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UNC System details painstaking process to root out diversity, equity and inclusion  – NC Newsline

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UNC System details painstaking process to root out diversity, equity and inclusion 

By: Clayton Henkel – January 8, 2026 9:00 am

The University of North Carolina System assured state legislators Wednesday that they are doing everything in their power to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion language and programs across the 17-campus system.

The UNC Board of Governors voted in May 2024 to formally repeal the system’s policy on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in favor of “principled neutrality.”

Still, equity has remained in the political crosshairs, with Republicans lawmakers filing multiple bills in the 2025 session to  prohibit the support, funding or implementation of DEI programs in state government and education.

Bart Goodson, the UNC System’s senior vice president for government affairs, told members of the House Select Committee on Government Efficiency that by the time President Trump’s executive orders on discrimination and DEI rolled out in January 2025, the system was ahead of the curve.

Goodson said each campus was advised on the remaining steps necessary to bring campuses into full compliance with the Trump administration’s orders.

“The guidance emphasizes the policies refocus on student success and reminds campuses of the constant, ongoing vigilance campuses must use,” said Goodson.

A memo from the system also mandated that all general education requirements that included completion of course credits related to diversity, equity and inclusion be suspended.

The system further mandated an annual campus reporting requirement with the chancellor’s signature to verify compliance.

To date, 59 positions tied to DEI have been eliminated and 131 have been realigned. The system estimates that the implementation of the equality policy across the University of North Carolina system has saved $17.1 million. The savings have been redirected to student mental health, military and veteran student services and academic advising, according to Goodson.

But efforts to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion from higher education in North Carolina have not been quick or easy.

“We’re turning over every stone,” Goodson told committee members.

The campuses have manually reviewed more than 4,756 web pages, revised 1,270 web pages, and reviewed over 8,000 gifts, including scholarships and grants. Of those gift funds, 345 were flagged, 29 amended, with some spending paused. Funding from 85 foundations required working with individual donors to bring agreements into compliance.

“It takes a lot of manpower and a lot of man hours to review this information,” Goodson told the committee. “It’s a time-consuming area.”

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC System details painstaking process to root out diversity, equity and inclusion  • NC Newsline

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections – EurekAlert!

News Release 5-Dec-2025

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A new study from UNC-Chapel Hill researchers shows that advanced artificial intelligence tools, specifically large language models (LLMs), can accurately determine the locations where plant specimens were originally collected, a process known as georeferencing. This task has traditionally been slow, expensive and dependent on significant manual effort. The team found that LLMs can complete this work with near-human accuracy while being significantly faster and more cost-effective. 

“Our study explores how large language models can take on one of the biggest bottlenecks in digitizing plant collections,” said Yuyang Xie, first author and postdoctoral researcher in the department of biology at UNC. “We are pioneering the use of these tools for georeferencing, a breakthrough that will accelerate the digitization of plant specimens and unlock new possibilities for ecological research.” 

The research set out to answer a central question: Can AI automate one of the most time-consuming steps in digitizing natural history collections? The Carolina team found out that yes, it can. LLMs not only performed georeferencing with an error margin of less than 10 kilometers, outperforming traditional methods, but also completed the task at a fraction of the time and cost. 

“Recent advances in LLMs can potentially transform the georeferencing process, making it faster and more accurate,” said Xiao Feng, corresponding author and assistant professor in the department of biology at UNC. “This gives researchers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of global biodiversity distributions.” 

The implications are significant. An estimated 2–3 billion herbarium specimens exist worldwide, but only a small fraction have been digitized. Without digital records and spatial data, researchers face major limitations in tracking biodiversity loss, understanding species movement under climate change and analyzing ecosystem shifts. By deploying AI-powered georeferencing, scientists may soon be able to rapidly digitize vast natural history collections that have remained largely inaccessible. 

“This technology allows us to unlock millions of records that are currently sitting in cabinets,” said Xie. “With the power of LLMs, we can rapidly digitize plant specimen data that will be critical for addressing global environmental challenges.” 

Traditional approaches to georeferencing rely on manual interpretation, specialized software, or multiple rounds of expert review. The UNC study is among the first to apply LLMs to this task and to show they can outperform existing methods in accuracy, efficiency, and scalability. This new approach opens the door to digitizing natural history collections at a speed never before possible. 

The research paper is available online in Nature Plants at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-025-02162-y  

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections | EurekAlert!

#AI #artificialIntelligence #BiologyDepartment #CarolinaTeam #Collections #DigitizeContent #EurekAlert #Georeferencing #LargeLanguageModelsLLM #LLMs #NaturalHistory #Nature #UNCChapelHill #XiaoFeng #YuyangXie

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections – EurekAlert!

News Release 5-Dec-2025

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A new study from UNC-Chapel Hill researchers shows that advanced artificial intelligence tools, specifically large language models (LLMs), can accurately determine the locations where plant specimens were originally collected, a process known as georeferencing. This task has traditionally been slow, expensive and dependent on significant manual effort. The team found that LLMs can complete this work with near-human accuracy while being significantly faster and more cost-effective. 

“Our study explores how large language models can take on one of the biggest bottlenecks in digitizing plant collections,” said Yuyang Xie, first author and postdoctoral researcher in the department of biology at UNC. “We are pioneering the use of these tools for georeferencing, a breakthrough that will accelerate the digitization of plant specimens and unlock new possibilities for ecological research.” 

The research set out to answer a central question: Can AI automate one of the most time-consuming steps in digitizing natural history collections? The Carolina team found out that yes, it can. LLMs not only performed georeferencing with an error margin of less than 10 kilometers, outperforming traditional methods, but also completed the task at a fraction of the time and cost. 

“Recent advances in LLMs can potentially transform the georeferencing process, making it faster and more accurate,” said Xiao Feng, corresponding author and assistant professor in the department of biology at UNC. “This gives researchers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of global biodiversity distributions.” 

The implications are significant. An estimated 2–3 billion herbarium specimens exist worldwide, but only a small fraction have been digitized. Without digital records and spatial data, researchers face major limitations in tracking biodiversity loss, understanding species movement under climate change and analyzing ecosystem shifts. By deploying AI-powered georeferencing, scientists may soon be able to rapidly digitize vast natural history collections that have remained largely inaccessible. 

“This technology allows us to unlock millions of records that are currently sitting in cabinets,” said Xie. “With the power of LLMs, we can rapidly digitize plant specimen data that will be critical for addressing global environmental challenges.” 

Traditional approaches to georeferencing rely on manual interpretation, specialized software, or multiple rounds of expert review. The UNC study is among the first to apply LLMs to this task and to show they can outperform existing methods in accuracy, efficiency, and scalability. This new approach opens the door to digitizing natural history collections at a speed never before possible. 

The research paper is available online in Nature Plants at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-025-02162-y  

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections | EurekAlert!

#AI #artificialIntelligence #BiologyDepartment #CarolinaTeam #Collections #DigitizeContent #EurekAlert #Georeferencing #LargeLanguageModelsLLM #LLMs #NaturalHistory #Nature #UNCChapelHill #XiaoFeng #YuyangXie

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections – EurekAlert!

News Release 5-Dec-2025

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A new study from UNC-Chapel Hill researchers shows that advanced artificial intelligence tools, specifically large language models (LLMs), can accurately determine the locations where plant specimens were originally collected, a process known as georeferencing. This task has traditionally been slow, expensive and dependent on significant manual effort. The team found that LLMs can complete this work with near-human accuracy while being significantly faster and more cost-effective. 

“Our study explores how large language models can take on one of the biggest bottlenecks in digitizing plant collections,” said Yuyang Xie, first author and postdoctoral researcher in the department of biology at UNC. “We are pioneering the use of these tools for georeferencing, a breakthrough that will accelerate the digitization of plant specimens and unlock new possibilities for ecological research.” 

The research set out to answer a central question: Can AI automate one of the most time-consuming steps in digitizing natural history collections? The Carolina team found out that yes, it can. LLMs not only performed georeferencing with an error margin of less than 10 kilometers, outperforming traditional methods, but also completed the task at a fraction of the time and cost. 

“Recent advances in LLMs can potentially transform the georeferencing process, making it faster and more accurate,” said Xiao Feng, corresponding author and assistant professor in the department of biology at UNC. “This gives researchers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of global biodiversity distributions.” 

The implications are significant. An estimated 2–3 billion herbarium specimens exist worldwide, but only a small fraction have been digitized. Without digital records and spatial data, researchers face major limitations in tracking biodiversity loss, understanding species movement under climate change and analyzing ecosystem shifts. By deploying AI-powered georeferencing, scientists may soon be able to rapidly digitize vast natural history collections that have remained largely inaccessible. 

“This technology allows us to unlock millions of records that are currently sitting in cabinets,” said Xie. “With the power of LLMs, we can rapidly digitize plant specimen data that will be critical for addressing global environmental challenges.” 

Traditional approaches to georeferencing rely on manual interpretation, specialized software, or multiple rounds of expert review. The UNC study is among the first to apply LLMs to this task and to show they can outperform existing methods in accuracy, efficiency, and scalability. This new approach opens the door to digitizing natural history collections at a speed never before possible. 

The research paper is available online in Nature Plants at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-025-02162-y  

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections | EurekAlert!

#AI #artificialIntelligence #BiologyDepartment #CarolinaTeam #Collections #DigitizeContent #EurekAlert #Georeferencing #LargeLanguageModelsLLM #LLMs #NaturalHistory #Nature #UNCChapelHill #XiaoFeng #YuyangXie

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections – EurekAlert!

News Release 5-Dec-2025

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A new study from UNC-Chapel Hill researchers shows that advanced artificial intelligence tools, specifically large language models (LLMs), can accurately determine the locations where plant specimens were originally collected, a process known as georeferencing. This task has traditionally been slow, expensive and dependent on significant manual effort. The team found that LLMs can complete this work with near-human accuracy while being significantly faster and more cost-effective. 

“Our study explores how large language models can take on one of the biggest bottlenecks in digitizing plant collections,” said Yuyang Xie, first author and postdoctoral researcher in the department of biology at UNC. “We are pioneering the use of these tools for georeferencing, a breakthrough that will accelerate the digitization of plant specimens and unlock new possibilities for ecological research.” 

The research set out to answer a central question: Can AI automate one of the most time-consuming steps in digitizing natural history collections? The Carolina team found out that yes, it can. LLMs not only performed georeferencing with an error margin of less than 10 kilometers, outperforming traditional methods, but also completed the task at a fraction of the time and cost. 

“Recent advances in LLMs can potentially transform the georeferencing process, making it faster and more accurate,” said Xiao Feng, corresponding author and assistant professor in the department of biology at UNC. “This gives researchers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of global biodiversity distributions.” 

The implications are significant. An estimated 2–3 billion herbarium specimens exist worldwide, but only a small fraction have been digitized. Without digital records and spatial data, researchers face major limitations in tracking biodiversity loss, understanding species movement under climate change and analyzing ecosystem shifts. By deploying AI-powered georeferencing, scientists may soon be able to rapidly digitize vast natural history collections that have remained largely inaccessible. 

“This technology allows us to unlock millions of records that are currently sitting in cabinets,” said Xie. “With the power of LLMs, we can rapidly digitize plant specimen data that will be critical for addressing global environmental challenges.” 

Traditional approaches to georeferencing rely on manual interpretation, specialized software, or multiple rounds of expert review. The UNC study is among the first to apply LLMs to this task and to show they can outperform existing methods in accuracy, efficiency, and scalability. This new approach opens the door to digitizing natural history collections at a speed never before possible. 

The research paper is available online in Nature Plants at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-025-02162-y  

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections | EurekAlert!

#AI #artificialIntelligence #BiologyDepartment #CarolinaTeam #Collections #DigitizeContent #EurekAlert #Georeferencing #LargeLanguageModelsLLM #LLMs #NaturalHistory #Nature #UNCChapelHill #XiaoFeng #YuyangXie

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections – EurekAlert!

News Release 5-Dec-2025

UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

A new study from UNC-Chapel Hill researchers shows that advanced artificial intelligence tools, specifically large language models (LLMs), can accurately determine the locations where plant specimens were originally collected, a process known as georeferencing. This task has traditionally been slow, expensive and dependent on significant manual effort. The team found that LLMs can complete this work with near-human accuracy while being significantly faster and more cost-effective. 

“Our study explores how large language models can take on one of the biggest bottlenecks in digitizing plant collections,” said Yuyang Xie, first author and postdoctoral researcher in the department of biology at UNC. “We are pioneering the use of these tools for georeferencing, a breakthrough that will accelerate the digitization of plant specimens and unlock new possibilities for ecological research.” 

The research set out to answer a central question: Can AI automate one of the most time-consuming steps in digitizing natural history collections? The Carolina team found out that yes, it can. LLMs not only performed georeferencing with an error margin of less than 10 kilometers, outperforming traditional methods, but also completed the task at a fraction of the time and cost. 

“Recent advances in LLMs can potentially transform the georeferencing process, making it faster and more accurate,” said Xiao Feng, corresponding author and assistant professor in the department of biology at UNC. “This gives researchers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of global biodiversity distributions.” 

The implications are significant. An estimated 2–3 billion herbarium specimens exist worldwide, but only a small fraction have been digitized. Without digital records and spatial data, researchers face major limitations in tracking biodiversity loss, understanding species movement under climate change and analyzing ecosystem shifts. By deploying AI-powered georeferencing, scientists may soon be able to rapidly digitize vast natural history collections that have remained largely inaccessible. 

“This technology allows us to unlock millions of records that are currently sitting in cabinets,” said Xie. “With the power of LLMs, we can rapidly digitize plant specimen data that will be critical for addressing global environmental challenges.” 

Traditional approaches to georeferencing rely on manual interpretation, specialized software, or multiple rounds of expert review. The UNC study is among the first to apply LLMs to this task and to show they can outperform existing methods in accuracy, efficiency, and scalability. This new approach opens the door to digitizing natural history collections at a speed never before possible. 

The research paper is available online in Nature Plants at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-025-02162-y  

Continue/Read Original Article Here: UNC-Chapel Hill study shows AI can dramatically speed up digitizing natural history collections | EurekAlert!

#AI #artificialIntelligence #BiologyDepartment #CarolinaTeam #Collections #DigitizeContent #EurekAlert #Georeferencing #LargeLanguageModelsLLM #LLMs #NaturalHistory #Nature #UNCChapelHill #XiaoFeng #YuyangXie

@pixouls

Wonder how this might impact Chapel Hill's ALA accreditation status?

#libraries #ala #accreditation #Library #uncChapelHill #AI

https://www.dailytarheel.com/article/university-breaking-school-of-ai-20251009

Hugs and Pups Posse | Rescue dog brings joy and comfort to UNC Chapel Hill students – ABC11 Raleigh-Durham

• PETS & ANIMALS

Rescue dog brings joy and comfort to UNC Chapel Hill students

ByAmber Rupinta

Friday, October 3, 2025 2:41PM

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) — Students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are finding stress relief and joy thanks to an unlikely campus celebrity, a three-legged golden retriever named Ted.

Ted, a rescue dog adopted through Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue, makes regular visits to campus with his owner, Kristen Ponturiero.

“Ted and I come on campus. We like to come at least once a month,” Ponturiero said.

Before becoming a source of comfort for college students, Ted’s journey began far from North Carolina.

“Ted was actually found as a stray on March 20, 2024, with a compound-like fracture on the streets of Albania. A very kind stranger found him and took him into her care, and was able to get him very good veterinary care. They were unable to save his front left leg. So he did have an amputation over in Albania. But, as you see, he gets along fine,” Ponturiero said.

Despite his rough start, Ted quickly adjusted and showed a natural love for people.

“My husband and I took Ted out to a brewery one night. A woman approached us, and she commented on Ted’s great demeanor and that she thought he would be a great volunteer,” Ponturiero said.

That encounter eventually led them to HAPPEE Hugs and Pups Posse, a group that encourages and empowers college students by offering emotional support – one hug or pup at a time.

Many UNC students say Ted has become an important presence during stressful times on campus.

“I think a lot of students, like, we really need that, especially during a time like this. So if you are stressed about exams, but like seeing a dog, that’s just like a moment to, like, unwind and see another smiling creature,” said student April Chou.

For others, simply seeing Ted is the highlight of their day.

“This is amazing to have on campus. It literally makes my day every time I see a dog on campus. Like, just because we never get to see dogs, because kids here don’t have them in the dorms or have them in their on-campus housing. Absolutely makes my day,” said student Madeleine Bouvette.

Ponturiero says Ted’s resilience makes him even more special.

Continue/Read Original Article Here: Hugs and Pups Posse | Rescue dog brings joy and comfort to UNC Chapel Hill students – ABC11 Raleigh-Durham

#2025 #ABC11 #America #CollegeLife #Comfort #HAPPEE #Health #Joy #NeuseRiverGoldenRetrieverRescue #NorthCarolina #RaleighDurham #RescueDog #Students #TED #TheUniversityOfNorthCarolinaAtChapelHill #Travel #UNCChapelHill #UnitedStates

My wife got her dream job, and I'm the spousal hire! I will join the clinical psychology program at UNC Chapel Hill in the fall (and my rockstar wife, Tess Thompson, will join the School of Social Work there).

Washington University has been a wonderful place to be! I expect UNC will be also.

#AcademicChatter #Moving #SpousalHire #WUSTL #UNCChapelHill