In North Carolina, all public educational institutions that grant baccalaureate degrees are part of the University of North Carolina.  The University of North Carolina at Charlotte is one of the 16 constituent institutions of the multi-campus state university. 

The University of North Carolina, chartered by the N.C. General Assembly in 1789, was the first public University in the United States to open its doors and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century.  The first class was admitted in Chapel Hill in 1795. For the next 136 years, the only campus of the University of North Carolina was at Chapel Hill. 

In 1877, the N.C. General Assembly began sponsoring additional institutions of higher education, diverse in origin and purpose. Five were historically black institutions, and another was founded to educate American Indians.  Several were created to prepare teachers for the public schools. Others had a technological emphasis. One is a training school for performing artists. 

In 1931, the N.C. General Assembly redefined the University of North Carolina to include three state-supported institutions: the campus at Chapel Hill (now the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), North Carolina State College (now North Carolina State University at Raleigh), and Woman's College (now the University of North Carolina at Greensboro). The new multi-campus University operated with one board of trustees and one president.  By 1969, three additional campuses had joined the University through legislative action: the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. 

In 1971, the General Assembly passed legislation bringing into the University of North Carolina the state's ten remaining public senior institutions, each of which had until then been legally separate: Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, North Carolina Central University, the North Carolina School of the Arts, Pembroke State University (now the University of North Carolina at Pembroke), Western Carolina University, and Winston-Salem State University. This action created the current 16-campus University. (In 1985, the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, a residential high school for gifted students, was declared an affiliated school of the University.) 

The UNC Board of Governors is the policy-making body legally charged with "the general determination, control, supervision, management, and governance of all affairs of the constituent institutions."  It elects the president, who administers the University.  The 32 voting members of the Board of Governors are elected by the General Assembly for four-year terms.  Former board chairmen and board members who are former governors of North Carolina may continue to serve for limited periods as non-voting members emeriti.  The president of the UNC Association of Student Governments, or that student's designee, is also a non-voting member. 

Each of the 16 constituent institutions is headed by a chancellor, who is chosen by the Board of Governors on the president's nomination and is responsible to the president. Each institution has a board of trustees, consisting of eight members elected by the Board of Governors, four appointed by the governor, and the president of the student body, who serves ex-officio.  (The NC School of the Arts has two additional ex-officio members.)  Each board of trustees holds extensive powers over academic and other operations of its institution on delegation from the Board of Governors.

UNC Charlotte aspires to be North Carolina's most energetic and responsive university, offering unparalleled educational opportunities for nearly 25,000 students seeking the highest quality undergraduate, graduate, and continuing personal or professional enrichment in the liberal arts and sciences and selected professions.  The goal of UNC Charlotte is to be a publicly supported Doctoral/Research University – Extensive in North Carolina early in the 21st Century.  UNC Charlotte will be known especially for the individual commitment of each member of its collegial and diverse faculty and staff to extending educational opportunity and ensuring student learning and success, both at the graduate and undergraduate levels; its nationally and internationally recognized capacity for research and scholarship; and its willingness to join its resources in collaboration with those of other institutions to address the major educational, economic, social, and cultural needs of the greater Charlotte region.  UNC Charlotte has a special responsibility to build the intellectual capital of this region. 

The University offers programs in architecture, business, education, engineering, health professions, the humanities, information technology, physical and biological sciences, and social and behavioral sciences.  In order to meet the growing need for higher education in the Charlotte region and in the State, the University continues to expand degree programs and continuing education non‑degree offerings. 

The University is committed to excellence through informed and effective teaching in all academic programs and emphasizes undergraduate instruction as the foundation of life-long learning and advanced formal education.  The students selected for admission have demonstrated a willingness to learn, a capacity to benefit from a broad array of intellectual resources, and the potential to participate in the opportunities offered by the changing global society.  University programs are open to all qualified students without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religious belief, sexual orientation, or disability.  Participation by students from other states and nations is welcomed. 

The size and distinction of our research programs reflects the nationally competitive faculty.  Recruited from across the world, they engage in both basic and applied research.  Scholarly inquiry informs graduate and undergraduate instruction, and takes advantage of the University's location in a diverse and dynamic metropolitan region. 

The campus environment encourages the active involvement of students in their personal and intellectual development, including opportunities to learn leadership skills.  The policies and practices of the University are designed to graduate students with the breadth and depth of knowledge and the intellectual and professional skills that prepare them for a productive life in an ever-changing world.  The University experience will:

• Foster a realistic understanding of their personal potentials;
• Promote a commitment to responsible citizenship and a capacity to lead;
• Encourage  strong ties and commitment to the University and its mission and vision;
• Develop fundamental skills of inquiry in writing, mathematical and logical reasoning,  information literacy and technology, and the sciences
• Develop an understanding and appreciation of the themes of liberal education for private and public life in the areas of arts and society, the western tradition, global understanding, and ethical issues and cultural critique;
• Develop oral and written communication skills;
• Develop the ability to engage in reasoned debate about pressing moral concerns and to resolve them in an ethically sound and responsible manner.

        UNC Charlotte is the only Doctoral/Research University – Intensive in the Charlotte region, fully engaged in the discovery, dissemination, synthesis, and application of knowledge.  It provides for the educational, economic, social, and cultural advancement of the people of North Carolina through on- and off-campus programs, continuing personal and professional education opportunities, research, and collaborative relationships with private, public, and nonprofit institutions. UNC Charlotte has a special responsibility to build the intellectual capital of this area. As such it serves the research and doctoral education needs of the greater Charlotte metropolitan region. 

The primary commitment of UNC Charlotte is to extend educational opportunities and to ensure success for qualified students of diverse backgrounds through informed and effective teaching in the liberal arts and sciences and in selected professional programs offered through Colleges of Architecture, Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Information Technology, and Health and Human Services, and through programs and services designed to support students' intellectual and personal development.  The University offers an extensive array of baccalaureate and master's programs and a number of doctoral programs.  

With a broad institutional commitment to liberal education as the foundation for constructive citizenship, professional practice, and lifelong learning, UNC Charlotte is prepared to focus interdisciplinary resources to address seven broad areas of concern to the Charlotte region:  1) Liberal Education; 2) Business and Finance; 3) Urban and Regional Development; 4) Children, Families, and Schools; 5) Health Care and Health Policy; 6) International Understanding and Involvement; and 7) Applied Sciences and Technologies.

   UNC Charlotte is organized into five administrative divisions: Academic Affairs, Business Affairs, Development and Alumni Affairs, Student Affairs, and University Relations and Community Affairs.   

    The Division of Academic Affairs includes Academic Services; Enrollment Management; Graduate Programs; the Library; Information and Technology  Services; Metropolitan Studies and Extended Academic Programs; International Programs; Research; the Charlotte Research Institute; and seven colleges:  the Colleges of Architecture, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, Engineering, Information Technology, and Health and Human Services.  The colleges offer 85 undergraduate and 60 master's degree options and sixth‑year Certificates of Advanced Study, and 17 doctoral programs.  Many of the departments throughout the University are involved in teacher education. The College of Education, advised by the University Teacher Education Committee, is responsible for these programs.  

    The Division of Business Affairs includes Business Continuity Planning, Business Services, Facilities Management, Financial Services, Human Resources, Police and Public Safety, and Systems Development.   

      The Division of Development and Alumni Affairs includes the Office of Alumni Affairs and the Office of University Development.  Today, UNC Charlotte boasts more than 70,000 living alumni and adds 4,000 to 4,500 new alumni each year.

     The Division of Student Affairs includes departments and services which assist students through every aspect of their education, as well as providing social opportunities.  Included are offices and services such as the Counseling Center, Student Health Services, Dean of Students, Housing and Residence Life, Intramural and Recreational Services, Student Activities, and Venture.

     The Division of University Relations and Community Affairs includes the Office of Public Relations and Marketing, which serve as UNC Charlotte's primary contact with members of the news media and external audiences.  It is responsible for communicating information that promotes the people, programs, news and events of UNC Charlotte.  The office is also responsible for implementing an integrated communications and marketing plan for the university.

         The University of North Carolina at Charlotte recognizes a moral, economic, and legal responsibility to ensure equal employment opportunity for all persons, regardless of race, color, religion, gender (except when gender is a bona fide occupational qualification), sexual orientation, age, national origin, physical or mental disability (except when making reasonable accommodations for physical or mental disabilities that would impose undue hardship on the conduct of University business), or status as a disabled or Vietnam Era Veteran (except when making reasonable accommodations for physical or mental limitations of a person with such veteran status that would impose an undue hardship on the University). This policy is a fundamental necessity for the continued growth and development of this University. Nondiscriminatory consideration shall be afforded applicants and employees in all employment actions including recruiting, hiring, training, promotion, placement, transfer, layoff, leave of absence, and termination. All personnel actions pertaining to either academic or nonacademic positions to include such matters as compensation, benefits, transfers, layoffs, return from layoffs, University-sponsored training, education, tuition assistance, and social and recreational programs shall be administered according to the same principles of equal opportunity. Promotion and advancement decisions shall be made in accordance with the principles of equal opportunity, and the University shall, as a general policy, attempt to fill existing position vacancies from qualified persons already employed by the University. Outside applicants may be considered concurrently at the discretion of the selecting official.  The University has established reporting and monitoring systems to ensure adherence to this policy of nondiscrimination.

Affirmative Action

Our philosophy concerning equal employment opportunity is affirmed and promoted in the University's Affirmative Action Plan.  To facilitate UNC Charlotte's affirmative action efforts on behalf of disabled workers, disabled veterans and veterans of the Vietnam Era, individuals who qualify and wish to benefit from the Affirmative Action Plan are invited and encouraged to identify themselves. This information is provided voluntarily, and refusal of employees to identify themselves as veterans or disabled persons will not subject them to discharge or disciplinary action. Unless otherwise required by law, the information obtained will be kept confidential, except that supervisors and managers may be informed about restrictions on the work or duties of disabled persons and about necessary accommodations. 

Discriminatory Personal Conduct. The University seeks to promote a fair, humane, and respectful environment for its faculty, staff, and students. To that end, University policy explicitly prohibits sexual harassment, racial harassment, and all other personal conduct which inappropriately asserts that sex, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, or ancestry are relevant to consideration of individual worth or individual performance. The same policies provide procedures for the informal or formal resolution of instances where such behavior is suspected or alleged. The policies have received wide distribution and are available for inspection in all administrative offices on campus.