UNC $1M Endowment Goes To Howard University After School Requests Anti-DEI Compliance For Eligibility
The scholarship honors Dr. Leroy W. Upperman, one of Wilmington, North Carolina's first Black physicians and a HU medical school grad.
Black News 
Howard University is expected to receive a nearly $1 million scholarship endowment after the family behind the fund decided to move it from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, rather than revise eligibility language to comply with the University of North Carolina System’s equality policy, HBCU Gameday reports.
The scholarship honors Dr. Leroy W. Upperman, one of Wilmington, North Carolina’s first Black physicians and a graduate of Howard University Medical School. For nearly three decades, the endowment has supported students at UNC Wilmington. The fund distributes about $40,000 in scholarships each year and is valued at approximately $1 million.
Linda Upperman Smith, Dr. Upperman’s daughter, said her family rejected the university’s request to remove language giving special consideration to students with experience serving or supporting the African American community.
“My father wanted to leave something that would reflect the Upperman name as well as do something to give back to the community that had supported him over the years,” Upperman Smith told WHQR Public Media.
According to WHQR, the family instead chose Howard University, where Dr. Upperman earned his medical degree, as the scholarship’s future home. Upperman Smith said preserving her father’s original intent outweighed modifying the endowment’s language to satisfy the new requirements.
The dispute stems from the UNC System’s Equality Within the University of North Carolina policy, which replaced the system’s previous diversity and inclusion policy in May 2024. The policy requires campuses to ensure that scholarships and other university programs comply with updated guidance on institutional neutrality and nondiscrimination.
UNC Wilmington said three students currently receiving the Upperman Scholarship will continue receiving financial support until they graduate, but no additional recipients will be selected under the existing endowment.
Eddie Stuart, the university’s vice chancellor for university advancement, said the institution has worked with donors to revise scholarship language while honoring their philanthropic goals and remains in discussions with the Upperman family.
If the transfer is finalized, Howard University will administer the scholarship going forward, allowing the endowment to continue operating under the donor family’s original vision.
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