After months of transition and some conflict, the largest institutions of higher education in Wilmington began the fiscal year with new leaders at the helm.

Amanda Lee, named interim president of Cape Fear Community College by its trustees when former president Ted Spring resigned abruptly in January, was chosen for the permanent position in June after a brief national search.

Jose “Zito” Sartarelli was announced as the new chancellor of the University of North Carolina Wilmington in April, after a national search process begun in 2014. Sartarelli, who assumed his new role July 1, came to UNCW from the University of West Virginia, where he was business school dean and the university’s chief global officer. Prior to entering academia, Sartarelli had a 30-year career in the global pharmaceutical industry.

The new chancellor arrived at UNCW after a transitional year under the leadership of William Sederburg, who took over as interim at the departure of former chancellor Gary Miller. Miller left UNCW in July, 2014 to become chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

The turmoil that forced a change of leadership at CFCC began in January when the college’s request for a $40 million bond sale to complete a facilities expansion and renovation project encountered opposition from New Hanover County commissioner Woody White. White questioned the need for the proposed  Advanced and Emerging Technologies facility, and he and Spring tangled over differing reports of student enrollment trends.

The requested sale was the last phase of a $164 million bond issue approved by 62 percent of county voters in 2008. The other $124 million was used principally to construct CFCC’s Union Station and its new Humanities and Fine Arts Center.
On Jan. 20, commissioners voted 4-1 to approve the bond sale.

Two days later, at the CFCC Board of Trustees’ meeting, Spring resigned abruptly. Trustees officially named Lee, CFCC vice president for instructional services, as interim president.

Because Spring allegedly had overbilled for travel and made financial and personnel decisions without trustees’ approval, the state auditor’s office was asked to conduct an audit of relevant college records. At the request of an unnamed trustee, New Hanover County district attorney Ben David also asked the state for a broader investigation.

In late March, Spring sued the trustees, saying they had forced him to resign and asking for compensatory damages and reinstatement as president. Near year’s end, the lawsuit was still in the discovery period.

In August the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation confirmed it had initiated a “comprehensive overview” of the CFCC issue, including an investigation of Spring himself.

Click here to see a list of all Top 10 stories.