Retiring faculty honored at annual reception

Friday, April 18, 2014

Eleven faculty members whose combined service to the University totaled more than 240 years were honored at an annual event Thursday, April 17, at the Harris Alumni Center and Johnson Glen. They will enter the ranks of retired faculty at the end of the spring semester.

University leaders noted that in their final year of service, the retirees were witness to two important events – the start of Charlotte 49ers football and the opening of PORTAL, the latest example of UNC Charlotte’s commitment to foster partnerships with private industry.

Chancellor Philip L. Dubois presided over the program, offering remembrances of each retiree; Provost Joan Lorden presented each faculty member an engraved Jefferson Cup with her or her name and years of service.

This year’s retiring faculty members who attended the recognition ceremoney were:

  • Lawrence Calhoun Jr., professor of psychology, who started at UNC Charlotte in 1973
  • Richard Conboy, director of international business and associate professor of management, who joined the University in 1979
  • Myra Dietz, a lecturer in the Office of Field Experiences since 2005
  • Robert Guinn, associate professor of accounting, who began his tenure in 1976
  • Robert Hocken, the Norvin Dickerson Jr. Distinguished Professor and director of the Center for Precision Metrology, who joined UNC Charlotte in 1988
  • Victoria Jaus, special assistant to the dean of the College of Education and clinical assistant professor, who started at the University in 1987
  • Lee Sherry, chair and associate professor of special education and child development, who was on the faculty from 1980-83 and from 2007-14
  • Sylvia Smith, a senior lecturer in languages and culture studies, who has been at the University since 2004
  • Sue Carole Spaulding, a psychology lecturer at UNC Charlotte beginning in 1993
  • Jack Stein, assistant dean and director of engineering computing in the Lee College of Engineering, who started at the University in 2005
  • Sarah Kathryn Yarbrough, a lecturer in accounting since 1998

Some faculty members may not have declared their intent to retire in order to be recognized at the April 17 reception, so the above is not an exhaustive list for the current academic year.