News Release

Local angle: Charlotte

First faculty fellowships, travel grants
awarded through China initiative at UNC

CHAPEL HILL - The first fellowships for Chinese studies and travel have been awarded to four faculty members at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill through the Grier/Woods Presbyterian China Initiative.

The initiative aims to further develop Chinese studies in UNC's College of Arts and Sciences through faculty support, language instruction and study abroad opportunities. It was created through a gift to UNC in 2004 from Amy Woods Brinkley, a 1978 Carolina graduate, and her husband, Robert G. Brinkley, of Charlotte. The gift was in memory of Amy Brinkley's great-grandparents and other family members who were Presbyterian missionaries to China.

Faculty in the college were encouraged to apply to the Carolina Asia Center for the fellowships. Two $18,000 Grier/Woods Presbyterian Initiative Fellowships in Chinese Studies were given to faculty pursuing research projects on China-related topics. Three $5,000 Grier/Woods Presbyterian Initiative China Travel Awards went to faculty who will travel to China to enhance curriculum development by broadening or deepening their expertise on the country.

The recipients are:

• Dr. John Pickles, Phillips Distinguished Professor of International Studies in the geography department, who won both a fellowship and a travel award for his project, "Global Supply Chains and Chinese Apparel Production."
  
• Dr. Robin Visser, assistant professor in the Asian studies department, who won a fellowship for "Cities Surround Countryside: Urban Aesthetics in Post-Socialist China."
• Dr. Eric Henry, lecturer in Asian studies, who won a travel award for "Translation of Garden of Discourse.
• Dr. Steven Rosefielde, an economics professor, who won a travel award for "Beijing and Taiwan: Propects for One China/Two Systems."

"The demand for increased knowledge and teaching about China will only grow in the years to come," said Dr. Kevin Hewison, Carolina Asia Center director and Asian studies professor. "These first awards in the Grier/Woods Presbyterian China Initiative ensure that Carolina faculty are able to enhance their understanding of China, which has significant long-term benefits for teaching and research."

Carolina lists enhancing its engagement with the world among its top priorities for the future as a leading U.S. public university.

- 30 -

College of Arts and Sciences contact: Kim Weaver Spurr, (919) 962-4093, spurrk@email.unc.edu
News Services contact: L.J. Toler, (919) 962-8589