The Board of Trustees at UNC-Chapel Hill has voted to divert $2.3 million away from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and into ‘public safety.’

“The Board of Trustees at UNC Chapel Hill has just voted to abolish DEI funding and are diverting the money to public safety and campus law enforcement. Another domino falls in war against the DEI bigots. Congratulations UNC Chapel Hill!” Charlie Kirk wrote.

WUNC reports:

The unanimous vote occurred at a special Board of Trustees meeting Monday morning. It is unclear if the diversion of funds would lead to layoffs.

Marty Kotis is vice chair of the board’s budget and finance committee, which initially introduced and passed the “flex cut amendment.” Without citing specific examples, he called DEI programs “discriminatory and divisive.”

“I think that DEI in a lot of people’s minds is divisiveness, exclusion and indoctrination,” Kotis said. “We need more unity and togetherness, more dialogue, more diversity of thought.”

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According to the UNC-Chapel Hill Office of Diversity and Inclusion, their mission is to “create and sustain a diverse, inclusive and welcoming environment for all students, faculty and alumni.”

Kotis and other board members said it was important to have additional funding for public safety to protect the campus from groups that “disrupt the university’s operations.”

Per WRAL News:

The $2.3 million is money from state-appropriated dollars and trust fund money that were “immediately identified,” Boliek said. The system office identified that money, he said. The university’s operating budget in 2023-24 was $4.2 billion.

The new Board of Governors policy calls for each institution to certify by Sept. 1 that it “fully complies with the university’s commitment to institutional neutrality and nondiscrimination.”

It does away with current policy that establishes “system-wide diversity and inclusion metrics and goals” and created a “UNC System diversity and inclusion council.”

At the meeting, Boliek said: “I think that DEI is divisive. I don’t think it’s productive. I don’t think it gives a return on investment to taxpayers and to the institution itself.”

North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore, a Cleveland County Republican, said earlier this year that the legislature would likely leave the issue to the Board of Governors and campuses.

Boliek said conversations about increased funding for public safety began after the on-campus shooting death of a professor at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year. On-campus protests in support of Palestinians at the end of the year also played a role, Boliek said.

Marty Kotis, a trustee, said it was important to give more support to law enforcement on campus.

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