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Research

Research is fundamental to the mission of UNC Charlotte. New knowledge and creative works change the world and shape the future of the University. Charlotte values research in all its forms, including scholarly inquiry, discovery, exploration, innovation, entrepreneurship, creative activities, community engagement and/or interdisciplinary endeavors.

UNC Charlotte’s research endeavors are distinct:

  • Among the 229 public doctoral-granting research universities in the United States, 124 hold the Carnegie Community Engaged University classification. Carnegie’s community engagement classification signifies that UNC Charlotte collaborates with its larger communities (local, regional/state, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in the context of partnership and reciprocity
  • UNC Charlotte is among the 80 public universities that have earned the APLU's Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation. The Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities designation recognizes that UNC Charlotte has demonstrated a meaningful, ongoing and substantial commitment to economic and community development, growth and economic opportunity

Significant research activities are focused in UNC System recognized centers and institutes. And in 2023, Charlotte launched 12 new pilot centers to foster synergistic research initiatives. In 2022, Ventureprise became the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Cyber safety learning team

UNC Charlotte team to help schools keep students safe online

November 15, 2017
As children are exposed to technology and cyber learning at a younger and younger age, there is a growing need to prepare K-12 students to navigate the digital world.
Bhaskar Mitra and Pankaj Bhowmik

Ph.D. students take top honors at Duke University energy conference

November 13, 2017
Doctoral students Bhaskar Mitra and Pankaj Bhowmik won first and second place, respectively, at the recent Duke Energy Week poster presentation. Only the top 20 teams/individuals were given the opportunity to present during the conference, held at the Fuqua School of Business.
John Daniels

Researchers seeking innovative uses for coal ash

November 10, 2017
UNC Charlotte researchers are investigating how to improve coal ash for both recycling and restoration. John Daniels, chair and professor of civil and environmental engineering, and fellow faculty members are actively researching ways to address environmental impacts created by coal ash
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Master’s thesis among ProQuest’s most downloaded

November 8, 2017
In September 2017, the master’s thesis “Internal Activism and Its Implications for Organizational Legitimacy: A Case Study of the NBA’s Reaction to the National Anthem Protests in Sports” was one of the top 25 accessed through the ProQuest website.

Cato College professor talks free speech and bias on college campuses

November 2, 2017
A new study co-authored by Cato College of Education member Ryan Miller is shedding light on efforts by higher education administrators nationwide to respond to bias and hate incidents while preserving students’ free speech rights.

Architecture professor receives Upjohn grant

November 1, 2017
Kyounghee Kim, associate professor of architecture, was awarded a 2017 AIA Upjohn Research Initiative Grant ($30,000) for “Biophilic Architecture: Sustainable Materialization of Microalgae Facades” – in support of her research on high-performance building envelope design.
gates foundation

Researcher receives grant to study banana breeding to improve nutrition

October 17, 2017
Robert Reid, research assistant professor with UNC Charlotte’s Bioinformatics Services Division at the North Carolina Research Campus, has received a $25,000 grant through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the “Improvement of Banana for the Smallholder Farmers in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.”

Advance achieved in dry preservation of mammalian sperm cells

October 11, 2017
In a paper forthcoming in the November issue of the journal Theriogenology, a team of researchers from UNC Charlotte and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI), announced the first successful drying and rehydration of domestic cat spermatozoa using a rapid microwave dehydration method.

Lee College researchers investigating wildfire spread

October 9, 2017
Monday, Oct. 9, starts Fire Prevention Week. Check out how UNC Charlotte is studying wildfire spread in this video featuring researchers from the Lee College of Engineering.

Study: Dads are often having fun while moms work around the house

October 9, 2017
For the first time, researchers have evidence of exactly what dads are doing while moms are taking care of housework or tending to their child. The results will be disappointing for those who expected more gender equity in modern society.

Newly discovered TTz fluorophores exhibit extraordinary fluorescent and electrochromic qualities

October 5, 2017
Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte recently discovered a new class of molecules with exceptional fluorescent properties. Applications for the new compounds, called thiazolothiazole (TTz) viologens, are infinitely adaptable, including properties that make them potentially useful in OLED televisions and as biomolecular sensors for human cells.

Public health study reveals shortcomings among CMS elementary students

October 2, 2017
While the obesity rate for Charlotte-Mecklenburg K-5 students hovers around the national average, it falls well short of the target numbers for a healthy population, according to a multi-year study led by UNC Charlotte researchers.