College of Humanities & Earth and Social Sciences

Former FEMA Administrator Brock Long will headline UNC Charlotte’s third annual “Talking Policy in the Queen City” symposium on Feb. 24, hosted by the Public Policy Ph.D. and MPA programs with UNC Charlotte Urban Institute.

Eighteen researchers in UNC Charlotte’s College of Liberal Arts & Sciences (CLAS) are among the top 2% percent of the world’s most cited researchers, detailed in a Stanford University study. CLAS researchers from five academic departments represent almost 45 percent of the UNC Charlotte researchers on the list.

Shawn Long, a beloved colleague who served UNC Charlotte and the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences (CLAS) for almost two decades as a faculty member and administrator, passed away on Jan. 14 following a serious illness. Long joined Kennesaw State University in Georgia as Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences in July 2019. Colleagues and friends describe a focused, inspirational leader, teacher, and mentor with a huge heart who made sure people were heard, accepted, and appreciated.

Bonnie E. Cone Distinguished Professor of Teaching Emeritus John Lincourt passed away on December 14, 2020 at the age of 79. Lincourt, described as a gifted teacher , was a faculty member in the Department of Philosophy and founding director of the Center for Professional and Applied Ethics.

Dr. Jeffrey Meyer, professor emeritus in the Department of Religious Studies, died at his Davidson home on Dec. 17 at the age of 82. He retired from UNC Charlotte in 2008 after teaching in the department for 35 years, with a focus on Asian religions. He also served as chair of the Department of Religious Studies from 1992 to 1998.

Jason Black, chair of the Department of Communication Studies, in early 2020 received a Fulbright award in support of a cross-cultural study of the indigenous mascotting controversy in Canadian and U.S. cultures of sport. Black was based at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, when the COVID-19 pandemic cut his trip short. Yet, he’s stayed on track to publish his second book on mascotting issues.

With its portrayal of the difficulties of frontier life, The New York Times Book Review has just named “All God’s Children” by novelist and UNC Charlotte English Associate Professor Aaron Gwyn as one of The Best Books To Give This Year.

Megan Bird, a UNC Charlotte senior from Charlottesville, Virginia, was a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship, one of the world’s most prestigious graduate fellowships. While she ultimately was not chosen as one of the 32 American Rhodes Scholars, announced on Nov. 21, her selection as a finalist is a significant achievement.

Despite the critical nature of authorship to researchers, their institutions and the public, just 24% of U.S. doctoral-granting universities with very high or high research activity have published institutional authorship policies, UNC Charlotte researchers Lisa Rasmussen and George Banks and their colleagues have discovered.

John R. McNair, professor emeritus in the Department of English at UNC Charlotte, died on November 3, 2020, in Wilmington, North Carolina. McNair played an instrumental role in founding the English Department’s offerings in technical communication.