Honors & Awards

Jeffrey Leak, English professor and President of the Faculty, is one of 25 people nationwide chosen for the inaugural class of the Emerging Leaders program of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU). Participants will engage in a national dialogue with experienced leaders and experts in higher education and to develop a network of colleagues from across the country.

Retired Charlotte City Manager and UNC Charlotte alumnus Curt Walton will serve UNC Charlotte as interim associate provost for Metropolitan Studies and Extended Academic Programs. In addition to this role, Walton will continue as executive-in-residence with teaching and advising responsibilities in the Gerald G. Fox Master of Public Administration program in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, a role he assumed in late 2015.

Scott Fitzgerald, associate professor of sociology, is the 2016 recipient of the International Education Faculty Award, presented at the 22nd annual International Education Celebration. Fitzgerald was instrumental in providing leadership to the Global Village Learning Community and established a Habitat for Humanity Study Abroad program in El Salvador.

Gregory Mixon, a professor of history, is the recipient of the second annual J. Murrey Atkins Library Faculty Engagement Award. Atkins Library presents this award to a UNC Charlotte faculty member who has engaged in innovative or exceptional work with library collections, programs and services.

John David Smith, the Charles H. Stone Distinguished Professor of American History at UNC Charlotte, is the 2016 recipient of the First Citizens Bank Scholars Medal, UNC Charlotte’s most prestigious faculty award in recognition of excellence in research. Medal was created to spotlight the important contributions UNC Charlotte and its faculty are making, not only in its community, but also throughout the Carolinas, the nation and the world.

UNC Charlotte’s Gerald G. Fox Master of Public Administration program has ranked in the top 25 percent of public affairs programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.

Odes to strong women who have inspired them emerged as a common thread at the International Women’s Day program held in the Student Union Multipurpose Room. Among those honored were the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences’ dean, other employees and students.

For innovative teaching methods that extend well beyond a traditional classroom setting, Joanne Maguire Robinson, UNC Charlotte Religious Studies chair and professor, has received the 2016 American Academy of Religion Excellence in Teaching Award.

For his commitment to democratic ideals, humanistic values, and literary excellence in Africa. Tanure Ojaide, UNC Charlotte’s Frank Graham Porter Professor of Africana Studies, has won The Fonlon-Nichols Award.

UNC Charlotte researcher 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.