Faculty & Staff News
This page is dedicated to news about the notable accomplishments and activities of our faculty and staff. Community members are invited to share their news by using this form.
Jan. 6, 2026
Bob Williams Presents Three Papers at ASSA Conference
Stedman Professor of Economics Robert B. Williams presented three papers at the ASSA Conference in Philadelphia, Pa., over the New Year’s weekend. Two of the papers relate directly to his recent book Funding White Supremacy. Bob presented “Generational Wealth and Contemporary Entitlements: Assessing their Impacts on the Racial Wealth Gaps” at an Association for Social Economics-sponsored session as well as “Cementing the Plutocracy Using Stealth Tax Policy” at a Union of Radical Political Economy-sponsored session. They examine how our current tax policy is expanding wealth disparities both along racial and class lines. A third paper entitled “New Estimates on Generational Wealth and its Impact on the Racial Wealth Gap” represents new research and was presented in a National Economic Association-sponsored session. This paper considers the impact of generational wealth beyond simply the intergenerational transfers of gifts and bequests.
Dec. 18, 2025
Natalya Shelkova Presents Research to Southern Economic Association
Professor of Economics and Faculty Clerk Natalya Shelkova presented her research paper at an annual conference of Southern Economic Association in Tampa, Fla., in November. The paper titled "Do diverse boards matter for within-firm pay inequality?" investigates the link between composition of corporate boards and the ratio of CEO compensation to an average employee within 1,500 largest U.S. publicly traded firms. Using the data collected by a provision of 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, Natalya and her co-authors show that more diverse boards (boards with greater representation by women and minority directors), unlike expected, are associated with a higher pay ratio. The researchers explain this finding by greater effectiveness of diverse boards in monitoring and consulting management, which leads to firms' superior financial performance and, as a result, higher executive compensation.
Dec. 17, 2025
Zandra Pinnix Featured in UNC Wilmington Alumni Profile Story
Zandra Pinnix, Assistant Professor of Biology, was recently featured in an alumni profile by UNC Wilmington.
Dec. 2, 2025
Bob Williams Publishes Review Article in British Journal
Stedman Professor of Economics Robert B. Williams published an article entitled “Stealth (Tax) Policy and the Widening Racial Wealth Gap in the USA” in the British journal History and Policy. The review article offers a specific slice of his new book Funding White Supremacy: Federal Wealth Policies and the Modern Racial Wealth Gap.
Oct. 6, 2025
George Guo Published An Article on Chinese Politics
Political Science Professor George Guo published an article titled "Patterns Of Appointment And Promotion In China’s Officialdom" in Background Briefs, No. 1774.
The appointment power of Chinese officials during the Mao era was concentrated in the hands of higher-level leaders, with official appointments largely influenced by their decisions rather than formal bureaucratic procedures. Since the reform and opening up, efforts have been made to rectify the deficiencies of the cadre system, such as excessive centralization of power, nepotism, personal and career guanxi networks, and the lifelong tenure of leading cadres. The party leadership has championed the construction and enhancement of various selection and appointment mechanisms.
Under President Xi Jinping's leadership, the Chinese Communist Party has introduced more detailed and stringent rules and procedures for cadre selection and appointment. Institutional supervision over cadre selection has reached unprecedented levels of intensity. Written records at every stage of the cadre selection process are now more comprehensive and standardized, rendering the performance of all actors in this process more traceable. This enhances the ability of superiors within the bureaucratic system to effectively supervise and hold subordinates accountable.
Timothy Kircher Presents Plenary at Triennial Boccaccio Meeting
Timothy Kircher, H. Curt '56 and Patricia S. '57 Hege Professor of History, was the plenary speaker along with Professor Simone Marchesi of Princeton University at the triennial meeting of the American Boccaccio Association, held Sept.18-20 in Chicago. At the event, Tim and Simone held a public conversation on the ongoing relevance of the writings of Florentine poet and humanist Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375), especially the Decameron, his most famous work. Tim's essay, “Care and Culture in Boccaccio’s Later Letters: Tracing the Contours of humanitas," was published in Boccaccio Internazionale - International Boccaccio: Selected Papers of the 5th Triennial Conference of the American Boccaccio Association, ed. V. Cappozzo, M. Fritz-Morkin, R. Monodutti and K. Olson (Florence: Olschki, 2025), 229-242.