During the 1960s, the campus was the location of significant political protest. Prior to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, protests about local racial segregation which began quietly in Franklin Street restaurants led to mass demonstrations and disturbance.[40] The climate of civil unrest prompted the 1963 Speaker Ban Law prohibiting speeches by communists on state campuses in North Carolina.[41] The law was immediately criticized by university Chancellor William Brantley Aycock and university President William Friday, but was not reviewed by the North Carolina General Assembly until 1965.[42] Small amendments to allow "infrequent" visits failed to placate the student body, especially when the university's board of trustees overruled new Chancellor Paul Frederick Sharp's decision to allow speaking invitations to Marxist speaker Herbert Aptheker and civil liberties activist Frank Wilkinson; however, the two speakers came to Chapel Hill anyway. Wilkinson spoke off campus, while more than 1,500 students viewed Aptheker's speech across a low campus wall at the edge of campus, christened "Dan Moore's Wall" by The Daily Tar Heel for Governor Dan K. Moore.[43] A group of UNC-Chapel Hill students, led by Student Body President Paul Dickson, filed a lawsuit in U.S. federal court, and on February 20, 1968, the Speaker Ban Law was struck down.[44] In 1969, campus food workers of Lenoir Hall went on strike protesting perceived racial injustices that impacted their employment, garnering the support of student groups and members of the University and Chapel Hill community.
The most enduring symbol of the university is the Old Well, a small neoclassical rotunda based on the Temple of Love in the Gardens of Versailles, in the same location as the original well that provided water for the school.[83] The well stands at the south end of McCorkle Place, the northern quad, between two of the campus's oldest buildings, Old East, and Old West.
In 2003, Chancellor James Moeser announced the Carolina Covenant, wherein UNC offers a debt free education to low-income students who are accepted to the university. The program was the first of its kind at a public university and the second overall in the nation (following Princeton University). About 80 other universities have since followed suit.[161]
UNC took the field last Monday at Boshamer Stadium for its first baseball scrimmage of the fall. The Tar Heels followed that up with scrimmages Friday and Saturday. After going 2-for-4 with two RBI in UNC's first scrimmage, freshman Vance Honeycutt continued to show why the San Francisco Giants picked him in the 20th round of July’s MLB Draft. (Boshamer Bulletin)
We already knew UNC's nonconference opponents and dates, and the Atlantic Coast Conference opponents, so Thursday's basketball schedule release is about seeing how conference opponents fall. With that in mind, the first look has to be at how many short turnarounds the Tar Heels face. There are three Saturday-Monday combinations this season. (GoHeels.com)
The Clef Hangers (also known as the Clefs) are the university's oldest a cappella group, founded by Barry Saunders in 1977.[208][209] The group has since won several Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (CARAs), including Best Soloist in the song Easy, featured on the 2003 album Breeze. They have won two more CARAs for Best Male Collegiate Songs for My Love on Time Out (2008),[210] and for Ain't Nothing Wrong on Twist (2009).[211] Members have included Brendan James, who graduated in 2002,[212] and Anoop Desai, who graduated in 2008.[209] Since the spring of 2002, the Clef Hangers have sung each year at Commencement. They hold fall and spring concerts, sometimes featuring special guests.
Tony Bennett has consistently brushed aside his skeptics in dominating the ACC standings in recent years, although this year may require his best coaching job yet as standouts from last season – center Jay Huff and forward Sam Hauser – have left Charlottesville. Trey Murphy also took his potential to the NBA, where he’s now playing for New Orleans. Justin McKoy transferred to UNC, while Casey Morsell moved to Raleigh. What’s left is a veteran guard in Kihei Clark and a group of transfers that include guard Armaan Franklin (Indiana) and forward Jayden Gardner (East Carolina). Top-100 signee Taine Murray will have an opportunity to carve out playing time as well.

UNC's faculty and alumni include 9 Nobel Prize laureates, 23 Pulitzer Prize winners,[20][21] and 51 Rhodes Scholars.[22][23] Additional notable alumni include a U.S. President,[24] a U.S. Vice President,[25] 38 Governors of U.S. States, 98 members of the United States Congress, and nine Cabinet members as well as CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, Olympians and professional athletes.


The Clef Hangers (also known as the Clefs) are the university's oldest a cappella group, founded by Barry Saunders in 1977.[208][209] The group has since won several Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (CARAs), including Best Soloist in the song Easy, featured on the 2003 album Breeze. They have won two more CARAs for Best Male Collegiate Songs for My Love on Time Out (2008),[210] and for Ain't Nothing Wrong on Twist (2009).[211] Members have included Brendan James, who graduated in 2002,[212] and Anoop Desai, who graduated in 2008.[209] Since the spring of 2002, the Clef Hangers have sung each year at Commencement. They hold fall and spring concerts, sometimes featuring special guests.
The October 22, 2014 release of the Wainstein Report[174] alleged institutionalized academic fraud that involved over 3,100 students and student athletes, over an 18-year period from 1993 to 2011 that began during the final years of the Dean Smith era, challenged "The Carolina Way" image.[175] The report alleged that at least 54 players during the Dean Smith era were enrolled in what came to be known as "paper classes." The report noted that the questionable classes began in the spring of 1993, the year of Smith's final championship, so those grades would not have been entered until after the championship game was played.[176] In response to the allegations of the Wainstein report, the NCAA launched their own investigation and on June 5, 2015[177] the NCAA accused the institution of five major violations including: “two instances of unethical conduct and failure to cooperate“ as well as “unethical conduct and extra benefits related to student-athletes' access to and assistance in the paper courses; unethical conduct by the instructor/counselor for providing impermissible academic assistance to student-athletes; and a failure to monitor and lack of institutional control".[178] In October, 2017, the NCAA issued its findings and concluded "that the only violations in this case are the department chair's and the secretary's failure to cooperate."[178]
For decades, UNC-Chapel Hill has offered an undergraduate merit scholarship known as the Morehead-Cain Scholarship. Recipients receive full tuition, room and board, books, and funds for summer study for four years. Since the inception of the Morehead, 29 alumni of the program have been named Rhodes Scholars.[158] Since 2001, North Carolina has also co-hosted the Robertson Scholars Leadership Program, a merit scholarship and leadership development program granting recipients full student privileges at both UNC-Chapel Hill and neighboring Duke University.[159] Additionally, the university provides scholarships based on merit and leadership qualities, including the Carolina, Colonel Robinson, Johnston and Pogue Scholars programs.[160]
UNC-Chapel Hill has a regional theater company in residence, the Playmakers Repertory Company,[215] and hosts regular dance, drama, and music performances on campus.[216] The school has an outdoor stone amphitheatre known as Forest Theatre used for weddings and drama productions.[217] Forest Theatre is dedicated to Professor Frederick Koch, the founder of the Carolina Playmakers and the father American folk drama.[218]
In 2003, Chancellor James Moeser announced the Carolina Covenant, wherein UNC offers a debt free education to low-income students who are accepted to the university. The program was the first of its kind at a public university and the second overall in the nation (following Princeton University). About 80 other universities have since followed suit.[161]
Many fraternities and sororities on campus belong to the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC), Interfraternity Council (IFC), Greek Alliance Council, and National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC). As of spring 2010, eighteen percent of undergraduates were Greek (1146 men and 1693 women out of 17,160 total).[219] The total number of community service hours completed for the 2010 spring semester by fraternities and sororities was 51,819 hours (average of 31 hours/person). UNC-Chapel Hill also offers professional and service fraternities that do not have houses but are still recognized by the school. Some of the campus honor societies include: the Order of the Golden Fleece, the Order of the Grail-Valkyries, the Order of the Old Well, the Order of the Bell Tower, and the Frank Porter Graham Honor Society.[220]
Earl Grant, formerly of College of Charleston, has a massive rebuilding job ahead in Chestnut Hill after Jim Christian was shown the door following seven seasons. Four-year starter Steffon Mitchell graduated and a trio of sophomores – C.J. Felder, Jay Heath and Wynston Tabbs -- transferred. Grant was active in the transfer portal, bringing in Mississippi State center Quinten Post, College of Charleston guard Brevin Galloway and Drexel forward T.J. Bickerstaff to supplement his thin roster.
There was a mass exodus out of Jeff Capel’s program, starting with standout forward Justin Champagnie, who turned pro, and continuing with four transfers, headlined by guards Xavier Johnson and Au’Diese Toney. Texas Tech transfer Jamarius Burton and Femi Odukale will be expected to handle the ball this season, while a trio of post transfers, including top JuCo forward Chris Payton, will be counted on to provide the Panthers with options in the paint.
From the late 1990s and onward, UNC-Chapel Hill expanded rapidly with a 15% increase in total student population to more than 28,000 by 2007. This is accompanied by the construction of new facilities, funded in part by the "Carolina First" fundraising campaign and an endowment that increased fourfold to more than $2 billion within ten years.[45][46] Professor Oliver Smithies was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2007 for his work in genetics.[47] Additionally, Professor Aziz Sancar was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2015 for his work in understanding the molecular repair mechanisms of DNA.[48]
One of the top backcourts in the country – David Johnson and Carlik Jones – is no longer on Louisville’s roster, although Chris Mack joined his ACC counterparts in hitting the transfer portal hard this offseason. Miami forward Matt Cross, Marshall guard Jarrod West, Florida guard Noah Locke and JuCo standout El Ellis will all factor in a rotation that already includes forwards Malik Williams, Jae’Lyn Withers and Samuell Williamson. Add in Top-100 prospects in center Roosevelt Wheeler and forward Michael James and the Cardinals may have enough pieces in place to contend for the ACC title.
North Carolina left the Southern Conference in 1953, opting to become a founding member of the newly formed Atlantic Coast Conference. The Tar Heels won their first ACC baseball title in 1960. The program's first College World Series appearance also came in 1960. In 1964, the Tar Heels won their second ACC baseball title, posting an undefeated record in conference play. No other team in ACC baseball history has ever been undefeated in conference play.[2]

Former University of North Carolina basketball player Andrew Platek has enrolled at Siena College, and can now be found in the student directory of the school’s online database. He’s not currently listed as a member of the school’s basketball program, but we’re expecting that to change in the near future. Attempts by the Daily Gazette to reach Siena head basketball coach Carmen Maciariello for comment on the matter were unsuccessful.
×