Gambrell Faculty Fellowship: Opportunity in Action

The Gambrell Foundation was created in 1988 with a primary focus to help bridge inequities in society and transform Charlotte-Mecklenburg into a beacon of economic mobility, human flourishing, and equitable living. In 2014, after research by Raj Chetty, Nathaniel Hendren, Patrick Kline, and Emmanuel Saez found that Charlotte ranked 50th in economic mobility out of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the United States, The Gambrell Foundation invested early and was a strategic leader in our community’s response.

Recognizing that economic mobility is one part of and a path to human flourishing, The Gambrell Foundation has recently expanded its investments to address the question, “what does it mean to live a great life?” In addition to their ongoing investments to secure economic mobility for all children in the Charlotte region, they are also exploring and funding bold ideas in Charlotte and around the world that foster connection and purpose, including initiatives on belonging, relationships, and awe and wonder as components of a great life that everyone deserves to experience.

The UNC Charlotte Urban Institute is our region’s applied research and community outreach center. We engage expertise across a diverse set of disciplines and life experiences to curate data and conduct actionable research and policy analysis. We equip change agents with the information and tools they need to ensure that everyone in our city and region thrives.

The Institute works across the complex arenas that can create or hinder our shared quality of life in the greater Charlotte Region, including arts and culture, the economy, education, the environment, health and mental health, housing, justice and safety, civic engagement and belonging, and transportation.

Drawing from the missions of both the Foundation and the Institute, the Gambrell Faculty Fellowship seeks to support innovative scholarship – including research, thinking, and doing – that leads to a great quality of life for everyone in the Charlotte region and beyond.

Since inception, the Gambrell Faculty Fellowship has named 49 Faculty Fellows and supported 30 research projects that represent seven University colleges. The represented colleges include:

• Arts + Architecture
• Business, Computing & Informatics
• Education
• Engineering
• Health & Human Services
• Humanities & Earth and Social Sciences

Gambrell Faculty Fellows also represent 22 academic disciplines and their research has resulted in community based tools, ongoing collaborations, and competitive federal grants. Some have even been featured in peer reviewed publications!

In addition to their project, Gambrell Fellows participate in skill-building seminars and experiences focused on effectively translating their work to the broader community so that people living in the greater Charlotte region benefit from it. And this year, Fellows will also have access to a Gambrell Visiting Scholar to explore, cross-pollinate, and co-create ideas and solutions.

View work, highlights, and conversations with faculty fellows over the years below.

Meet Our Past Gambrell Faculty Fellows

Previous Gambrell Faculty Fellows cohorts

• 2025 Gambrell Faculty Fellows to Study Charlotte Region’s Most Pressing Challenges (January 2025)
• New Gambrell Faculty Fellows address critical community questions (September 2023)
• Fourth Gambrell Faculty Fellows cohort will focus on different asects of equity (August 2022)
• Third Gambrell Faculty Fellows Cohort: Closing the racial wealth gap, understanding Black women’s resilience, bridging the digital divide and making the transit system work for everyone (August 2021)
• A Groundswell for Charlotte: New Gambrell Faculty Fellows address Economic Mobility (August 2020)
• The Urban Institute Research Faculty Fellows seek to better our region (August 2019)