Tom Reynolds, associate provost for graduate programs and dean of the Graduate School since May 2002, has announced his intention to retire on Jan. 1, 2023. The UNC Charlotte Board of Trustees recently voted to bestow dean emeritus status upon Reynolds. He was recommended for the distinction for his distinguished service to the University by Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber.
Reynolds has guided the Graduate School through a period of significant growth and record enrollment. UNC Charlotte’s graduate student population has increased 43% and the number of graduate degrees awarded has increased 35% during his tenure. The enrollment increase in master’s programs in computer science, public health, social work and data science and business analytics has positioned the University to stay on the leading edge of producing top talent in growing industries across the region.
“I thank Dean Reynolds for his exceptional dedication to graduate education at UNC Charlotte,” said Joan Lorden, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. “Under his leadership and through his generosity, the Graduate School has advanced high-quality graduate research and scholarship, contributing to the economic, social and cultural advancement of not only Charlotte, but the state.”
Reynolds was instrumental in developing funding opportunities for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, increasing resources for graduate stipends through grants and contracts and forming a University-wide task force to consider all issues of graduate financial support at UNC Charlotte.
Personally, he and his wife, Claudia, have made gifts to UNC Charlotte totaling more than $1 million to establish and endow important graduate research, awards and fellowships including the Thomas L. Reynolds Graduate Student Research grant program, the Thomas L. Reynolds Graduate Program Leadership Award, the Claudia M. Reynolds Graduate Fellowship and the Faye Jacques Memorial Graduate Fellowship.
Throughout his tenure, Reynolds has promoted campus diversity, teaching and scholarship. He established UNC Charlotte as a Fulbright-eligible university, provided support to the Bridges to the Doctorate Program and created a number of teaching, research and mentoring awards such as the Graduate Dean’s Distinguished Dissertation Award and graduate teaching assistant awards.
With support and funding from the Graduate School, UNC Charlotte has a record number of National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellows. The Center for Graduate Life and Learning also opened during Reynold’s time as dean, providing a comfortable and safe environment where graduate students and postdoctoral fellows can network and get personal and professional support and development to enhance their career success.
Reynolds has represented UNC Charlotte on the UNC System Graduate Council, served as president of the North Carolina Conference of Graduate Schools and on the executive committee for the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools. In the community, Reynolds has served on the Board of Visitors for the Stowe Botanical Garden, participated in the Charlotte N.C. Arts and Sciences Council Leadership Training Program and is a volunteer for the Humane Society of America.
A U.S. Navy combat veteran, Reynolds came to UNC Charlotte in 1982 as an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences; became an associate professor in 1987; was promoted to professor in 1992; and received the First Citizens Bank Scholars Medal in 1994, the highest award for research and scholarship awarded to faculty at UNC Charlotte. Reynolds served as associate dean of the Graduate School from 1997 to 2001 and interim associate provost for graduate programs and dean of the Graduate School in 2001 before being appointed to the position permanently in 2002. Reynolds also served as a University research integrity officer from 2015 to 2020.