UNC Charlotte has fired Athletic Director Mike Hill. In a statement, the university said Thursday that the move is in recognition that the rapidly evolving business, regulatory and competitive landscape of higher education athletics demands a new approach and renewed strategic foundation. Vice Chancellor Jesh Humphrey will oversee the department in the interim.

It’s been two years since migrant farmworker Jose Arturo Gonzalez Mendoza died from possible heat-related illness at Barnes Farming in Nash County — though the farm has said an autopsy shows a rare tumor was responsible. Last week, another farmworker died after a sweet potato truck struck him, an incident advocates say highlights the dangers migrant workers face.

Republican South Carolina Senator Tim Scott said federally funded programs people in his state count on are at risk because of the government shutdown.

The lottery for students to choose magnet programs opened on Monday, and Superintendent Crystal Hill said families submitted more than 1,200 applications on the first day.

A key North Carolina senator says it is unlikely that the General Assembly will make progress on a new state budget or Medicaid funding next week. Sen. Ralph Hise is a Republican from Mitchell County and a Senate budget writer.

Early voting begins Thursday for November Fourth’s municipal elections across the state. In Mecklenburg County, the biggest issue on the ballot is whether county voters will agree to raise the sales tax by one-percentage point, to 8.25%, to pay for a multi-billion-dollar transportation plan. Early voting runs through November 1st.

Corning Optical Communications said Wednesday that the company will build a $268 million facility in Hickory to build fiber optic cables and other products. The company will employ more than 130 workers at the new plant, with an average salary of more than $65,000. Corning is set to receive almost $9 million worth of incentives from Hickory and Catawba County, in the form of tax rebates and free land.