In 2018, UNC School of Government faculty member Leisha DeHart-Davis was recognized as one of nine Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars for their community engagement through scholarly endeavors. The program, an initiative of the Carolina Center for Public Service, brings together selected faculty from across campus for a two-year experiential, competency-based curriculum designed to advance their engaged scholarship.

DeHart-Davis conducts research for North Carolina cities and counties on public organizational behavior as part of the Local Government Workplaces Initiative. Participating local governments receive critical information about employees’ perspectives on a range of workplace issues, while participating academics acquire on-the-ground data for pragmatic theory building and testing.

DeHart-Davis said, “The Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars experience equipped me to build stronger relationships with local government partners and to expand my outreach to practitioners who can benefit from the research. This program deepened my understanding of the importance of developing community partners and communicating with them on a consistent basis.”

The Carolina Center for Public Service created the Faculty Engaged Scholars program in 2007 to advance faculty involvement in engaged scholarship. In 2013, an endowment honoring UNC’s former chancellor H. Holden Thorp was established to support faculty in the program. Selected through a competitive process, Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholars learn about and pursue community engagement through scholarly endeavors during the two-year program. Since the program began, 63 faculty members have been selected from 12 professional schools and the College of Arts and Sciences, representing more than 28 departments.

DeHart-Davis is professor of public administration at the School of Government, teaching human resource management and a course titled Navigating Diverse Perspectives in the master of public administration program. She has published in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Public Administration Review, International Public Management Journal, Administration and Society, and Review of Public Personnel Administration. DeHart-Davis holds a Ph.D. in public policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology.