Harold L. Martin, Sr., who is in his fifteenth year as leader of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, has announced that he will retire at the end of the 2023-24 school year. Currently the longest-serving chancellor in the 17-campus University of North Carolina System, Dr. Martin is the first alumnus to lead the university.
Dr. Martin joined the A&T College of Engineering faculty and began a steady rise up the ranks of academia, becoming department chair, dean of the college, and vice chancellor for academic affairs. He was appointed chancellor of Winston-Salem State University in 2000. He held that post for nearly seven years, steering the university through a strong period of growth and development, before being named senior vice president of academic affairs for the UNC System in 2006. He was named chancellor of North Carolina A&T State University in 2009.
“My wife Davida and I are very much looking forward to this next phase in our lives, as I join her in retirement – one that is filled with grandchildren and family, travel and adventure, and many visits to Aggieland, where we will continue to be enthusiastic members of the Aggie Family,” he said. “She and I share a deep sense of gratitude for the enormous role that A&T has played in both our lives, a commitment to its strong and accomplished future, and a great love for the many wonderful friends who make up our university.”
Dr. Martin earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering at North Carolina A&T before completing his Ph.D. at Virginia Tech.
