General News

Some 100 students from the new Charlotte Engineering Early College (CEEC) will be in the audience when the Echo Foundation hosts a student dialogue with two Nobel laureates on Wednesday, Sept. 10, in Cone University Center’s McKnight Hall.

The Harshini V. de Silva Graduate Mentor Award committee is soliciting nominations for the 2015 award. This award was established in memory of Dr. Harshini de Silva, an associate professor of biology, who was noted for her deep dedication to the academic and professional development of graduate students. Each year, the Chancellor’s Office and the Graduate School present this award to a full-time member of the graduate faculty who evinces these qualities of outstanding graduate mentoring.

The 2014 Miles to Wellness Pedometer Challenge will begin on Monday, Sept. 22. Sponsored by the Advisory Committee to the Chancellor for Health and Wellness (ACCEHW), this event is open to all faculty and staff.
Individuals or teams can participate in this eight-week challenge; signups are through Wednesday, Sept. 17.

For nearly four decades, UNC Charlotte has held the region’s largest, most culturally diverse festival. Now entering its 39th year, the annual International Festival provides a unique opportunity for attendees to experience the world in a day. With more than 50 nations represented, this colorful festival lets individuals engage in a vast array of activities including art, costumes, games, music, dance, and of course, food.

The College of Arts + Architecture, in partnership with the UNC Charlotte Center for Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights Studies, will present “Stories and Music from the Violins of Hope” at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 11, in the Belk Theater of the Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts.
James Grymes, interim chair of the UNC Charlotte Department of Music, will read from his new book “Violins of Hope: Instruments of Hope and Liberation in Mankind’s Darkest Hour.” There will be performances of related music throughout the evening, and a book signing and reception will follow.

The Faculty Biennial 2014, an exhibition of exemplary works by 25 faculty members from the Department of Art & Art History, is being displayed in Rowe Galleries through Wednesday, Sept. 24. The wide-ranging exhibit features mediums that include ceramic sculpture, painting, digital drawing, video, photography and more that address concepts pertaining to loss, commercialism, violence, memory, history and perception.

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.

Comedian Byron Bowers kicks off the Campus Activities Board’s monthly Friday Night Live series at 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 5, in the Cone University Center’s After Hours Lounge.
Bowers uses his own experiences to create a comedy routine that crisscrosses a multicultural socioeconomic landscape. Raised in a lower-middle class black community in Atlanta, Bowers was bused into a more affluent, predominantly white school as a child. The comic uses these experiences as a launching point for his routines.

Sports journalist Stephen Smith will present “Adversity: Keep Your Head in the Game” at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 16, in Cone University Center, McKnight Hall, as part of the Forty-niner Forum in partnership with the Campus Activities Board.
In his talk, Smith will share his life experiences and use sports-as-life references to offer his perspective on how to keep “your head in the game and use adversity to your benefit.”

The first home football game is against Johnson C. Smith Saturday, and the Charlotte Area Transit  System (CATS) provides service to reach campus for the contest.
Route 11U North Tryon runs from the Charlotte Transportation Center in Uptown Charlotte to campus every 30 minutes starting at 6 a.m.; CATS also offers service along Sharon Amity and W.T. Harris on Route 29 every 45 minutes starting at 8:10 a.m.
The fare to ride the bus is $2.20 each way; exact change or a bus pass is required. Buses do not take debit/credit cards.