To diffuse protests, UNC board opens limited public comment

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina’s public university governing board is trying to diffuse protesters by giving anyone an opportunity to vent their issues with the 17-campus system.

University of North Carolina leaders said Monday they’re starting public comment sessions at their end of their meetings.

A handful of the 32-member governing board’s members will listen to up to an hour of public comments following each meeting, starting this Friday.

The UNC board was forced to adjourn last month’s meeting briefly until police cleared their conference room of nearly two dozen protesters. The meeting was moved to Chapel Hill from the UNC-Asheville campus because of a planned demonstration there.

Demonstrators have targeted UNC system board meetings several times in the past year and there have been a handful of arrests.

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