As the UNC System searches for its next president, one particular name has emerged as a potential candidate: N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore.

At a recent meeting of the UNC System Presidential Search Committee, former UNC Board of Governors chairperson Harry Smith said the committee’s goal is to select a president who can serve for 5 to 10 years. But a decade with Tim Moore at the helm of public higher education across North Carolina could have disastrous consequences. Frankly, it’s hard to imagine anything worse.

The next UNC System president must be virtuous, with a reputation of reaching across the aisle and building credibility with political opponents. Moore has shown countless times, however, that compromise and integrity are not his strong suits.

Moore is certainly not unfamiliar with the UNC System — he graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1992, and became the youngest person to be appointed to the Board of Governors in 1997.

During his time at UNC, Moore served as speaker of Student Congress, and his tenure was nothing short of controversial.