Alumni & Friends

Girls Rock Charlotte, a July summer camp that aims to amplify confidence and boost self-esteem through the power of rock music and leadership lessons, is giving young girls a positive voice. While the initiative is not a formal UNC Charlotte program, it draws many of its leaders and volunteers from the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and the university.

Distinguished College of Liberal Arts & Sciences alumni are among those honored in April by the UNC Charlotte Alumni Association for outstanding contributions to their professions, their communities and to the university.

UNC Charlotte alumnus Bobbie Cavnar of Gaston County is the North Carolina Teacher of the Year for 2016-2017. Cavnar, an English teacher, completed his master’s degree in English at UNC Charlotte and is described as an exceptional teacher who makes classic works of literature relevant.

UNC Charlotte Criminal Justice and Criminology alumnus Joseph D. Ramey has been promoted to Gaston County Police Chief. Ramey, a Cramerton native, joined the Gaston County Police in 1994 and replaces replaces James W. Buie, who retired after 30 years service with the department.

Alumnus Tim Keane, who received a bachelor’s degree in geography and a master’s degree in architecture from UNC Charlotte, has been named Commissioner for the Department of Planning and Community Development for the City of Atlanta by Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

UNC Charlotte alumnus Kerr Putney has been named as the new Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department police chief effective July 1, 2015. Putney earned his bachelor’s degree in criminology at UNC Charlotte and has been with CMPD since 1992, currently as deputy chief.

When UNC Charlotte alumna Sayra Brynn embarked on a career in public relations, she never anticipated working alongside construction sites, nor did she envision how much she would enjoy the work. Brynn serves as the public and community relations specialist for the Charlotte Area Transit System, and her work is dedicated to the LYNX Blue Line Extension.

In his work with The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, UNC Charlotte alumnus Andy Morimoto draws upon skills he honed at UNC Charlotte, as he works on a broad range of international, political, and economic issues.

After over three decades in the criminal justice profession, Concord Police Chief and UNC Charlotte alumnus Guy Smith retired on March 1, 2015.

At age 27, UNC Charlotte alumnus Reverend Brandon Fisher is the youngest pastor in his AME Zion Church district, and also is licensed to practice law in North Carolina and Washington, D.C. He has embraced social activism, recently challenging a new generation of leaders.