Statement by Dean Susan King on Nikole Hannah-Jones Decision

Of course, I’m disappointed that Nikole Hannah-Jones will not be joining the school this summer. But I’m also aware it’s been a long six months for her and for our UNC students.

This new opportunity to join Howard University as a Knight Chair offers her the chance to invest in students and great journalism. This is what we would want for her and the next generation of journalists. To also be able to move into a new Knight Chair means this great journalism foundation has made an even stronger investment in the future of our news industry and all because of Hannah-Jones and the issues raised by her tenure case.

Hannah-Jones is an alum of our school and a loyal Tar Heel. We will call on her to continue to challenge and inspire our students from her new position. We wish her nothing but deep success and the hope that UNC can learn from this long tenure drama about how we must change as a community of scholars in order to grow as a campus that lives by its stated values of being a diverse and welcoming place for all.

Susan King
Dean
John T. Kerr Distinguished Professor