Awards and honors

The UNC Charlotte School of Architecture chapter of “Freedom by Design” earned two awards at the 2015 AIAS FORUM, the national conference of the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS), held Dec. 29-Jan. 2 in San Francisco. The UNC Charlotte team was recognized as the 2014-15 Chapter of the Year and received the 2014-15 Project of the Year award.

Third-year special education master’s student Maureen Mensing was one of two individuals honored by the National Association for Gifted Children. She received the association’s Master’s and Specialist Award for Exceptional Contributions to Gifted and Talented Education. This honor recognizes professionals who have contributed to the field in a host of manners, including through teaching, writing, advocacy, curriculum development and community service in gifted education.

“Clarity,” the debut album by the Unhinged Sextet and featuring Associate Professor of Music Will Campbell on alto saxophone and three original tunes by him, was named a “Best Release of 2015” by All About Jazz. The review calls the album “smoking hot … a first-class collection of modern jazz, with strong playing and exciting, varied original compositions.”

The North Carolina School Counseling Association (NCSCA) has named College of Education professor Sejal Foxx its Counselor Educator of the Year.

Foxx, who leads the college’s School Counseling program, received tenure earlier in 2015 after only a year at UNC Charlotte.  She currently teaches a variety of master’s and doctoral counseling courses.

Four faculty members in the College of Arts + Architecture have received 2016 regional artist project grants from the Arts & Science Council (ASC).

John Allemeier, associate professor of composition, received a $2,000 grant to support the professional recording of new music. Will Campbell, associate professor of saxophone and director of the jazz studies program, received a $1,716 award to study with the jazz saxophonist Tim Armacost in New York City.

Department of Educational Leadership professor Rebecca Shore is the North Carolina Art Education Association (NCAEA) Art Educator of the Year for higher education.

Shore, who was among the honorees at the NCAEA’s recent professional development state conference, received the award given to exemplary art educators and advocates in a variety of educational levels and fields.

Mark West, chair of the English Department, will receive the 2016 Anne Deveraux Jordan Award.

Presented by the Children’s Literature Association, the award is a kind of lifetime achievement award, recognizing significant contributions in scholarship and service to the field of children’s literature over the course of the scholar’s career. West will receive the award at the association’s annual conference in June 2016.

McKim & Creed Inc. has received an Engineering Excellence Grand Award for its work on the PORTAL Building. The honor was presented by the American Council of Engineering Companies of North Carolina at its annual Engineering Excellence Awards Gala in Raleigh.

PORTAL, which stands for Partnership, Outreach and Research to Accelerate Learning, is a business incubator and corporate innovation center that offers a unique and flexible environment for emerging enterprises.

College of Education doctoral student and adjunct instructor Jenny Root has been recognized as an emerging researcher and leader in teaching students with disabilities. She was named the 2015 Alice Hayden Emerging Leader by TASH, an international group that advocates for people with disabilities. Each year, TASH presents the award to a doctoral student who demonstrates potential for leadership in teaching, scholarship and service on behalf of people with significant disabilities. 

The University’s 49er Finish Program recently was named a 2015 Model of Excellence in the winter edition of University Business magazine.

“UNC Charlotte created a concierge service that caters to a tough demographic: students who dropped out during their senior year,” said University Business senior editor Tim Goral. “The program’s communications are tailored to individual former students, finding unique solutions for a pervasive problem, one person at a time.”