The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill publicly declined to sign the federal 'Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education' after administrators reviewed proposed terms that would attach preferred federal funding to a list of institutional commitments, including admissions and hiring changes and limits on international student enrollment. Chancellor Lee Roberts said the university would not sign the compact 'as written' and described parts of the plan as impractical. The compact, floated by the administration as a path to preferential treatment for compliant institutions, has been widely rejected or criticized by leading private and public universities, including pre-emptive rejections from numerous campuses. Proponents argue it offers funding incentives; opponents say it could undermine academic freedom and institutional autonomy. Why it matters: Rejection by flagship publics signals broad institutional resistance and makes the compact politically and practically difficult to implement, shaping federal‑campus relations and future conditional funding proposals.