General News

Before leaving for holiday break, employees are encouraged by facilities management to take these energy conservation steps:

Lights – Lighting is the second-largest use of energy in most commercial spaces. Turning them off is a simple and effective way to conserve resources. Don’t forget about desk lamps, overhead lights and those in common spaces such as kitchens, bathrooms and hallways.

Akin Ogundiran, chair of the Africana Studies Department, is the co-editor of the recent work “Materialities of Ritual in the Black Atlantic,” published by Indiana University Press.

The UNC Charlotte Police and Public Safety Department, along with representatives from Mecklenburg Safe Communities, recently held an event to raise awareness around the dangers of drunk driving.

Mark West, chair of the English Department, is co-editor and a contributor to the recently released “Walt Disney, from Reader to Storyteller: Essays on the Literary Inspirations.”

The Office of Extended Academic Programs offers numerous training opportunities. Discounts of approximately 50 percent are available for UNC Charlotte faculty and staff. For more information, call 704-687-8900 or email ceregistration@uncc.edu.

Courses and information sessions for January include:

David Goldfield, the Robert Lee Bailey Professor of History, recently spent 10 days in Germany conducting seminars on American environmental policy as part of the U.S. Embassy’s support of the “Going Green” program, a German-American learning project.

As part of the visit, Goldfield spoke to students at the Bavarian Academy of Public Policy and the North Rhineland-Westphalia Ministry of Education. He also participated in reviewing the top Going Green projects by German high school students, along with U.S. Ambassador to Germany John Emerson.

The State Human Resources Commission has approved a recommendation from the N.C. Office of State Human Resources (OSHR) to modify the policy governing the operations of state agencies during adverse weather and emergency events. The primary changes are:

clarification of the difference between these event types
guidelines for acceptable accounting for employee time lost to such events.
The policy will continue to be applicable to all state employees across all agencies, including Universities.

John Connaughton from the Belk College of Business discusses his recent Babson Capital/UNC Charlotte Economic Forecast with Stephen Ward, executive director of University communications, for a segment that will air on UNC-TV’s “North Carolina Now” at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 10.

 “Access to Culturally Competent Health Services: Serving Military Veterans from a Holistic Perspective” is a half-day conference scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015, in UNC Charlotte’s Cone University Center McKnight Hall.