Donor withdraws UNC Wilmington scholarship over UNC DEI policy

A family has withdrawn a $1 million UNC Wilmington scholarship after the university said it could no longer direct the money toward African American students under the UNC System’s Equality Policy. The move puts a concrete price on the system’s rollback of race-conscious programs, and it leaves one less scholarship fund available for students who would have qualified for aid shaped around that purpose.

The decision grew out of the UNC Board of Governors’ vote in May 2024 to eliminate DEI initiatives and replace the old framework with an Equality Policy. UNC System schools later received guidance on how to comply, and the scholarship dispute shows how that policy shift has moved beyond staffing and campus language into donor behavior and student aid. For families in Wake County watching UNC schools closely, the case is a reminder that scholarship terms can change when universities say they can no longer use gifts in the way donors intended.

The policy changes have already rippled across the system in measurable ways. In September 2025, system officials said 59 jobs had been eliminated, 131 positions had been reassigned and $17 million had been saved. UNC Chapel Hill accounted for the biggest share of those cuts, with 20 positions eliminated and $5.3 million redirected. The changes followed a period of more direct campus fallout, including the resignation of Project Uplift counselors at UNC-Chapel Hill in May 2024 after the board repealed the DEI policy.

The scholarship withdrawal also comes as the Board of Governors has kept pressing campuses to show that the new rules are being enforced. In July 2025, board leaders asked schools to prove that DEI policies had been eliminated, underscoring how closely the system is now monitoring compliance. That scrutiny has made the aid picture less stable for students and families who rely on scholarships tied to race, identity or other targeted criteria. In practical terms, the UNC Wilmington fund’s loss means one fewer path to affordability for students who would have been eligible under the original terms, and it signals that other donors across the UNC System could pull back if they believe their gifts can no longer be used as intended.