The University of North Carolina system will study in-state tuition for illegal immigrants.

At a meeting of the UNC Tomorrow Commission today, system president Erskine Bowles said that it will study the issue extensively before making a decision, Kristin Collins reports.

A recent decision to require community colleges to admit illegal immigrants has proved contentious.

Neither Bowles nor the commission advocated for or against offering in-state tuition to illegal immigrants. Under guidelines adopted in 2004, illegal immigrants can attend if they pay out-of state rates, which range from $10,000 to $20,000, compared to $1,500 to $3,700 for in-state students.

"We can't stick our heads in the sand," Bowles said. "These people are here, and we have to deal with it. The last thing in the world we want to do is create another permanent underclass."

It looks like Beverly Perdue is not the only one who might lose a spelling bee.

The Scholar's Council of the University of North Carolina's UNC Tomorrow Commission put out a report on economic and workforce trends. Its subtitle:

"Implications for our State and the Unversity of North Carolina."

Unversity, eh? Is that like the Uncola?

Full Disclosure: Dome has lost spelling bees on the words soliloquy, kyphosis and accommodating.

The UNC Tomorrow Commission wants to hear from you.

The panel will hold a community listening forum Oct. 10 at 4 p.m. at the McKimmon Center at N.C. State University.

The commission was established by UNC President Erskine Bowles and the UNC Board of Governors to come up with ideas for how the university system can serve the future needs of North Carolina, Jane Stancill reports.

The commission is asking the following questions:

* What are the most important challenges facing your community and how can universities help?

* What programs and services should the universities offer and how can the universities better serve you?

* What knowledge and skills do our students need to be prepared for the jobs of tomorrow?

* How can the universities help improve economic opportunities in your area?

William, William, wherefore art thou, William?

Well, he's not in about half the colleges and universities in North Carolina.

A new report from the John William Pope Center for Higher Education Policy found that nearly 50 percent of North Carolina colleges and universities no longer require their English majors to take a course in the work of William Shakespeare.

Within the UNC system, seven campuses do not require English majors to study Shakespeare. UNC-Chapel Hill maintains the requirement, while N.C. State does not.

Of 34 private institutions surveyed in the state, 17 require English majors to take a course in Shakespeare; 17 do not.

The Pope Center says its report, “To Be or Not to Be: Shakespeare in the English Department,” is based on information from the Web sites of 49 four-year universities in North Carolina. When clarification was needed, university personnel were contacted.

The full report is available here.

David Young is running for state treasurer.

The Buncombe County commissioner announced Wednesday he would enter the crowded field trying to succeed state Treasurer Richard Moore, who is running for governor, Rob Christensen reports.

Young said he wants to maintain North Carolina's AAA bond rating, keep the state pension sound, and expand efforts to help local governments in financing their water and sewer needs.

He cited his background as a county commissioner for the past 16 years, and his experience in running a travel agency as helping prepare him for the job.

He brings wide contacts to his campaign. He is president of the N.C. Association of County Commissioners and a member of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors.

Besides campaigns for local office, Young once ran for Congress.

Other Democrats in the race are state Sen. Janet Cowell, and Raleigh attorney Michael Weisel, who ran for treasurer in 1996.

Gov. Mike Easley had one lunch in 2007.

Continuing a trend since his re-election in 2004, the governor had just one visitor to the Governor's Mansion from January to May of this year, according to his weekly schedule.

On Jan. 18, Easley ate lunch with Erskine Bowles, president of the University of North Carolina system.

It was not his only lunch, though. On March 20, Easley dropped by the Outback Steakhouse in Cary for a "Goodluck Lunch" for the N.C. State women's basketball team, which was heading to the NCAA's regional semifinals.

But he was only scheduled to be there from 3:45 to 3:55 p.m. — barely enough time for a Bloomin' Onion.

Hat Tip: Andy Curliss