Carolina invites the community to submit names for buildings on campus

Dear Carolina Community:

Last summer, the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees voted to remove the names of three buildings on our campus: the Aycock Residence Hall, the Daniels Building and the Carr Building. I remain grateful for their commitment to making these historic changes. Now, we have the important task of renaming those buildings and helping to move our campus forward.

Our goal is to have new names on these buildings by the time our students return from summer break in August. We want these names to represent the values of our campus and quickly become part of the fabric of our community. According to the current policy, the Board of Trustees must approve any new name of a building on campus. The Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Naming University Facilities and Units (the committee) chaired by Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Bob Blouin vets and recommends all building names on campus to me for submission to the Board of Trustees for final approval.

Today, I am announcing an open call for potential names for buildings on our campus. We have previously received names for consideration which are included in our Honorific Naming Registry and we invite you to submit additional names. We will keep this process open for a two-week period, closing the registry at 5 p.m. on April 9. The committee will receive all submitted names and conduct an initial vetting process to narrow a list of possible options to six names for consideration. I will consider those names for submission to our Board of Trustees.

There is a high bar required for naming a building on our campus. The committee will give more weight to honorees who reflect the principles outlined below:

• Represent the values that define our University: excellence and an unwavering commitment to teaching, research and public service.
• Have traditionally been underrepresented on our landscape.
• Have a demonstrated positive impact on our campus and in our community.

In addition to the names of individuals, you are encouraged to consider names or words that represent Carolina and its values, just as the trustees chose to do in the naming of Carolina Hall.

This is an exciting time for our University as we celebrate and remember the people who have pushed our University forward by serving its people and our mission. In doing so, we are taking concrete steps to build our community together. I am grateful for the students, faculty and staff who have advocated for change. I am confident that we will have plenty of worthy honorees who have been instrumental in our shared history.

Sincerely,

Kevin M. Guskiewicz
Chancellor