10 retiring faculty members honored for service

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.

Chancellor Philip L. Dubois offered remembrances of each retiree; Provost Joan Lorden presented each faculty member an engraved Jefferson Cup with his or her name and years of service.

This year’s retiring faculty members who attended the recognition ceremony were:

• Diane Brockman, associate professor of anthropology, who joined the faculty in 2004
• Paula Goolkasian, professor of psychology, who began her tenure in 1974
• Timothy Jarrell, lecturer of engineering technology and construction management, who joined the University in 2008
• Cynthia Wolf Johnson, associate provost and associate professor of communication studies, who has served the University since 2006
• Vivian Lord, professor of criminal justice and criminology and interim chair of the School of Social Work and director of the mediation program, who joined UNC Charlotte in 1994
• John Piel, professor of reading and elementary education, who joined UNC Charlotte in 1988
• William Ribarsky, Bank of America Endowed Chair in Information Technology and director of the Charlotte Visualization Center, who began his tenure in 2004
• Constance Rothwell, senior lecturer of English and former director of the University Honors Program, who started at the University in 1989
• Bruce VanSledright, professor of reading and elementary education, who started at UNC Charlotte in 2011
• Barry Wilkinson, professor of computer science, who has been at the University since 1987

Some faculty members may not have declared their intent to retire, so the above is not an exhaustive list for the current academic year.

Click here for more images of the retiring faculty.