diversity, equity and inclusion.”

McGowan said while she did not expect everyone on the Board to hold the same views about DEI initiatives, it is important to maintain open dialogue. She concluded by stating that faculty needed the support of the Board “now more than ever” in helping protect the pillars of academic freedom, tenure and shared governance.

“It is always valid to question ideas and strive towards refined understanding and continuous improvement in implementation, but such conversations are not happening openly, and those with expertise in these areas are often not included,” McGowan said. “We will not be able to fulfill our mission as a university or move forward as a society unless we have open, honest and challenging conversations.”

The Board approved a land exchange of 0.84 acres on Oberlin Road and Ferndell Lane to be acquired from the state of North Carolina. It also approved a request to increase the environmental engineering degree by one credit hour for a total of 128 credit hours. After being approved to exceed the standard 120 credit hours in 2018, it was discovered that a one hour lab course was initially unaccounted for.