Community Engagement

UNC Charlotte faculty members are among a prestigious group of experts seeking safe and practical solutions for disposing of coal ash. The University has convened a blue-ribbon panel of nationally recognized experts to serve on an independent board that will review Duke Energy’s strategy and procedures for closing its ash impoundments in North Carolina and throughout the nation.

Community was the theme for speakers at the 2014 Giving Green kickoff Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the Barnhardt Student Activity Plaza.

The 2014 Carolina Conference on Queer Youth “Building Support and Envisioning Justice for LGBTQ Youth in their Schools and Communities” will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday, Oct. 17, in the Student Union.
The conference is free for those who sign up online and the entire community is invited to attend.

The second annual Center City Literary Festival will be Friday and Saturday, Oct. 17-18, at UNC Charlotte Center City. This festival will showcase authors and performers associated with the University; it is sponsored by UNC Charlotte Center City and the Department of English in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.

Charles Best, founder and CEO of DonorsChoose.org, will deliver a presentation at 2 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 14, in Cone University Center, McKnight Hall.
Named to Fortune magazine’s “40 Under 40 Hottest Rising Stars in Business” for three consecutive years, Best is considered a pioneer in citizen philanthropy. A former history teacher in the Bronx, Best created the nonprofit DonorsChoose.org as a simple way to address educational inequality. At the website, public school teachers could create classroom project requests, and donors could pick the projects they wanted to support.

The UNC Charlotte Homecoming Committee is extending a special invitation to faculty and staff to participate in its second football Homecoming Parade and Pep Rally to be held on Friday, Oct. 24.  Any campus department or group  that would like to walk, drive or float in the parade should register online at the Homecoming website by Friday, Sept. 26.

The University will host the 13th annual Multicultural Leadership Conference from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 11, in the Student Union. Equality and diversity activist and actor R.J. Mitte will be the conference’s keynote speaker.

Chancellor Philip L. Dubois was the keynote speaker at the 16th annual Hook and Slice Industry Appreciation Banquet presented by Monroe-Union County Economic Development on Thursday, Sept. 4.  In his remarks to an audience of about 100 industry leaders in Union County, Dubois emphasized UNC Charlotte’s shared goals of economic prosperity and other connections with Union County. He met a number of local elected officials including Monroe Mayor Bobby Kilgore, industry leaders and many alumni who are making a difference in Union County. 

The Belk Foundation recently awarded Charlotte Teachers (CTI) Institute a grant for the fifth consecutive year, this time for $25,000 to support seminars serving 100-plus teachers in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS). CTI is an innovative, educational partnership among UNC Charlotte, Davidson College and CMS designed to strengthen teaching and learning in CMS by cultivating content knowledge, creativity, leadership skills and collaboration among teachers. 

America’s middle class is suffering an economic meltdown that threatens the sector of society long considered the nation’s bedrock. UNC Charlotte author and researcher Scott Fitzgerald will dissect these troubles and explore ways to regain prosperity, in the first talk of UNC Charlotte’s Personally Speaking series for 2014-15.
This free community talk is set for 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 18, at UNC Charlotte Center City. The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and Atkins Library present this series, which is marking its fifth season.