The legislature's new Republican majority has made its first move to put an imprint on the UNC system. On Thursday, the Senate appointed eight new members to the UNC system's Board of Governors.

The eight new appointees don't signal a dramatic shift, in that four are either re-appointed current or former board members. But taken collectively, they are seven white men and one white woman; meanwhile, the board stands to lose four African-Americans and at least five women once all appointments are made.

The House appoints eight additional new members next week.

Here's today's story.

Reappointed to the UNC Board of Governors were long-time education advocate Ann Goodnight, wife of SAS Institute CEO Jim Goodnight, and Peter Hans, a senior policy adviser with the Nelson Mullins law firm in Raleigh.

Former board members H. Frank Grainger of Cary and John Fennebresque of Charlotte also were appointed. Grainger is part-owner of Fair Products Inc. and Tritest Environmental Lab, and Fennebresque is an attorney.

The four newcomers were Fred Eshelman of Wilmington, executive chairman and founder of Pharmaceutical Product Development Corp.; W. Louis Bissette Jr., an attorney from Asheville; Thomas Harrelson of Southport, vice president of AECOM, a former state legislator and DOT secretary appointed by Republican Gov. Jim Martin; and Phillip Walker, senior vice president with BB&T in Hickory.

The UNC system's governing board said goodbye to five members Friday whose terms expired.

Stepping down are Ray Farris, Brad Adcock, Craig Souza, Frank Grainger and William Smith. 

Two other members whose terms expired - Jim Phillips and Brad Wilson - will remain on the board as emeritus members because each spent time as the board's chairman.

Farris, Adcock, Souza, Grainger, Wilson and Phillips each came aboard in 1997 and spent 12 years on the board, which makes policy for the state's 16 public universities.

Public higher education in North Carolina has changed dramatically since they began their tenures. The system has more than 215,000 students now - 56,000 more than 12 years ago. That's essentially like adding a student body the size of UNC Chapel Hill's. Twice.

And perhaps most notably, the physical plant has expanded immensely through the $2.1 billion bond campaign for higher education, which brought a wave of new construction to college campuses.

The seven vacated spots will be filled by some names familiar in the state's political and higher education circles. The new members, who begin work July 1, are Burley Mitchell, Bill Daughtridge, Franklin McCain, John Blackburn, Walter Davenport, James Deal and Paul Fulton.

Mitchell is a former chief justice of the N.C. Supreme Court. Daughtridge is a former state representative, and Fulton is a current trustee at UNC Chapel Hill.

McCain chairs the board of trustees at N.C. A & T University, Davenport chairs the Elizabeth City State University board, and Blackburn does likewise at Appalachian State University. Deal is on the Appalachian State board as well.