John Preyer resigns from UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees
In more than six years on the board, Preyer helped establish the School of Civic Life and Leadership and Institute for Risk Management and Insurance Innovation and led the approval of a consolidated "all funds" budget.
John Preyer has resigned from the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees, effective Jan. 9, after six and a half years of service.
As a member of the UNC Institute of the Environment Board of Visitors, Preyer was instrumental in the founding of the NC Collaboratory in 2016, which has since directed over $250 million from the N.C. General Assembly into research projects at Carolina and affiliated system schools.
Preyer joined the Board of Trustees in 2019. As chair of the Budget, Finance & Infrastructure Committee, he led the approval of a consolidated “all funds” budget to replace the 18 separate budgets within the University, along with approval authority for it in cooperation with the UNC Board of Governors.
In January 2023, Preyer led the effort to establish the School of Civic Life & Leadership, which has since become a national model for restoring debate and critical thinking on campus. Carolina was just awarded a $10 million grant from the National Endowment of Humanities to further the school’s mission. The Wall Street Journal noted that “as the nation’s oldest public university, if change can happen there, maybe it can happen anywhere.”
Preyer (second from right) poses with his family after the announcement of the John P. Preyer Visiting Scholar in the School of Civic Life and Leadership Fund at a Board of Trustees meeting in 2025. The fund was established by Joanie Preyer ’91 (second from left). (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
Preyer also helped found the UNC Institute for Risk Management and Insurance Innovation with Tony Ursano ’87 and Greg Characklis, professor in the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health’s environmental science and engineering department. Working with insurance and risk management partners, this program has raised over $8 million in corporate support to train the next generation of industry talent utilizing data science and artificial intelligence.
“I love Carolina and have been fortunate to be in a position to help it with new initiatives like the Policy Collaboratory, the School of Civic Life & Leadership and the Institute of Risk Management,” Preyer said. “Carolina is the No. 1 public university in the world and these programs will help ensure that well into the future. I’ve never felt better about the University and its leadership so now is the time for me to get back to my day job. Go Heels!”
“On behalf of the University of North Carolina, I want to thank John for his dedicated service on our Board of Trustees,” said UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “John’s leadership has been instrumental in advancing the University’s development and upholding the Board’s mission to serve our students, faculty and staff with excellence. We could not be more grateful for his commitment and contributions to the University.”
