On DEI, one UNC-CH trustee has lost his way | Opinion

Raleigh News and Observer
·3 min read

UNC and DEI

Regarding “UNC board member predicts NC will ‘follow Florida’s path,’ ban DEI at public colleges,” (April 1):

In advocating the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion at public universities, UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees member Jim Blaine has clearly lost his sense of direction. This is North Carolina, NOT (thank, God) Alabama or Florida. Y’all means all.

Rev. John L. Saxon, Hillsborough

Fear of DEI

There is so much disdain concerning UNC Trustee Jim Blaine’s prediction for UNC-CH. He clearly suggests North Carolina will follow the path of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ dystopian plan to rid Florida universities of anything he considers “woke.” Is that the role model for purple North Carolina? Such a plan would do a major disservice to our university. Blaine rationalizes that “DEI is causing more divisiveness than coherence at the university level” and even causing distrust of higher education. What do Republicans fear about diversity, equity and inclusion?

Laura Stillman, Raleigh

School vouchers

Those who criticized the school voucher program saying that it would result in millionaires getting vouchers were wrong. Zero millionaires received or will receive a voucher as part of the expanded Opportunity Scholarship voucher program this year. In fact, emails have been sent indicating only Tier 1 and select Tier 2 families will receive the funds. These are the same people who have the most critical needs. Rightly so, the program works.

But what should capture everyone’s full attention is the overwhelming size of the applicant pool this year. It’s indicative of the dissatisfaction with public schools and the desire for better educational options for families.

J. D. Howard, Raleigh

Public schools

The huge response to North Carolina’s expanded school voucher program comes at a time when the state is losing public school teachers and has 3,584 teaching vacancies. We rank 34th nationally in average teacher pay and 46th in beginning teacher pay.

Yet, our legislature allocated $293.5 million for vouchers for the 2024-25 school year, eventually going up to $520.5 million by the 2032-33 fiscal year. If that money was used to boost public school teacher salaries, North Carolina could become one of the best states in the nation for teacher salaries.

Perhaps our legislature should consider funding public education as an investment in our state’s future, and skip the voucher lottery game.

Robert D. Brown, Cary

Abortion

My half of Polk County in western North Carolina has been shifted into the 14th Congressional District, which N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore now seeks to represent. I urge him to show he respects the voices of the people by placing a reproductive rights referendum on the November ballot. He can do this in the upcoming General Assembly session.

In state after state, voters are speaking on this critical issue. Why not in North Carolina? I hope it’s not because Republican legislators plan to enact a six-week abortion ban, or something even stricter, after the election.

Doug Clark, Tryon

Clean energy

The writer is former director of the US EPA”s Climate and International Group in Raleigh.

The editorial about liquefied natural gas (LNG) reprinted in the N&O April 2 from the Chicago Tribune missed some basic facts.

Research shows that when extraction, transport, storage and use are accounted for, LNG for export is dirtier for the climate than U.S. coal. It not only harms those who live around LNG plants, but contributes to air pollution sickness and deaths nationally and globally.

The clean alternative — renewable energy — is cheaper and scalable to handle growing energy demand. We could do this if the billions of U.S. government and taxpayer funded subsidies for fossil fuels were instead invested in solar, wind, battery storage, energy efficiency, electrification and electric grid upgrades.

Last year was the hottest year on record. It’s radical not to heed what nature is telling us with more deadly heat waves, wildfires and storms. Even the International Energy Agency says we should not be expanding fossil fuel infrastructure like LNG export terminals.

Dale Evarts, Durham