By Ben Gellman
WCHL Reporter

At Friday’s meeting of the Community Leadership Council, guest speaker and UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp gave a grim forecast about the economy and how it will affect the university.

He says the cuts in this year’s budget pose the threat of more layoffs.

UNC system campuses began laying off workers in the spring of 2009 in the face of budget shortfalls.  System president Erskine Bowles was among those who called recently for the system to institute unpaid furloughs as an alternative to laying off employees.  Some have even called for enrollment caps, since there might not be enough staff to properly accommodate students.

Thorp also dealt with the difficulty of recruiting top minds to come to UNC, a problem highlighted by the recent departure of Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development Tony Waldrop.  He says while Chapel Hill has a lot of things going for it, we all need to recognize what the town is and what it’s not.

The Council is scheduled to have a break, with a trip to Asheville on the horizon in August.