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ACCESS Summary

Overall Score: .80

Campus History:

UNC Charlotte opened as The Charlotte Center on Sept. 23, 1946 , offering night classes to returning war veterans. After three years, the state closed the center, believing that the on-campus facilities were insufficient to meet the needs of returning veterans and recent high school graduates. Because of the unmet needs of higher education in the Charlotte area, businessmen and politicians requested a junior college, Charlotte College , to open years later.

As soon as Charlotte College was firmly established in 1964, the state ultimately began to support it and gave it a campus of its own. In 1965, the state made Charlotte College a branch of the UNC system.

Students, Faculty, and Administration:

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte is the fourth largest of the 16 institutions within the UNC system. It is the largest establishment of higher education in the Charlotte area. The university is home to 20,000 undergrad students and 4,000 graduate students, 55% of whom are women. UNCC projects their student body to be greater than 25,000 by 2010. UNC Charlotte’s faculty includes: 879 full-time members with nearly 90 percent holding the highest degree in their field. The student-faculty ratio is approximately 15 to 1.

The University prides itself of diversity. It is compromised of students from 98 counties in North Carolina , 44 states, and 80 foreign countries. Minorities comprise about 25.2 percent of UNC Charlotte’s student body, including African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics, and Native Americans.

UNC-Charlotte is a doctoral and research intensive university comprised of seven colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences and six professional colleges including: Architecture, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Information Technology, and Health and Human Services. 80 programs lead to bachelor’s degrees, 58 master’s degree programs and 12 doctoral programs. The university also offers a multidisciplinary Honors College for undergrads and grads.

The university is home to many outreach and research opportunities. UNCC’s contract research amounts to more than $24 million a year, and the university’s outreach programs extend into each of the 13 counties in the surrounding metropolitan region. The university serves the state and nation through interdisciplinary programs such as the: Charlotte Research Institute, the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, Ben Craig Center (a business incubator), Center for International Studies, Office of Continuing Education, Extension and Summer Programs, Center for Applied and Professional Ethics, the Global Institute for Energy and Environmental Systems and the 3,200-acre University Research Park, which employs more than 25,000 workers a year.

UNCC confers about 4,000 degrees a year and has approximately 70,000 living alumni. The university's 1,000 acre campus holds 74 buildings on prime property, including many athletic activity centers for the UNCC 49ers.

Weather and Topography:

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte is located in a beautiful, growing city along the state line located in the Piedmont Region of North Carolina. Located in the southwest part of the state, Charlotte is approximately 2.5 hours from the state capitol of Raleigh , and 4.5 hours from the beach located in the eastern part of the state. It is the nation’s 35th largest city, consisting of a 13-county metropolitan region, which includes 1.5 million people. The campus consists of rolling hills along with some flat, low-lying areas at an elevation of 748 feet. The weather is moderate most of the year with slight chances of snow in the winter, averaging .65 inches per year, and a few hot days in July. The average temperature in the fall lies at 72 degrees, in the winter it rests at 50 degrees, the spring yields an average temperature of 75 degrees, and the summers are relatively mild with average temperatures resting right at 85 degrees. Charlotte gains a moderate amount of precipitation per year, with the highest volumes occurring in March where the average rainfall is 4.43 inches. Most students take pleasure in the temperate climate throughout the school year and the enjoyment of a growing metropolitan city.

Disability Services:

UNCC’s Office of Disability Services serves as a resource for UNC Charlotte employees and students with disabilities. The office works closely with the Director of Human Resources and the Associate Provost for Enrollment Management (who acts as the accessibility Compliance Officer) in order to ensure accessibility throughout the campus. All students admitted to the university and employees with a disability are required to report their disability to the attendants at their own responsibility. The University uses existing resources for educational aids from rehabilitation agencies and private charities and other organizations. In conditions where the University provides the educational aid, the University has the right to decide upon the methods. For more information regarding disability services and their subsequent organizations, please visit the campus legal site.