Letter from Phil Kirk

UNC Charlotte Realizes Its Dream

Proving once again that business, industry and education can be powerful partners, the Charlotte Institute for Technology Innovation is bringing national and international attention to the UNC Charlotte campus.

The initial impetus for the Charlotte Institute came in 1998 when the Charlotte Chamber retained ICF Kaiser’s Economic Strategy Group to talk with business and civic leaders to define issues and initiatives critical to the region’s future.

One of the key findings was a strong sense that the dream of UNC Charlotte to become a top-tier research university needed to be accelerated.

The Charlotte office of McKinsey and Company conducted a pro-bono, yearlong feasibility study that agreed this initiative be undertaken to create a dedicated public/private research institute on campus that would stimulate economic growth in the region.

UNC Charlotte established the Charlotte Institute in December 2000. Research within the institute focuses on three primary areas: precision metrology and intelligent manufacturing, eBusiness technology, and optoelectronics and optical communications.

Courses have been offered in optics at UNC Charlotte for 25 years. In November 2001, UNC Charlotte and Western Carolina University formed a partnership in optoelectronics. Clemson University was added to the mix last year with the formation of the Carolinas MicroOptics Triangle. More than $15 million in federal funding is aiding the effort.

Bank of America and Wachovia contributed $1 million each to get the eBusiness Technology Institute started. New business solutions across a variety of applications will be addressed with a special emphasis on data security, privacy, and cryptography.

The Center for Precision Metrology was developed in the late 1980s. It is a National Science Foundation Center. Precision metrology faculty and students measure or develop manufacturing processes for items as small as an Intel computer chip and as large as parts for a Boeing aircraft.

Deborah Clayton arrived on the Charlotte campus last year to serve as the executive director of the institute. She came to Charlotte from Argonne National Laboratory in Chicago, where she was manager of operations for the lab’s Office of Technology Transfer.

A recent article in Ventures Charlotte, a publication of the Charlotte Chamber, described Clayton as a “genuine go-getter.” From North Carolina to California to Brazil, Clayton has participated in 12 conferences, made 22 major presentations, attended 190 symposiums and attended many board and committee meetings.

A number of factors propelled the Charlotte Institute to an impressive beginning before Clayton’s arrival — the commitment of Chancellor Jim Woodward, the campus board of trustees, UNC System and the General Assembly; the support of the Charlotte Chamber and area county commissioners; and an impressive institute board of directors.

Another major factor in the successful early days was a $10 million commitment from the Duke Energy Foundation and the appointment of Duke’s CEO, Rick Priory, to chair the initial board.

The physical facilities of the Charlotte Institute include the existing Cameron Center and Burson Physical Sciences Building and the new Science and Technology Building. Also planned are the Applied Optics and Physics Building and the Engineering Research Building.

Clearly the Charlotte Institute is on track to meet its original goals and is helping to make UNC Charlotte’s goal of becoming a top-tier research center a reality.

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