Fayetteville State University - Fayettevillian Bronco Yearbook (Fayetteville, NC)

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Historical Sketch Fayetteville State University was established by Senate Bill Number 472 which was ratified by the General Assembly of North Carolina on March 8, 1 877. The bill was introduced in the senate by Mr. Thomas Nicholson from Iredell County and was known as the Act to establish normal schools. The law did not designate Fayetteville as the place for the school and many cities sought this new State Colored Normal School. Since the appropriation was only $2,000, the State officials tried to find a school already in operation which they could take over. Upon investigating the Howard School in Fayetteville, which had been in existence since 1 867, they de- cided it had the most to offer and it was selected. The University has been known by the following names: State Colored Normal School, 1 877; State Colored Normal and Indus- trial School, 1916; State Normal School for the Negro Race, 1 921 ; State Normal School, 1 926; Fayetteville State Teachers College, 1939; Fayetteville State College, 1968; and Fayette- ville State University, 1969. The scope of the University program has been enlarged to cope with new demands. Prior to 1 960, the only major offered was Elementary Education. The General Assembly of North Carolina revised the charter of the University in 1 959 and authorized the expansion of the curriculum to include Secondary Education ma- jors. These were begun in 1 960. Since then several non-teach- ing majors have been added. Principals: Mr. Robert L. Harris (1 877-1 880) and Mr. Charles W. Chesnutt (1880-1883). Presidents: Mr. Charles W. Chesnutt (1 800-1 883); Dr. Ezeki- el Ezra Smith (1883-1888); Mr. George Williams (1888- 1895); Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith (1895-1898); Rev. L. E. Fairley (1 898-1 899); Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith (1 899-1 933); Dr. James Ward Seabrook (1933-1956); Dr. Rudolph Jones (1956- 1 969); and Dr. Charles A Lyons, Jr., (1 969-1 972). Chancellor: Dr. Charles A Lyons, Jr., (1972- ) m

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CHANCELLOR ' S MESSAGE We entered our 1 00th year as the second oldest public senior high- er education institution in North Carolina. As we move closer to the culmination of our first one hundred years of service to the citizens of North Carolina, it is important not only to reflect on past achieve- ments, but also to recognize that the University is on the threshold of new and exciting advances and a bright future. Therefore, as the year progresses, I shall challenge all of us to combine reflections on the past with visions of the future. We celebrate 100 years of meeting the needs of students with a deep commitment to excellence and the achievement of human digni- ty. That quest for excellence and human dignity should be the basis for the beginning of our second century. We must continue to pursue relentlessly the goal of a Full Service University. As we think about the achievement of excellence, we might consid- er these attributes — dedication, commitment, loyalty, and en- thusiasm as prerequisites. Therefore, as we move through our Centennial observance, great demands will be placed upon all of us to assess the depth of our commitment to the great tasks which lie before us and Fayetteville State University in the second century of the University ' s founding. Our spirit is embodied in our Centennial theme, One Hundred Years of Excellence: A Past to Remember, A Present to Behold, A Future to Mold. In our observance we must pay tribute to that small band of fore- sighted men who pooled their meager resources to purchase the land on which the Howard School was built and which was the forerunner of Fayetteville State University. The risks they were willing to take was a measure of their commitment and determination to forge an institu- tion where the concepts of freedom and dignity could be translated into reality. Over the years, Fayetteville State University and other similar institutions have grown and developed and become the spawning ground for ideas, idealism and leadership that have placed them on the cutting edge of educational and social change in Ameri- ca. Today, Fayetteville State University stands on the threshold of at- taining its avowed goal of a Full Service University . I believe it is a major laboratory in which we are taking advantage of a great oppor- tunity to test the sufficiency of the equalitarian educational philoso- phy and the fundamental social philosophy of the American Society. We have the opportunity, and are endeavoring, to demonstrate that our ideas about the essential self-esteem, the worth and dignity of the individual, human freedom, and the equality of opportunity for every human being to develop whatever talents he may possess, can be translated into public policies and institutional arrangements that work.

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A PAST TO REMEMBER The Howard School % FAYETTEVILLE STATE TEACHERS LLEGE The Souths oldest nor- mal school. Established 1867: state-supported since 1877 For Negroes. k.A, HOWARD SCHOOL 1867 A lot was purchased on Gillespie Street, Fayetteville, by seven Negro citizens for the purpose of building a school. Pictured above are Robert Simmons and Andrew J. Chesnutt. Others were David Bryant, Nelson Carter, George Grainger, Matthew N. Leary, and Thomas Lomax. The school was named the Howard School in honor of General 0, 0. Howard, who provided the funds for its erection. Itwasin 1877thatthe State of North Carolina chartered the institution and named it The State Colored Normal School-