Biographical Conversations With... | Unc-tv

University & Beyond Part 3 of 3 Parts In the conclusion to Biographical Conversations, William Friday begins by reminiscing about his retirement from the presidency of the university. He then discusses the several opportunities he had to run for public office--and why he ultimately decided not to pursue them. As a result, he presided over the William R. Kenan fund, after chairing a statewide commission on literacy. Because of his involvement in literacy and education, he reorganized the Trust to help people, especially single mothers, gain their high school equivalency and qualify for a job that will pay for their living expenses. Friday was very concerned about poverty in North Carolina. He remarked in one instance that North Carolina should not tolerate having children live in poverty. He and his wife visited a homeless shelter one night, an experience that Friday says will live with him forever and one that reminded him of his own childhood circumstance of poverty during the Depression.