Community Engagement

Longtime UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens Director Larry Mellichamp ’70, who retired as director in 2014 after almost four decades directing the gardens, is the seventh person ever to receive the prestigious Flora Caroliniana Award from the North Carolina Botanical Garden.

A dozen UNC Charlotte students, faculty and staff joined other volunteers on Sunday, April 25 to install Barton Creek Greenway Native Meadows, a community native plant project in University City. They worked to install 25 varieties of plants to beautify the area and to provide education to people who want to use native plants.

The Personally Speaking published experts series in its 11th season looked at drones, cats, and Africa. Three UNC Charlotte scholars/researchers in 2020-2021 talks discussed books they have written and how they came to write them during the annual series.

This year’s UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens sale format will offer a wide selection of plants and the expertise of Gardens’ staff. However, it will feature online ordering instead of in-person shopping, and scheduled in-person pick-ups. For non-members, online sales begin Sept. 26 at 7 a.m.

Community members who have sought solace in the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens after the tragic events of April 30 have found refuge and connections.

A new collaborative effort called the Bridges to Baccalaureate Program is designed to help students at UNC Charlotte, Gaston College, and Rowan-Cabarrus Community College complete undergraduate biomedical degrees and, ultimately, succeed in biomedical careers. The initiative is made possible through support from the National Institutes of Health, with funding expected to total $1.37 million over five years.

UNC Charlotte biology alumna and Cabarrus County teacher Jessie L. Enlow stood at the front of the UNC Charlotte Biological Sciences laboratory, holding up slips of paper that were marked up to represent DNA sequencing. As part of the NC Science Festival series of events at UNC Charlotte, Enlow was a member of a team presenting ways for public school teachers to incorporate biotechnology concepts and tools in their classrooms.

Academically talented, low-income students who want to study biological sciences can find life-changing opportunities through a new regional partnership among UNC Charlotte, Gaston College and Rowan-Cabarrus Community College. This innovative initiative is possible as a result of $4.5 million in funding from the National Science Foundation’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program.

The Helping Hand Project is a student-led and faculty-backed nonprofit organization that uses 3D printers to create recreational prosthetics for children, at no cost. These forward-thinking students are using their innovative, collaborative minds and the equipment in UNC Charlotte’s
Makerspace to create the life-changing devices.

Since 1966, the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens has served as an outdoor oasis and vibrant classroom for the campus and broader Charlotte community. The Botanical Gardens are open to the public and offer 6,000 plant species over its 10 acres.