World-class computer science meets top-flight police work in this new app that could benefit emergency response worldwide.
UNCC tests app to help locate suspects during emergencies | CharlotteObserver.com & The Charlotte Observer Newspaper
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Monday, July 23, 2012
Jeanette Sims to Lead Community Affairs
UNC Charlotte took another important step in staking its claim as an engaged university by naming Jeanette Sims as director of community affairs. She begins work in the Division of University Advancement on Aug. 21.
Her primary responsibility is to direct programs and initiatives in support of UNC Charlotte’s mission as it strives to address the cultural, economic, educational, environmental, health and social needs of the greater Charlotte region.
Sims will serve as a principal conduit between the university and the community at large and will provide leadership and strategic direction to campus-wide activities that build collaborative relationships with key local constituencies and organizations.
“Engaging our students, faculty, and staff in the challenges and opportunities in Charlotte and all of the cities and towns in our region is one of our campus' top strategic priorities,” said Niles Sorensen, Vice Chancellor for Advancement. “I am delighted to have someone with Jeanette's breadth of experience in both the corporate and nonprofit worlds to lead our efforts.”
Most recently, Sims was Interim Conference Director for the North Carolina Governor’s Conference for Women. Prior to her work with the NC Governor’s Conference, she worked with The Lee Institute as the Charlotte Regional Director for the American Leadership Forum, the Institute’s flagship program. Sims graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn., with a bachelor’s degree in psychology.
Sims reports to Sorensen, as a member of the University Advancement senior team. The division supports the University’s mission by cultivating alumni, community and government support and affinity. It helps strengthen the identity and awareness of the region’s only doctoral-granting institution in order to build and sustain effective, lasting partnerships throughout the community and state.
“UNC Charlotte is an important member of the Charlotte community,” said Sims. “I am excited to be part of the UNC Charlotte team and work with its valued community partners. Together, we can build effective programs to address community issues and serve the common good of our region and state.”
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
University Gets $1 Million Endowment for Scholarships
The
Bernard Osher Foundation recently awarded a $1 million endowment to UNC
Charlotte. The endowment provides a permanent funding source dedicated to
help nontraditional students return to complete their degrees.
UNC Charlotte’s Office of Adult Students and Evening Services (OASES) will administer the Osher Reentry Scholarship program. Prospective recipients, ideally between the ages of 25 and 50, must have college credits and at least a five-year gap in enrollment. Also, this must be their first bachelor’s degree, and they must have been in good academic standing with demonstrated financial need and a significant period of future employability.
UNC Charlotte has a history of serving nontraditional students; the institution traces its founding in part as an educational center for veterans returning home after World War II. Through OASES, the University offers programs and services specifically for nontraditional students, including getting started and transition seminars, academic advising, extended hours in the evenings and on weekends, adult mentoring programs and honor societies and individual course assistance.
“UNC Charlotte successfully administered the Reentry program for several years before an endowment was considered,” said Osher Foundation president Mary Bitterman. “That record, along with the abundant services that benefit nontraditional students, including the OASES program, prompted this gift.”
For each of the past four years, the foundation awarded OASES $50,000 grants for scholarships for reentry students. The foundation is providing a $50,000 award for scholarships for this academic year, too, in addition to the $1 million endowment that will fund future scholarships.
The Bernard Osher Foundation was founded in 1977, and it seeks to improve quality of life through support for higher education and the arts. Through post-secondary scholarship funding to colleges and universities across the nation, the foundation focuses special attention on reentry students.
# # #
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
Students Dig Archeology Gig with Schiele Museum
By Paul Nowell
While many of
their peers were sitting in air-conditioned classrooms during the first summer
session, some UNC Charlotte students were literally getting their hands dirty
while making some important discoveries about Mecklenburg County’s past.
Led by UNC
Charlotte Anthropology Professor Janet Levy and Alan May, curator of anthropology at Gaston County’s Schiele
Museum, the students battled ticks, poison ivy (and enjoyed spring
sunshine and fresh air) as they unearthed artifacts from the site of the
historic Holly Bend house, which was built between 1795 and 1800 in the
northwest corner of the county.
(In the photo, Alan May confers with a UNC Charlotte during the springtime dig.)
The class began on May 21 and ended
on June 14 and the students worked in the field from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday
through Friday. The purpose was to conduct basic
exploratory work to provide information for the planned development of the
site, which was purchased for $6.6 million by the county.
The dig is the latest example of an ongoing collaboration
dating back more than 25 years, between the university and the Gastonia museum.
According to Levy, the project provides students with a hands-on experience in
the field. In turn, the museum benefits by having the opportunity to
collaborate with faculty experts on a local project.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the
Holly Bend house was built by Robert Davidson, son of John Davidson of
Revolutionary War fame. It was once center of a 2,800-acre plantation and is an
example of Federal Neoclassicism style.
The county plans to restore the house in partnership with
local preservation groups and eventually open it for public tours and events.
For now, it provides an educational experience for students who are interested
in the past.
The work is difficult and very
meticulous. During one day’s work in early June, the students used shovels and
trowels to search through 2-meter-square grids for fragments of pottery,
bottles and other items. When something of interest was located, its precise
location was documented.
While some students were busy
digging, others were taking buckets of dirt and sifting the soil through a
screen to pick out anything noteworthy. Some early discoveries included
fragments of Pearl ware, which dates to the time of the construction of
Holly Bend.
“Getting out in the field and
breaking a sweat doing this sort of work is not that bad,” said Doug Sanders,
23, a senior applied anthropology major from Raleigh, wiping a bead of sweat
from his brow. “I would absolutely enjoy it if I could turn this into my
career.”
Read more about UNC Charlotte’s work
with the Schiele Museum in the Q3 edition of UNC Charlotte magazine; it will be
available in late August.
Paul Nowell is media relations manager in UNC Charlotte's Office of Public Relations.
###
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
