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Storyline · 1991–1992

UNC’s turnover in leadership, 1991–1992

In 1991 Dean Gillian Cell left UNC for Lafayette College and Provost Dennis O'Connor for the University of Pittsburgh, and William F. Little served as interim provost. In April 1992 the Board of Governors approved Richard McCormick as provost, Mary Sue Coleman in a restored research vice chancellorship and Stephen Birdsall as arts and sciences dean, and Wayne Jones was named to succeed Ben Tuchi in business and finance.

1991–1992 Filed under UNC & Campus Life 8 dated events

Chancellor Paul Hardin with President Bill Clinton at UNC University Day, 1993
Chancellor Paul Hardin with President Bill Clinton at UNC University Day, 1993Photograph by David Mikush; via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

By April 8, 1991 Gillian Cell, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences since 1985, had accepted the post of provost at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, to leave UNC on June 30. Chancellor Paul Hardin called it a serious loss and began a national search; Cell said the state budget cuts had not entered into her decision. Provost J. Dennis O'Connor resigned, effective September 1, 1991, to become president of the University of Pittsburgh, and Hardin appointed chemistry professor William F. Little interim provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs.

By March 15, 1992 officials confirmed that Richard McCormick, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences at Rutgers University, had been offered the post of provost, UNC's chief academic officer, subject to approval by the UNC Board of Governors. On March 18 Hardin said he would reinstate the post of vice chancellor for graduate studies and research, which he had abolished in 1989 to save money, and promote Mary Sue Coleman, associate provost and dean of research, to it; he said the faculty had urged the change. On March 27 the trustees approved Sara Lee Corp. president Paul Fulton as dean of the business school and recommended Stephen Birdsall as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. On April 1 Little became interim vice president for academic affairs of the UNC system's General Administration, and Garland Hershey took the provost's post on an interim basis until the new provost arrived. On April 10 the Board of Governors approved McCormick as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, Coleman as vice chancellor for graduate studies and research, Fulton as business dean from January 1994 and Donald Bailey as director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center, and Birdsall was confirmed as dean of the College.

In April Ben Tuchi, vice chancellor for business and finance since 1989, said he would leave in June to become senior vice chancellor for business and finance at the University of Pittsburgh under O'Connor, citing state budget restrictions, and gave up his coming term as chairman of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce. On April 17, three days after Tuchi's announcement, Hardin named associate vice chancellor Wayne Jones, a 20-year veteran of the division who had twice been acting vice chancellor, to take the post on an interim basis from June 1, pending approval by the trustees and the Board of Governors. McCormick began work as provost on June 1, 1992.

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The events, date by date

Every statement above comes from these dated entries in the chronology. Each links to its source.

  1. Dean Gillian Cell accepts the post of provost at Lafayette College Gillian Cell, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences since 1985, accepted the provost's post at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, to leave UNC on June 30. Chancellor Paul Hardin called it a serious loss and began a national search; Cell said the state budget cuts had not entered into her decision. Place: UNC, Chapel Hill · Also named: Gillian Cell, Paul Hardin · Also mentions: College of Arts and SciencesSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, April 8, 1991, p. 1
  2. William F. Little serves as acting provost Chancellor Paul Hardin appointed chemistry professor William F. Little interim provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs when J. Dennis O'Connor resigned, effective September 1, 1991, to become president of the University of Pittsburgh. Little served until April 1, 1992, when he became interim vice president for academic affairs of the UNC system's General Administration and Garland Hershey took the post on an interim basis until a new provost arrived. People: William F. Little Place: Chapel Hill · Also named: John Dennis O'Connor, Paul Hardin, Garland Hershey, Dennis O'ConnorSearch the index · UNC Libraries: Office of the Provost of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Records, 1917-2017 · Also: The Daily Tar Heel, August 19, 1991, p. 1; The Daily Tar Heel, March 13, 1992, p. 3; The Daily Tar Heel, March 31, 1992, p. 3
  3. UNC offers the provost's post to Rutgers dean Richard McCormick Officials confirmed that Richard McCormick, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences at Rutgers University, had been offered the post of provost, UNC's chief academic officer, subject to approval by the UNC Board of Governors. Chemistry professor William Little had been acting provost since Dennis O'Connor left on September 1, 1991, to lead the University of Pittsburgh. Place: University, Chapel Hill · Also named: Richard McCormick, William Little, Dennis O'ConnorSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, March 16, 1992, p. 1
  4. Hardin says he will restore the vice chancellorship for graduate studies and research Chancellor Paul Hardin said he would reinstate the post of vice chancellor for graduate studies and research, which he had abolished in 1989 to save money, and promote Mary Sue Coleman, associate provost and dean of research, to it, subject to approval by the trustees and the Board of Governors, which he expected in April. Hardin said the faculty had urged the change. Place: South Building, University, Chapel Hill · Also named: Paul Hardin, Mary Sue ColemanSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, March 20, 1992, p. 1
  5. The Board of Governors approves Paul Fulton, Richard McCormick and Stephen Birdsall for top UNC posts The UNC Board of Governors approved Sara Lee Corp. president Paul Fulton as dean of the business school from January 1994, Rutgers dean Richard McCormick as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, Donald Bailey as director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center and Mary Sue Coleman as vice chancellor for graduate studies and research, and Stephen Birdsall was confirmed as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. The trustees had approved Fulton and recommended Birdsall on March 27. Place: UNC, Chapel Hill · Also named: Paul Fulton, Richard McCormick, Stephen Birdsall, Donald Bailey, Mary Sue Coleman · Also mentions: College of Arts and Sciences, Frank Porter Graham Child Development CenterSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, April 13, 1992, p. 1
  6. Chancellor Hardin chooses Wayne Jones to succeed Ben Tuchi as vice chancellor for business and finance Three days after Ben Tuchi said he would leave in June to become senior vice chancellor for business and finance at the University of Pittsburgh under former UNC provost Dennis O'Connor, citing state budget restrictions, Hardin named associate vice chancellor Wayne Jones, a 20-year veteran of the division who had twice been acting vice chancellor, to take the post on an interim basis from June 1, pending trustee and Board of Governors approval. Place: UNC, Chapel Hill · Also named: Wayne Jones, Ben Tuchi, Paul Hardin, Dennis O'ConnorSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, April 20, 1992, p. 1
  7. Ben Tuchi leaves UNC to be the University of Pittsburgh's chief financial officer Ben Tuchi, UNC's vice chancellor for business and finance since 1989, was named senior vice chancellor for business and finance at the University of Pittsburgh and gave up his coming term as chairman of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce; Wayne Jones, a 20-year UNC administrator, was named to succeed him in June. Place: UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill · Also named: Ben Tuchi, Wayne Jones · Also mentions: Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of CommerceSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, April 22, 1992, p. 3
  8. Richard McCormick begins work as UNC provost Richard McCormick, former dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University, began work as UNC's provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs; the Board of Governors had approved his appointment April 10. Place: South Building, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill · Also named: Richard McCormickSearch the index · The Daily Tar Heel, June 4, 1992, p. 1

People in this storyline

People with a page of their own whom the dated events above name, those named most often first.

Further reading

No indexed work is about this storyline itself yet. These are the most widely held histories of the theme it is filed under, so they may not discuss it. Follow a link to find a copy or view the material.

Background on UNC & Campus Life · the most widely held histories of the theme this storyline is filed under; they may not discuss it

Carolina Basketball: A Century of Excellence

Lucas, Adam · 2010 · University of North Carolina Press

Adam Lucas marks one hundred years of basketball at the University of North Carolina in this illustrated history, published by UNC Press in 2010 in association with the athletics department. Chapters follow the program from the game's arrival on campus and the 'White Phantoms' of the Southern Conference through the founding of the ACC, the 1957 season, Dean Smith's changes to the game and the title seasons of 1982, 1993, 2005 and 2009, closing with a century of statistics. 289 pages.

The Blue Divide: Duke, North Carolina, and the Battle on Tobacco Road

Moore, Johnny; Chansky, Art · 2014 · Triumph Books

The Duke and North Carolina basketball rivalry written together by Johnny Moore and Art Chansky, the latter a sports reporter who has followed it since his student days at UNC. The book opens with the 2014 season and moves through recruiting battles old and new, 'Black and Blue Sunday', 'Blood and Roses', and chapters on the rivalry's heroes, leaders and teachers, with a foreword by Jay Bilas and a photo gallery. Published by Triumph Books in 2014, 289 pages.

Miss Mary's Money

Jones, H. G. · 2014 · McFarland & Co.

H. G. Jones follows the fortune of Mary Ruffin Smith (1814-1885), the unmarried heiress whose Orange and Chatham County lands passed at her death to the University of North Carolina and the Episcopal Church. Chapters profile her grandfather Francis Jones, then trace the bequest through a quarrel among Episcopalians over Price Creek, the Chapel of the Cross and the university's buildings. A December 1885 New York Times report called the gift money; Jones shows it was land. Published by McFarland in 2014, 231 pages.

The Chronicles of the Bicentennial Observance of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Tepper, Steven J. · 1998

Steven J. Tepper's chronicle of how the University of North Carolina marked its bicentennial in 1993 and 1994. An appendix reprints the University Day speeches of October 12, 1993, given by Paul Hardin, James B. Hunt Jr., C.D. Spangler, William C. Friday, Charles Kuralt and President Bill Clinton, plus bicentennial addresses by Li Lu, Francis S. Collins and Richard J. Richardson. Published by the university in Chapel Hill, 1998; 284 pages.

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William Friday

Link, William A. · 1995

Biography of William C. Friday, president of the University of North Carolina system, by historian William A. Link, published by UNC Press in 1995 with the subtitle power, purpose, and American higher education. It covers Friday's career and the history of the university at Chapel Hill and statewide. Part of the Rebecca B. Wall Local History Collection.

Chapel Hill in Plain Sight

Athas, Daphne · 2010 · Eno Publishers

Twelve essays by novelist Daphne Athas (1923-2020) on the Chapel Hill she knew across the twentieth century. Subjects include Carrboro as 'the Paris of the Piedmont', philosopher Horace Williams, Betty Smith writing in Chapel Hill, Junius Scales, Ab Abernethy and the Intimate Bookshop, Richard Wright's visit, and a set of Chapel Hill murders. Published 2010, 243 pages with illustrations.

What it means to be a Tar Heel: Roy Williams and North Carolina's greatest players

Fowler, Scott · 2010 · Triumph Books

Scott Fowler gathers recollections from Carolina basketball players, decade by decade from the 1950s to the 2000s, organized around Roy Williams and the question in the title. Contributors include Lennie Rosenbluth, Larry Brown, Billy Cunningham, Charlie Scott, Phil Ford, James Worthy, Brad Daugherty, Eric Montross, Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Raymond Felton and Sean May, each entry giving position and playing years. Published 2010 by Triumph Books of Chicago, 270 pages, here as an e-book.

The Campus of the First State University

Henderson, Archibald · 1949

Archibald Henderson's history of the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, its buildings and grounds from the founding in the 1790s onward. Henderson, a professor of mathematics and a prolific historian of the university, wrote it in the years around the university's sesquicentennial. Published by the University of North Carolina Press in 1949, 412 pages with illustrations and bibliographical footnotes.

Reviewed in The Journal of Southern History (1949), South Atlantic Quarterly (1950).

The Woman Who Rang the Bell: The Story of Cornelia Spencer Phillips

Russell, Charles Phillips · 1949

Charles Phillips Russell's biography of Cornelia Phillips Spencer (1825-1908), the Chapel Hill writer remembered for ringing the bell of South Building when the university reopened in 1875 after its closure during Reconstruction. It doubles as a history of Chapel Hill and the university. Published by the University of North Carolina Press in 1949, 293 pages with illustrations.

Reviewed in Journal of American History (1949).

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Friends of the Orange County Public Library. “UNC’s turnover in leadership, 1991–1992.” Orange County Indexed, https://focplnc.org/orange-county-books/storylines/unc-leadership-turnover-storyline-1991/. Accessed October 22, 2026.

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