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The UNC Chapel Hill chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) meets regularly to discuss campus affairs relevant to academic freedom, shared governance, and other issues of concern to higher education workers.

Latest news

Kudos to everyone whose hard work led to the scrapping of the classroom recording policy.

A lot of questions remain about classroom surveillance as well as syllabus doxxing and the newly adopted definition of academic freedom, ratified last week by the Board of Governors, so let's keep up the good work!

All-Member Chapter Meeting

Wednesday, March 11, 3:30-5pm (remote)

Save the date for an all-member UNC-CH AAUP meeting on Wednesday, March 11, 3:30-5pm. The meeting will be remote. Please make every effort to attend. Come here updates, learn how to get involved, and have your voice be heard!

Immigrant Rights and Higher Ed

Friday, March 6, 5pm

On January 22, 2026, a landmark ruling in AAUP v. Rubio ordered the Trump administration to end its ideological deportation policy and to cease arresting, detaining, and deporting noncitizen members of the AAUP and the Middle East Studies Association (MESA). This was a huge victory over the administration’s chilling policies and a win for free speech. At the same time, the third circuit court ruled that Mahmoud Khalil must exhaust his immigration court proceedings before challenging his detention in federal court. These outcomes, though not contradictory, have created a confusing legal landscape. In the meantime, the Trump administration has repeatedly shifted the goalposts relating to qualifying for visas for travel, study or work in the US with real implications for those in higher education.

Join key attorneys from AAUP v. Rubio, Mahmoud Khalil’s immigration team, and AAUP and MESA representatives to break down the outcomes of these rulings and their larger implications in our upcoming webinar Immigrants’ Rights and Higher Education: What to Know Amid New Assaults and Key Wins on Friday, March 6, at 5 p.m. ET. We will also discuss current barriers to H-1B visa applications, the “Gold Card” phenomenon, and other attacks on immigrants in higher ed.

This event is for AAUP and MESA members exclusively. Please register using the email you use to get member communications. Registration will close two hours ahead of the meeting to allow time for verification. After your membership is verified, you'll receive the Zoom link on the day of the meeting.

Resolution to Keep ICE Off Campus and Protect Immigrants

The NC AAUP has passed a resolution for Campus Engagement with Federal Immigration Authorities and Protection of Privacy Rights.

If you would like to help revise this resolution for our campus so that it can be presented to Faculty Council, please contact Don Nonini at dnonini@gmail.com.

Chapter Elections

It's time to nominate candidates to run for UNC AAUP office!

Please register your nominations here: UNC AAUP 2026 Officer Nominations. We will notify and request acceptance from candidates at the end of March, with elections taking place in April. Terms begin in June. For more information, please see the form.

Thank you to Rosie Mieisner for organizing these elections! If you are willing to assist Rosie, email her at rose.miesner@gmail.com.

TODAY: Chapter Liaisons Meeting, 2:30-3:30pm

Chapter liaisons are meeting at Tru Deli, which is just across Franklin Street from campus at 114 Henderson Street. If you cannot join us in person, please let Erik Gellman know and he'll set up Zoom on a laptop so you can participate.

If you are interested in serving as a liaison for your department or unit, please email Erik at esgellman@gmail.com.

TODAY: NC AAUP All-Conference Meeting, 6-7pm (remote)

Vote on changing our bylaws to allow for electronic voting and decide which action you’d prefer to take for our conference campaign: No ICE, No Spies, No Cuts, No Lies, FIGHT for freedom to teach & learn. Register.

THURSDAY: Academic Freedom Policy vote by UNC System Board of Governors

The UNC System Board of Governors will vote to ratify the new, restrictive academic freedom policy at their meeting this Thursday, February 26th. You can read more about the revised policy.

Sign our petition. Most of our 1,000+ signatories are faculty – now it’s time to get the wider community involved. Share with anyone who cares about the UNCs!

NC AAUP will deliver the petition starting at 8:30am in Raleigh on Thursday. We need at least 10 UNC-CH members to make our presence known alongside NCSU, ECU, and NCCU colleagues – register.

Know Your Rights on Campus and Beyond: Monday, March 2, 5-6pm

The ACLU of North Carolina's legal team is giving an hour-long Zoom presentation on Knowing Your Rights on Campus for NC AAUP faculty and students. It’s one of several events we’ll be hosting over the next few months, as we ask our members to take action to defend vulnerable faculty, students, and staff at our colleges, universities, and communities.

This will be a practical overview that on understanding your rights when interacting with immigration enforcement — regardless of your immigration status. This Zoom presentation will not provide specific legal advice, but will provide an overview of what your rights are if approached by immigration enforcement and also provides crucial advice for bystanders in ICE/BP interactions. Register.

All-Member Chapter Meeting: Wednesday, March 11, 3:30-5pm (remote)

Save the date for an all-member UNC-CH AAUP meeting on Wednesday, March 11, 3:30-5pm. The meeting will be remote. Please make every effort to attend. Come here updates, learn how to get involved, and have your voice be heard!

Resolution to Keep ICE Off Campus and Protect Immigrants

The NC AAUP has passed a resolution for Campus Engagement with Federal Immigration Authorities and Protection of Privacy Rights.

If you would like to help revise this resolution for our campus so that it can be presented to Faculty Council, please contact Don Nonini at dnonini@gmail.com.

Help with Our Chapter's Elections

We are looking for a few volunteers to run our chapter elections, slated for April. Election committee members are responsible for soliciting nominations for officer terms beginning in June and running the election. If you do not plan to run for office and would like to be involved, please email Rosie Miesner: rose.miesner@gmail.com

The UNC-Chapel Hill Chapter of AAUP opposes classroom recording for any reason without the instructor’s consent. We were shocked to learn on Monday February 9th that the Interim Provost had drafted a new policy allowing the recording of classes to go into effect on Monday February 16th.

Read the rest of the UNC-CH AAUP statement on classroom recording policy.

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