East Carolina University will give the community a chance to weigh in on the possibility of removing a former Governor’s name from a university residence hall. George Olsen has more.
The decision on whether to re-name the Charles B. Aycock Residence Hall will be taken up during the ECU Board of Trustee’s next scheduled meeting February 19th and 20th. Many consider Aycock the father of public education in the state. However, Aycock was also a leading spokesman in the late 1890s for Democratic Party white supremacist activities before becoming Governor in 1900. Duke University removed Aycock’s name from a dormitory last summer while the Democratic Party pulled his name from an annual fundraising dinner in 2011. ECU will conduct a student forum on the issue Monday (Jan. 26) at Wright Auditorium while a faculty, staff, alumni and community forum will be held Tuesday (Jan. 27) at the East Carolina Heart Institute Auditorium. Both meetings start at 4:00 pm. Board of Trustees chair Robert Brinkley will attend both forums. I’m George Olsen.
