Charlotte’s new med school: high-tech, hands-on
Plus: Creator of iconic uptown bronze disc passes away; Construction keeps cooling; Transit tax costs; Levine Foundation explains stepped-up giving; Carolina Lightnin' memories; Beds for Kids growing
Good morning! Today is Monday, July 14, 2025. You’re reading The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with local business-y news and insights for Charlotte, N.C.
Need to subscribe — or upgrade your Ledger e-newsletter subscription? Details here.
Today’s Charlotte Ledger is sponsored by T.R. Lawing Realty:
The doctors are in: The Wake Forest University School of Medicine launches in Charlotte today — with digital dissections, robotic patients and problem-based learning
Students at the new Charlotte campus of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine will learn on computerized patient dummies known as “manikins” and will have other high-tech tools to help them learn. (Photos by Michelle Crouch)
By Michelle Crouch
Co-published with N.C. Health News
When the Charlotte campus of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine holds its first classes today, it marks more than the arrival of the city’s first four-year medical school.
It also brings to North Carolina a novel approach to training doctors — one that ditches the traditional cadaver lab and old-school lectures in favor of virtual dissection, life-like robots and a new curriculum built around medical problem-solving.
“We are taking a new approach to medical training here in Charlotte,” said Dr. Roy Strowd III, vice dean for undergraduate medical education. “We’re doing it in a new and forward-thinking way.”
Here are some of the non-traditional approaches the school will use in training its first class of 49 students:
High-tech robots: Students will practice their skills on high-fidelity “manikins” (computerized patient dummies) that can breathe, cough, talk and go into cardiac arrest. The school has manikins that represent patients of all ages, even premature babies born at 27 weeks. Instructors can watch student interactions from behind a two-way mirror in the room.
Digital anatomy lab: Instead of taking anatomy in a traditional cadaver lab, students will explore the human body virtually using touchscreens that let them zoom in, rotate and peel back layers of the human body with a tap and a swipe. Another lab features plastinated body parts made from human tissue.
Problem-based learning: A curriculum developed for the school is centered on real-life clinical scenarios instead of traditional lectures, Strowd said. Students will build their understanding of anatomy, physiology and disease as they work together to solve medical problems.
Immediate patient contact: Students will see patients at Atrium Health’s Carolinas Medical Center “on their very first day,” said Dr. Tony Dang, an internal medicine physician and assistant professor of internal medicine. It’s part of the program’s focus on early hands-on experience and patient-centered care, he said.
The new medical school is the centerpiece of The Pearl, a $1.5B medical innovation district spearheaded by Atrium Health and Wexford Science & Technology and supported by $75 million in public incentives.
Designed to spark collaboration between academics, researchers and biomedical companies, The Pearl will also house programs to train nurses and other health care professionals, as well as the North American headquarters of surgical training center IRCAD and other large medical tech companies.
Future phases of The Pearl call for a hotel and conference center, apartments and ground-level retail.
A shift away from cadaver labs
The campus joins a small but growing number of schools nationwide that have moved away from traditional cadaver labs, a shift driven by cost, safety and ethical concerns, said Lisa Howley, senior director for transforming medical education for the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Tafline Arbor, anatomy discipline director for the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, said the Charlotte students will still spend time in the cadaver lab on the Winston-Salem campus.
She emphasized that virtual dissection makes learning anatomy more interactive and engaging.
“These tools allow students to build a three-dimensional model of the human body in their minds,” she said during a recent tour of the Charlotte campus. “It’s about integrating anatomy with imaging and clinical content in a way traditional dissection can’t match.”
The medical students: from 18 states, 1/3 from N.C., racial diversity unclear
Students who make up the Charlotte campus’s inaugural four-year class are from 18 states and 29 colleges, with a third coming from North Carolina, according to school officials. The average student age is 24.
When asked about the racial and ethnic makeup of the class during a media tour last week, Strowd said the information wasn’t yet available. He said, “Equity and diversity — and really thinking about bringing all groups of students together — is a priority for the school and has been for many years.” Atrium has said the school seeks to produce medical professionals representative of the communities it serves.
Enrollment is expected to grow to 100 students per class over the next five years.
Rei Rama of Charlotte, one of the 49 students in the school’s first class, said he first heard about Wake Forest’s plans to build a medical school in Charlotte years ago, when he picked up a flyer about it during a visit to the Wake Forest campus in Winston-Salem.
At the time, he said, it seemed like a distant possibility.
After graduating from UNC Charlotte in 2023, Rama worked as a medical assistant before deciding to follow in his father’s footsteps and apply to medical school.
Rama said he chose Charlotte over other schools because he liked its problem-based curriculum and emphasis on small-group learning, which he said helps students “learn how to think as physicians early on.”
He said he’s also excited to be part of the innovation district and to be able to stay in his hometown.
“Living in Charlotte, you think that when you go to medical school, you have to move,” he said. “But being able to serve the same community that I grew up in here in the States, that’s amazing.”
Michelle Crouch covers health care. If you have tips or ideas for her, please shoot her an email at mcrouch@northcarolinahealthnews.org.
This article is part of a partnership between The Charlotte Ledger and North Carolina Health News to produce original health care reporting focused on the Charlotte area.
➡️ You can support this effort with a tax-free donation. This coverage is supported by readers like you who value smart, transparent and independent reporting.
Today’s supporting sponsor is Landon A. Dunn, attorney-at-law in Matthews:
The man behind Charlotte’s giant bronze disc has died; created distinctive spheres and discs on display around the world
Charlotte’s “Il Grande Disco” uptown (top); with other discs and spheres by Italian artist Arnaldo Pomodoro in (bottom left to right) Rome, Milan and New York City. (Ledger file photo at top, Rome and Milan via Wikimedia Commons, New York via Shutterstock)
The artist behind one of uptown’s most enduring and recognizable sculptures recently passed away — drawing attention to his similar works in cities around the world.
Italian artist Arnaldo Pomodoro died last month at age 98. He created “Il Grande Disco,” the bronze disc sculpture that stands 15 feet in diameter at the prominent Bank of America Plaza at Trade and Tryon streets uptown. It was dedicated in 1974.
In noting his death last month, the New York Times said Pomodoro was known for “highly polished but jarringly fractured” spheres and discs made of bronze. One art critic wrote that Pomodoro’s “most persistent metaphor has been to cut away the facade, or skin of things, to get at the vulnerable and fragile inner core.”
Some of his similar works to Charlotte’s “Il Grande Disco” are on display at the United Nations headquarters in New York, inside Vatican City and in Milan and other Italian cities. —Tony Mecia
Related Ledger article:
“An uptown art installation hits the half-century mark” (October 2024)
What you might have missed from us: Real Estate Whispers, Leon Levine Foundation article/podcast, cost of transit tax, Fútbol Friday, pirate series
You might have noticed that The Ledger took a pause from our usual newsletters since the Fourth of July weekend, which gave our dedicated and hard-working team a breather from our regular production cycle.
That’s especially important because we have a lean operation, with just three full-time employees — which makes ordinary things like time off and vacations tricky. (We are actively hiring for a fourth full-timer — if you know any experienced journalists, let them know!)
But we don’t believe in going totally dark! Here are a few pieces you might have missed from us in the last couple of weeks:
🏗️ Real Estate Whispers. We produced two issues of our ever-popular Real Estate Whispers newsletter, on July 1 and July 8, taking a closer look at topics including 2Q Charlotte construction starts, the potential sale of Phillips Place, renderings for a new uptown grocery store, top building permits for June and the expansion of the painting-brick-white trend to the new Crate & Barrel in SouthPark.
🎧 Conversation with Leon Levine Foundation on its stepped-up giving: We released an article and podcast featuring our conversation with the leaders of the Leon Levine Foundation, which announced that it is tripling its amount of annual giving to charities to around $100M. We explored why, what that means and what nonprofits need to know.
🚝 Transit Time: In last week’s issue of our transit and transportation newsletter, which we produce in cooperation with WFAE, Steve Harrison examined a part of the transit plan that hasn’t really been discussed: How much would it cost Mecklenburg families? Our plan is to cover the upcoming transit tax referendum thoroughly so you can make an informed decision. We’re ramping up. Look for it on Thursdays.
⚽️ Fútbol Friday: Carroll Walton continued her top-rate coverage of Charlotte FC, including staying ahead of the news of the departure of star striker Patrick Agyemang and what that means for the club — as well as a fun piece Friday looking at the legacy of the Carolina Lightnin’, the minor-league soccer team from the early 1980s that was a true underdog story.
🏴☠️ Graveyard of the Atlantic: Veteran writer Mark Washburn wrote a 5-part series for us last week examining tales of shipwrecks, pirates and buried treasure off the N.C. coast. It was a treat! And we hired a TikTok-er to produce engaging videos accompanying each article. Check it out!
(Geez, all that doesn’t sound like much of a vacation for us, does it?)
Our team is excited about the future — we have a lot more coming up in the weeks and months ahead!
Charity spotlight: Local nonprofit Beds for Kids delivers furniture and dignity to families in need
Members of the Beds for Kids team prepare for a delivery. (Photo courtesy of Beds for Kids.)
June 24 was a typical day of deliveries for Beds for Kids. The nonprofit’s team dropped off furniture for a single mother of five who had just moved into an apartment after being homeless for a few years — and who had been sleeping on the floor.
“She was like, ‘We’ve been here for about a month, and we can’t afford furniture, and this is such a huge blessing for us.’ … She just kept saying to me, ‘I just can’t give up. I’ve got my kids, and I just can’t give up,’” said Lauren Evans, executive director of Beds for Kids.
Since 2011, Beds for Kids has served the Charlotte community as a nonprofit furniture bank. The organization has grown to 76 partner agencies that refer families who need their houses or apartments furnished.
Beds for Kids operates two warehouses that are stocked with furniture, either donated by the community or bought by the organization. MattressGrove provides mattresses and box springs at cost and donates an allotment each month. All of the furniture is given back to the community, Evans said.
A staff of 13 people is responsible for Beds for Kids’ marketing and accepting donations, organizing shelves and delivering furniture.
“We pride ourselves on delivering with dignity, making sure that these families understand that they’re important, that they matter, that they’re working hard and that they deserve all the things that they can achieve,” Evans said.
Beds for Kids has been active in Charlotte for 14 years, Evans said, and the nonprofit has experienced significant growth in the last few years. From 2022 to 2023, the nonprofit’s deliveries grew by 30%, and then from 2023 to 2024, Beds for Kids grew another 40%. This growth allowed the organization to serve 5,514 people through 1,406 deliveries in 2024.
While there is a long way to go to solve furniture poverty in Charlotte, Evans said, Beds for Kids has no intention to let up.
“We need to know furniture poverty exists,” Evans said. “I do believe it’s solvable, and I do believe we are a huge part of the nonprofit ecosystem here in Charlotte.” —Reid Heaton
You might be interested in these Charlotte events: intern challenge, 24 Hours of Booty, public speaking practice, wheels and walker-thon 5K
Events submitted by readers to The Ledger’s events board:
THURSDAY: “Crown Town Challenge: Intern Edition,” 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., at AvidXchange, 817 Hamilton St. This July, show your interns why Charlotte is more than just a summer stop—it’s a place to build a future. The Crown Town Challenge: Intern Edition is a one-of-a-kind event where interns from companies across the region team up to give back through STEAM education, build meaningful connections, and experience firsthand what makes this city—and your company—so special. Through corporate sponsorship, companies can secure exclusive spots for their interns to participate in a high-energy day of impact and innovation. $50/ticket. Group sponsorships also available.
JULY 25: “24 Hours of Booty,” 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., at Queens University of Charlotte, 1900 Selwyn Ave. Join 24 Foundation in celebrating 24 years of changing the course of cancer. Come ride, walk or volunteer at the 24 Hours of Booty charity non-competitive cycling and walking event in Charlotte’s Myers Park neighborhood. Funds raised support organizations dedicated to cancer navigation and survivorship. $75 for 12+ and $50 for 11 and younger. Virtual experiences/prices available.
AUGUST 4: “Speak Easy with Brian Lafontaine,” 6-8 p.m., at VisArt Video, 3104 Eastway Drive. Join the Speak Easy Networking Group for its monthly event where public speaking meets Prohibition-era vibes, minus the police raids. This theater-style venue feels more like a late-night comedy club than a corporate seminar. This is a place to practice out loud. To get brave. To say it before you feel ready. You may also join as a spectator if you have aspirations of taking the stage one day. Registration required. $35.
SEPTEMBER 6: “Assist ME Wheels & Walker-thon,” at Park Road Park, 6220 Park Road. Walk, walker or roll up to 5K and raise funds for the purchase of medical mobility equipment, such as wheelchairs, that Assist ME gifts to those in need throughout the greater Charlotte region. This is Assist ME’s first signature event in its 10-year history of bridging poverty and healthcare insurance gaps. Individuals and groups of all abilities and disabilities are welcome! Prices range from $35 to $100.
➡️ List your event on the Ledger events board.
In brief:
Uptown shooting kills nightclub employee, sends 5 to hospital: One person was killed and five others were hospitalized in a shooting on North College Street in uptown around 2 a.m. on Sunday. In a social media post, Encore Nightclub Charlotte at 314 N. College St. identified the deceased victim as one of its employees and said that the shooting did not occur inside the club or as a result of an altercation at the club. Police have not identified a suspect or a motive. (Observer)
Mayoral rematch? Former Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts says she is considering running against Mayor Vi Lyles in September’s Democratic primary. Lyles, who said last week that she’s running for re-election, unseated Roberts in the mayor’s race in 2017 and has served as mayor ever since. Roberts said she’s thinking about challenging Lyles because “some people feel frustrated that they’re not being heard.” (WSOC)
New fees in place at Charlotte Amtrak lot: The Charlotte Amtrak station on North Tryon Street now charges for parking: $5.99 for the first 12 hours and $5 for each additional 12-hour period. The change, which took effect July 1, comes after complaints about overcrowding and cars parked in restricted areas. (Observer)
JCSU placed on probation over financial issues: Johnson C. Smith University has been put on probation by its accreditor for failing to meet financial responsibility standards, giving the historically Black university until June 2026 to address concerns or risk losing its accreditation. University leaders say they’re working to resolve issues and stay on track. (WCNC)
Millions in federal funds for CMS at risk: The U.S. Department of Education is withholding over $12M in federal grant money meant for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools pending a review of how the funds were used. CMS is warning that the freeze could force cuts to classroom support roles or push it into $1M monthly debt. (WSOC)
Shift from public schools grows in NC: For what is most likely the first time in state history, fewer than 75% of students are enrolled in traditional public schools, with over 25% now attending private or charter options. The trend highlights increasing interest in school choice amid state debates over education funding. (News & Observer)
LL Cool J once lived here: In the late 1990s, rapper-actor LL Cool J purchased a 6,000 s.f. home in the Piper Glen area of south Charlotte for nearly $1M, where he lived quietly for about two and a half years. Later in 2007, American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino acquired the property for $1.3M, but she faced financial setbacks, and the home eventually went into foreclosure in 2013. (North Carolina Rabbit Hole)
Spike in ICE arrests rattles NC immigrant communities: New data from ICE shows a 160% rise in daily arrests across North Carolina compared with last year, with nearly 1,600 people detained since President Trump’s second term began. Many had no criminal record, fueling fear and legal challenges as families and advocates warn that the crackdown is reshaping the lives of communities. (WFAE)
New Tryon CEO: Tryon Management Group has named Lindsay Muns as CEO to handle the day-to-day business operations of Tryon Medical Partners, the area’s largest independent physician practice. Muns is an experienced health care executive who most recently served as CEO of Raleigh-based US Radiology Specialists (now known as Lumexa Imaging). Dr. Dale Owen will continue to lead the medical side of the practice.
Montford rhapsody: The Charlotte Observer says that going out on Montford Drive, near Park Road Shopping Center, has become a “rite of passage” and a “communal ritual” that allows people to “step into Charlotte’s last vintage social hub, a living anthology of experience” where “each table, each stool, each spirited exchange between barkeep and guest becomes part of a collective verse.” (Observer)
Dowd YMCA declared a hotspot: Axios Charlotte declared the Dowd YMCA on Morehead Street to be “one of the hottest third places in Charlotte.” The publication said that although YMCAs “conjure up images of an older crowd” or a place for parents to drop off kids and work out, the Dowd Y “breaks that mold” with most members under the age of 45. (Axios Charlotte)
Loves me some internet: first-in-flight states, mapped
From the pro-North Carolina Facebook page The State You’re In:
Need to sign up for this e-newsletter? We offer a free version, as well as paid memberships for full access to all 6 of our local newsletters:
The Charlotte Ledger is a locally owned media company that delivers smart and essential news. We strive for fairness and accuracy and will correct all known errors. The content reflects the independent editorial judgment of The Charlotte Ledger. Any advertising, paid marketing or sponsored content will be clearly labeled.
◼️ About The Ledger • Our Team • Website
◼️ Newsletters • Podcast • Newcomer Guide • A Better You email series
◼️ Subscribe • Sponsor • Events Board • Merch Store • Manage Your Account
◼️ Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter, LinkedIn
Re: med school. I participated in a wedding of a family member. Her matron of honor was a med school student at the time. She came to the rehearsal about three minutes late and apologized. "I was in cadaver lab and had to clean myself. Someone tell me do I smell of formaldehyde?"