Do you know someone at The Dubois Center you think others should know too? Tell us! Email your People of Dubois suggestion to elisabeththornton@charlotte.edu.
Todd Payne
Meet Todd Payne, Assistant Director and member of The Dubois Center Operations Team.
How long have you worked at The Dubois Center?
Three years, as of this past January! I’ve been employed by UNC Charlotte in some form or another since 2005, when I was just a student.
Describe your role at The Dubois Center.
I’m the Assistant Director and member of The Dubois Center Operations Team. I serve as backup for our Director of Operations and support our Event Managers, Operations Specialist, and Lobby staff, as needed. Our team coordinates with the groups who maintain the building and support the academic and event activity that takes place here. I have the privilege of working with a truly amazing group of people.
I pride myself on being versatile and always interested in learning a new skill, so in practice I do a bit of everything: filling gaps, taking on new challenges, and helping keep the building running smoothly for students, faculty, staff, and clients.
What’s your career background?
I graduated from UNC Charlotte with a BFA in sculpture back in 2009. While that might seem like an unexpected starting point for what I do now, there’s a logical through‑line if you look at each step along the way. Early in my academic career (though maybe not early enough), I realized I enjoyed helping other students make and display their work far more than I enjoyed creating my own. That led me into freelance art handling and fabrication.
Working for a couple of local artists who helped shape the NODA arts district (shout out to Paul and Ruth) gave me hands‑on experience maintaining a mix of commercial and residential spaces. After graduating, I knew I wanted to stay connected to UNC Charlotte because of the positive experience I’d had here, so I took on part‑time work assisting the building manager of the Rowe Arts building (shout out to George). Eventually, a role with the College of Arts + Architecture’s gallery team segued into managing the Storrs architecture building on main campus.
Across all of these roles, I kept coming back to the same idea: the way a space looks, feels, and functions shapes people’s experience, whether they’re viewing an exhibition, studying architecture, going to class, attending an event, or simply coming to work in an office. My time managing the Storrs architecture building reinforced that having the right space and resources isn’t just essential for makers, it’s essential for everyone. So when the opportunity came along to help manage a different kind of academic space, I jumped at the chance to take on a new challenge.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
I love helping people, and this environment presents so many opportunities to do that. We handle some pretty high‑level stuff (and we do that very well), but it’s the little everyday things that I find the most rewarding. Something as simple as unlocking an office door for someone who forgot their keys can completely change the tone of their day.
Tell us your favorite memory from working at The Dubois Center.
I don’t think I have one big moment that stands out. For me, it’s the small things; eating lunch in the courtyard on a beautiful day, sharing a quick conversation or joke with a co‑worker. Those are the memories that stick with me and make me smile when I think about this place.
What couldn’t you do without on the job?
I used to think one computer monitor was all I’d ever need. Every time I added another, I’d shake my head and think, “this is ridiculous, I probably won’t even use this.” I’m up to three monitors now, and I can never go back.
Tell us something surprising that people might not know about you.
As much as I appreciate rules and structure in the workplace (which anyone who works closely with me knows very well), I’m actually a punk‑rocker at heart. When I was younger, I listened to whatever tape or CD I could get my hands on. These days, social media and streaming make it ridiculously easy to discover bands I didn’t even know existed back then. Old favorites are touring again, and new bands seem to pop up constantly.
Punk means different things to different people, but what resonates with me is the emphasis on critical thinking and radical empathy. This feels especially relevant these days. If someone falls down at a show, you pick them up. That’s a rule we should all live by, no matter where we are or what we’re doing.
What do you do for fun outside of work?
I once read a quote from designer Virgil Abloh: “Everything I do is for the seventeen‑year‑old version of myself.” There’s a lot packed into that statement, but here’s my shallow takeaway: our teen years are a formative time when many of us are at our most creative, open to new ideas, and passionate about the interests that end up shaping who we become. I’m happy to say my free time is still spent reading comics, watching movies, riding BMX bikes, playing board games, and going to shows. Basically anything that 17‑year‑old me would approve of.
What/who inspires you?
On a personal level, my amazing wife Brit and our son Arthur. I’m so proud of Brit, and I’m so excited to see the person Arthur becomes.
On a professional level, it’s striving to improve that inspires me. To a fault, I tend to skip past ‘what went well’ and head straight for ‘how can we do this even better,’ but I like to think that momentum usually pushes me toward meaningful solutions. I’m energized by people I can bounce ideas off of – people who don’t let tradition limit their imagination, and who are willing to try creative approaches. And if we can inject a little fun into the process along the way, well, that’s even better.