March 2007 Interior Architecture Advisory Board Meeting chaired by Holly Christian, Gensler.

UNCG continually benefits from the advice and support of more than 500 individuals – executives, professionals, and community leaders – who serve on departmental advisory boards, foundation boards, and executive committees.

The boards have a common purpose of enhancing the work of their programs and departments, but their impact far exceeds a simple list of their objectives and goals. Advisory boards provide the kind of combined expertise that corporations would pay millions for, but that are given freely through the generosity of community and corporate leaders. In the process, these volunteers provide essential real-world insight to UNCG’s teaching, research and outreach programs.

Multiple roles

Hoyt Phillips, president of the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Bryan School's Business Advisory Board, says his group "serves as a sounding board to the Dean and faculty of the Bryan School by providing input regarding the needs of the local business community."

In addition, advisory boards provide direct input to help further the school's mission, goals and strategic initiatives. "For example, certain members of the advisory board provided professional expertise in marketing and promoting the Bryan MBA program, which resulted in the successful MyBryanMBA ad campaign," says Lee McAlister, president of Weaver Investment Company and former chair of the Business Advisory Board.

Advisory Board members are both advisors and ambassadors. "We help keep the school abreast of issues and matters in the community while at the same time promoting and supporting the school's mission and goals in the community," McAlister says.

Opportunities for collaboration

Science Advisory Board member Bill Bucklen, product line director of high speed converters at Analog Devices, sees the board’s purpose as building a bridge between the community and the UNCG. "I look for opportunities for my company to collaborate with the University and to help each other out. I also personally enjoy it because it is my link into the University so I can keep up with what is going on."

The Science Advisory board assists the science departments within the College of Arts and Sciences (Anthropology, Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Geography, Mathematical Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, and Psychology) in achieving their goals of teaching, research, and service. The board provides input on curricula and on such matters as intellectual property policies handled by the Office of Technology Transfer at UNCG.

Sharing knowledge

Holly Christian, interior designer for Gensler, Charlotte and chair of the Interior Architecture Advisory Board, cites the necessity for both the school and the profession to share knowledge. "Students need to understand what opportunities await beyond graduation. As board members, it is our responsibility and commitment to the IArc program to share the experience and trends of our profession, our clients, and the current and future economic impacts to the profession. On the other side of the coin, it is also important for us as professionals to see what students and younger generations are expecting from their future employers."

Patrick Lucas, assistant professor of Interior Architecture and advisory board faculty liaison, says that the students in the program have an edge over other students in school because of the advisory board's involvement. "Knowing professionals and engaging them in dialogue opens doors for students as they seek internships and first-time jobs after school."

The IArc board strives to maintain an appropriate balance between local and regional professionals, and is gradually branching out to recruit members on a national level. They are keenly aware that students, faced with the certainty of working in a global business climate, need to develop a broad understanding of the profession and the world as a whole. Says Christian, "We will all be much more conscientious and sensitive stewards of our profession and our society if we better understand the world around us in its larger context."

UNCG Boards and Committees:
• Accounting and Finance Advisory Council
• Alumni Association Board of Directors
• Alumni House Committee
• Biotechnology, Genomics and Health Research Advisory Board
• Board of Trustees
• Board of Trustees of the Endowment Fund
• Board of Visitors
• Board of Visitors Corporate Relations Committee
• Bryan School of Business and Economics Advisory Board
• Business Administration Advisory Board
• Center for Biotechnology, Genomics and Health Research Advisory Board
• Center for New North Carolinians Advisory Board
• Center for Women's Health and Wellness Advisory Board
• Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies Industry Advisory Board
• Excellence Foundation Board of Directors
• Friends of the Library Board of Directors
• Friends of Women’s Studies
• Human Environmental Sciences Foundation
• Information Security Committee
• Information Systems and Operations Management Advisory Board
• Interior Architecture Advisory Board
• Investment Fund
• Musical Arts Guild
• School of Education Advisory Board
• School of Music Advisory Board
• School of Nursing Advisory Board
• Science Advisory Board
• Spartan Club
• Theater Angels
• Weatherspoon Art Museum Association
• Weatherspoon Arts Foundation