Student Stories

As people worldwide cry out for safe drinking water, UNC Charlotte master’s degree student Billy Johnson has discovered a way to help, through nanoscience. Working with his UNC Charlotte faculty mentor Jordan Poler, Johnson has developed a novel nanomaterial.

Hundreds of UNC Charlotte undergraduates have participated in the Charlotte Research Scholars initiative at UNC Charlotte in a 10-week summer program. Those chosen receive a scholarship to work closely with faculty mentors conducting research and participate in professional development sessions to better prepare them for graduate school and careers.

UNC Charlotte student scholars are researching diverse topics ranging from lightning strike patterns in the Southeast U.S. to the connection between Maya Angelou’s poetry and contemporary hip-hop to the impact of UNC Charlotte’s student-run food pantry.

A research team including a senior biology major has made progress towards finding a weak spot in the architecture of a group of enzymes that are essential to antibiotic resistance in a number of bacteria, using a complex modeling program that helps analyze the physical dynamics of large, structurally complex protein molecules.

A team of six UNC Charlotte students, led by chemistry faculty member Michael Walter and architecture faculty member Mona Azarbayjani, has created a solar-responsive design material that transforms windows into environmentally-responsive surfaces that can simultaneously provide shade and convert sunlight into usable electric energy.

Freshman chemistry major Brandon Furr has wrapped up a four-month stint as the first UNC Charlotte intern in the In Vitro Sciences Laboratory at David H. Murdock Research Institute, having gained hands-on research experience and clarity about his future.

Six UNC Charlotte students from varied backgrounds will act as student advisors to the Dean’s Office in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, drawing from their experiences with their studies, internships, and leadership positions.

UNC Charlotte biology major Kayla Kinard has defeated struggles and overcome obstacles that could have stopped her in her mission for an education. Instead, she has found her efforts rewarded with one of six GSK Opportunity Scholarships, awarded to students who have conquered adversity to pursue education.

Two of the three winners for best research posters at the third annual Summer Research Symposium are students in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, and several students who earned honorable mention also come from the college. Over 80 undergraduate students, including the students in the Charlotte Research Scholars summer research program, competed in the poster competition, presenting scholarly inquiry in a broad range of topics.

Two CLAS students and four CLAS faculty — all of whom are in the Honors College — presented their research at the Southern Regional Honors Conference in Savannah, GA, March 27-28. The students are: Maggie Chahoud presented “Characterization of Enzymes Involved in V. vulnificus Capsular Polysaccharide Biosynthesis.” She is an undergraduate majoring in biology and […]