From UNC-Chapel Hill News Services
History
Location
Recent Rankings
Key Statistics
Carolina Covenant
The Carolina First Campaign
Students
Faculty
Research
Educational and Cultural Resources
Public Service
Through its teaching, research and public service, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is an educational and economic beacon for the people of North Carolina and beyond.
History
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was the nation's first state university to open its doors and the only public university to award degrees in the 18th century.
Authorized by the N.C. Constitution in 1776, the university was chartered by the N.C. General Assembly Dec. 11, 1789, the same year George Washington first was inaugurated as president.
The cornerstone was laid for Old East, the nation's first state university building, Oct. 12, 1793. Hinton James, the first student, arrived from Wilmington, N.C., Feb. 12, 1795.
Location
The 729-acre central campus includes the two oldest state university buildings, Old East and Person Hall. Old East and Playmakers Theatre, an 1852 Greek-revival building are National Historic Landmarks.
The American Society of Landscape Architects selected the Carolina campus as one of the most beautifully landscaped spots in the country. That listing is among the praise affirming the charm of mighty oaks, majestic quadrangles, brick sidewalks and other landscaping synonymous with UNC.
Today, the campus is undergoing an unprecedented physical transformation made possible in part by North Carolinians' overwhelming approval of the $3.1 billion bond referendum for higher education. The referendum, approved in November 2000, was the nation's largest higher education bond package.
The bonds mean $510 million for renovations, repairs and new buildings so 21st century students at Carolina can learn in a 21st century environment. Also guided by a visionary master plan for growth now rapidly coming to life at an unprecedented pace, the university is investing another $800-plus million from non-state sources, including private gifts and overhead receipts from faculty research grants, for other buildings essential to excellence. The resulting $1.5 billion capital construction program is among the largest underway at any major American university.
Recently completed projects include the renovation of Memorial Hall, which anchors the university's planned arts common and is now a comfortable, elegant venue for the performing arts; the Rams Head Center, a linchpin in the campus master plan that combines a 700-space parking deck, dining and student recreation facilities, and innovative sustainability practices; and the renovated Health Sciences Library, which features 140 computer workstations and technology that will encourage collaboration among scientists and educations in Chapel Hill and beyond.
This fall, groundbreakings will include the North Carolina Cancer Hospital, a $180 million facility being built by the UNC Health Care System that was approved by the North Carolina General Assembly and Gov. Mike Easley in 2004.
Carolina was recognized in 2005 with an award for excellence in the planning and architecture of the campus master plan. The Society for College and University Planning and the American Institute of Architects' Committee on Architecture for Education awarded UNC the 2005 Excellence in Planning and Architecture Merit Award in Planning for an Established Campus. The juried competition recognizes collaborative state-of-the-art planning and emphasizes excellence in higher education environments and settings. UNC received the award in connection to the development of the 2001 master plan and the progress that has been made in implementing it. In its comments, the award jury said it "was impressed at how much has been accomplished on this project. The setting is very complex and the proposals rise to the occasion."
UNC anchors one corner of the famed Research Triangle Park, which has played a vital role in nurturing the economic development of North Carolina.
Recent Rankings
Several national publications regularly publish rankings that listed Carolina prominently in categories ranging from academic quality to affordability to diversity to engagement to international presence. Recent highlights include:
1st among the 100 best U.S. public colleges and universities that offer the best combination of top-flight academics and affordable costs as ranked by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. 1st for seven consecutive times since Kiplinger's began these periodic surveys in 1998. Kiplinger's analysis stressed academic quality, as well as cost and financial aid offerings, and cited the success of the Carolina Covenant program, which provides a debt-free education to qualified low-income students and is a national model. Carolina's policies protect affordability and offer an outstanding education.
5th best public university in U.S. News & World Report's 2008 "Best Colleges" guidebook for the seventh consecutive year. 1st among public campuses for the third consecutive year. 9th overall in "Great Schools, Great Prices," based on academic quality and the net cost of attendance for a student who received the average level of need-based financial aid. Kenan-Flagler Business School's undergraduate business degree program 5th.
One of 7 public universities ranking in the top 25 for all nine measures used in the 2007 edition of "The Top American Research Universities," produced by The Center for Measuring University Performance at Arizona State University. Evaluates top research universities with at least $20 million in annual federal research funding using quantitative measures such as endowment assets, private giving, faculty awards, doctorates granted and SAT/ACT range. In the eight years of these studies, UNC is one of four public universities (with Berkeley, UCLA and Michigan) in the top 25 on all nine measures. Among all public and private universities in the latest report, five of Carolina's rankings were in the top 25, two were between 26 and 50, one (private endowment assets) was 52nd and one (SAT-ACT range) came in at 88th. Benchmarked against this group, UNC finished in about the middle of its peers.
Among 25 'New Ivy" campuses in the 2007 Kaplan/Newsweek "How to Get into College Guide." Includes schools with first-rate academic programs fueling their rise in national stature. Based on admissions statistics and interviews with administrators, students, faculty and alumni. Reported Newsweek: 'If a moviemaker needs an idyllic setting for a film about college life, Chapel Hill might just take the prize."
A "best value" among 81 schools chosen for "America's Best Value Colleges, 2006 Edition" by The Princeton Review/Random House for outstanding academics, relatively low costs and generous financial aid packages. 2nd appearance in a row for UNC.
3rd among major U.S. universities in the percentage of African-American students in the 2007 first-year class, according to The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. Carolina had held the No. 1 spot for six of the previous eight years. Black students made up 11.1 percent of the entering class in 2007.
4th among top public research universities recording the highest rate of undergraduates studying abroad in 2005-2006, according to a report published by the Institute of International Education.
4th among large U.S. colleges and universities for the number of alumni volunteering for the Peace Corps in 2007 - up four slots from the previous year. Eighty-one undergraduate and four graduate UNC alumni are representing the United States abroad. Since the inception of the Peace Corps, 1,012 Carolina alumni have joined its ranks, making UNC the 25th largest producer of volunteers all time.
6th largest contributor of graduating seniors to Teach for America in 2007. Thirty-seven Carolina seniors matriculated into Teach for America, the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates and professionals of all academic majors and career interests who commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity.
1st among urban and regional planning, philosophy, and Slavic languages/literatures, 2nd for toxicology and natural resources/conservation; and 3rd for materials sciences and engineering, linguistics and sociology, according to a 2007 report covered in The Chronicle of Higher Education. Based on a Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index developed by Academic Analytics, a company owned in part by the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Programs graded based on factors such as faculty publications and citations, awards, honors and research grants awarded. Seventeen other Carolina Ph.D. programs ranked in the top 10.
3rd best department of city and regional planning in the United States and Canada and 1st in the South, according to Planetizen's 2007 Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs. Based on data submitted by schools and a mail survey of planning educators and professionals. Published in a resource guide for prospective students that lists 94 programs and ranks the top schools and field specialties
Degree programs or specialty areas from several schools and the College of Arts and Sciences appeared prominently in the 2009 U.S. News & World Report's"America's Best Graduate Schools" issue. Highlights included: School of Pharmacy, 2nd for Pharm.D. program; School of Medicine, tied for 2nd overall for primary care, 19th for research; School of Public Health, tied for 10th in environmental/environmental health; School of Social Work, tied for 8th for master's degree program; School of Government, master's of public administration program, tied for 14th; Kenan-Flagler Business School's master of business administration degree program, 19th, and College of Arts and Sciences, computer science doctoral program tied for 20th overall.
Kenan-Flagler Business School ranked 12th in BusinessWeek magazine's list of the best undergraduate business programs. It also was ranked 2nd on return on investment for public universities and 9th in rigor based on how many hours students report they spend on class work each week. It received grades of A for teaching quality, A+ for facilities and services, and A for job placement, based on students' responses
Kenan-Flagler appeared in several other best MBA program lists: The Wall Street Journal, 6th based on a survey of corporate recruiters and tied for 7th among "most improved schools;" BusinessWeek (17th); The Princeton Review and Forbes.com, 1st for fostering entrepreneurship campuswide; BusinessWeek, executive MBA program, 10th; Financial Times, customized executive education programs 12th in the world.
Fortune Small Business magazine ranked Carolina as one of America's best colleges for entrepreneurs for MBA, undergraduate and double major programs.
The School of Law ranked 23rd in a survey of U.S. law schools by Vault Inc., a career information company, about which law schools best prepare their graduates to be successful in a firm environment. Based on surveys of nearly 400 hiring partners, hiring committee members, associate interviewers and recruiting professionals across the country.
STACK magazine ranked Tar Heel athletics No. 1 based on academics, athletic opportunity and overall performance. Carolina topped the magazine's first-ever list of the nation's premier academic and NCAA football, basketball and other Division I sports programs. Combining the best in athletics with the best in academia, the magazine's "Elite 50" list was announced in 2007.
Forbes magazine concluded in 2008 that the men's Tar Heel basketball team was the most valuable in the country. The magazine put the value of the Tar Heels at $26 million, just ahead of the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville. The valuation was based on the amount of money that basketball programs contribute to their universities' academic programs and athletic programs, their conferences and their local communities.
Key Statistics
Now in its third century, Carolina offers bachelor's, master's, doctoral and professional degrees in academic areas critical to North Carolina's future: business, dentistry, education, law, medicine, nursing, public health and social work, among others. Offerings include 71 bachelor's, 110 master's and 77 doctorate degree programs. The health sciences are well integrated with the liberal arts, basic sciences and high-tech programs. Patient outreach programs affiliated with Carolina and the UNC Health Care System serve citizens in all 100 North Carolina counties.
Carolina belongs to the select group of 62 American and two Canadian campuses forming the Association of American Universities.
In fall 2004, Carolina enrolled more than 26,800 students from all 100 North Carolina counties, the other 49 states and more than 100 other countries. Eighty-two percent of Carolina's undergraduates come from North Carolina.
Those students learn from a 3,100-member faculty. Many of those faculty members hold or have held major posts in virtually every national scholarly or professional organization and have earned election to the most prestigious academic academies and organizations.
The Carolina academic community benefits from a library with more than 5.6 million volumes and perennially ranks among the best research libraries in North America as judged by the Association of Research Libraries. The most recent association listings place Carolina 15th among 114 research libraries in North America. UNC's North Carolina Collection is the largest of its kind among state-oriented collections on campuses nationwide. And the Southern and rare book collections also are among the country's finest.
Carolina's more than 243,000 alumni live in all 50 states and in 146 countries. Notable alumni include writers Thomas Wolfe, Shelby Foote, Russell Banks and Jill McCorkle; athletes Michael Jordan, Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Mia Hamm, Marion Jones and Davis Love III; and journalists Alan Murray, Roger Mudd, Charles Kuralt, Stuart Scott and Tom Wicker.
Others include former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles; former White House Communications Director Don Baer; former U.S. Sen. John Edwards (now director of UNC's new Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity); Bill Harrison, chairman and chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co.; Sallie L. Krawcheck, chief financial officer and head of strategy for Citigroup Inc.; Ken Thompson, chairman and chief executive officer of Wachovia Corp.; Dr. Mary Sue Coleman, a biochemist and former Carolina vice chancellor and now the University of Michigan president; Dr. Elson Floyd, former Carolina executive vice chancellor and now president of the University of Missouri system; U.S. President James Polk; geneticist Francis Collins; actors Jack Palance, George Grizzard and Andy Griffith, as well as actresses Louise Fletcher and Sharon Lawrence; editorial cartoonist Jeff MacNelly; Hugh McColl, retired chairman and chief executive officer of Bank of America Corp.; and fashion designer Alexander Julian.
Carolina Covenant
Carolina has expanded its nationally recognized Carolina Covenant initiative to make a debt-free college education possible for more low-income students. The changes, announced by Chancellor James Moeser during his 2004 State of the University address, send an even stronger message about accessibility and the traditional commitment to opportunity in Chapel Hill for qualified students - regardless of their ability to pay.
Launched in fall 2004, the Carolina Covenant initially covered 223 freshmen who can graduate without debt. Instead, they agree to work on campus 10 to 12 hours weekly in a federal work-study job, and Carolina meets the rest of their needs through a combination of federal, state, university, and other privately funded grants and scholarships. An estimated 340 to 350 new first-year students will participate under expanded eligibility requirements announced by Chancellor James Moeser last year.
Starting in fall 2005, students and their families must be at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level - up from 150 percent. That raises the threshold to cover a family of four with an annual income of about $37,000 or a single parent with a child who makes about $24,000. Last year, those income levels were at about $28,000 and $18,000, respectively.
Carolina became the first major public U.S. university to announce plans for such a program in fall 2004. Since then, several universities, including Virginia, Maryland, Nebraska, Illinois, Harvard and Brown, have created or announced plans for similar programs. UNC also has begun a mentorship program for Covenant scholars being strongly supported by faculty volunteers.
The university consistently ranks among the national leaders in making education financially accessible to students. Carolina also meets the full need of middle-income students, with financial aid packages comprised of two-thirds grants and scholarships and one-third loans and work-study. (Most aid packages are closer to two-thirds loans and one-third grants.)
Carolina Covenant scholars were admitted under the university's rigorous admissions standards. More than half of the first year's class in 2004 were first-generation college students. Covenant students posted an average 4.21 grade-point average and 1,209 Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) score.
The Carolina First Campaign
The Carolina First Campaign is a comprehensive, multi-year private fund-raising campaign - the largest in the university's history - to support the vision of Carolina becoming the nation's leading public university. The ultimate beneficiaries of reaching that goal will be the people of North Carolina, whom Carolina is dedicated to serve.
The university exceeded the $1 billion mark for the campaign during fiscal 2002-2003. As of mid-August 2005, the campaign has raised more than $1.54 billion in gifts and pledges from alumni and friends toward its $1.8 billion goal.
Carolina First has created 148 new endowed professorships toward a total goal of 200 and 505 new scholarships and fellowships for students toward a target of 1,000. Faculty support and the quality of students and facilities are among key priorities for the campaign, scheduled to close in July 2007.
Other campaign priorities include providing the means to pursue strategic initiatives to enrich the academic experience; conduct research that improves the health and the economic, social, and cultural well being of citizens; and redouble the commitment to public service and engagement.
Total giving in fiscal 2004 was $192.5 million in gifts and private grants - the largest single amount received in a single year in the university's history. The campaign also has added $600 million to the university's endowment.
UNC received a 2005 CASE/ID Wealth Award for Educational Fund Raising in the category of "Overall Performance." CASE stands for the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, which works with educational institutions to enhance their alumni-relations, communications and development efforts. Only 45 other institutions were selected, and Carolina ranked among just eight major research institutions receiving the award. Carolina is the only university to receive eight CASE/ID Wealth awards in 12 years. Stanford, Harvard and Virginia have each received seven awards.
In fall 2000, Chancellor James Moeser pledged to the people of North Carolina that if they passed the higher education bond referendum the university would triple their investment with private funds. The people responded overwhelmingly, and the Carolina First campaign already has exceeded that pledge. The ultimate beneficiaries will be the people of North Carolina.
Students
In fall 2007, Carolina enrolled the most academically prepared first-year class in University history, with 3,895 students drawn from a record 20,000 applications. This year's applications surpassed that, hitting the 21,487 mark - a 7 percent increase. Total student enrollment in fall 2007 exceeded 28,000 for the first time.
The Class of 2011's 3,895 students - part of a class that is more diverse than ever - came from 94 N.C. counties, 45 states, the District of Columbia and 22 countries. Nearly 77 percent were in the top 10 percent of their high school class. The average SAT score was 1302, up from 1220 a decade ago.
Eighty-two graduating high school seniors from the United States, Canada and Great Britain have been selected as Morehead-Cain Scholars for fall 2008. Among the largest and most competitive scholarship programs in the United States, the Morehead-Cain - formerly the Morehead Scholarship - pays all expenses for four years of undergraduate study, including four summer enrichment experiences. The Morehead Scholarship and Morehead Foundation were renamed in 2007 after the foundation received a $100 million gift from the Gordon and Mary Cain Foundation.
Fifty-three exemplary high school seniors have also been chosen for the Robertson Scholars Class of 2012. This innovative merit scholarship program brings together two of the nation's finest universities, fostering enhanced collaboration between both campuses. All students take courses at both schools and spend a semester in residence at the other campus. Robertson Scholars attending Duke receive full tuition, while UNC scholars receive full tuition, living expenses and a stipend. The program was created by a $24 million gift from Julian and Josie Robertson.
In May 2008, Carolina graduated its fourth class of Public Service Scholars. This program, run by the Carolina Center for Public Service, is for students who log at least 300 hours of public service and complete training and courses with a public service component. More than 1,000 students have logged more than 198,000 hours of service in communities across North Carolina, the nation and the world working in nursing homes, hospitals, public schools and a wide range of non-profits.
Carolina ranks second among top public research universities for producing Rhodes Scholars winners (41). During the 2006-07 academic year, UNC had two winners -- Adrian Johnston of Toronto, a 2006 graduate, and senior Ben Lundin of Nashville, Tenn. They were selected to study at Oxford University in England as part of the oldest and best known scholarship program for international study. This marked the third time that Carolina had two Rhodes winners in the same year. Since 1957, when the first Morehead Scholars graduated, the University has produced 26 Rhodes Scholars. All but three were Moreheads.
Carolina students made another noteworthy run during 2007-08 in the competition to earn distinguished scholarships in the United States and abroad. A senior won the prestigious Luce Scholarship, while four undergraduates were selected for Truman, Churchill and Udall scholarships. All are studying in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Michael Tarrant was awarded a Luce Scholarship to live and learn in Asia - one of 18 scholarships awarded nationwide. A double major in political science and communication studies, Tarrant is student body vice president. UNC ranks second only to Harvard in producing Luce Scholars. Including Tarrant, 27 UNC students and alumni have won the Luce since the program began in 1974. Harvard has had 28 Luce Scholars. The Henry Luce Foundation provides the scholarships for a year's internship in Asia, with the goal of acquainting future American leaders with Asian colleagues in their fields. Candidates must have no prior experience with Asia.
Danielle Maria Allen, a junior, has been awarded the Truman Scholarship. The double major in public policy and economics plans to use the award to attend law school and become an attorney for an organization that works to address inequalities in public education. Allen was one of 65 recipients of the Truman nationwide this year. She came to Carolina in 2005 on a Morehead Scholarship (renamed the Morehead-Cain in 2007). Of 30 Truman Scholars from UNC since the program began in 1977, 17 have been Morehead Scholars.
Lisa Bond and Stephanie Jones, both seniors majoring in the physical sciences, won Churchill Scholarships for graduate work at Cambridge University in England. Bond, a biology major with a chemistry minor, will use the scholarship to earn a master's degree in biochemistry at Cambridge. Jones, a chemistry major with a minor in entrepreneurship, will seek a master's degree in chemistry in England. Both aim to become university research professors. Bond and Jones were among 13 Churchill Scholars chosen nationwide by the Winston Churchill Foundation of the United States. UNC and Princeton are tied at eight for the most Churchill Scholars from any campus from 1997 through this year.
Elinor Benami, a sophomore, received a Morris K. Udall Undergraduate Scholarship for her junior year. Benami, who is double-majoring in international studies and economics, plans a career in environmental consulting. The Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Foundation chose 80 scholars this year based on their commitment to careers in the environment or, for American Indian and Alaskan native applicants, commitment to careers in health care or tribal public policy. Benami's award brings the number of Udall Scholarships awarded to Carolina students to 12 since the awards began in 1996.
Faculty
Dr. Oliver Smithies, Excellence Professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, was one of two recipients of the 2005 March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology for his role in developing gene targeting. Smithies helped develop a technique that gives scientists around the world the ability to alter particular genes in cultured cells and transfer those targeted genes to laboratory mice. Gene targeting allows them to design and produce "knockout" mice to study how the disabled gene works and to create animal models of human diseases. Smithies also won the 2001 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, the nation's most distinguished honor for outstanding contributions to basic medical research. The Lasker Awards have often been called "America's Nobels," and more than 60 researchers who won a Lasker went on to receive the Nobel Prize.
Two faculty members last spring were elected fellows of the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences in recognition of major contributions to their fields. They are Drs. Jack D. Griffith, Kenan Distinguished Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center; and Joseph M. DeSimone, W.R. Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at UNC and N.C. State University. The academy is considered the nation's oldest and most illustrious learned society. Griffin's melding of electron microscopy methods with biochemical tools revealed important insights into genetic diseases. His 1999 co-discovery that the ends of chromosomes are tied in firmly knotted loops provided insights into cancer and aging. DeSimone holds more than 100 U.S. patents and is renowned for discovering revolutionary ways to use carbon dioxide in place of conventional organic solvents for environmentally responsible manufacturing, cleaning and processing. Earlier this year, he was elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering. Griffith and DeSimone bring to 27 the total number of Carolina faculty members elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
The W.M. Keck Foundation named Dr. Brian Kuhlman, assistant professor of biochemistry and biophysics in the School of Medicine, to its 2005 W. M. Keck Distinguished Young Scholars in Medical Research Program. He was among a select group of national honorees and the first Carolina scientist to earn the distinction, which includes a $1 million grant to fund his research over the next five years. Kuhlman's current research focuses on how proteins interact and how alterations to these interactions can lead to developmental abnormalities or diseases such as cancer. The W. M. Keck Foundation funding will enable him to take his research to the next level - using computers to redesign proteins so that their interactions can be manipulated to generate new molecular tools for medicine, industry and basic research.
Assistant Professor Lisa Pearce of the Department of Sociology was named a William T. Grant Scholar. The award provides $300,000 over five years to support research in youth development. Pearce, a fellow of the Carolina Population Center, will use the funds to study the role of religion in the shaping of self-image, aspirations, and achievement in youth.
Two distinguished professors at Carolina have been selected for prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship awards. Drs. Donald J. Raleigh, Jay Richard Judson distinguished professor of history, and Gerald J. Postema, Cary C. Boshamer professor of philosophy and law are 2005 recipients. Fellows are selected by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and recognized for distinguished individual achievement and exceptional promise for future accomplishment. Raleigh has written, translated or edited more than a dozen books on a wide variety of issues related to Russia. He will use his fellowship to research an oral history project, "Soviet Baby Boomers: An Oral History of the Class of '67." Postema has written close to 60 publications, articles and chapters, and has written several books, including "Bentham and the Common Law Tradition." He will use his fellowship to study the discipline of public reason.
Dr. Wei Wang, assistant professor of computer science, was named one of five recipients of the first Microsoft New Faculty Fellowship Awards. The honors, given by Microsoft Research, recognize and support early-career faculty members who demonstrate exceptional talent for novel computer research and thought leadership in their disciplines. Each fellow will receive a grant to pursue innovative research. Wang also is a member of UNC's Carolina Center for Genome Sciences. She specializes in the area of data mining, a branch of computer science focusing on finding patterns within vast data collections. Her research involves developing algorithms to find structural patterns in protein databases.
Associate Professor Yi Zhang from the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the School of Medicine, was selected as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. A member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, Zhang is the University's first biomedical scientist to achieve the prestigious designation, which carries with it a significant research budget. His work with DNA holds great promise in applying basic, fundamental biology research to studies of human diseases such as childhood leukemia.
Dr. Edward T. Samulski, Cary C. Boshamer professor of chemistry, was chosen to offer science counsel to the U.S. Department of State as a Jefferson Science Fellow. He was one of five tenured professors nationwide to receive the prestigious State Department honor. The program brings renowned science professors from American universities to the State Department for one-year assignments, followed by a five-year consultancy after they return to their academic careers. Samulski, a former chemistry department chair at UNC, studies the structure and dynamics of soft materials such as liquid crystals and elastic polymers. In 2004, he and his students found evidence of a biaxial nematic liquid crystal, a scientific achievement that had eluded researchers for more than 30 years.
Research
Carolina ranks among the top U.S. public universities in research support and creating jobs for North Carolinians through new products and spin-off companies. The faculty attracted more than $610 million in total contract and grant funding in fiscal 2007 - up nearly 3 percent from the previous year. That is more than twice the amount the University attracted decade ago. The University aspires to reach $1 billion in sponsored research by 2015.
In 2007, the North Carolina General Assembly created the University Cancer Research Fund to support basic research in medicine, pharmacy and public health, as well as basic science departments of the College of Arts and Sciences through the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. The fund directed $25 million to Carolina in 2007-08 and the total will increase to $50 million per year beginning in 2009.
Ongoing research initiatives include efforts to tackle challenges such as genome sciences, which is unraveling the mysteries of DNA and the human genome. Carolina has committed at least $245 million over a decade to be at the forefront of the genomics revolution. Led by renowned genetics scientist Terry Magnuson, the initiative represents a public-private investment that includes a $25 million anonymous gift creating the Michael Hooker Center for Proteomics to study a specialized area of genetics. Studies using mouse models and advanced computational and analytical techniques are revealing basic knowledge that will have direct relevance to how scientists understand human biology and disease.
Launched in 2007, the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases aims to extend and enhance ongoing research efforts to improve the lives of people around the world. The institute, based in the School of Medicine, builds on Carolina's current global health presence in about 50 countries. Eight full-time UNC researchers and more than 300 local employees are fighting malaria and HIV/AIDS transmission in Malawi. Carolina faculty are targeting the resurgence of syphilis in China and Madagascar and leading an international consortium developing a new oral drug to treat African sleeping sickness, which threatens the lives of millions. Other UNC investigators are active in India, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Russia, Thailand, Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, South America and the Caribbean. Dr. Myron S. Cohen, associate vice chancellor for global health in the medical school, serves as institute director and is a leading expert on the spread and prevention of AIDS.
The Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy, based in the School of Pharmacy, brings together researchers and clinicians across campus to create therapies and treatments for patients suffering from a wide variety of conditions. The institute aims to make drugs safer and more effective and speed laboratory discoveries by translating genetic discoveries into new ways of diagnosing and treating diseases. Howard McCleod, center director, helped identify genetic variants that predispose patients to risk of severe side effects or inadequate benefit from drugs for diseases including colorectal cancer and childhood leukemia. His research also has helped shape Food and Drug Administration guidelines for warfarin, a blood thinner prescribed to more than 2 million people in the United States.
Since 2000, the University has maintained a strategy of targeted investment in "big idea" research themes, knitting together existing strengths in various areas to create broad, interdisciplinary new thrusts.
Recent examples of key new interdisciplinary initiatives include:
The "Roadmap for Medical Research" initiative, intended to focus future NIH funding in 21 broad areas of concentration. The University established a Roadmap Office to position the campus for the highest level of success with this NIH initiative, which encourages researchers to attack difficult problems using interdisciplinary collaboration and sophisticated computational techniques to create quick translations to patient care.
As a result of the work of the Roadmap Office and the strength of Carolina's faculty and their interdisciplinary work, Chapel Hill received 11 grants in the 2006 competition, the highest number to date. Carolina's efforts with this program are among the most successful in the country. Previous projects funded include the Carolina Center of Nanotechnology Excellence, which marries expertise in nanotechnology with patient research at the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI) addresses problems spanning the sciences and engineering, the arts, the humanities and commerce. RENCI rings together technologies and communities to respond to disasters - from storm surges, hurricanes and floods in eastern North Carolina to landslides in the mountains - that require responses no one organization can address alone. RENCI was established in partnership with Duke and N.C. State universities. Its work fosters collaborations across the state, including with other UNC system campuses and state government.
The Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative, funded with a five-year, $3.5 million grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is being matched two-to-one by the university. Carolina is one of seven Kauffman Foundation-designated "Entrepreneurial Universities," chosen through a national competition. UNC is deploying new programs to create a surge of entrepreneurship among students, faculty and staff, including a new minor in entrepreneurship in the College of Arts and Sciences. The program is led by a team managed by the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise.
Data that reflect the current economic impact of technological developments resulting from faculty research include the number of patents, spin-off companies, jobs and licensed technology. In 2006, UNC was awarded 21 patents; started five new companies, bringing the total to 36; licensed 43 inventions; and received about $2.2 million in revenue generated by licensed technology.
Spin-off companies resulting from UNC discoveries include Liquidia Technologies, a 2004 start-up to commercialize inventions from the laboratories of Joe DeSimone, William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Carolina and N.C. State. Liquidia has used a silicon wafer to create molds for making nanoparticles for drug delivery. Possibilities include developing custom nanoparticles for targeted delivery of anticancer drugs. Liquidia's technology also helped the University land one of eight NIH "nanocancer" grants.
Carolina fared well in a comprehensive 2006 survey of university biotechnology transfer and commercialization conducted by the Milken Institute, a publicly-supported economic think tank in Santa Monica, Calif. The survey ranked educational institutions worldwide on their biotechnology publications and patents, as well as their technology transfer. Carolina ranked 28th, 41st, and 25th, respectively, and was among the top four institutions in the South in all categories. Additionally, the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area was ranked 20th by the Institute among biotechnology clusters.
Since the 1940s, scientists at UNC's Institute of Marine Sciences in Morehead City have served North Carolina by addressing important questions related to the nature, use, development, protection and enhancement of coastal marine resources. Its work includes the Neuse River Monitoring and Modeling Project on the Neuse River, which has been designated as one of the nation's 20 most pollution-endangered rivers.
Since the 1960s, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute research and outreach has shaped how the nation cares for and educates young children. Researchers focus on parent and family support; early care and education; child health and development; early identification and intervention; equity, access and inclusion; and early childhood policy. FPG is one of the oldest multidisciplinary centers devoted to the study of children and families. Most of the institute's work addresses young children from newborns through age 8. Examples of projects directly affecting the children of North Carolina include the Nuestros Ni?os Early Language and Literacy Project, which develops and tests an intervention designed to improve the quality of teaching practices related to literacy and language learning among Latino children enrolled in North Carolina's More at Four Pre-Kindergarten program for at-risk children.
Educational and Cultural Resources
From the Ackland Art Museum and the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center to the North Carolina Botanical Garden and Carolina Performing Arts, Carolina offers a vast array of educational and cultural opportunities.
The Ackland is home to a permanent collection of more than 15,000 works of art, particularly rich in Old Master paintings and sculptures by artists including Degas, Rubens and Pisarro; Indian miniatures; Japanese paintings; and North Carolina folk art. Astronomy enthusiasts and schoolchildren from across North Carolina enjoy the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center's multimedia star shows and interactive exhibits. In addition to its displays of native and unusual plants and its nature trails, the North Carolina Botanical Garden offers art exhibits, nature walks and courses on topics ranging from home gardening to botanical illustration. Carolina Performing Arts presents the very best from the full spectrum of the performing arts -- internationally renowned recitalists and orchestras, dance and chamber ensembles, jazz, folk, and world music performers, and opera and theatre.
Public Service
Through teaching, research and public service, Carolina connects with the people of North Carolina every day in ways that improve lives and build futures. The University is committed to addressing the issues that North Carolinians are most concerned about -education, health care and economic development. The University's focus on excellence is to help North Carolina be the best that it can be.
The School of Government helps improve the lives of North Carolinians through engaged scholarship - the application of university expertise to address community needs - that helps public officials understand and improve state and local government.
The Area Health Education Centers Program (AHEC), based at the School of Medicine, works with nine regional centers to bring health sciences faculty and students to North Carolina communities to provide care, share knowledge, reduce disparities among the underserved and help produce the next generation of North Carolina's doctors, nurses and health professionals.
The Carolina Center for Public Service engages and supports faculty, students and staff in meeting the needs of North Carolina by promoting scholarship and service that addresses concerns of the state and contributes to the common good.
Carolina has identified three pivotal areas -- education, health and economic development -- as the focus of the University's current efforts to enhance the quality and depth of engagement with North Carolina.
Following are brief examples representing dozens of programs and initiatives that show the breadth and depth of the commitment that UNC students, faculty and staff have to advance the state's interests.
Education
DESTINY (Delivering Edge-Cutting Science Technology and Internet Across North Carolina for Years to Come), Carolina's traveling science laboratory, takes the latest technology and teaching tools to North Carolina schools. This Morehead Planetarium and Science Center program develops and delivers a standards-based, hands-on curriculum and teacher professional development with a team of educators and a fleet of vehicles that travel throughout the state. The two custom-built, 40-foot buses bring the latest science and technology equipment to students who otherwise would not see a high-tech laboratory or what a career in science can offer. Since the program's inception, 250,000 students have been served.
North Carolina's teachers benefit from the Learners' and Educators' Assistance and Resource Network of North Carolina (LEARN NC), a collaborative statewide network of teachers and partners devoted to improving student performance and enhancing teacher proficiencies via the Internet. LEARN NC, offered free through the School of Education, provides curriculum and instructional tools aligned with the state's Standard Course of Study and a virtual classroom of online courses for K-12 students and teachers. About 20,000 students and teachers visit the LEARN NC website each day.
Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Children with Handicaps (TEACCH), headquartered in the School of Medicine's department of psychiatry, serves 6,000 individuals with autism and their families through nine regional outpatient clinics across the state. Goals include helping individuals function independently and finding jobs for about 1,000 adults.
In 2006, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation selected Carolina to partner in a $27 million program to help more deserving community college students from families with low to moderate income levels earn bachelor's degrees. Carolina is receiving nearly $900,000, and participation benefits students from Alamance Community College, Durham Technical Community College and Wake Technical Community College. The program includes the Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program, which aims to encourage community college students of great talent and potential.
In 2007, the Cooke Foundation selected Carolina as the national headquarters for a new effort to increase college enrollment and graduation among low-income high school and community college students. In partnership with the National College Access Network, Carolina will become the home of the National College Advising Corps Coordinating Office, which will help other universities involved in the initiative.
Through a related $1 million grant from the Cooke Foundation, the University has placed college advisers in 18 low-income high schools across North Carolina. Carolina is recruiting and training graduating seniors to work full time as corps advisers for one to two years with 11th- and 12th-graders, as well as younger students. These efforts draw from a successful Virginia model funded by the Cooke Foundation. In all, the foundation awarded $10 million in grants to Carolina and nine other campuses, including Brown, Tufts, UC-Berkeley and Penn State.
