Dear Carolina Community,
Today, we received the decision from the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions in our case resulting from academic irregularities that ended more than six years ago.
The hearing panel found no NCAA bylaw violations by the University; you may read its decision here. We believe this is the correct—and fair—outcome.
I am grateful that this case has been decided and the University can continue to focus on delivering the best possible education to our students. We wish to thank the NCAA staff and the Committee on Infractions for their work and time during the joint investigation and hearing process.
Carolina long ago publicly accepted responsibility for what happened in the past. One of the highest priorities of this administration has been to resolve this issue by following the facts, understanding what occurred, and taking every opportunity to make our University stronger. We have been open and transparent in everything we have done, as documented on our Carolina Commitment website.
The resolution of this case is part of a comprehensive effort working with administrators, faculty and staff across campus and with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, our accrediting agency, to fully address these issues.
Strong collaboration with our faculty was critical to developing the more than 70 groundbreaking reforms and initiatives, including in the areas of academic advising and academic oversight. I believe we have done everything possible to correct and move beyond the past academic irregularities and have established very robust processes to prevent them from recurring. We continue to devote extraordinary resources to monitoring and refining these reforms and initiatives that already have had such a profound impact on our University.
I want to thank our dedicated students, and especially our student-athletes, who have shown so much passion and drive in the classroom and in competition while all of these things that had nothing to do with them were addressed. Carolina is proud of the accomplishments of our coaches and faculty and their commitment to our students and our campus. We are very grateful for the loyal support of our alumni and friends.
Carolina is in a better place, and we continue to focus on deserving your trust and ensuring integrity in everything we do. We are as resolute as we have ever been to our commitment to excellence, guided by our historic mission to serve the people in our state and beyond.
Sincerely,
Carol L. Folt
Chancellor
Published Oct. 13, 2017