Memorial Jury & Advisory Group

The Niner Nation Remembrance Commission recommended the creation of a significant, focal memorial and commemorative space in Belk Plaza, between the front of Kennedy and the recently completed ellipse and fountain. The concept and objectives for the memorial will be to:

  • Remember Reed Parlier and Riley Howell by name.
  • Acknowledge those wounded, both physically and psychologically.
  • Evoke the unity, strength, and resilience of the UNC Charlotte community.
  • Create a commemorative space that is interactive and/or occupiable.
  • Combine landscape, architecture, and art to provide a place of pause in the center of campus.
  • Be appropriate to scale of the site and existing landscaping, hardscaping, and architecture of the surrounding campus and integrate the memorial into Belk Plaza.

Chancellor Dubois accepted the main tenets of the Commission’s recommendations regarding a multi-stage selection process. To manage this process, he appointed two groups that together form one large committee. Brook Muller, Dean of Arts + Architecture, served as chair of the consolidated committee. The first of the two groups is the formal design jury, as recommended by the Commission. This group consisted of architectural and public art professionals who formally made the recommendation to the Chancellor on the selection of an architectural and artistic team to develop the memorial and ultimately the choice of a final design. The second of the two groups included an advisory group of faculty, staff, students, and alumni who did not vote in the selection process but participated significantly in the discussions with the jury about the memorial proposals, providing their insights and perspectives. The members of the design jury and advisory group are as follows:

MEMORIAL JURY

Brook Muller, Chair

Brook is the newly appointed Dean of the College of Arts + Architecture at UNC Charlotte. He most recently served as a Professor and Director of the Architecture Program at the University of Oregon.

John Boyer

As the first President and CEO of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, John oversaw its construction and led it through its first decade of operation. He is recently retired.

Harvey Gantt

Harvey Gantt has enjoyed a successful career as an architect and was honored in 2009 with the naming of the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture. He served as Charlotte’s mayor from 1983 to 1987. He was co-director of the architectural team that designed UNC Charlotte’s Center City building.

Carla Hanzal

Carla is the Vice President of Public Art for the Charlotte Arts & Science Council and former curator of modern and contemporary art at The Mint Museum of Charlotte. She served as a member of the Niner Nation Remembrance Commission.

Jonell Logan

Jonell is the Executive Director of the League of Creative Interventionists, a non-profit organization that provides resources to artists and emerging community leaders in their neighborhoods. She founded 300 Arts Project LLC, an arts management and consulting firm.

Emily Makas

Emily is Associate Professor of Architectural and Urban History at UNC Charlotte and Interim Associate Director of the School of Architecture. She is a nationally recognized scholar of memorial architecture. She served as a member of the Niner Nation Remembrance Commission.

Tahlya Mock

Tahlya Mock, from Charlotte, is a second-year student at UNC Charlotte majoring in architecture.

Charles Thomas

Charles is the director of the Knight Foundation of Charlotte. A Duke University graduate, he is also a photographer and previously served as the director of education of The Light Factory Contemporary Museum of Photography and Film.

Emily Zimmern

Emily is the former President and CEO of the Levine Museum of the New South. She served as chair of the Niner Nation Remembrance Commission.

Memorial Advisory Group

Kim Bradley

Kim serves as Chief of Staff to UNC Charlotte Chancellor Philip L. Dubois.

Frenchie Brown

Frenchie is Senior Vice President and Anti-Money Laundering Channel Engagement Manager at Bank of America. She is also a graduate of UNC Charlotte and currently serves on the UNC Charlotte Alumni Board.

Peter Franz

Peter works within the planning unit of UNC Charlotte’s Facilities Management team as the Campus Landscape Architect.

Rick Gundacker

Rick is a Lieutenant with the UNC Charlotte Police Department. A retired detective with the NYPD, he was the first officer to respond on April 30.

Kathryn Horne

Kathryn is UNC Charlotte’s Director of Planning, Design, and Construction. She is responsible for ensuring that campus space is utilized efficiently and effectively.

Janet Levy

Janet is Professor Emerita in UNC Charlotte’s Department of Anthropology and a former chair of that department. She retired in 2017 with 37 years of service.

Meg Morgan

Meg is Professor Emerita in UNC Charlotte’s Department of English and a former president of the Faculty Council. She retired in 2015 after 28 years which included serving as Director of Rhetoric and Writing from 1994-2003.

Tahlieah Sampson

Tahlieah is a current student from Raleigh and a member of the Student Government Association. She currently serves as the press secretary of the SGA.