The Facts: The Board of Governors is the law-making body for the UNC-Systems ; dealing with matters such as budget cuts and policy changes. As stated in their statues, they are required to hold open meetings.

Our Opinion: While the intent was not negative, the way the Board’s retreat was held raises concerns, and the Board should understand the appearance of the retreat and be more mindful in the future.

Recently, the UNC Systems Board of Governors had their private retreat, which raised the question of the legality of the confidentiality of the retreat itself. The Board of Governor’s statues mandates Board meetings to be open and available to the public; however, the situation the Board put themselves as well as the appearance of a private session raises an alarm for many students, faculty and tax-paying citizens.

While legally, the Board did not violate the open meeting law, this concealed retreat put the members in a private environment where they potentially could disclose information, not available to the public. This is why the Board should understand this is not an unimportant facet of their meetings. They must ensure their meetings will have transparency and be held accountable for not following this pivotal aspect of the Board.

The intent of this retreat may not have be malicious or even a way to pull the sheet over the general public’s eyes; however, perception is everything and the way concerns have already surfaced demonstrates the uneasiness the public feels about this closed retreat.  

Along with this opportunity to break the Chapter 143, Article 33C Board of Governor, the Board should realize the appearance of such a retreat. The governing body of the UNC-System should be open and honest with its public, because of its position and influence on students and regular citizens of North Carolina. Even though the Board suggests they did not break the open meeting policy, to the public the retreat looks suspicious and, as the Board should already know, the public remembers the mistakes and will hold those responsible accountable.

The mere perception is not the only reason for the concerns raised by the closed meeting, but the attitudes and feelings circulating around the Board and its actions, with the current budget cuts and policy changes under discussion. These matters are important to students, because they directly impact them and the decisions regarding them should not be held behind closed doors.

The UNC Board of Governors should know their actions are not merely swept under the rug for this considerably minor rule break. The students and general public will be keeping an extra eye on the way in which the Board meetings are conducted. The awareness of the general public will increase and more pressure will be put on the Board. These meetings are not merely social events, but life-changing decisions directly impacting students and the general public of North Carolina—so keep the door open.