UNC Chapel Hill Vice Chancellor and General Counsel Leslie Strohm has accepted a similar position at the University of Louisville. Strohm has been the university's top attorney through several public records lawsuits.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced last week that Vice Chancellor and General Counsel Leslie Strohm will be leaving the university in January. She has accepted a similar position at the University of Louisville.
Strohm has served as the university’s general counsel since 2003, and has worked for three different chancellors. As the university’s top lawyer, she has been a key figure in several public records disputes.
In 2010 a coalition of media outlets, including the News & Observer, Daily Tar Heel, Charlotte Observer, WRAL, Time Warner News and WTVD sued the university over public records the administration claimed were covered by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, including parking tickets issued to football players and football coach Butch Davis’ cellphone records. Superior Court Judge Howard Manning ruled largely in the favor of the media outlets.
In January of this year, the News & Observer filed a lawsuit against the university over data that was shared with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges about so-called “paper classes” that are at the root of an academic and athletic scandal. SACS is the accredating body for UNC Chapel Hill. The university also claims the data is covered by FERPA.
Strohm’s announced departure comes at a time when several media outlets are at odds with the university over the release of personnel records related to the ongoing scandal. In October the university released the results of an investigation into the depth of the academic problems.
At that time, Chancellor Carol Folt said that nine employees would be disciplined or fired. The university did not publicly reveal the identities of the employees and it has not provided information related to the disciplinary actions as required under the state employees’ personnel act. The university’s position is that the disciplinary actions are not final until all administrative appeals have been exhausted.
Read coverage from WRAL here, The Daily Tar Heel here, the News & Observer here, and ABC11 here.