TEDxUNT event
Straight from Smatresk

Dear UNT supporter,

During Homecoming Week, I find myself reflecting on the tremendous progress UNT has made since I arrived in 2014. We've completed numerous building projects, added in-demand degree programs, increased enrollment, retention, fundraising and research productivity, earned Tier One, Minority-Serving and Hispanic-Serving designations, and so much more. I know our alumni must be overwhelmingly proud to know that as we transform, we remain committed to our mission to help students thrive in our rapidly changing world.

Thanks to the Texas Legislature's recent decision to authorize the use of tuition revenue bonds, UNT will build a 167,700-square-foot research facility to continue fulfilling the needs of our Tier One researchers and students. This $113.4 million project will provide additional state-of-the-art space for faculty and student researchers to carry out solutions-based research. This construction project will increase our research capacity, and thus our ability to impact the state and beyond.

Our progress also extends to the fields, courts, pools, and tracks where our student-athletes compete. UNT's acceptance into the American Athletic Conference is the result of many years of focused progress for Mean Green Athletics. Joining The American, a Power 6 conference that is home to schools with great academic reputations, will provide UNT with greater exposure and our student-athletes opportunities to shine nationally.

I invite all of our Mean Green Nation to participate in Homecoming Week with us, embrace our traditions, and celebrate our university. In addition to honoring many great alumni at the Distinguished Alumni Achievement Awards and hosting the traditional Homecoming Bonfire, we are welcoming the Eli Young Band back to campus for a concert at the Coliseum. Concert tickets are $30 and all proceeds will go to student scholarships. Homecoming festivities wrap up Saturday, Nov. 13, when the Mean Green face off against UTEP at Apogee Stadium. Kickoff is at 3 p.m., so get your tickets now and plan to join us for the festivities!

UNT Proud,
Neal Smatresk
President
twitter @UNTPrez

The Inside Scoop
Chancellor finalist
UNT Health Science Center President Dr. Michael R. Williams is the sole finalist for the position of UNT System chancellor. Dr. Williams is a HSC alum and has served as president since 2013, growing the reputation and stature of the institution in areas of medical education and research. He will be the UNT System's fourth chancellor and succeed Lesa B. Roe, who in June announced her intention to retire in March 2022. I have great respect for all Dr. Williams has done for HSC, and I look forward to working with him to help build a stronger UNT System to serve the State of Texas.
 
 
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Dr. Michael R. Williams »
Chef Bryant Terry
UNT is proud to host Bryant Terry, a James Beard Award-winning chef, author, and food justice activist, on Nov. 16 for the President's Lecture Series, and Nov. 17 for the College of Merchandising, Hospitality and Tourism's Heart and Soul Full Guest Chef Day at The Club at Gateway. Terry's Nov. 16 lecture, "Food Justice at the Intersection of Food, Politics, Poverty, Public Health and the Environment," is free and open to the UNT community. All proceeds from CMHT's Nov. 17 Guest Chef Day will benefit UNT's Hospitality Program.
 
 
 
 
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Terry's Nov. 16 lecture »
Spotlight on Excellence
Citizen scientists help identify possible correlation between heat and air pollution

Dr. Lu Liang (pictured third from right) and her research team are testing whether there's a correlation between heat and air pollution in urban areas with the help of citizen scientists who are installing small air quality sensors at their homes, businesses, and schools to collect data. Dr. Liang, assistant professor in the Department of Geography and the Environment, received a $400,000 National Science Foundation grant to deploy a low-cost sensor network throughout Denton County. The sensors measure particulate matter, and the data will be available to researchers and citizens through an online map that shows air quality changes wherever the sensors are installed throughout the country. Some of the sensors will provide data for a collaborative project between UNT's Advanced Environmental Research Institute and the City of Lewisville to create a new park in support of the city's initiative to ensure every resident has a park within a 10-minute walk of where they live.

Mean Green hoops hit the hardwood

Basketball season is underway at the Super Pit following wins by both the Mean Green men's and women's basketball teams during Tuesday's season openers. Led by coach Grant McCasland, the men's basketball team is coming off a historic season where they won the conference tournament and became the first team in UNT history to win a March Madness game. The women's basketball team has an impressive roster, including pre-season Conference USA Player of the Year, Quincy Noble, and boasts three talented transfers and returning point guard Jazion Jackson. Get your season tickets now and join us this season at the Coliseum to cheer on our Mean Green teams!

Faculty honors and achievements

Our faculty consistently earn awards and acclaim for their professional excellence and dedication to teaching, research, and service. Cornelius "Neil" Foote Jr. (pictured), a principal lecturer in the Mayborn School of Journalism, recently was named a member of the National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame and will be inducted during a virtual awards ceremony Dec. 4. Earlier this week, we celebrated a remarkable career milestone for Chemistry Professor Dr. Bill Acree, who had his 1,000th work accepted for publication. Nearly half of Dr. Acree's published articles have been co-authored by graduate, undergraduate, and high school students that he has mentored over the years. His dedication to collaboration and student engagement epitomizes what makes a UNT education. I also want to call attention to three faculty recipients of the prestigious U.S. Fulbright Scholar Program. Dave Meder, assistant professor of jazz piano, will travel to Egypt to explore and refine his teaching methodology of jazz improvisation with students at the Cairo Conservatoire. UNT's 2020 Fulbright recipients — Dr. Shobhana Chelliah, Distinguished Professor of linguistics and associate dean of research and development in the College of Information, will complete her Fulbright-Nehru fellowship in India, and Julie Leventhal, principal lecturer in UNT's Honors College, will head to the University of Bucharest in Romania. Congratulations to everyone on their tremendous accomplishments!

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