Schley R. Lyons, Ph. D.
Dr.Lyons, passed away Saturday, July 14, 2010 following a brief illness in Charlotte, NC.
Dr. Lyons joined the faculty of UNC Charlotte in 1969 as Chair of the Department of Political Science, a position he held for 11 years. During that time, he established the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology in l971 and developed a graduate program in urban administration.
Dr. Lyons was appointed Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and interim dean in 1985. He served as interim dean of the college during 1985-86. Following a national search, he was appointed dean and held the position until he retired in 2005. During his tenure the number of full-time college faculty increased from 281 to 435 and student enrollment almost doubled, from 4,307 to 8,465. New departments and academic programs were added, including five doctoral programs. Student services were expanded, adding a College Advising Center, and a technology service unit for students and faculty was established. Under his leadership, external funding and faculty research in the college grew significantly which greatly enhanced the growing reputation of UNC Charlotte as a major research university.
After retiring in 2005, Dr. Lyons continued to teach for several years and recently authored the Politics and Government chapter in The North Carolina Atlas.
Dr. Lyons was a 1955 graduate of Shepherd University and, following his military service, received his Ph.D. from American University in 1964. His research areas included North Carolina state and local politics and American Electoral behavior. His research continues to be cited and he was sought after as a political commentator in news media locally and regionally.
His distinguished legacy includes the founding of Leadership Charlotte, which has cultivated over 1,000 community leaders since its inception in 1978, and the UNC Charlotte Taft Institute for Two-Party Government, which taught thousands of secondary school teachers to place real politics at the center of their teaching of social studies. Leadership Charlotte annually recognizes an outstanding community leader with the Schley R. Lyons Circle of Excellence award commemorating Dr. Lyons contributions to the development of civic leadership in Charlotte. In recognition of Dr. Lyons' 36 years of dedicated service to UNC Charlotte and the greater community, a lecture hall in Fretwell Hall is named in his honor.
Dr. Lyons was known across the UNC Charlotte campus community for his distinctive laugh, his sharp political wit, his competitive tennis game, and his championship ballroom dancing skills. He will be missed by his many friends and colleagues.
Dr. Lyons was preceded in death by his parents, Schley R. and Nellie M. Lyons. Survivors include, his wife, Marlene Lyons; son, Robert Lyons and his wife, Tammy; grandchildren, Vincent Lyons, Andrew Lyons and Katie Lyons; and Dina, the beloved Rottweiler. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the UNC Charlotte Department of Political Science, in care of the UNC Charlotte Foundation, 9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223.
The family will receive friends Thursday from 6:00 until 8:00 PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Service, 1111 East Blvd. Charlotte, NC 28203.
Funeral service will be private.
PRIVATE SERVICE
Click for Map and Directions
VISITATION
Thursday July 22, 2010, 6:00PM - 8:00PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Chapel
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
His middle name was Roosevelt, for Theodore, not Franklin. So it follows that politics and a good, red-meat election grabbed Schley Lyons like nothing else.
Lyons was also fiercely competitive - on the tennis court, on a Jet Ski on Lake Norman, where he'd lived since 1989, or on the dance floor, where he and wife Marlene dazzled everyone with their ballroom talents. That, too, could have been why Lyons pursued the study of politics.
Whatever it was, and to this day his family isn't exactly sure, Lyons essentially built UNC Charlotte's political science department as its first chairman, and then moved on to fashion its College of Arts and Sciences, which he headed as a tough, workaholic dean for 20 years.
Saturday, Schley (pronounced Shelley) Roosevelt Lyons, who'd long been sought after for his political analysis at election time and who created Leadership Charlotte in 1978, died suddenly after a brief illness. He was 77. His family said Lyons chose to keep the illness private.
"Schley was a wonderful dean," said UNCC Chancellor Phil Dubois, who'd known Lyons since the early 1990s when Dubois was UNCC's provost. "That job is all about hiring the right people. He hired really good faculty and really good department heads. He probably hired all the senior faculty on campus. That's why we're as solid an institution as we are."
Dubois said he recently saw Lyons and was blind-sided by the news.
"He looked terrific," Dubois said. "He was playing tennis - and always had a healthy tan. I'm shell-shocked."
Lyons was born and raised in Cumberland, Md., the son of a railroad man.
He was the first in his family to go to college, to Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
Graduating in 1955, he served in the U.S. Army, then pursued a doctorate in political science at American University, which he earned in 1964.
After teaching stints at Ithaca College in New York, and the University of Toledo in Ohio, he was hired as UNCC's first chairman of political science in 1969. Political science studies had before then been a part of the school's history department.
Two years later, he established UNCC's respected criminal justice and criminology department and developed a program in urban administration.
In 1978, Lyons was driving home from a leadership program in Greenville, S.C., and decided Charlotte needed to develop leaders beyond the tight-knit group of uptown businessmen and politicians.
Leadership Charlotte, a 10-month program that nurtures and develops emerging leaders, was born.
Dubois said he copied the program in Wyoming when he was president of the University of Wyoming. "I partnered with the statewide Chamber and it was a success," he said. "It was built directly out of the Leadership Charlotte model that Schley started."
The organization's yearly excellence award is named for Lyons.
After 11 years as Political Science department chair, Lyons moved to administration, first as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and then interim dean in 1985. That year, UNCC went searching the country for a permanent dean and, after a year, realized they had the right man already in place - Schley Lyons.
"He was clearly the best person," said UNCC political science professor Ted Arrington. "He really built the college. It was still kind of an infant when Schley took over."
Lyons did everything a dean needs to do - including hiring and firing faculty and writing recommendations for tenure.
"He always wrote the most thorough, fair and balanced assessments of faculty," Dubois said. "Schley had very high standards."
He retired in 2005, but still taught a class or two. And to the end, he played tennis twice weekly, always thirsting for wins. He also liked darting around Lake Norman on a Jet Ski. Recently, he bought a more powerful one so he could go faster.
Come election time, Lyons and Arrington were the go-to guys for their analysis.
"He just loved a well-fought race," said son Robert Lyons, a CMPD police officer for 22 years.
Many of the liberal-minded faculty members thought Schley Lyons was conservative, almost reactionary, Arrington said. That wasn't true, he said.
"Schley was a pragmatist," Arrington said. "He was very much an independent. It's rare to find someone in politics who's not committed to one side. He was not an ideologue at all."
Robert Lyons said his father liked to be the observer and share his thoughts.
"He was middle of the road," Robert Lyons said. "He enjoyed watching the races and calling the races. And when a candidate made a mistake that would cost him the race, Dad knew it. He could smell doom. He was usually right."
By David Perlmutt, [email protected]
Published in Charlotte Observer on July 19, 2010
Dr.Lyons, passed away Saturday, July 14, 2010 following a brief illness in Charlotte, NC.
Dr. Lyons joined the faculty of UNC Charlotte in 1969 as Chair of the Department of Political Science, a position he held for 11 years. During that time, he established the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology in l971 and developed a graduate program in urban administration.
Dr. Lyons was appointed Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and interim dean in 1985. He served as interim dean of the college during 1985-86. Following a national search, he was appointed dean and held the position until he retired in 2005. During his tenure the number of full-time college faculty increased from 281 to 435 and student enrollment almost doubled, from 4,307 to 8,465. New departments and academic programs were added, including five doctoral programs. Student services were expanded, adding a College Advising Center, and a technology service unit for students and faculty was established. Under his leadership, external funding and faculty research in the college grew significantly which greatly enhanced the growing reputation of UNC Charlotte as a major research university.
After retiring in 2005, Dr. Lyons continued to teach for several years and recently authored the Politics and Government chapter in The North Carolina Atlas.
Dr. Lyons was a 1955 graduate of Shepherd University and, following his military service, received his Ph.D. from American University in 1964. His research areas included North Carolina state and local politics and American Electoral behavior. His research continues to be cited and he was sought after as a political commentator in news media locally and regionally.
His distinguished legacy includes the founding of Leadership Charlotte, which has cultivated over 1,000 community leaders since its inception in 1978, and the UNC Charlotte Taft Institute for Two-Party Government, which taught thousands of secondary school teachers to place real politics at the center of their teaching of social studies. Leadership Charlotte annually recognizes an outstanding community leader with the Schley R. Lyons Circle of Excellence award commemorating Dr. Lyons contributions to the development of civic leadership in Charlotte. In recognition of Dr. Lyons' 36 years of dedicated service to UNC Charlotte and the greater community, a lecture hall in Fretwell Hall is named in his honor.
Dr. Lyons was known across the UNC Charlotte campus community for his distinctive laugh, his sharp political wit, his competitive tennis game, and his championship ballroom dancing skills. He will be missed by his many friends and colleagues.
Dr. Lyons was preceded in death by his parents, Schley R. and Nellie M. Lyons. Survivors include, his wife, Marlene Lyons; son, Robert Lyons and his wife, Tammy; grandchildren, Vincent Lyons, Andrew Lyons and Katie Lyons; and Dina, the beloved Rottweiler. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the UNC Charlotte Department of Political Science, in care of the UNC Charlotte Foundation, 9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223.
The family will receive friends Thursday from 6:00 until 8:00 PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Service, 1111 East Blvd. Charlotte, NC 28203.
Funeral service will be private.
PRIVATE SERVICE
Click for Map and Directions
VISITATION
Thursday July 22, 2010, 6:00PM - 8:00PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Chapel
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
His middle name was Roosevelt, for Theodore, not Franklin. So it follows that politics and a good, red-meat election grabbed Schley Lyons like nothing else.
Lyons was also fiercely competitive - on the tennis court, on a Jet Ski on Lake Norman, where he'd lived since 1989, or on the dance floor, where he and wife Marlene dazzled everyone with their ballroom talents. That, too, could have been why Lyons pursued the study of politics.
Whatever it was, and to this day his family isn't exactly sure, Lyons essentially built UNC Charlotte's political science department as its first chairman, and then moved on to fashion its College of Arts and Sciences, which he headed as a tough, workaholic dean for 20 years.
Saturday, Schley (pronounced Shelley) Roosevelt Lyons, who'd long been sought after for his political analysis at election time and who created Leadership Charlotte in 1978, died suddenly after a brief illness. He was 77. His family said Lyons chose to keep the illness private.
"Schley was a wonderful dean," said UNCC Chancellor Phil Dubois, who'd known Lyons since the early 1990s when Dubois was UNCC's provost. "That job is all about hiring the right people. He hired really good faculty and really good department heads. He probably hired all the senior faculty on campus. That's why we're as solid an institution as we are."
Dubois said he recently saw Lyons and was blind-sided by the news.
"He looked terrific," Dubois said. "He was playing tennis - and always had a healthy tan. I'm shell-shocked."
Lyons was born and raised in Cumberland, Md., the son of a railroad man.
He was the first in his family to go to college, to Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
Graduating in 1955, he served in the U.S. Army, then pursued a doctorate in political science at American University, which he earned in 1964.
After teaching stints at Ithaca College in New York, and the University of Toledo in Ohio, he was hired as UNCC's first chairman of political science in 1969. Political science studies had before then been a part of the school's history department.
Two years later, he established UNCC's respected criminal justice and criminology department and developed a program in urban administration.
In 1978, Lyons was driving home from a leadership program in Greenville, S.C., and decided Charlotte needed to develop leaders beyond the tight-knit group of uptown businessmen and politicians.
Leadership Charlotte, a 10-month program that nurtures and develops emerging leaders, was born.
Dubois said he copied the program in Wyoming when he was president of the University of Wyoming. "I partnered with the statewide Chamber and it was a success," he said. "It was built directly out of the Leadership Charlotte model that Schley started."
The organization's yearly excellence award is named for Lyons.
After 11 years as Political Science department chair, Lyons moved to administration, first as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and then interim dean in 1985. That year, UNCC went searching the country for a permanent dean and, after a year, realized they had the right man already in place - Schley Lyons.
"He was clearly the best person," said UNCC political science professor Ted Arrington. "He really built the college. It was still kind of an infant when Schley took over."
Lyons did everything a dean needs to do - including hiring and firing faculty and writing recommendations for tenure.
"He always wrote the most thorough, fair and balanced assessments of faculty," Dubois said. "Schley had very high standards."
He retired in 2005, but still taught a class or two. And to the end, he played tennis twice weekly, always thirsting for wins. He also liked darting around Lake Norman on a Jet Ski. Recently, he bought a more powerful one so he could go faster.
Come election time, Lyons and Arrington were the go-to guys for their analysis.
"He just loved a well-fought race," said son Robert Lyons, a CMPD police officer for 22 years.
Many of the liberal-minded faculty members thought Schley Lyons was conservative, almost reactionary, Arrington said. That wasn't true, he said.
"Schley was a pragmatist," Arrington said. "He was very much an independent. It's rare to find someone in politics who's not committed to one side. He was not an ideologue at all."
Robert Lyons said his father liked to be the observer and share his thoughts.
"He was middle of the road," Robert Lyons said. "He enjoyed watching the races and calling the races. And when a candidate made a mistake that would cost him the race, Dad knew it. He could smell doom. He was usually right."
By David Perlmutt, [email protected]
Published in Charlotte Observer on July 19, 2010
Schley R. Lyons, Ph. D.
Dr.Lyons, passed away Saturday, July 14, 2010 following a brief illness in Charlotte, NC.
Dr. Lyons joined the faculty of UNC Charlotte in 1969 as Chair of the Department of Political Science, a position he held for 11 years. During that time, he established the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology in l971 and developed a graduate program in urban administration.
Dr. Lyons was appointed Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and interim dean in 1985. He served as interim dean of the college during 1985-86. Following a national search, he was appointed dean and held the position until he retired in 2005. During his tenure the number of full-time college faculty increased from 281 to 435 and student enrollment almost doubled, from 4,307 to 8,465. New departments and academic programs were added, including five doctoral programs. Student services were expanded, adding a College Advising Center, and a technology service unit for students and faculty was established. Under his leadership, external funding and faculty research in the college grew significantly which greatly enhanced the growing reputation of UNC Charlotte as a major research university.
After retiring in 2005, Dr. Lyons continued to teach for several years and recently authored the Politics and Government chapter in The North Carolina Atlas.
Dr. Lyons was a 1955 graduate of Shepherd University and, following his military service, received his Ph.D. from American University in 1964. His research areas included North Carolina state and local politics and American Electoral behavior. His research continues to be cited and he was sought after as a political commentator in news media locally and regionally.
His distinguished legacy includes the founding of Leadership Charlotte, which has cultivated over 1,000 community leaders since its inception in 1978, and the UNC Charlotte Taft Institute for Two-Party Government, which taught thousands of secondary school teachers to place real politics at the center of their teaching of social studies. Leadership Charlotte annually recognizes an outstanding community leader with the Schley R. Lyons Circle of Excellence award commemorating Dr. Lyons contributions to the development of civic leadership in Charlotte. In recognition of Dr. Lyons' 36 years of dedicated service to UNC Charlotte and the greater community, a lecture hall in Fretwell Hall is named in his honor.
Dr. Lyons was known across the UNC Charlotte campus community for his distinctive laugh, his sharp political wit, his competitive tennis game, and his championship ballroom dancing skills. He will be missed by his many friends and colleagues.
Dr. Lyons was preceded in death by his parents, Schley R. and Nellie M. Lyons. Survivors include, his wife, Marlene Lyons; son, Robert Lyons and his wife, Tammy; grandchildren, Vincent Lyons, Andrew Lyons and Katie Lyons; and Dina, the beloved Rottweiler. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the UNC Charlotte Department of Political Science, in care of the UNC Charlotte Foundation, 9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223.
The family will receive friends Thursday from 6:00 until 8:00 PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Service, 1111 East Blvd. Charlotte, NC 28203.
Funeral service will be private.
PRIVATE SERVICE
Click for Map and Directions
VISITATION
Thursday July 22, 2010, 6:00PM - 8:00PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Chapel
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
His middle name was Roosevelt, for Theodore, not Franklin. So it follows that politics and a good, red-meat election grabbed Schley Lyons like nothing else.
Lyons was also fiercely competitive - on the tennis court, on a Jet Ski on Lake Norman, where he'd lived since 1989, or on the dance floor, where he and wife Marlene dazzled everyone with their ballroom talents. That, too, could have been why Lyons pursued the study of politics.
Whatever it was, and to this day his family isn't exactly sure, Lyons essentially built UNC Charlotte's political science department as its first chairman, and then moved on to fashion its College of Arts and Sciences, which he headed as a tough, workaholic dean for 20 years.
Saturday, Schley (pronounced Shelley) Roosevelt Lyons, who'd long been sought after for his political analysis at election time and who created Leadership Charlotte in 1978, died suddenly after a brief illness. He was 77. His family said Lyons chose to keep the illness private.
"Schley was a wonderful dean," said UNCC Chancellor Phil Dubois, who'd known Lyons since the early 1990s when Dubois was UNCC's provost. "That job is all about hiring the right people. He hired really good faculty and really good department heads. He probably hired all the senior faculty on campus. That's why we're as solid an institution as we are."
Dubois said he recently saw Lyons and was blind-sided by the news.
"He looked terrific," Dubois said. "He was playing tennis - and always had a healthy tan. I'm shell-shocked."
Lyons was born and raised in Cumberland, Md., the son of a railroad man.
He was the first in his family to go to college, to Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
Graduating in 1955, he served in the U.S. Army, then pursued a doctorate in political science at American University, which he earned in 1964.
After teaching stints at Ithaca College in New York, and the University of Toledo in Ohio, he was hired as UNCC's first chairman of political science in 1969. Political science studies had before then been a part of the school's history department.
Two years later, he established UNCC's respected criminal justice and criminology department and developed a program in urban administration.
In 1978, Lyons was driving home from a leadership program in Greenville, S.C., and decided Charlotte needed to develop leaders beyond the tight-knit group of uptown businessmen and politicians.
Leadership Charlotte, a 10-month program that nurtures and develops emerging leaders, was born.
Dubois said he copied the program in Wyoming when he was president of the University of Wyoming. "I partnered with the statewide Chamber and it was a success," he said. "It was built directly out of the Leadership Charlotte model that Schley started."
The organization's yearly excellence award is named for Lyons.
After 11 years as Political Science department chair, Lyons moved to administration, first as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and then interim dean in 1985. That year, UNCC went searching the country for a permanent dean and, after a year, realized they had the right man already in place - Schley Lyons.
"He was clearly the best person," said UNCC political science professor Ted Arrington. "He really built the college. It was still kind of an infant when Schley took over."
Lyons did everything a dean needs to do - including hiring and firing faculty and writing recommendations for tenure.
"He always wrote the most thorough, fair and balanced assessments of faculty," Dubois said. "Schley had very high standards."
He retired in 2005, but still taught a class or two. And to the end, he played tennis twice weekly, always thirsting for wins. He also liked darting around Lake Norman on a Jet Ski. Recently, he bought a more powerful one so he could go faster.
Come election time, Lyons and Arrington were the go-to guys for their analysis.
"He just loved a well-fought race," said son Robert Lyons, a CMPD police officer for 22 years.
Many of the liberal-minded faculty members thought Schley Lyons was conservative, almost reactionary, Arrington said. That wasn't true, he said.
"Schley was a pragmatist," Arrington said. "He was very much an independent. It's rare to find someone in politics who's not committed to one side. He was not an ideologue at all."
Robert Lyons said his father liked to be the observer and share his thoughts.
"He was middle of the road," Robert Lyons said. "He enjoyed watching the races and calling the races. And when a candidate made a mistake that would cost him the race, Dad knew it. He could smell doom. He was usually right."
By David Perlmutt, [email protected]
Published in Charlotte Observer on July 19, 2010
Dr.Lyons, passed away Saturday, July 14, 2010 following a brief illness in Charlotte, NC.
Dr. Lyons joined the faculty of UNC Charlotte in 1969 as Chair of the Department of Political Science, a position he held for 11 years. During that time, he established the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology in l971 and developed a graduate program in urban administration.
Dr. Lyons was appointed Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and interim dean in 1985. He served as interim dean of the college during 1985-86. Following a national search, he was appointed dean and held the position until he retired in 2005. During his tenure the number of full-time college faculty increased from 281 to 435 and student enrollment almost doubled, from 4,307 to 8,465. New departments and academic programs were added, including five doctoral programs. Student services were expanded, adding a College Advising Center, and a technology service unit for students and faculty was established. Under his leadership, external funding and faculty research in the college grew significantly which greatly enhanced the growing reputation of UNC Charlotte as a major research university.
After retiring in 2005, Dr. Lyons continued to teach for several years and recently authored the Politics and Government chapter in The North Carolina Atlas.
Dr. Lyons was a 1955 graduate of Shepherd University and, following his military service, received his Ph.D. from American University in 1964. His research areas included North Carolina state and local politics and American Electoral behavior. His research continues to be cited and he was sought after as a political commentator in news media locally and regionally.
His distinguished legacy includes the founding of Leadership Charlotte, which has cultivated over 1,000 community leaders since its inception in 1978, and the UNC Charlotte Taft Institute for Two-Party Government, which taught thousands of secondary school teachers to place real politics at the center of their teaching of social studies. Leadership Charlotte annually recognizes an outstanding community leader with the Schley R. Lyons Circle of Excellence award commemorating Dr. Lyons contributions to the development of civic leadership in Charlotte. In recognition of Dr. Lyons' 36 years of dedicated service to UNC Charlotte and the greater community, a lecture hall in Fretwell Hall is named in his honor.
Dr. Lyons was known across the UNC Charlotte campus community for his distinctive laugh, his sharp political wit, his competitive tennis game, and his championship ballroom dancing skills. He will be missed by his many friends and colleagues.
Dr. Lyons was preceded in death by his parents, Schley R. and Nellie M. Lyons. Survivors include, his wife, Marlene Lyons; son, Robert Lyons and his wife, Tammy; grandchildren, Vincent Lyons, Andrew Lyons and Katie Lyons; and Dina, the beloved Rottweiler. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the UNC Charlotte Department of Political Science, in care of the UNC Charlotte Foundation, 9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223.
The family will receive friends Thursday from 6:00 until 8:00 PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Service, 1111 East Blvd. Charlotte, NC 28203.
Funeral service will be private.
PRIVATE SERVICE
Click for Map and Directions
VISITATION
Thursday July 22, 2010, 6:00PM - 8:00PM at Hankins and Whittington Funeral Chapel
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
His middle name was Roosevelt, for Theodore, not Franklin. So it follows that politics and a good, red-meat election grabbed Schley Lyons like nothing else.
Lyons was also fiercely competitive - on the tennis court, on a Jet Ski on Lake Norman, where he'd lived since 1989, or on the dance floor, where he and wife Marlene dazzled everyone with their ballroom talents. That, too, could have been why Lyons pursued the study of politics.
Whatever it was, and to this day his family isn't exactly sure, Lyons essentially built UNC Charlotte's political science department as its first chairman, and then moved on to fashion its College of Arts and Sciences, which he headed as a tough, workaholic dean for 20 years.
Saturday, Schley (pronounced Shelley) Roosevelt Lyons, who'd long been sought after for his political analysis at election time and who created Leadership Charlotte in 1978, died suddenly after a brief illness. He was 77. His family said Lyons chose to keep the illness private.
"Schley was a wonderful dean," said UNCC Chancellor Phil Dubois, who'd known Lyons since the early 1990s when Dubois was UNCC's provost. "That job is all about hiring the right people. He hired really good faculty and really good department heads. He probably hired all the senior faculty on campus. That's why we're as solid an institution as we are."
Dubois said he recently saw Lyons and was blind-sided by the news.
"He looked terrific," Dubois said. "He was playing tennis - and always had a healthy tan. I'm shell-shocked."
Lyons was born and raised in Cumberland, Md., the son of a railroad man.
He was the first in his family to go to college, to Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
Graduating in 1955, he served in the U.S. Army, then pursued a doctorate in political science at American University, which he earned in 1964.
After teaching stints at Ithaca College in New York, and the University of Toledo in Ohio, he was hired as UNCC's first chairman of political science in 1969. Political science studies had before then been a part of the school's history department.
Two years later, he established UNCC's respected criminal justice and criminology department and developed a program in urban administration.
In 1978, Lyons was driving home from a leadership program in Greenville, S.C., and decided Charlotte needed to develop leaders beyond the tight-knit group of uptown businessmen and politicians.
Leadership Charlotte, a 10-month program that nurtures and develops emerging leaders, was born.
Dubois said he copied the program in Wyoming when he was president of the University of Wyoming. "I partnered with the statewide Chamber and it was a success," he said. "It was built directly out of the Leadership Charlotte model that Schley started."
The organization's yearly excellence award is named for Lyons.
After 11 years as Political Science department chair, Lyons moved to administration, first as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and then interim dean in 1985. That year, UNCC went searching the country for a permanent dean and, after a year, realized they had the right man already in place - Schley Lyons.
"He was clearly the best person," said UNCC political science professor Ted Arrington. "He really built the college. It was still kind of an infant when Schley took over."
Lyons did everything a dean needs to do - including hiring and firing faculty and writing recommendations for tenure.
"He always wrote the most thorough, fair and balanced assessments of faculty," Dubois said. "Schley had very high standards."
He retired in 2005, but still taught a class or two. And to the end, he played tennis twice weekly, always thirsting for wins. He also liked darting around Lake Norman on a Jet Ski. Recently, he bought a more powerful one so he could go faster.
Come election time, Lyons and Arrington were the go-to guys for their analysis.
"He just loved a well-fought race," said son Robert Lyons, a CMPD police officer for 22 years.
Many of the liberal-minded faculty members thought Schley Lyons was conservative, almost reactionary, Arrington said. That wasn't true, he said.
"Schley was a pragmatist," Arrington said. "He was very much an independent. It's rare to find someone in politics who's not committed to one side. He was not an ideologue at all."
Robert Lyons said his father liked to be the observer and share his thoughts.
"He was middle of the road," Robert Lyons said. "He enjoyed watching the races and calling the races. And when a candidate made a mistake that would cost him the race, Dad knew it. He could smell doom. He was usually right."
By David Perlmutt, [email protected]
Published in Charlotte Observer on July 19, 2010
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