AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
NC Central, Durham’s public, historically Black university, is thin on cash reserves. A recent UNC System analysis found it was the only campus in the system not considered “financially healthy.”
Read more Two weeks until Election Day in North Carolina. Here’s what to know today
Fixing those problems, Chancellor Karrie Dixon said at a summer board meeting, will require a significant “culture change” when it comes to money management among staff. “The Dixon administration,” she promised, “is doing things differently.”
A new report from the Office of the State Auditor, released Monday, offers a closer look at some of the habits Dixon is determined to fix.
State Auditor Dave Boliek and his team found that NC Central didn’t consistently follow its own rules for procurement and travel cards used by staff at the university. Those cards — which provide “direct access to university funds” — are used by staff to purchase goods and services that support the school’s operation.
Many transactions on those cards, however, were submitted without proper documentation and didn’t get reviewed on time, the report said. Auditors found prohibited purchases and inflated card spending limits. Some staff were splitting spending across transactions to avoid hitting established ceilings, the report said.
These problems mean that “inappropriate, unauthorized, or prohibited purchases may occur and go undetected, increasing the risk of fraud, waste, abuse, and misuse,” the report said.
Auditors reviewed 477 transactions and found:
To fix these issues, the report recommends NC Central strengthen oversight and system configurations, improve training, and review spending limits for its procurement and travel cards.
Dixon said she agreed with all the report’s findings in her response to the audit. Already, the university has turned off auto-approval, required cardholders to retake training, and introduced a form for recording card violations.
Read more Trader Joe’s snack put NC woman in hospital with life-threatening E. coli: lawsuit
Other fixes — including overdue-review reports, escalation steps, and closer monitoring — are due by Dec. 31.
While financial recovery will take “making the tough decisions, culture change and transforming our mindset,” Dixon said, there is already positive financial progress underway.
Last year, the university received a clean financial audit from the state for the first time in three years and had its A3 credit rating — which indicates solid creditworthiness — affirmed by Moody’s.
And the school has seen consistent progress toward financial health over the last two years, according to UNC System analysis.
“We’re seeing consistent improvement over the past two years under Chancellor Dixon’s leadership and sustained involvement from [the system] in supporting them, identifying issues, and exploring remedies,” UNC System president Peter Hans said this spring.
Still, Hans said he believes it’s important “for the public to have a sense that people are paying very close attention to this.”
Read more Miles of busy coastal highway closed due to worsening storm off NC’s Outer Banks
This story was originally published October 19, 2026 at 4:33 PM.