The North Carolina Humanities Council (NCHC) will move its administrative offices to Charlotte in early 2015, to take advantage of what its leaders believe are new and exciting opportunities for organizational development and collaborations in the state’s largest city.
Effective Jan. 31, 2015, the council’s new offices will be in UNC Charlotte Center City, located in the Queen City’s historic First Ward neighborhood. Earlier this year, University, city and county leaders officially broke ground on the First Ward Park, a joint partnership between Levine Properties, UNC Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and the city of Charlotte.
“Charlotte is the state’s most dynamic metropolitan market, increasingly cosmopolitan and home of vibrant business, education and cultural sectors. We are excited about being there and having access to its ample resources and opportunities,” said Neva Specht, chair of NCHC Board of Trustees and senior associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Appalachian State University. “Although based in Charlotte, the council will remain a state-wide organization dedicated to providing excellent humanities initiatives in all 100 counties in North Carolina.”
Jerry Coughter, executive director of UNC Charlotte Center City, said the NCHC will be a welcome addition to the facility. “UNC Charlotte Center City has been essential to supporting the University’s broader mission of community engagement, urban research and contributing to the economic development of the region. I anticipate the North Carolina Humanities Council will develop a broad partnership with our College of Liberal Arts & Sciences and will help us grow our lifelong learning opportunities that we offer across the region.”
Nancy Gutierrez, dean of the UNC Charlotte College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, echoed Coughter’s statements. “The move of the North Carolina Humanities Council to UNC Charlotte Center City offers the University and the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences a welcome opportunity to partner with the council’s work of promoting the humanities as a cornerstone of public life,” she said. “The centrality of the humanities to both the private and public lives of our citizens cannot be overstated, and I speak for the college’s faculty and students in expressing our excitement about the council’s relocation to our campus.”
The 143,000-square-foot, 11-story UNC Charlotte Center City houses graduate programs for the Belk College of Business and the College of Health and Human Services. Also, the College of Arts + Architecture’s Master of Urban Design and College of Education’s urban education program meets there, and the Office of Extended Academic Programs provides continuing education offerings to the citizens of the University’s service region at the facility. In addition, UNC Charlotte Center City has served as the host site for various community discussions and forums, such as the UNC Charlotte Chancellor’s Speaker Series and the Charlotte Observer/PNC Bank “Solving It Together” series.
NCHC is a statewide nonprofit agency that provides advocacy, grant-making and activities to support understanding of the humanities, especially literature, history, art, music and philosophy. It has been in Greensboro since its inception in 1972. Among the programs funded by NCHC are the “Let’s Talk About It” book discussion series, Roads Scholars speakers series and Museum on Main Street exhibit in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution.
According to the council, in the past four years it has provided more than $559,000 in grants, with an additional $131,000 budgeted for the current fiscal year. Since 2009, NCHC funding has supported the presentation of nearly 800 programs in 80-plus North Carolina counties for more than 50,000 participants. All programs are free of charge and open to the public.