Academic Affairs

Student-athletes excel on the fields and courts, and intercollegiate athletics plays a major role at colleges and universities. For Mark Verburg, the men and women who comprise Charlotte 49ers teams are students first.

Monday, Feb. 29, is the deadline to apply for the Chancellor’s Diversity Challenge Fund.

The Council on University Community is accepting proposals for the fund, which supports initiatives that promote the daily value of diversity in the intellectual life of the campus. Faculty, staff or students are eligible to apply for awards of up to $5,000.

UNC Charlotte is taking another significant move to stake its claim as a national leader in data analytics.

The Data Science Initiative at UNC Charlotte will convene the Analytics Frontiers Conference on Wednesday, March 30, to address the latest updates in the high-powered use of technology to analyze massive amounts of data generated by consumers and organizations.

As North Carolina’s urban research university, UNC Charlotte is committed to fostering a spirit of civic engagement on campus.

“Civic engagement and education go hand-in-hand,” said Joan Lorden, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. “UNC Charlotte encourages faculty, staff and students to take full advantage of opportunities to learn about and get involved in the issues, discussions and democratic processes that shape a productive society.”

More than 215 employers are expected in the Barnhardt Student Activity Center for this year’s Spring Career Expo on Friday, Feb. 19. Representatives from corporate, government and nonprofit organizations will attend to recruit UNC Charlotte students and alumni for full-time positions, internships and co-ops at this annual event.

Kathy Reichs, a forensic anthropologist and author who is on leave from her position as an adjunct professor with UNC Charlotte, is listed as one of the “30 Most Innovative Women Professors Alive Today,” according to the website “The Best Master’s Degrees.”

The female professors listed were chosen “based upon their individual successes in various fields,” and each “has done something new and different for their respective field.”

The Center for Teaching and Learning will hold its second Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Research Showcase from 2 to 4 p.m., Friday, Feb. 19, in the lobby of the Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts.

The showcase will feature poster presentations from 18 different faculty members from a range of departments and disciplines in 10 different projects funded by the UNC Charlotte Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grants program.

Sebastian Cobarrubias, an assistant professor in the Department of Global, International and Area Studies, will discuss international migration as the first talk in the 2016 Great Decisions Lecture Series sponsored by the Office of International Programs. The presentation will be at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 27, at UNC Charlotte Center City, Room 204.

Edd Hauser, director of the Center for Transportation Policy Studies and the Center for Disaster Studies, recently received the academic Lifetime Achievement in Transportation Research and Education Award from the Council of University Transportation Centers (CUTC).

The University’s Army ROTC program will host a presentation on explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) from 1:30 to 4 p.m., Monday, Jan. 25, at Memorial Hall.

During this event, EOD specialists will demonstrate different scenarios using bomb disposal robots. No actual explosives will be used. Also, participants will be able to try on bomb suits, and there will be an opportunity to ask questions of the EOD specialists and Army ROTC recruiters.