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University News

Longtime faculty secretary Joseph Ferrell dies

Also retired Albert Coates Professor at the UNC School of Government, Ferrell served the University for five decades.

Joe Ferrell wearing suit and posing near staircase.

Former Albert Coates Professor of the UNC School of Government and longtime faculty secretary Joseph S. Ferrell died Jan. 29. He was 86.

Remembered as a dedicated public servant to the school, UNC-Chapel Hill and the state, Ferrell joined the faculty at what was then the Institute of Government in 1964 and was responsible for teaching, research and writing in the areas of property tax, county government and the North Carolina General Assembly.

He was editor of the Daily Bulletin and North Carolina Legislation (the school’s annual summary of acts of the General Assembly) for a decade, from 1986–1996. His publications include the first and second editions of County Government in North Carolina, the second and third editions of the Handbook for North Carolina County Commissioners, and The General Assembly of North Carolina: A Handbook for Legislators (fifth and sixth editions), which legislators describe as a foundational text for understanding the inner workings of the legislative institution.

Ferrell served as UNC-Chapel Hill’s secretary of the faculty from 1996 to 2016, focusing on University governance issues. As secretary of the faculty, Ferrell served on a dozen committees, giving him insight into the broader University landscape. He was a member of the Faculty Council and the following committees: Faculty Executive, Faculty Nominating, University Government, Chancellor’s Advisory, Honorary Degrees and Special Awards, Commencement, Commencement Speaker Selection and University Day.

He worked closely with five UNC-Chapel Hill chancellors. In his 20 years in the role, he presented close to 200 honorary degrees and distinguished alumnus awards. Ferrell’s tenure in the position surpassed the typical five-year term; he spent two decades being reelected by the Faculty Council. As the second longest-serving faculty secretary in Carolina’s history, he oversaw the modernization of the Office of Faculty Governance — strengthening its digital presence, modernizing election processes, producing comprehensive minutes of faculty meetings, and expanding its staff. Upon his retirement in 2016, the Faculty Council’s resolution honoring him recognized that Ferrell’s service as a “trusted advisor and mentor to faculty, students, and leaders” had surely helped shape the direction of the University’s trajectory for the last half century.

Ferrell was a renowned expert on the structure and operation of the General Assembly as well as on all aspects of the North Carolina Constitution. He helped staff the Local Government Study Commission, which worked on revising North Carolina’s 1868 Constitution. He participated in rewriting chapters of the General Statutes pertaining to municipal and county governments, including chapters that covered taxation, finance and borrowing by state and local government.

Ferrell’s colleagues remember him as “diplomatic,” “direct,” “humane,” “principled,” “scary smart,” and the “institutional memory at Carolina.” His list of accolades for his life in public service is long and will be remembered through the legacy he leaves. He was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine from the North Carolina Office of the Governor as well as Carolina’s Thomas Jefferson Award, C. Knox Massey Award and Faculty Service Award. Ferrell earned a bachelor’s and law degree from UNC-Chapel Hill and an Master of Laws from Yale University.