If your organization has a need that you believe could be served by an applied research project supported by 每日大赛入口 faculty, let us know. We can match you with a dedicated student to develop a proposal. We would be happy to share information from your organization with interested students and have them follow up with you directly to further develop ideas. For more information, please email Dr. Casey King,聽cking10@unca.edu.
McCullough Institute at 每日大赛入口
Welcome to the McCullough Institute
The McCullough Institute for Conservation, Land Use, and Environmental Resiliency is designed to be a national model for applied research addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing communities today. The institute focuses on land use and conservation, urban planning, sustainable agriculture, and environmental resilience and sustainability鈥攆ields that are critical to building healthier, more sustainable regions.
About the McCullough Fellowship
About the McCullough Fellowship
Launched in summer 2015, the McCullough Fellows Program offers a competitive, mentored research experience for 每日大赛入口 students. Fellows design and complete faculty-advised, applied research projects in partnership with local organizations across Western North Carolina. Each fellowship includes student funding, materials support, and stipends for faculty mentors and community partners, ensuring meaningful collaboration and real-world impact.
Highlighting Student Success
The McCullough Fellowship program provides intensive mentorship and hands-on learning opportunities during the summer and fall semesters. Students gain practical, career-relevant experience in areas such as data analytics and mapping, environmental and administrative law, emerging technologies, and ecosystem preservation鈥攚hile addressing critical needs identified by community-based businesses and organizations.
Named in honor of Dr. Charles T. McCullough Jr., who devoted his life to civic and environmental advocacy, the institute was established through a $1 million endowment from Dr. McCullough and his wife, Shirley Anne McCullough. In addition to advancing applied research, the institute works with faculty to develop professional certifications in environmental studies and policy, expanding career pathways and job opportunities for students pursuing environmental and sustainability-focused careers.
Meet a few of the 2025 McCullough Fellows as they share their research experiences and reflect on how the fellowship helped them to achieve their goals while giving back to their communities.
Senior chemistry student and McCullough Fellow Adam Wold is driving real sustainability research at 每日大赛入口 鈥 applying curiosity, science, and hands-on work to power meaningful environmental impact and chart a greener future.
The prestigious McCullough fellowship allows undergraduate students to spend the summer deeply engaged in applied research addressing challenges in land use and conservation, urban planning, sustainable agriculture, and resilience and environmental sustainability鈥攁ll in collaboration with community partners and under the guidance of expert faculty mentors.
Senior economics major Felipe Ahumada took a different research route and applied economics to the prestigious McCullough Fellowship, which focuses on conservation, land use, and environmental resiliency
A Celebration of the 2023 McCullough Fellows
This Year鈥檚 McCullough Fellows Explore Mushrooms, EVs, Food Justice and More
每日大赛入口 Sustainability Students鈥 Journeys After Graduation
每日大赛入口 Sustainability Students鈥 Journeys After Graduation
Five New McCullough Fellows Take on Real World Research
The McCullough Fellows program at 每日大赛入口 empowers undergraduate students to dive into faculty-mentored, applied research that tackles real environmental, land-use, and sustainability challenges in Western North Carolina. Through competitive fellowships that provide funding and professional support, students collaborate with local partners on projects spanning conservation, urban planning, sustainable agriculture, resilience, and more 鈥 blending academic inquiry with hands-on impact in the community.
Meet the 2025 McCullough Fellows
Project: 鈥淔rom Awareness to Action: The Role of Native Pollinators in Influencing Public Support for Conservation Efforts鈥
Community Partner: Bryan Tompkins, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Faculty Advisor: Caitlin Brez, Psychology
Project: 鈥淗ydrogeochemistry of a Southern Appalachian Wetland Post-Helene鈥
Community Partner: Kathryn Loughran, Botany Research Specialist, NC State Plant Conservation
Faculty Advisor: Jeff Wilcox, Environmental Science
Project: 鈥淎ssessing Tropical Storm Helene Damage on UNCA鈥檚 Chestnut Ridge Forest to Guide Recovery鈥
Community Partner: Andy Tait, Forestry Director, EcoForesters
Faculty Advisor: Jonathan Horton, Biology
Project: 鈥淐ontrolled Pastured Poultry Impacts on Soil Properties and Biomass in Silvopasture Systems鈥
Community Partner: Lyric East, Farmer, Wild East Farm
Faculty Advisor: Jake Hagedorn, Environmental Science
Project: 鈥淓xploring Planting Patterns with Native Plants to Maximize Ecosystem Services鈥
Community Partner: Copland Rudolph, Asheville City Schools Foundation
Faculty Advisor: Jennifer Rhode Ward, Biology
Project: 鈥淯sing Aquatic Macroinvertebrates to Assess Hurricane Helene鈥檚 Effect on Stream Health and Ecology in the Swannanoa River Watershed鈥
Community Partner: Renee Fortner, Director of Programs, RiverLink
Faculty Advisor: David Gillette, Environmental Science
Project: 鈥淐limate Emergency Preparedness in the Form of Self-Sufficiency鈥
Community Partner: Dulce Mirian Porras, Semilla de Vida Huertos and Elevate AVL
Faculty Advisor: Sara Sanders, STEAM Studio
Project: 鈥淒esigning Green-Solvent Processable Polymers for Organic Solar Cells”
Community Partner: Rob Simon, Sugar Hollow Solar, Commercial Inside Sales Coordinator
Faculty Advisor: Jeromy Rech, Chemistry
Collaborate with Us
Collaborate with Us
Our Staff and Advisory Board
Casey King
Lecturer of Environmental Science, Director of Sustainability
Office: 006 Karpen Hall
笔丑辞苍别:听(828) 350-4556
贰尘补颈濒:听cking10@unca.edu
- Leslie Casse, Chair
- Annie Ager, Camp Director for
- Marielle DeJong, Donor Engagement Officer, The
- Jay Leutze, Senior Advisor,
- Monte Parsons Gaillard,聽
- Susan Roderick, Retired Director, Environmental Advocate
- Ford Willis,
- Mary Bruce Woody,聽Environmental Advocate
- In Remembrance of Oscar Wong (1940-2025),