Legislators see how Charlotte is powering the future

October 4, 2023
Categories: General News Tags: Chancellor

UNC Charlotte thanked local legislators for their support during a Charlotte Regional Legislative Caucus meeting Monday, Oct. 2.

“We are deeply thankful to our Charlotte regional legislators — many of them Niner alumni — for recognizing UNC Charlotte’s immense value to this region and to our state,” said Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber. “Their support helps us continue our momentum as we are powering the future for our region and for our state.”

The two-year budget, which passed the N.C. General Assembly last month, includes:

  • 7% faculty and staff pay increases over the biennium
  • A recurring $5 million in funding for Engineering North Carolina’s Future in the William States Lee College of Engineering, the College of Computing and Informatics and the School of Data Science
  • Funding for capital, renovations and repairs, including comprehensive renovation of Smith Hall, Charlotte’s original engineering building, to allow added classrooms and labs
  • $25 million over two years for expansion and improvements at Jerry Richardson Stadium, matching a gift from Charlotte icons Margaret and Smoky Bissell to support the project

Gaber also took the opportunity to advocate for the top legislative priority in the upcoming short session, funding to expand data and computer science programs.

The caucus meeting, held on UNC Charlotte’s campus, also introduced regional legislators to two emerging research areas with tours of the North Carolina’s Battery Complexity, Autonomous Vehicle and Electrification Research Center, or BATT CAVE, and the Center for Computational Intelligence to Predict Health and Environmental Risks, or CIPHER. Both research centers are funded through support from the General Assembly.

The caucus is made up of state legislators who represent the multi-county Charlotte region. Caucus co-chairs include Niner alumni Rep. Jason Saine ’95, and Sens. Dave Craven ’12 and DeAndrea Salvador ’13. Rep. Becky Carney, a strong advocate for the University, also serves as co-chair.

The meeting also included an update from the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance and a regional transportation update from Centralina.

Photo, seated from left, Rep. Carolyn Logan, Sen. Joyce Waddell ’73, Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber, Rep. Harry Warren, Rep. Jeffrey Elmore. Back row, from left, Geraldine Gardner (Centralina), Janet LaBar (Charlotte Regional Business Alliance), Rep. Kevin Crutchfield, Sen. Mujtaba Mohammed ’08, Rep. Becky Carney, Sen. Dave Craven ’12, Rep. Jason Saine ’95, Rep. Nasif Majeed, Rep. Brad Overcash, Rep. Laura Budd, Rep. Mary Belk ’06 and Rep. Mark Brody.