This Week in LANG 8/25/2025
In this Edition: **Celebrating our promoted faculty, Title IX Training (Mandatory), CHESS Strategic Plan – Please provide Feedback, Upcoming Events, **
Dear colleagues,
We have made it through the first week of classes. I hope you all have a wonderful second week. Please note that today is the last day to add or drop a course and the census date is on Friday this week. Please make sure that students who are in your classes do appear on the roster.
Dates and Events this Week
Monday, August 25
- Last day to add, drop a course with no grade @ 11:59pm
Wednesday, August 27
- 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM, Code of Academic Integrity Workshop via Zoom* (Register)
Friday, August 29
- Census date for Fall Enrollment
Looking Ahead Dates and Events Fall 2025
September 1
- No classes, Labor Day
September 5
- Provide feedback via this survey for the CHESS Strategic Plan
September, 12
- Noon, Early Alert Reporting for 1000 and 2000 level courses, please review CONNECT Faculty Best Practices
September 15
- Fulbright Applications due
- Kick off for German Week: “Black Germans – Afro-GermanExperience in Past and Present.”
September 18
- Deadline to apply for December Graduation
September 25
- Title XI Training due
October 3
- Unsatisfactory Mid-Term Grades due, please see Unsatisfactory Grading At Midterm Instructions
October 7
- CHESS Continuing Faculty (formerly known as Non Tenure Track) Workshop, 1:00-2:30pm, in person
October 8
- CHESS Continuing Faculty (formerly known as Non Tenure Track) Workshop, 2:00-3:30pm, in person
October 9-10
Student Recess, No Classes
October 16
- Last day to withdraw from course(s)
November 11
- Veteran’s Day, no classes
November 26-29
- Thanksgiving Break
December 2
- Last Day of Classes
December 3
- Reading Day
December 4-10
- Exam Period
December 12-13
- Commencement
December 15
- Grades due
Congratulations
Congratulations again to David Dalton, Chris Mellinger, Mónica Rodríguez and Anton Pujol for their promotion to Full Professor, to Javier García León for his promotion to Associate Professor with conferral of tenure and to Noha Ghali for her promotion to Teaching Professor. Our colleagues were honored at a Chancellor’s celebratory event along with faculty who were promoted from across the university. Note that in CHESS our department made up 50% of all promotions to Full Professor. I am so very proud of everyone’s achievements and grateful to them for helping showcase the excellence of our department.
Here are some photos of the celebration:
(not pictured but honored just the same: Anton Pujol and Mónica Rodríguez)
Congratulations also to Sandra Watts, who was appointed Director of the BS in Professional Studies. Please read about the program and her directorship here.
Important Information for Faculty and Staff
Early Alerts
Early Alerts are due for all 1000/2000 level courses by 12:00 p.m.on Friday, September 12. Are you new to Charlotte? Check out the Advisor Tool Kit page. CONNECT Best Practices training modules are located on Canvas under published courses.
CHESS Continuing Faculty (formerly known as Non Tenure Track) Workshops
The college will be offering two in-person workshops for Continuing Faculty regarding promotion and reappointment. This workshop is designed for Continuing Faculty undergoing reappointment or promotion, faculty who serve as chairs, and faculty members of departmental and college review groups. The first session will be hosted on Tuesday, October 7 (1:00-2:30pm) by Dr. Greg Weeks. The second session will be held on Wednesday, October 8 (2:00-3:30pm) by Drs. Chris Boyer and Greg Weeks.
Updated Strategic Plan
Please see here the updated LANG Strategic Plan 2021-26. In the document, any crossed out language means that the action has been discontinued as per the Annual Report of 2023-24. Please note that the Dean has shared the draft of the CHESS new Strategic Plan, for which he is requesting feedback in this survey by September 5.
Mandatory Title IX Training
You have been assigned UNC Charlotte Employees: Niners Know – Title IX Training. Please visit the Learning & Development Portal to complete your assignment by 9/25/2025. All university employees are required to complete the assigned training which can be finished in approximately 15 minutes.
GNL – Globally Networked Learning
The Office of International Programs (OIP) invites faculty to submit a proposal for Globally Networked Learning courses. Globally Networked Learning (GNL) refers to an innovative collaborative approach to teaching that enables students and instructors from different locations around the world to participate in learning, joint projects and creation of knowledge together. GNL allows for access to international experiences for all students and prepares them with global competency skills via collaborative online learning with peers across the world.OIP offers $1250 for a new GNL course and $500 for a repeat GNL course. The submission deadline for Spring 2026 courses is Friday September 5, 2025. Contact Yongling Gorke for questions about proposal submission.
German Week
German Week is coming back this fall. The topic is “Black Germans – Afro-GermanExperience in Past and Present”. The events will take place between Monday, September 15 and Thursday, September 18. We will have a Kick-off event with a pop-up book exhibit, a film screening, two documentary screenings, a lecture and a public talk. Details to follow.
Ginkgo Residential Speaker Series Continues
The College of Humanities & Earth and Social Sciences is proud to announce the continuation of the UNC Charlotte-Ginkgo Residential Guest Speaker Series for the 2025-2026 season. It is open to all members of the greater Charlotte Community at no charge. The marquee series occurs monthly at the Independent Picture House, not far from the center of NoDa and is curated by Jurgen Buchenau, Ph.D., Dowd Term Professor of Capitalism Studies. The schedule features thought-provoking presentations led by expert Charlotte faculty members on an array of topics. capitalismstudies.charlotte.edu
- Monthly at the Independent Picture House, 4237 Raleigh Street, Charlotte; 6 p.m.; Registration and additional details will be available soon on the website; In the meantime, join the Mailing List.
CD&C Alliance Workshop
“CD&D Alliance: What is a Braver Angels College Debate?”
Personally Speaking Series Launches September 24
The Personally Speaking series offers an eclectic range of in-depth research discussions from CHESS faculty in partnership with the J. Murrey Atkins Library. Each speaker is peer-selected to present their recently published research, focusing especially on their personal interests and motivations for studying the topic. Every evening is also a unique opportunity to network and discuss the topic with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other community members during a light reception preceding the event.┃chess.charlotte.edu
- Offered four times a year in the Halton Room of Atkins Library at 5:15 p.m. with a reception at 4:15 p.m. Join the PS Series Mailing List
Breakfast with the Chancellor Returns
Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber will host four Breakfast with the Chancellor sessions for faculty and staff during the 2025-26 academic year, starting Thursday, Sept. 4.
International Festival
Don’t miss the 2025 International Festival from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 27, in and around the Barnhardt Student Activity Center.
Mental Health Training
The next Mental Health First Aid training for faculty and staff is from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday, Sept. 12, in the Cone University Center, Room 111. Participants must complete two hours of pre-work and attend the full six hours of instructor-led training to earn their certificate.
Virtual Financial Coaching
Sign up for a virtual financial coaching appointment with CAPTRUST Financial Advisors, the independent advisory firm for the UNC Retirement Programs.
AI Learning Community
Explore how to effectively integrate generative AI into teaching by joining the Generative AI in Teaching and Learning Faculty Learning Community, an interdisciplinary initiative open to faculty, librarians and instructional professionals across the UNC System.
National Humanities Center professional development webinars
Insights into the NHC Fellowship Experience and Application Process
Martha M.F. Kelly
Vice President for Scholarly Programs, National Humanities Center
August 26, 2025 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Grant Writing 101 for Humanities Faculty
Sylvia Miller
Director of Scholarly Publishing and Research Development, Duke University
September 11, 2025 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Copywriting and Intellectual Property
Will Cross
Director of the Open Knowledge Center, North Carolina State University
November 13, 2025 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Don Solomon
Vice President for Communications and Marketing, National Humanities Center
January 15, 2026 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Joe Milillo
Director of the Library, National Humanities Center
April 16, 2026 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Foster Duckworth analyzed how 19th-century Western notions of indigeneity and the role of alcohol contributed to constructing the image of the Ainu of Japan in the eyes of American employees of the Hokkaido Development Commission.
“It means a lot to me for my research to be recognized by professors and academics who I look up to and aspire to be,” said Duckworth. “This project has shown me that I’m capable of producing high-quality historical research that addresses research gaps and I’m honored to be a recipient.”
“This thesis belongs among the best 10 percent of honors theses submitted in our program in the last four years because of the originality and ambition of its research question and strong primary source analysis,” said Maren Ehlers, associate professor of history and honors program director.
Duckworth, a history major who is expected to graduate in spring 2026, is applying to graduate schools to further his education in Japanese history and colonial and indigenous studies.
“I don’t think I’d feel as capable as a researcher or that my goals in academia were realistic if it weren’t for all the encouragement and reassurance my professors have given me, and the faith in my success they have shown me in the last three years I’ve spent at UNC Charlotte,” said Duckworth.
Thank you for all you do.
All the best,
Anabel