News started to filter out yesterday and into the day that UNC President Erskine Bowles has decided against adding North Carolina Wesleyan College into the UNC system. This follows a report by a study commission that said a new school was not feasible. Bowles said the cost of bringing the school into the system, roughly $207 million over the next seven years, as well as the high need for remedial education was a major factor in his decisions against adding the school.
The move appeared nothing short than a political move by legislators in eastern North Carolina seeking a gift to help the area economically. Adding a 17th institution just to address economic conditions in eastern North Carolina was never a smart idea. It’ll be interesting to watch the reaction of some key legislators from the eastern part of the state to determine if this is truly the end of the road for adding Wesleyan into the UNC system. Only time will tell on that.
