{"id":675,"date":"2026-05-21T12:05:50","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:05:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=675"},"modified":"2026-05-21T12:05:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:05:50","slug":"only-one-unc-system-school-is-not-financially-healthy-report-says-heres-why","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=675","title":{"rendered":"Only one UNC System school is not \u2018financially healthy,\u2019 report says. Here\u2019s why"},"content":{"rendered":"

AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n

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NC Central University \u2014 Durham\u2019s historically Black public university \u2014 is the only UNC System school that is not considered \u201cfinancially healthy,\u201d according to a new financial assessment framework used by the system.<\/p>\n

Read more Springsteen, De Niro Slam Trump on Penultimate Episode of ‘The Late Show’<\/a><\/p>\n

That system, the Composite Financial Index, measures institutional financial health based on answers to the following four questions:<\/p>\n

For 2024 and 2025, the UNC System\u2019s answer to each of these questions based on NC Central\u2019s financial statements was negative. That means NC Central has a Composite Financial Index, or CFI, below<\/a> the minimum threshold for financial health.<\/p>\n

In that same time frame, however, enrollment at NC Central reached<\/a> historic levels, according to the university. It celebrated its largest student body this past fall, with a population of more than 9,100 students.<\/p>\n

And the university\u2019s status did improve in 2025 \u2014 just not enough to join the other 15 UNC System campuses on the side of financial health.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first priority upon arriving at NCCU in 2024 was to strengthen the university\u2019s financial position,\u201d Chancellor Karrie Dixon said in a statement to The News & Observer. \u201cWe made difficult but necessary decisions to reduce costs and improve financial management. At the same time, we recognized enrollment growth as a key driver of financial health. Together, those efforts have helped improve our CFI score from 2024 to 2025.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dixon took the job of leading NC Central in 2024. She left Elizabeth City State University, a place she is credited as having brought back from the brink of closure<\/a>. During Dixon\u2019s first year in charge, NC Central boosted its position in each category included in the CFI calculation, figures derivable from the university\u2019s financial statement.<\/p>\n

UNC System President Peter Hans told The News & Observer that he\u2019s \u201cbullish\u201d on the future of NC Central.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re seeing consistent improvement over the past two years under chancellor Dixon\u2019s leadership and sustained involvement from [the System] in supporting them, identifying issues, and exploring remedies,\u201d Hans said.<\/p>\n

\u201c[That] isn\u2019t to say that we should quickly gloss over or forget lessons that have been learned. … I think it\u2019s very useful for the Board of Governors to hear the information [on the CFI], and for the public to have a sense that people are paying very close attention to this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dixon told The N&O that NC Central\u2019s continued financial uncertainty underscores the need for overdue enrollment funding from the legislature. Enrollment funding pays for the costs of teaching and providing services to students, beyond what is covered by tuition. Because of the lack of state budget, the system hasn\u2019t gotten that money this year or last year. Now, it\u2019s asking for $159 million to cover both years.<\/p>\n

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But so far, it hasn\u2019t been mentioned as part of the budget framework<\/a> Republican lawmakers announced earlier this month. The system\u2019s chief financial officer, Jennifer Haygood, urged board members not to worry: there is support for enrollment funding in the legislature, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur first priority is restoring and strengthening NCCU\u2019s financial position,\u201d Dixon told the board on Wednesday. \u201cAs our enrollment continues to increase, growth has already contributed to improve our CFI score. However, that growth must be adequately supported.\u201d<\/p>\n

The data that informs the CFI has a substantial lag, meaning the current score represents the university\u2019s position months ago, according to Joshua Lassiter, vice president for financial health and strategy. Lassiter called the data \u201cstale.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is working on a financial early-warning system to complement the CFI scores. The hope is that it will allow the system to \u201clook around corners\u201d and identify financial risks before they become problems. That will include looking at indicators like turnover in key finance positions and late submission of financial reports.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ability to get in front of a problem or handle a problem in real time, in my opinion, it\u2019s not going to come from these public-facing documents that are produced annually, and in some cases six or eight months after a fiscal year has ended,\u201d Lassiter said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think trouble sometimes lives below that public-facing surface,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

The university says it recently received a clean audit<\/a> for the first time in three years, and had its credit rating affirmed by Moody\u2019s, which indicates \u201ccontinued progress in financial oversight and stability.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike many public universities experiencing enrollment growth, NCCU is managing increased demand while working to strengthen reserves and align resources with student needs,\u201d a statement from the university reads. \u201cRecent actions, including spending controls, cautious hiring, operational realignment and expanded academic initiatives through Project Kitty Hawk, support a broader strategy for long-term sustainability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, an unplanned audit into NC Central\u2019s foundation is underway, according to the UNC System\u2019s audit plan status update<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read more Class materials help show how UNC School of Civic Life pursues its lofty mission<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new UNC System CFI assessment finds NC Central University in Durham the only campus not financially healthy, despite record enrollment and leadership changes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":674,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nOnly one UNC System school is not \u2018financially healthy,\u2019 report says. 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