The latest scandal to hit UNC-Chapel Hill involves university fundraisers Matt Kupec and Tami Hansbrough, who are a couple, taking trips to see Hansbrough’s son Ben play basketball games at Notre Dame at UNC-CH expense. A twist that’s sure to get a lot of attention is that:

[Chancellor Holden] Thorp has said he stopped Kupec from hiring Hansbrough in 2010 as a fundraiser in Kupec’s office because he knew the two were in a relationship. By the next year, however, Kupec had funded a position in the university’s division of student affairs. Hansbrough was hired for that job after what Winston Crisp, the vice chancellor for student affairs, has described as an “independent, wide-open, full search.”

Crisp has said he was also aware of the relationship between Hansbrough and Kupec and knew that the two would travel together to events. He said he was unaware until recently of questions about the validity of their travel.

As someone who has worked in academia, let me let you in on the dirty little secret: This sort of stuff goes on all the time. No, not the unauthorized travel to see your son play hoops. That’s a no-no. But rather hiring someone’s spouse or girl or boyfriend for some sort of staff or part-time teaching gig, which is extremely common. And not just at UNC-Chapel Hill.