Page 2 - N.C. A&T Annual Report Fiscal Year 2017

MESSAGE FROM THE CHANCELLOR

When histories of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
are updated years from now, some will undoubtedly point back to 2016-17 as a
breakthrough year for our institution and its rise toward national preeminence as a
land-grant, doctoral higher research university leader. The benefits of our institution’s
disciplined implementation of its strategic plan—A&T Preeminence 2020: Embracing
Our Past, Creating Our Future—came into sharp focus, as our university rose to
greater prominence on the statewide and national stages.

Our faculty led the way, securing an institutional record $62.5 million in contracts
and grants, making a difference in such areas as sustainable food systems,
biomaterials, Alzheimer’s disease, education in rural communities and many more
areas. Partnerships with federal funders, state agencies and industry paid dividends
in answering the scientific questions inherent in each project, while developing the
infrastructure of research at our university and collectively serving as a significant
economic driver in the Piedmont Triad region.

Our students, here in greater numbers than ever before, did their part. An enrollment
of 11,177 in fall 2016 further cemented N.C. A&T’s role as America’s largest historically
black university (HBCU), for the third consecutive year, but we stood out for far more
reasons than simply our size. Hardworking and talented individuals continued to
build a culture of excellence and achievement in our student body, attracting more
high-achieving and diverse students from around the world.

Our intentional work in enhancing the intellectual climate of our university made N.C.
A&T’s emergence as a thought leader on issues of significant national importance
all the more relevant. As you will read elsewhere in this report, that included high-
profile figures such as President Barack Obama and Facebook Founder/CEO Mark
Zuckerberg engaging our students in campus dialogue that drew media coverage
from around the world. It also led to placement as the top HBCU in North Carolina
for the fifth consecutive year and the no. 2 public HBCU in America among a long
and growing list of prominent national rankings by U.S. News & World Report. We
take the opportunities and responsibilities of our leadership seriously. That means
the implementation of A&T Preeminence 2020 continues with new resolve. We are
not done— not by a long shot. We are invigorated both with a new sense of what is
possible for our university and with excitement for the new heights now clearly visible
in our upward climb.

Harold L. Martin Sr., Ph.D. ’74
Chancellor

2017 ANNUAL REPORT [ 1 ]