Charlie Nelms
Encyclopedia
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
. As one of the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
's 16 campuses, NCCU is the fastest-growing campus and today enrolls more than 8,500 students.
Prior to joining North Carolina Central University, Charlie Nelms served as vice president for Institutional Development and Student Affairs for the Indiana University system. As vice president, Nelms was responsible for a combination of duties on the Bloomington campus and system-wide that spanned university planning, institutional research and effectiveness, enrollment management, student affairs, academic support services, K-12 outreach initiatives, student retention, honors programs, and diversity and equity. In September 2001, TIME magazine named IU’s Bloomington campus the number-one student-centered research university in the nation. Many of the programs cited by TIME were under Nelms’ oversight and direction.
A native of Crawfordsville, Arkansas
Crawfordsville, Arkansas
Crawfordsville, historically Crawfordville, is a town in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 514 at the 2000 census.Late R&B singer Johnnie Taylor was born in Crawfordsville.-Geography:...
, Nelms majored in agronomy and chemistry at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a historically black university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1873, it is the oldest HBCU and the second oldest public institution in the state of Arkansas . UAPB is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
, graduating in 1968. He later earned a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs (1971) and a doctoral degree in higher education administration (1977) from Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
. Early in his career, Chancellor Nelms held teaching and administrative positions at Earlham College
Earlham College
Earlham College is a liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. It was founded in 1847 by Quakers and has approximately 1,200 students.The president is John David Dawson...
in Indiana, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a historically black university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1873, it is the oldest HBCU and the second oldest public institution in the state of Arkansas . UAPB is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
, Indiana University Northwest
Indiana University Northwest
Indiana University Northwest is a regional university campus in the Indiana University system in Gary, Indiana, USA, established in 1963.-Courses:...
in Gary and Sinclair Community College
Sinclair Community College
Sinclair Community College is an urban community college located in downtown Dayton, Ohio and is the largest community college at a single location in the state of Ohio....
in Ohio.
In 1987, Nelms began a seven-year tenure as chancellor of Indiana University East
Indiana University East
Indiana University East is a regional campus in the Indiana University system. It is colloquially also known as IU East. It is located in Richmond, Indiana, in Wayne County, Indiana.-History:...
, a commuter campus serving east-central Indiana. Nelms demonstrated his innovative leadership as he guided Indiana University to new levels of excellence. During his tenure there, the campus was the fastest-growing college in the state of Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. In 1994, Nelms was named chancellor of the University of Michigan-Flint
University of Michigan-Flint
The University of Michigan–Flint is a public university located in Flint, Michigan in the United States...
(UMF), an urban campus that enrolls over 6,500 students and offers a full spectrum of undergraduate and master’s degree programs. He resolved a significant campus budget deficit, reversed a four-year enrollment decline, and secured more than $75 million in private gifts to UMF.
Active in professional, civic, and higher-education organizations, Nelms served on the Board of Governors for the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, the National Advisory Board of the National Survey of Student Engagement and has chaired the American Council on Education
American Council on Education
The American Council on Education is a United States organization, established in 1918, comprising over 1,800 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education-related associations, organizations, and corporations....
Commission for Leadership Development. In addition, he has served as chair of the Higher Learning Commission, and a member of the NCAA Sports Wagering Task Force. Currently, Nelms serves on the board of directors of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation; the National Advisory Board of the National Survey for Student Engagement; Board of Governors for the Center on Philanthropy; and is a founder and board member of the Millennium Leadership Institute and the Kinsey Institute Board of Trustees, among others.
A former American Council on Education Fellow and Ford Fellow, Nelms holds honorary degrees from Earlham College and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Over the course of his career, he has received numerous awards for his contributions to education and service to students, including the Benjamin Hooks Award for Meritorious Achievement from the Gary (IN) branch of the NAACP, the Distinguished Alumni Service Award from Indiana University, the Distinguished Alumni Award from the IU School of Education, the President’s Medal from the University of Michigan and from Indiana University, and the State of Indiana’s Sagamore of the Wabash
Sagamore of the Wabash
The Sagamore of the Wabash is an honorary award created by the state of Indiana during the term of Governor Ralph F. Gates . A tri-state meeting was to be held in Louisville with officials from Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Aides to Gates learned that the governor of Kentucky was preparing...
—the highest civilian award bestowed by the governor.
Chancellor Nelms has written a book titled Start Where You Find Yourself: Lessons Taught and Lessons Learned. Passionate about ending world hunger, Chancellor Nelms has given all proceeds from the sale of this book to the United Nations World Food Programme, Hoosier Hills Food Bank and to the American Red Cross
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...
for hurricane relief. Nelms is married to Jeanetta Sherrod Nelms. They have one son, Rashad, a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...
who serves as a policy officer with the United Nations World Food Programme.