University Editor Regan Butler spoke with Student Body President Adolfo Alvarez about his administration's plans for the 2025-26 academic year.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
The Daily Tar Heel: What should the student body know about you?
Adolfo Alvarez: I am the first Latino student body president in the University's history. I grew up in Mexico, I'm a proud immigrant and I'm a global studies and media and journalism major. It's my first year in Student Government, so I believe that it is never too late to get involved in things, and it's always worth it to try new things.
I hope that people don't feel discouraged by the current climate of the country and higher education as they come into UNC. I know it's a difficult environment right now for a lot of people, but that should only encourage us more to come together as a community and support each other.
DTH: What are some initiatives your administration has been working on this summer that students can expect to see in the fall?
AA: We are working on redesigning the housing application. We are going to be advising Carolina Housing to make sure that we have an even better, more structured application, knowing that we are going through a difficult time in terms of on-campus housing. How can we make sure that we can set up students for success when they're applying for housing, and that we truly understand people's hardships when doing so?
The Carolina Closet initiative, that I want to leave by the end of my term, would be a permanent rental system. Coming to the University, one of the biggest things that incoming freshmen struggle with is, "Oh, I have this networking event, but I don't have a suit." It's such a big class divide that we really have to focus on bridging.
Another thing that we are really hammering on is keeping close the changes that are coming from the state and federal government. We're seeing that, for example, research funding is changing a lot. We saw in the spring what happened with student visas. Those are difficult situations that we're also preparing to do better with.
DTH: Can students expect to see any more developments on the 24-hour library front this year?
AA: Yes. I think it's in everyone's interest to see if it's worth the cost. It's a cost that's going to increase; it's the employees that have to work overnight. What I've spoken with the chancellor about is that potentially, in the fall, we could run a pilot period. Call it a couple of weeks in which the library is open for 24 hours, and then there's an evaluation of the use it has and if people are taking advantage of it. Then, there will be an evaluation if it's truly a need to have it all year-round, or just during finals, like what happened during the spring semester. If it's successful, I think the University would be very much willing to move toward a permanent 24-hour space. The question is, which library?
DTH: As an ex officio trustee yourself, you recently took a stance against the Board of Trustees' decision to stall tenure approvals for faculty. As a representative of the student body, what motivated you to advocate for faculty members?
AA: My job as a trustee is to represent the community that elects me: the students. But, our experience would never be possible without our faculty members. It's important to remember what tenure stands for and why faculty value it. These are people who have devoted their careers to supporting students, so we need to make sure that we show up for them as much as they show up for us in the classroom.