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theassemblync.bsky.social
The Assembly
@theassemblync.bsky.social
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North Carolina's new digital statewide magazine. In-depth reporting and writing about the state. Reach out [email protected].
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theassemblync.bsky.social
The National Endowment for the Humanities announced last week that it was awarding $10.1 million to UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Civic Life and Leadership, also known as SCiLL.

www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
The School of Civic Life and Leadership Has Friends in High Places
School faculty have close ties to the National Endowment for the Humanities, which just awarded it $10.1 million.
www.theassemblync.com
January 26, 2026 at 2:56 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
Via @insideclimatenews.org | Duke Energy could build a 1,360-megawatt natural gas power plant on company-owned land in western Davidson County, which, if approved by the N.C. Utilities Commission, would add tons of greenhouse gases into the air each year.

www.theassemblync.com/news/environ...
Duke Energy Eyes Davidson County for a New Natural Gas Plant
The utility has been cagey about the exact location, but there are clues as the company looks to expand natural gas in North Carolina.
www.theassemblync.com
January 24, 2026 at 8:09 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
“I think I’m wired to want to know what’s coming,” Russell said. “Life can’t be predictable, but taking away some element of unpredictability, there’s power in that when you can do it.”

www.theassemblync.com/news/media/r...
What's the Secret Sauce Behind Ray's Weather, Western NC's Favorite Forecast?
Ray Russell, a self-taught weatherman and founder of Ray’s Weather, knew Hurricane Helene would be a historic catastrophe. Here's why.
www.theassemblync.com
January 23, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by The Assembly
koriedean.bsky.social
New: For the first time, the UNC System could soon define “academic freedom” for its universities.

A Board of Governors committee will consider adopting an explanation of the concept that sets "parameters" for faculty and "protections" for students. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC System Board Weighs Defining, Setting 'Parameters' for Academic Freedom
The proposed policy explains the concept the same way a faculty group did last fall, but system leaders added limitations on what is protected.
www.theassemblync.com
January 23, 2026 at 6:35 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
BREAKING: For the first time, the UNC System could soon define “academic freedom” across North Carolina’s public universities.

The move comes as professors and administrators warn that Trump administration policies are threatening their rights.

www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC System Board Weighs Defining, Setting 'Parameters' for Academic Freedom
The proposed policy explains the concept the same way a faculty group did last fall, but system leaders added limitations on what is protected.
www.theassemblync.com
January 23, 2026 at 7:02 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
In December, Dare County resident Richard Burrus posted a 23-second audio clip on social media that he claimed revealed former Superior Court Judge Jerry Tillett using the N-word and joking about shooting a Black man.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
State Senate Candidate Accused of Using Racial Slur in Recorded Conversation
A Dare County resident posted a recording that he said captures former Judge Jerry Tillett using the N-word, which Tillett denies.
www.theassemblync.com
January 23, 2026 at 2:20 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
It’s happening. Nearly 20 years after UNC-Chapel Hill leaders proposed a mixed-use extension of the university’s main campus, Chancellor Lee Roberts on Wednesday announced plans to develop part of the property known as Carolina North.

www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC-Chapel Hill to Develop 'Full-Blown Satellite Campus' at Carolina North
The chancellor announced plans to develop roughly 230 acres of land north of the main campus. The Smith Center’s future remains undecided.
www.theassemblync.com
January 22, 2026 at 3:12 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
NEW: Roughly six months after UNC-Chapel Hill set a goal of cutting $70 million from its budget, trustees on Wednesday advanced an unexpected resolution directing leaders to cut an additional $16.5 million from administrative spending.

www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees Considers Surprise $16.5 Million Cut
A committee advanced a resolution directing university leaders to propose a plan to cut more administrative spending.
www.theassemblync.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:38 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
The federal government approved more K-12 education visas for North Carolina in 2025 than any other state except Texas. Now that might be grinding to a halt.
www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
N.C. Schools That Rely on International Teachers Brace for Visa Changes
The federal government approved more H-1B visas for K-12 education for North Carolina in 2025 than any other state except Texas.
www.theassemblync.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:03 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
The North Carolina Democratic Party is withholding a key resource from four state legislative candidates who have sided with Republicans in voting to override vetoes from Democratic governors.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
A Purity Test for Democrats
The North Carolina Democratic Party won’t share voter-turnout tools with certain candidates who previously voted to override the governor’s vetoes.
www.theassemblync.com
January 21, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by The Assembly
barryyeoman.com
Records obtained by @theassemblync.bsky.social show the persistence of hazing in North Carolina. Pledges have been called racial epithets, and forced to drink alcohol mixed with “hot sauce, milk, chewing tobacco, cigarette butts, and, at times, bodily fluids like urine.” By @emilyvespa.bsky.social.
The Enduring Hazards of College Hazing
A review of more than 1,500 pages of records shows fraternity hazing rituals are deeply ingrained at NC colleges and universities.
www.theassemblync.com
January 19, 2026 at 2:13 AM
Reposted by The Assembly
blackmuse.bsky.social
Lawsuit Accuses Former U.S. Senator of Stealing North Carolina Woman’s Husband www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
Lawsuit Accuses Former U.S. Senator of Stealing North Carolina Woman’s Husband
The complaint says the former Arizona lawmaker wooed a married member of her security detail with Taylor Swift and U2 tickets.
www.theassemblync.com
January 15, 2026 at 7:21 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
NEW: A lawsuit filed in a federal court in North Carolina accuses Kyrsten Sinema, the former U.S. senator from Arizona, of pursuing a romantic relationship with a member of her security team, leading him to dissolve his marriage.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
www.theassemblync.com
January 15, 2026 at 7:06 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday that it will not review a North Carolina death penalty case in which a prosecutor admitted years later that he’d removed a potential juror from the pool because she was a woman.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
U.S. Supreme Court Passes on Jury Discrimination Case
A prosecutor had said he removed a potential juror because she was a woman who had children close in age to the defendants.
www.theassemblync.com
January 15, 2026 at 5:43 PM
Reposted by The Assembly
koriedean.bsky.social
New @theassemblync.bsky.social: UNC-Chapel Hill trustee John Preyer, perhaps most widely known for his role in the Belichick hire, has resigned from the board www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC-Chapel Hill Trustee John Preyer Resigns
Preyer championed efforts to revamp the university’s budget and launch a civics school, but he may be remembered most for his role in hiring Bill Belichick.
www.theassemblync.com
January 14, 2026 at 11:44 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
BREAKING: UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees member John Preyer resigned Friday with a year left in his term. Preyer championed efforts to revamp the university's budget, but he may be remembered most for his role in hiring Bill Belichick.

www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
UNC-Chapel Hill Trustee John Preyer Resigns
Preyer championed efforts to revamp the university’s budget and launch a civics school, but he may be remembered most for his role in hiring Bill Belichick.
www.theassemblync.com
January 15, 2026 at 12:00 AM
theassemblync.bsky.social
In records obtained by The Assembly, fraternity pledges alleged they endured forced alcohol consumption, sleep deprivation, sexual harassment, verbal abuse, and humiliation at the hands of members of the very groups they sought to join. www.theassemblync.com/news/educati...
The Enduring Hazards of College Hazing
A review of more than 1,500 pages of records shows fraternity hazing rituals are deeply ingrained at NC colleges and universities.
www.theassemblync.com
January 14, 2026 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by The Assembly
thelinewake.bsky.social
The book charts former Town Manager Sean Stegall’s accomplishments and his approach to municipal government leadership. Post-resignation, some passages don’t really hold up.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
What Sean Stegall’s Book Says About His Leadership—And What It Cost the Town of Cary
What The Top of The Arc says about the former Cary town manager, Sean Stegall, and detailing the town budget to promote it.
www.theassemblync.com
January 13, 2026 at 2:50 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
When Jerry Bledsoe died on New Year’s Eve at the age of 84, state and national publications lauded him as a brilliant journalist and author, a Southern raconteur in the tradition of Mark Twain.

www.theassemblync.com/news/media/j...
‘A Hell of a Writer’
Jerry Bledsoe leaves a legacy of both beloved books and persistent grudges. What do we make of a complicated figure after his death?
www.theassemblync.com
January 12, 2026 at 10:27 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
Four-term Democratic governor and committed church-goer Jim Hunt politicked with evangelical fervor. But he still struggled to sway the Religious Right. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
Jim Hunt’s Cross to Bear
The four-term governor and committed church-goer politicked with evangelical fervor. But Jim Hunt still struggled to sway the Religious Right.
www.theassemblync.com
January 12, 2026 at 2:20 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
Gov. Josh Stein lost the latest court battle in his effort to claw back appointment powers the Republican-led General Assembly stripped from him weeks before he took office.

www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...
Stein Loses Latest Attempt to Regain Appointment Powers
The state Court of Appeals overturned a ruling that had restored the governor’s power to fill appellate court vacancies with appointments of his choice.
www.theassemblync.com
January 9, 2026 at 8:23 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
North Carolina is about to get its first Buc-ee’s, the massive, cult-classic gas station rapidly expanding across the southeast. It was founded in Texas in 1982 as a normal convenience store, but in the ensuing decades it’s become anything but.
January 8, 2026 at 9:08 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
Black people make up just 21% of North Carolina’s population, yet they account for nearly 60% of those serving life without parole.
Black people make up about 22% of North Carolina’s population, yet they represent roughly half of the prison population, and an even larger share of people serving the state’s harshest sentences. As punishment severity escalates, so does the racial disparity, peaking under the Violent Habitual Felon law, where more than 80% of those serving the sentence are Black.
January 7, 2026 at 3:43 PM
Reposted by The Assembly
thelinewake.bsky.social
Join us to celebrate the launch of The Line, a new source of local journalism in Western Wake County that connects you with civic info, cultural updates, events, and conversations about the place we call home.
January 6, 2026 at 8:51 PM
theassemblync.bsky.social
Many EOD techs believe occupational hazards are contributing to high rates of behavioral health disorders and illnesses showing up among members of the military who work closely with explosives.

www.theassemblync.com/news/militar...
‘Death By a Thousand Cuts’
EOD techs have highs rates of suicide and death from illnesses. Despite increasing awareness, veterans say there’s been little progress.
www.theassemblync.com
January 6, 2026 at 2:20 PM