OCCASION

The Honorable Judge Toni King administers the oath of office to Darrell T. Allison. Looking on are his wife, La Nica, and daughters Daila and Dayana.

oc•ca•sion

1. A particular time, especially as marked by certain circumstances or occurrences. 2. A special or important time, event, ceremony, celebration, etc.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2022

Installation Ceremony Capel Arena

The Bible used for the swearing-in ceremony belonged to Chancellor Allison’s late father.

UNC System President Peter Hans congratulates Chancellor Darrell T. Allison on becoming Fayetteville State’s 12th chief executive officer.

“Today, we officially welcome a leader who is tailor-made for a new era in FSU’s history, a time when Fayetteville State is gaining the recognition to match its promise and the resources to match its ambition. Darrell Allison is a man with the energy and drive that Fayetteville State deserves, and his tireless advocacy on behalf of this university has already paid remarkable dividends for the University and the broader community.”

~ President Peter Hans, UNC System

Highlights from the Installation Speech of Chancellor Darrell T. Allison

History

Chancellor Allison salutes FSU’s seven founders who pooled together $136 to start what would become a world-class institution of higher learning.

must recognize and speak the names of Fayetteville State University’s founders – the brave men who, back in 1867, founded what would become today’s FSU.

These seven men – two years post the Civil War (1867) – planned, strategized and funded what would be the second-oldest public university in the state.

$136 dollars is what they mustered between them to buy the parcels of land. However, what we all know and realize today – some 155 years later – is that those seven men had a lot more working for them than a mere $136. They added their strong faith to that $136 – strong faith and belief that despite what it looked like in 1867, the dream was possible.

Now, as the 12th chancellor of Fayetteville State University, I am standing as living proof of their good and faithful work.

So today, I speak the names of founders David Bryant, Nelson Carter, Andrew Chesnutt, George Grange, Sr., Matthew Leary, Jr., Thomas Lomax and Robert Simmons. I stand before you today upon the shoulders of these seven men.

The faces of FSU graduates say it all: Bronco Pride.

Our Calling

e fully understand that our first calling is to our students and ensuring that we have the best faculty to help educate them.

No doubt, I am proud of the fact that we are one of the most affordable universities in the nation due to NC Promise.

We are proud that we have just experienced the largest enrollment numbers in over 20 years. We are proud that our faculty is working to have highly desirable and highpaying degrees in cybersecurity, supply chain and construction management, business, nursing and more.

These are all important and will continue to be of high priority for this administration. It will require transformational thinking and action. A willingness to do what’s never been done and a dedication to seeing it through. But, ladies and gentlemen, I am happy to say that it is already happening, and we’ve only just begun.

General Michael X. Garrett, retired commanding General of U.S. Army Forces Command, speaks at Installation about FSU’s commitment to serving military-affiliated students.

Proud to Serve

hen I arrived at FSU in March 2021, I was aware of the close proximity of our campus to Fort Bragg and the percentage of militaryconnected students who were enrolled at FSU each year.

However, I wanted our administration to leave no doubt about our commitment to go even further in establishing an even stronger partnership with military members and families.

By the numbers, FSU’s footprint was pretty solid in the state, especially as an HBCU who at that time had the 5th highest number of military-affiliated students enrolled out of 16 institutions within the UNC System.

Thanks in part to the hard work of our research firm, we announced earlier this year that Fayetteville State University ranked #1 out of 102 HBCUs across the country in educating the most military-affiliated students in the nation! In strengthening our commitment to our military students and military families, we also announced this past February that we would offer free tuition to all undergraduate militaryaffiliated students.

Now we’re in September and fall semester is here. I am elated to report that we have our largest ever military student population. FSU educates more than 2,000 military-affiliated students, representing 30% of our overall student population.

Our goal is to provide greater access to our military community and remain an affordable option for a quality education for our military.

FSU ranks No. 1 of 102 HBCUs nationally in educating the most military-affiliated students.

Veteran student Deonna Aponte ’21

Partnerships and Economic Development

FSU and community leaders break ground on a new Chick-fil-A.

eyond making a transformative difference in the lives of our students, we have a responsibility in the community in which we live. Our local and regional governments are depending upon us to do and support as only we can. Our fellow regional partners are counting on us like never before to ensure that our citizens, who reside in rural North Carolina, have the same access to a quality of life as our citizens who reside in the more urban areas of North Carolina. Fayetteville State University is busting out of these four walls — for they were not built to contain us. We are not comfortable doing business as usual. I have asked my leadership team to tear down the silos that seem so normal in higher education. Fayetteville State University is meeting with community leaders in more meaningful ways.

Our Broadwell College of Business and Economics, for example, has long sponsored outreach activities to assist small businesses in our region. Through a collaborative effort with the City of Fayetteville, the Cumberland County Commissioners, and our state, we were able to take the university’s regional economic assistance to a completely different level. On September 14th, we opened the Fayetteville – Cumberland Regional Entrepreneur and Business HUB. FSU led this project, investing over $800,000, but I am honored to also recognize the following leaders and their agencies who

invested as well:

Mr. Scott Hamilton of the Golden Leaf Foundation: nearly $400,000

The City of Fayetteville: $250,000

Cumberland County: $250,000

North Carolina General Assembly: $1 million

We are engaging in positive partnerships; building on collaborative ideas; working to expand not only our footprint, but that of Fayetteville, Cumberland County and the Sandhills region. There is a new energy and real synergy. Yes, FSU is taking its rightful place as that powerful engine in this region.

Ribbon-cutting for FSU’s Entrepreneur & Business HUB, September 14, 2022.

Chancellor Allison (c) with attorney Glenn B. Adams (l), chairman of FSU’s Board of Trustees and the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, and Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin (r), an FSU alumnus.

Allison family pride.

Chancellor Allison chats with General (retired) Michael X. Garrett and Peter Hans, president of the UNC System.

The gift of song is alive at FSU. State Senator Val Applewhite, Stuart Augustine of the FSU Board of Trustees and Chancellor Allison.

Dr. J. Larry Keen, retired president of Fayetteville Technical Community College.

Saxophonist, Shawn McNeill Standing are N.C. Representatives Diane Wheatley and John Szoka.

FSU color guard

Maya Martin, SGA President Chancellors from across the state represent higher education at its best.