Research Centers & Institutes

The One Doing the Talking

Across the nation, data indicate that meaningful conversations between teachers and students from kindergarten to third grade are limited to an average of 28 total minutes per day — something that prevents children from developing their ability to communicate in important ways. The Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute’s FirstSchool initiative strives to change that.

UNC’s Largest-Ever Research Award Reaches $232 Million

MEASURE Evaluation is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) led by UNC’s Carolina Population Center (CPC). Three years ago, the project was awarded one of UNC’s largest awards ever—$179 million for MEASURE Evaluation to work with developing countries to strengthen their public health information systems. Because of the project’s strong reputation for excellent work, the demand for its service has steadily increased. USAID just added another $52 million to the project’s funding ceiling.

New Name, New Emphasis for Environmental Program at UNC

A new interdisciplinary program in the UNC College of Arts & Sciences called Environment, Ecology, and Energy (E³P) will teach students how to best manage resources in an ever-changing world.
Woman in Science: Thu-Mai Christian

Thu-Mai Christian is the assistant director for archives at the Odum Institute for Social Science. She researches how to make data management and sharing integral to normative research practice.
Woman in Science: Penny Gordon-Larsen

Penny Gordon-Larsen is a professor and associate chair for research in the Department of Nutrition within the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her research focuses on understanding, preventing, and treating obesity and its associated cardiometabolic diseases.
Why More Sharks Are a Good Thing

UNC marine scientists catch sharks of all sizes and varieties to help track the health of the predators that lurk in the mid-Atlantic and learn how they reflect the health of the ocean and its ecosystems.
Chasing Choline

From his lab in a textile mill-turned-food research center, UNC nutrition scientist Steven Zeisel has brought choline, an essential nutrient, to the world’s attention.