News
Throughout the Spring 2023 semester, Dr. Michelle Zuñiga’s Qualitative Methods in Geography class conducted a community based participatory research (CBPR) with Action NC, a local non-profit focused on economic and housing justice in Charlotte, NC. From the first week of class onwards, graduate students in the class worked closely with Jessica Moreno, Action NC’s Organizing Director, […]
UNC Charlotte is building on its action research legacy to partner university researchers with community leaders to solve the region’s systemic challenges around inequity. As part of this initiative, the University’s Office of Urban Research and Community Engagement is joining Mecklenburg County to lead a seven-month, collaborative initiative to find a sustainable, equitable and economically […]
If all you know of Hidden Valley is news stories and TV shows about gangs, you might picture the neighborhood as a crime hotspot — and little more. But the reality for the neighborhood’s thousands of residents is much richer, more complex and varied than popular media accounts. That’s what Barbara Pinson Lash, a longtime […]
Urban renewal in the West Boulevard on The Charlotte post http://www.thecharlottepost.com/news/2018/09/05/local-state/the-new-urban-renewal-low-income-neighborhoods-built-to-fail/ http://www.thecharlottepost.com/news/2018/09/05/local-state/the-new-urban-renewa…
On Tuesday, October 23, 2018, Dr. Janni Sorensen has been awarded with the Bonnie E. Cone Professorship in Civic Engagement. This prestigious recognition was established in 2017 and is awarded annually to a tenured member of the faculty whose teaching and/or research embody the University’s commitment to civic involvement, and whose work profoundly and systematically […]
In the past year, we have collaborated with the Parent Teacher Organization from Hidden Valley Elementary School, a school that has a population around 1,000 students. It is through our partnership with the PTO that CHARP has attempted to implement strategies that will foster community engagement and provide opportunities for individuals to develop leadership qualities, […]
Activists in Greater Enderly Park have taken a stand and action against real estate speculators in their community. Drawing on tactical urbanism and resistance, they have altered the signs placed along Tuckaseegee to send a message to speculators that they are not welcome.
The Media Mobilizing Project presented Groundwork: Justice in the Birthplace of America at the opening of the Integrated Network for Social Sustainability Conference in Charlotte. The event was a huge success that invited UNC Charlotte faculty and students, community organization representatives, and neighborhood residents to explore how people are standing up for social justice in […]
Jamese Pinkston of CHARP led a group of 12 youth through a discussion about the importance of health in community planning. Youth worked with facilitators from Stratford Richardson YMCA as well as CHARP members and associates. Carolina Health System’s Department of Family Medicine also acted as a partner and faciliatators of the workshop. Youth discussed […]
Funds from the UNCC Chancellor’s Diversity Challenge Fund paid for 12 students and faculty to attend the Dismantling Racism workshop sponsored by Race Matters for Juvenile Justice. The entire CHARP team attended and we invited colleagues from an assortment of disciplines to attend. The feedback from attendees was awesome and we hope to secure funds […]
The following report is our submission to CES4Health detailing the Neighborhood Safety Audit conducted in the Enderly Park neighborhood of Charlotte, NC. Our extensive partnership with this neighborhood resulted in a process of understanding safe and unsafe spaces in this community and building the capacity to address safety issues in the Enderly Park area. The […]
Cache Owens and Tara Bengle presented their research at the 2015 Urban Affairs Conference in Miami. The presentations were well-received and garnered excellent feedback that we can incorporate to upcoming research articles and organizing efforts to support our partner neighborhoods. Cache presented Neighborhood Safety Interventions: Treating Symptoms or Transforming Community? Tara presented Participatory Action Research: […]
We want to send out a big congratulations to Melissa Currie for completing her dissertation. The title of her dissertation is Assessing community resilience at the neighborhood level in new construction starter-homes in Charlotte, North Carolina. Melissa has been an integral part of our CHARP team, bringing a number of unique perspectives to the issues […]
CHARP representatives presented and attended a number of conferences during the 2014-2015 school year. Society for Conservation Biology Imagining America Conference ACSP Conference – Thresholds for Habitat for Humanity Houses in Low-income Neighborhoods – A Case Study of Charlotte NC Association of American Geographers Conference Urban Affairs Conference Upcoming: Tara Bengle will be presenting her […]
The CHARP team created a poster demonstrating how Dr. Sorensen’s GEOG 2000 course provides a unique experience for students. The Service Learning/Engaged Scholarship Showcase featured poster presentations from many disciplines describing the use of service learning and engaged scholarship projects across campus. Projects were diverse and featured case studies, best practices, lessons learned, and innovations […]
The Honors College students under the supervision of Dr. Robert Arnold and Dr. Janni Sorensen completed and presented an impressive history project to the Washington Heights community. Residents and students gathered at the Excelsior Club to see what the students had created with the collaboration of Washington Heights. An assortment of photos and oral histories […]
Elizabeth Morrell, Joe Howarth, and Dr. Janni Sorensen’s article has been published in the Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement. The article’s citation and abstract are below. We are very excited to share our experiences and support the CHARP model in other higher education contexts. Morrell, E., Sorensen, J. & Howarth, J. (2015). The […]
The Charlotte Post detailed the partnership between Angel Hjarding’s Butterfly Highway and the Druid Hills Neighborhood as they work together to reintroduce vital pollinators across Charlotte. The Butterfly Highway also touched down at Moore Place as the tenants built butterfly gardens. Moore Place has become a notable and vital example of Charlotte’s commitment to end […]
Cache Owens has successfully completed her Master’s Thesis in Geography. The title: Black Farms Matter: Black Farmers, Community Organizing, and Farmland Preservation. This research contributes to a larger body of work aimed at highlighting the importance of black farmers. This project analyzed the spatial distribution of black farmers in North Carolina, and the local farmland […]
We are very proud of Tara who has completed her doctoral dissertation, “Learning and Understanding Empowerment Planning: An Emergent Model That Builds Community Capacity to Affect Neighborhood Planning Outcomes.” Tara has been one of the longest-serving members of the CHARP team and we look forward to working with her in the future as we shift […]
An interesting article from The Chronicle of Higher Education about the risks academics take when they engage in activism. When Activism Is Worth the Risk
The students of the Neighborhood Planning class spent a morning volunteering in the Druid Hills Neighborhood community garden. Druid Hills hosted a volunteer day on October 14, 2015 to get a few small projects done in the garden. The students helped to spread compost and top soil, pull weeds, spread materials, and light clean up. […]
Liz Morrell presented ongoing research related to Habitat for Humanity at this year’s Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning in Houston, TX. The presentation was called BUILDING HOPE OR CONCENTRATING POVERTY: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY’S IMPACT ON URBAN NEIGHBORHOODS. The presentation was well received and documented some of our quantitative work around the impact of Habitat […]
Residents of Druid Hills, Washington Heights, and Optimist Park attended a presentation of work conducted by UNC Charlotte students related to oral histories. The event was a well-received success and sparked much interest and feedback on the websites created by students. Optimist Park website Washington Heights website