Excitement for a new year at UNC Greensboro is evident across campus – in student conversations at the Fall Kickoff, in warm greetings between faculty members, and in the offices of senior leadership.
The new year also brings three new deans and an interim dean with a passion for guiding scientific discovery and professional preparation across four colleges and schools. Two deans joined UNCG this year, and the other two have been Spartans for years, serving students as faculty and program directors.
UNCG thrives on the richness of academic excellence and lived experience, and the deans are no different. They offer far more than an impressive list of accomplishments – although theirs certainly are. Just like our students, the deans bring with them years of remarkable experiences, wisdom, and perspectives that are sure to make life at the G even more vibrant and inspiring.
Kelly Joyce, Ph.D.
Joyce comes from Drexel University to lead UNCG’s College of Arts and Sciences. Trained as a medical sociologist, her research investigates the social, cultural, and political dimensions of medical technology innovation and use. Prior to arriving at UNCG, she served as the founding director of the Center for Science, Technology and Society at Drexel and as a program director at the National Science Foundation.
What is the most exciting or unexpected place your career has taken you?
I received a grant to study the perceptions and use of MRI technology in Japan. It was fascinating to see how the same profession (radiology) and the same medical device can evoke such different meanings and uses depending on the national context.
What are your hobbies?
I love to garden and plant trees. I plant lots of native plants to create splashes of color and habitat for critters. It’s fun to watch the landscape come alive.
Who is one of the artists on your music playlist?
“I spent all day yesterday watching the grass grow/ What I learned is that grass really grows slow/ … She said have patience/ Everything will be all right/ Patience/ Give it just a little time/ Everything will be all right.”
— From the song “Patience” by singer Catie Curtis
What is something interesting on your desk or in your office?
A bronze turtle with an ocean-weathered rock from my hometown in it. A friend who knows that I love turtles gave it to me to wish me luck at my new position at UNCG.
Joyendu “Joy” Bhadury, Ph.D.
With his background as an accomplished professor and scholar in the Bryan School of Business and Economics’ information and supply chain management department, Dr. Bhadury now steps into the role of dean. Before that, he served as a dean at Radford University and SUNY Brockport.
What are your hobbies?
Reading novels and watching movies and listening to music.
What is the most exciting or unexpected place your career has taken you?
The most exciting place I have been visiting for the last decade has been South Africa, where I work with several universities.
Who are some favorite artists on your music playlist?
Waylon Jennings and Tom T. Hall
What is your favorite season?
Spring
What is your favorite quote from a book, movie, song, or historical figure?
“Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow” (Christine McVie, Fleetwood Mac) because “Only the paranoid survive.” (András István Gróf aka Andy Grove, Intel).
Masud Chowdhury, Ph.D.
Dr. Chowdhury carries on the advancement of cutting-edge research in the halls of the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering. He comes to UNCG from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where his previous leadership experience includes serving as founding director of the Division of Energy, Matter and Systems.
What is the most important academic value to instill in a student?
Personal and professional integrity, and awareness of the rights and privileges of everyone around you.
What is your favorite quote from a book, movie, song, or historical figure?
“Have patience. All things are difficult before they become easy.”
— Persian poet and philosopher Sheikh Saadi.
What are your hobbies?
Traveling and trying different types of food from all over the world.
Who is one of the artists on your music playlist?
Firoza Begum, who is famous for the classical Bengali music genre called Nazrul Geeti.
What is the most exciting or unexpected place your career has taken you?
My train journey through rural Morocco while going to present at a conference. During those six hours, I was trying to figure out where to get off the train. There was no sign in English, and nobody spoke or understood English in that train compartment. A group of more than 40 humble and cordial villagers speaking in a local dialect – a mix of Arabic, French, and Berber languages – were trying to help me when Google translator was not available. It was the experience of a lifetime.
Kimberly Petersen, Ph.D.
A familiar face in UNCG laboratories and research, Dr. Petersen takes up the role of interim director for Lloyd International Honors College. She is a professor of chemistry and biochemistry. Last academic year, she received the UNC Board of Governor’s Excellence in Teaching Award.
What are your favorite hobbies?
Jigsaw and word puzzles. I do all the New York Times puzzles. I also like to knit and read.
Who is one of the artists on your music playlist?
I love the Indigo Girls. They never go out of style on my playlist.
What is something interesting on your desk or in your office?
Right now, I have a vase of flowers that a new colleague gave me, which is lovely. I’ve got artwork and other stuff from my kids when they were really young, so that I can see how much they’ve grown.
What is the most important academic value to instill in a student?
I would say curiosity. If you’re curious, you’re not going to stop after you memorize something. You’re going to try to dig deeper, and you’ll learn critical thinking. Curiosity encompasses a lot of the things we try to teach students. If you have curiosity, the rest will fall into place.
What is your favorite quote from a book, movie, song, or historical figure?
You know, I just watched “The Princess Bride” with my kids, and there are so many good quotes from that movie. My favorite is probably “Have fun storming the castle!” Or, “Inconceivable!”
What is your favorite season?
Fall. That’s an easy one.
What do you like most about your field of study?
Bhadury: My primary field of study is supply-chain management. What drew me to it is the importance of this field in our day-to-day lives, which was highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused severe supply-chain disruptions.
Joyce: I study medicine through a sociological lens. This means that I look at how cultural contexts, belief systems, and policies shape the practice of medicine in the United States. This perspective requires me to step back, to question taken for granted norms and practices in health care. This type of sociological questioning is crucial for reimagining new ways to support both patients and clinicians and cultivate health.
Chowdhury: My field of study is micro- and nanotechnologies, which have been revolutionizing computing, communication, biomedical, industrial, energy, and all other sectors that rely on automation, electronic instruments, and devices. Human civilization has experienced remarkable change during the last 70 years due to the emergence of micro- and nanotechnologies.
Petersen: I love puzzles, and organic chemistry, in particular, is like a giant puzzle. It’s very visual. Look at a molecule, and you can take apart the pieces and figure out how you might put them back together. And there might be different ways to put it together. It lends itself well to that sort of visual puzzle-type thinking.
What is your favorite theory or concept to explain to your students?
Petersen: I enjoy teaching stereochemistry, a theory that describes the 3D structure of a molecule. You get to build a molecule with a model kit – again, like putting together puzzles – or visualize it with computer-modeling software. Students learn to describe the molecule very specifically and precisely, and I find that fun.
Joyce: Medicalization and pharmaceuticalization both draw attention to trends in U.S. medicine. Medicalization describes how more and more of our thoughts, emotions, and physical processes have become labeled disease or pre-disease. Pharmaceuticalization calls attention to how drugs and supplements are often integral to daily life and treatment protocols. Students have often experienced these trends personally in the lived experience of their bodies or through friends or family’s experiences. These two concepts help put their experiences into a broader context.
Bhadury: The Bullwhip Effect in supply chains, essentially the theory of how information distortion takes place across a supply chain.
Chowdhury: The ability to analyze and control materials and particles at nanoscale provides the ability to understand behaviors in organisms that range from viruses to gigantic galactic systems. That understanding is the secret behind every technology we have developed in the last century to radically change the livelihood of human beings.
What do you think sets UNCG apart from other universities?
Chowdhury: Its community-focused mission and affordability while maintaining high academic standards compared to peer institutes make it a desirable academic destination for a wide range of students.
Petersen: UNCG has what you’re looking for at an R1 institution. We’ve got research. We’ve got excellent teaching and professors. But most importantly, we have this family-type, more intimate atmosphere where you can really get to know faculty or your fellow students in an informal setting, making it easier for a new student to speak up.
Bhadury: UNCG combines two attributes that make it distinct: accessibility to education and excellence in education. This is enabled by a university-wide culture of care with regards to our students that is adopted by every faculty and staff.
Joyce: I am struck by how UNCG is part of the surrounding communities. It is not adjacent to or separate from Greensboro and the neighboring towns and cities. UNCG is also committed to being an engine of social mobility for North Carolinians. I have never encountered a university that is so dedicated to its people and its communities. To deliver that commitment on a gorgeous campus is uplifting.
Story by Janet Imrick, University Communications
Photography by Sean Norona, University Communications
