Leadership Team
College of Health and Human Services / Charles Jeffrey Hardy, Ph.D. M.S.
College of Health and Human Services / Kathy D. Browder, Ph.D., M.S.
School of Health and Applied Human Sciences / Christopher Lantz, Ed.D., M.A.
School of Nursing / James C. McCann, Ph.D., ANP, RN (CAPT) (RET)
School of Social Work / Lori Messinger, Ph.D. M.A., MSW
Charles Jeffrey Hardy, Ph.D. M.S.
Founding Dean, College of Health and Human Services
Dr. Hardy is the Founding Dean of the College of Health and Human Services at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW). He also serves as a tenured Professor in the School of Health and Applied Human Sciences. Prior to coming to UNCW, Professor Hardy served as Professor and Founding Dean of the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health (JPHCOPH) at Georgia Southern University from 2006-2011. Under his leadership, the JPHCOPH developed into a sustainable college of public health that was accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) June 2011. During his tenure at Georgia Southern, he also served as the Dean of the Jack N. Averitt College of Graduate Studies from 2002-2005, Associate Dean of the College of Health and Human Sciences during 2001-2002 and as the Chair of the Department of Health & Kinesiology from 1994-2001.
Professor Hardy began his academic career at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science from 1983-1994. He received his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University in Kinesiology/Psychology and was a post doctoral research fellow in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also holds a M.S. from The University of Tennessee at Knoxville in Exercise Science and a B.S. from East Carolina University in Health and Physical Education. His doctoral dissertation was selected as the Most Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation by both Phi Delta Kappa, Louisiana State University, and the Sport Psychology Academy of the American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. His research focuses on the role of social influence processes in health and human performance. He has published and presented his research and work at regional, national, and international outlets. In the summer of 1988 he was a scientist at the Olympic Training Center at Colorado Springs, Colorado.
His professional affiliations have included Phi Sigma Pi National Honor Fraternity, Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Fraternity, American Psychological Association, the American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, the Georgia Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, the American Public Health Association, the Georgia Public Health Association, and the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology. He is a Fellow in the Research Consortium of the American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance and in the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology. Dr. Hardy has served as the President, Publications/Membership Director and Chair of the Continuing Education Committee of the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology. He has served as a reviewer for the Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, the Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, and has been a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, The Sport Psychologist, and The Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. He has served as the editor of the Sport Psychologist's Digest of The Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology and as the editor of the psychology section of Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.
In 1989 he received the Edgar W. Hooks Jr. Young Professional Award from the North Carolina Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance and in 2009 he received the Distinguished Educator/Researcher of the year award from the Georgia Rural Health Association. In 2010 he was selected by Governor Perdue to serve as a member of the Advisory Council for Public Health in Georgia. In the Spring of 1992, Dr. Hardy was a Visiting Principal Fellow at the University of Wollongong, Australia. Charlie enjoys spending time with his family, participating in sports/exercise, listening to music, reading, travel and the coastal lifestyle.
Kathy Browder, Ph.D., M.S.
Professor and Associate Dean, College of Health and Human Services
Dr. Kathy Browder is the new Associate Dean of the College of Health and Human Services at the University of North Carolina Wilmington effective July 1, 2012. She has been a faculty member in Kinesiology in higher education for more than 20 years. Prior to coming to UNCW,Dr. Browder served as Department Chair for the Department of Movement Sciences at the University of Idaho from 2005 to 2012. During her tenure at the University of Idaho, she also served as Acting Associate Dean of the College of Education from 2009 to 2011. In 2007, Dr. Browder was selected to attend the Management Development Program at Harvard University. Dr. Browder earned her Ph.D. in Kinesiology from Texas Woman’s University, specializing in Biomechanics. She also holds a Master’s of Science in Physical Education, with a specialization in Exercise Physiology, from the University of Tennessee, and a Bachelors of Arts in Adult Fitness from Furman University. Dr. Browder has actively published and presented in her research focus on neuromechanics of injury etiology and prevention and on understanding how mechanics impacts fitness and health gains from physical activity.
At Idaho, Dr. Browder facilitated a number of innovative curriculum proposals, including the development of an advanced clinical doctorate in athletic training, the first in the country. She was very active in coordinating efforts to increase awareness and funding related to health and physical activity for the state of Idaho, working closely with the Departments of Education and Health and Welfare for the state of Idaho. She served on the Steering Committee that developed Idaho Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) Statewide Plan. Her professional affiliations include the American College of Sports Medicine, the International Society of Biomechanics, the American Society of Biomechanics, and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance. She currently serves on the Board of Directors and as Chair of the Research and Analysis Committee for the American Kinesiology Association.
Christopher Lantz, Ed.D., M.A.
Professor and Director, School of Health and Applied Human Sciences
Dr. Chris Lantz is the new Director for the School of Health and Applied Human Sciences at the University of North Carolina Wilmington starting July 1, 2012. Prior to coming to UNCW, Dr. Lantz was a tenured Professor in the Department of Health and Exercise Sciences at Truman State University (Kirksville, MO), where he served as the Department’s chair from 2002- 2012. In that capacity, he led a program in Exercise Science and accredited programs in Health Science and Athletic Training. He also led the department to successful completion of its first capital campaign and partnered with the Truman Institute to develop the Center for Health Initiatives and Programming. Prior to beginning a career in higher education, Lantz served as the founding director of a hospital-based community wellness center.
Dr. Lantz earned his EdD in Sport Behavior from West Virginia University. He also holds a Masters of Arts in Sport Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Bachelors of Arts in Psychology from West Virginia Wesleyan College. Dr. Lantz has received several teaching and leadership awards including the Robert M. Taylor Professional Service and the Scholar of the Year awards from the Missouri Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (MOAHPERD). He also served as the Association’s President and chaired its Research Section for 9 years. Dr. Lantz has served on a variety of boards and committees with the Association of Applied Sport Psychology, Council for Undergraduate Research, Phi Lambda Phi National Fraternity, and the West Virginia University College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences.
James C. McCann, Ph.D., ANP, RN (CAPT) (RET)
Professor and Director, School of Nursing
Dr. McCann’s educational preparation includes a Ph.D. from the Catholic University of America; MSN from Case Western Reserve University, and BSN from Villanova University. He also earned a Post MSN Adult Nurse Practitioner Certificate from George Washington University and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from Washington Theological Union. His areas of clinical expertise are psychiatric-mental health nursing and HIV/AIDS. His areas of research interest include HIV/AIDS, spirituality and palliative care.
Dr. McCann currently serves as Director of the School of Nursing at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) and Professor of Nursing. He has been active in the profession of psychiatric mental health nursing since 1969 as a practitioner, educator, consultant and Commissioned Officer with the United States Public Health Service (USPHS). Prior to coming to UNCW in 2009, Dr. McCann served as the Founding Dean, School of Nursing for four years at Marian University, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
Prior to working in an academic setting, Dr. McCann served as a Naval Officer for 8 years, 22 years as Commissioned Officer with the USPHS and 5 years as a civil servant with DHHS. During his career with the USPHS, he worked in a variety of federal agencies: Branch Chief, Diversity and Nurse Education, Practice and Retention Branch, Division of Nursing, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA); HIV/AIDS Consultant/Project Officer, HIV/ADIS Bureau, HRSA; Associate for Medicare/Medicaid Psychiatric Program Operations, National Institute of Mental Health and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid; and Clinical Psychiatric Research Nurse, National Institutes of Health. Many of these positions involved working with academic institutions, community based organizations, state and local governments, and hospitals around curriculum development, program evaluation, grant writing and management, quality of care, legislative and regulatory compliance and systems development.
Dr. McCann received numerous awards during his federal career. Five of these awards (Hazardous Duty, Foreign Duty, Special Assignment, Isolated Hardship and Crisis Response) were related to his work in Goma, Zaire, Africa with UNICEF. He also worked with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) around HIV/AIDS Testing and Mandatory Testing of Pregnant Women. He has presented at both national and international meetings and has a long history of volunteer service with his church (Permanent Deacon) and community.
Lori Messinger, Ph.D. M.A., MSW
Professor and Director, School of Social Work
Dr. Lori Messinger is the new Director of the School of Social Work at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, arriving at UNCW on July 18, 2011. She came to Wilmington from the University of Kansas (KU) School of Social Welfare, where she was an Associate Professor and served as the BSW Program Director from 2004-2010. Prior to joining KU, she was an Assistant Professor of Social Work at the University of Alabama and North Carolina State University. Dr. Messinger received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Douglass College, a Master of Arts degree in Political Science from Rutgers University, and a Master of Social Work degree and a PhD in social work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Dr. Messinger's primary areas of research include social work practice with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) populations; comprehensive community planning processes; cultural competence in social work education and practice; and organizational change processes, especially in higher education institutions. She has published widely in social work, social psychology, and higher education journals. Among her many publications, she co-authored a textbook and a casebook with Dr. Deana Morrow on practice with LGBT populations with Columbia University Press, and she edited a collection of LGBT-focused teaching modules. She has conducted funded research with the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), Lambda Legal, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), and the North American Case Research Association.
Dr. Messinger was the recipient of the 2006 Distinguished Contemporary Contributions in Undergraduate Social Work Award from the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors (BPD), along with several school and university teaching awards. She has served on boards, councils, and committees with the Council on Social Work Education, the Association of Baccalaureate Program Directors, and the North Carolina Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
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