Honors & Awards

UNC Charlotte scholar Tanure Ojaide has been named this year’s recipient of the Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM), in the Humanities category. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari presided over the investiture ceremony on December 1 in Abuja, the country’s capital. Established in 1979, the Nigerian National Order of Merit is the highest academic honor in Africa’s most populous country.

Jason Black, chair of the Department of Communication Studies, and co-author Ray Harrison, assistant professor at Tennessee State University, are recipients of a national communications award, the National Communication Association Critical & Cultural Studies Division Outstanding Article of the Year Award.

UNC Charlotte Communication Studies Professor Alan Freitag received the prestigious Infinity Award from Public Relations Society of America-Charlotte in November, 2016. The Infinity Award honors a public relations professional whose character, career and service represent the highest standards and who excels in the practice of public relations.

For his international work in advancing public sector performance, UNC Charlotte researcher James Douglas has received the Senator Peter B. Boorsma Award from The Southeastern Conference for Public Administration. “Receiving the award affirms in my mind that the work I have been doing abroad is meaningful and is hopefully making a difference in the world,” he said.

UNC Charlotte is among five colleges and universities selected to share the 2016 Higher Education Civic Engagement Award presented by The Washington Center. Honorees were selected based upon their leadership and innovation in civic engagement.

Anita Blanchard, associate professor of psychology and organization science, is among the five finalists for one of UNC Charlotte’s highest honors – the Bank of America Award for Teaching Excellence. Blanchard’s students frequently use one word to describe her approach to teaching: passionate. Her teaching philosophy is focused on active learning, teaching with technology, co-creating knowledge and developing enthusiasm for learning.

Mary Jo Shepherd, public policy, and Jinglin Li, computing and informatics, are the 2016 recipients of the Graduate School Dean’s Distinguished Dissertation Award. The award is presented annually in the categories corresponding to the national competition jointly sponsored by Council of Graduate Schools and ProQuest Dissertations Publishing​.

UNC Charlotte researcher Margaret M. Quinlan and colleagues received a regional Emmy® nomination for Creative Abundance, a film that explores how art can redefine vocational opportunities and expand the lives of people with developmental disabilities. Quinlan, an associate professor in Communication Studies and core faculty with the Interdisciplinary Health Psychology doctoral program, is a co-producer on the film.

Judy Lekoski has joined UNC Charlotte as the Major Gifts Officer for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. In this role, she is leading the private fundraising for the university’s largest and most diverse college. Lekoski brings decades of fundraising and communications expertise and an enthusiasm for applying that knowledge.

UNC Charlotte has earned nationwide recognition as the second-best value college for earning a Master of Public Administration degree. “This recognition helps showcase how successful our students and alumni are in serving the public and nonprofit sectors,” program Director Suzanne Leland says.