The point of this Durham Herald-Sun story is that the state is behind on its promise to match donor funds for UNC professorships. But does anything else strike you like a bolt of lightening about this scenario?
CHAPEL HILL – When Peter Lasher is courting a potential donor, he has a considerable, state-sanctioned tool at his disposal. It comes in the promise of matching money he can dangle as an enticement for donors to write the university a big, fat check. The deal is this: If a donor agrees to, say, a $666,000 gift, the state will chip in $334,000, bringing the grand total to a cool $1 million. If the donor agrees to put the money towards an endowed professorship, he or she can be credited with creating the entire gift.