Charlotte Provost Byron White Honored As A 2023-24 Campus Compact Fellow
Byron P. White, the Associate Provost for Urban Research and Community Engagement at UNC Charlotte’s urbanCORE, has been honored with the distinction of becoming a 2023-24 Campus Compact Fellow. This accolade places him among the ranks of expert practitioners and field leaders dedicated to advancing the mission of Campus Compact, a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to bolstering community and civic engagement in higher education.
In his role as a Campus Compact Fellow, White will assume the position of Executive Leadership and Institutional Transformation Fellow for the organization. Specifically, his mission is to further Campus Compact’s overarching objective of deepening civic and community engagement within higher education institutions across the United States. White’s fellowship is intricately linked to the forthcoming publication of a book tentatively titled “Engaging to Survive: A Community-Centric Roadmap to Higher Education’s Future,” scheduled for release in 2025. During his tenure, White will collaborate with members to advance the research and development efforts for this book and will actively engage with senior leaders to construct a portfolio of leadership development programs. Moreover, in partnership with colleagues from the Engagement Academy, he will spearhead a pre-conference institute as part of Compact24 in April 2024.
White’s commitment to the cause is palpable. He shared, “With our commitment to ‘producing transformative solutions to societal issues’ as a stated institutional priority, UNC Charlotte is positioned well to share knowledge and experience around community engagement in support of Campus Compact’s purposeful mission. I’m eager to collaborate with and learn from this year’s expert fellows as we help Compact advance the field.”
Joining the second cohort of Campus Compact Fellows, White is in esteemed company, surrounded by practitioners, scholars, and leaders who are all dedicated to advancing Campus Compact’s work in critical areas such as community colleges, dialogue and deliberation, student-led engagement, rural-serving institutions, anti-racist community engagement, federal policy, intercultural development, field-level research and recognition, and executive leadership.
Bobbie Laur, the President of Campus Compact, acknowledges the significant contribution White is poised to make. She remarked, “Byron’s leadership and experience as a scholar and administrator will contribute greatly to the Compact’s goal of engaging colleges and universities throughout the country for cross-campus collective action. He understands and lives out the value of community engagement as an institutional mission that requires a team approach. As a Campus Compact fellow, he will develop tools that campuses across the country need to make this vision a reality.”
Beyond his role as Associate Provost, White is also a Professor of Practice in the Department of Communication Studies at UNC Charlotte. His academic reach extends further as a research associate at the Kettering Foundation, where he serves on the advisory board of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University and the board of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute at DePaul University. His extensive educational background includes a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in social science from the University of Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Honors Tutorial College at Ohio University. Byron P. White’s remarkable journey is one that brings the values of community and education to the forefront, and his new role as a Campus Compact Fellow solidifies his commitment to this mission.