General News

 In recognition of national Small Business Week, Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12) toured UNC Charlotte’s Partnership, Outreach and Research to Accelerate Learning (PORTAL) facility on Wednesday, May 4. During her visit, she met with Robert Wilhelm, vice chancellor for research and economic development; Paul Wetenhall, president of Ventureprise; and Henry Rock, executive director of City Startup Labs.

Lebra Nance focuses on students and views her role as one to assist them to achieve their goals of earning a degree and becoming engineers.

As a student services specialist in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Science in the William States Lee College of Engineering, Nance is a point of contact for current and prospective undergraduates.

The Charlotte Teachers Institute (CTI) welcomed 104 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) teachers as CTI Fellows in its innovative, interdisciplinary seminars for 2016.

“This year’s CTI Fellows represent a wide range of teachers in CMS, from new to veteran, pre-K to 12th grade and physics to digital art and language arts,” said CTI Director Scott Gartlan. “We create important growth opportunities for CMS teacher-leaders looking to deepen their knowledge base and impact the lives of their students.”

UNC Charlotte is a vibrant, expanding institution, and the University is making plans for another transformational jewel in its crown.

 The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) LYNX Blue Line Extension (BLE) is an approximately nine-mile addition to the Queen City’s existing light rail service that will connect UNC Charlotte Center City and the main campus. There will be two stations that will provide service to the University. 

Scott Fitzgerald, associate professor of sociology, is the 2016 recipient of the International Education Faculty Award, presented at the 22nd annual International Education Celebration.

A UNC Charlotte faculty member since 2003, Fitzgerald was instrumental in providing leadership to the Global Village Learning Community (GVLC). He collaborated with students to ensure they completed 40 hours of service learning with a variety of local organizations, including those that work with immigrant and international populations.

The Belk College of Business recently presented annual awards to faculty and staff who have excelled in teaching, research and service. This year’s recipients are:

Britney Phippen, a Ph.D. student in biological sciences, and Rahul Upadhyay, who is pursuing a master’s degree in mechanical engineering, are the 2015-16 recipients of the Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Awards presented by the Graduate School and the Center for Graduate Life.

Jessica Nutz, an architecture student, was named one of the top 10 finishers in the 2016 International COTE design competition. In its second year, this contest is open to accredited schools in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is sponsored by the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment (AIA COTE) in partnership with the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA). Kyoung-Hee Kim, assistant professor of architecture, mentored Nutz.

Internal Audit Awareness Month, observed annually in May, is an opportunity to call attention to the profession of internal auditing.

Audit professionals work year round to communicate about the field and its value to organizations. A challenge is to combat misperceptions of the profession in which auditors are labeled as “nitpicking fault-finders, blame-layers or bureaucrats.”

Tom York, director of internal audit for UNC Charlotte, said, one of his department’s guiding principles is to help employees “do what they do and do it better.”

Ten faculty members whose combined service to the University totaled 194 years were honored at an annual event Thursday, April 28, at the Harris Alumni Center. They will enter the ranks of retired faculty at the end of the spring semester.

University leaders noted that each of the retirees had made important contributions in shaping the institution and strengthening its reputation in the region, around the state and across the country.