Scholarship and Academic Life

Samuel Lopez, director of the Office of Multicultural Academic Services and adjunct associate professor of kinesiology, recently represented the University’s chapter of Phi Kappa Phi—the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines—at the organization’s 43rd biennial convention held in St. Louis, Mo.
Lopez currently is president of the University’s chapter and attended the convention as its voting delegate.

UNC Charlotte economist John Connaughton will give his quarterly forecast for the North Carolina economy at a luncheon and press conference Tuesday, Sept. 9, at UNC Charlotte Center City. The presentation begins at noon in the auditorium. Lunch will be available starting at 11:30 a.m.                               

Providing instruction to help first-year and transfer students succeed academically is the focus of the Top 40 Academy, formed in collaboration with the Center for Teaching and Learning.

America’s middle class is suffering an economic meltdown that threatens the sector of society long considered the nation’s bedrock. UNC Charlotte author and researcher Scott Fitzgerald will dissect these troubles and explore ways to regain prosperity, in the first talk of UNC Charlotte’s Personally Speaking series for 2014-15.
This free community talk is set for 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 18, at UNC Charlotte Center City. The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and Atkins Library present this series, which is marking its fifth season.

For its innovative and efficient application of National Instruments products, the Lee College of Engineering’s Rocket Team won a chance to travel to Austin, Texas, to present at the 20th annual NIWeek. Out of 3,250 student projects submitted from 25 countries for the Student Design Competition, National Instruments selected the 49er team as one of three finalists.

Katareena Geller, a senior in the College of Computing and Informatics Department of Software and Information Systems, is one of 11 women to receive the national Scholarship for Women Studying Information Security.
Awarded by the Applied Computer Security Association (ACSA) and the Computing Research Association’s Committee on the Status of Women in Computing Research (CRA-W, the $2,500 scholarship is funded by the Hewlett-Packard Company; winners also may receive internship opportunities through HP.

Teaming up with students from England’s University of Birmingham, two graduate students from the Lee College Engineering participated in the third annual Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ Railway Challenge this summer, where they learned that building a working electric locomotive is a real challenge.
Civil engineering master’s students Ben Gorman and Matt Washing traveled to Leicestershire, England, for the event, which pitted five teams against each other in the design and construction of a 15th-scale locomotive.

Larry Mellichamp, director of the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens, has written “Native Plants of the Southeast,” which was published by Timber Press.
Billed as a comprehensive guide to the best 460 species for the garden, “Native Plants of the Southeast” features the most beautiful native plants that adapt well to garden cultivation, have multi-season appeal and attract native butterflies, birds and other beneficial wildlife, according to the publisher.

Jay Grymes, interim chair of the Department of Music, has written a new book “Violins of Hope: Instruments of Hope and Liberation in Mankind’s Darkest Hour.” The book, published by HarperCollins, is receiving critical praise and should be in bookstores now.
Academy Award-winning film composer John Williams wrote, “Violins of Hope is a work of research and scholarship that forms one of the most moving chronicles in the history of Western music.  James A. Grymes has earned our plaudits and praise, and deserves our everlasting gratitude.” 

Philip Payne, chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Ohio State University, will kick off this year’s Health Informatics Seminar Series; his talk is scheduled for 4 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 20, in Fretwell Building, Room 126.
An internationally recognized leader in the field of clinical research informatics, Payne has authored more than 140 publications focusing on the intersection of biomedical informatics and the clinical and translational science domains. He received his Ph.D. with distinction in biomedical informatics from Columbia University.