Fall Convocation 2026 Awardees
College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences
Glover Ford Jr., BS '88, MS '96
Founder/Owner, Four Seasonal Nursery and General Mgr., Ford’s Landscaping
(Rocky Mount, North Carolina)
Glover Ford Jr. is the owner of Four Seasonal Nursery and general manager of Ford’s Landscaping in Rocky Mount N.C., and a longtime agricultural educator. His career reflects the values of agriculture, education, service, entrepreneurship, and family. His businesses extend his role as a teacher, offering youth internships, leading seminars and providing hands-on agricultural experiences.
A native of Fairmount, N.C., Ford learned his earliest lessons on the Ford Family Farm, where planting, cultivating and harvesting taught him the value of hard work and of investing in future generations. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1988 and a master’s degree in 1996, both in agricultural education, from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. He also worked on the university farm and as an agricultural research technician before turning to teaching.
Ford taught horticulture at the Pamlico Correctional Center and later served as an instructor at Pamlico Community College. He then taught agricultural education at Southeast Halifax and Southwest Edgecombe high schools, where he advised FFA members, mentored students, and encouraged them to pursue agricultural careers and higher education. His work earned student-selected teaching awards and consecutive Teacher of the Year honors.
With his brothers Carey, Donald, and Ronnie Ford, he committed $125,000 to the Elsie May and Glover Ford Sr. Endowment Program at N.C. A&T. For Ford, success is measured not by what he has built but by the people, communities and future agriculturalists he has helped grow.
College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Bradford "B.J." Evans, Jr. '94
Vice President of Basketball Communications, Cleveland Cavaliers
(Cleveland, Ohio)
B.J. Evans is the vice president of basketball communications for the Cleveland Cavaliers, overseeing all media relations and strategic communications for players, coaches, and front office personnel. He also directs engagement initiatives that elevate the franchise’s national profile.
Before joining the Cavaliers, Evans held senior positions with the Charlotte Hornets (Bobcats Sports and Entertainment), the Miami Heat and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). Recognized for his leadership and impact across the NBA, he also served as a sports information director at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He also held a management role during the inaugural beach volleyball competition at the Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta.
Evans received his bachelor’s degree in public relations and journalism in 1994 from N.C. A&T where he served as the editor-in-chief for the student newspaper, the A&T Register. Today, Evans is on the Journalism and Mass Communication Advisory Board.
Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics
Alex Eugene Miller '05
Director, National Solutions Providers, NVIDIA
(San Franscisco, California)
Alex Miller is a technology executive and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University graduate whose career reflects leadership, innovation and professional achievement.
Miller is director of national solution providers at NVIDIA, where he leads the national solution provider business across North America and Latin America, one of the company's key partner segments. He builds and scales a high-performance ecosystem aligned with NVIDIA's strategic growth priorities, including enterprise AI infrastructure, AI factories and accelerated computing. He also leads go-to-market strategy for storage and power-and-cooling partners that support modern AI infrastructure deployments.
With nearly two decades of experience in channel leadership, partner development and market expansion, Miller consistently transforms emerging technologies into scalable business opportunities. His expertise spans enterprise data centers, AI and accelerated computing, cloud platforms, software and cybersecurity.
At NVIDIA, Miller has served as senior manager of partner sales for the Americas, national partner business manager and Americas channel go-to-market leader. Before joining the company, he held channel development and partner management roles at Cisco, Citrix and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. His leadership has contributed to sustained revenue growth and market expansion across multiple technology sectors.
Miller earned a B.S. in business administration with a concentration in management from N.C. A&T. His career exemplifies the impact of Aggie alumni in one of the world's most influential and rapidly evolving industries.
College of Education
Dawn Williams, Ph.D. '95
Deputy Provost
Howard University
(Washington, D.C.)
Dawn Williams, Ph.D., is deputy provost of Howard University, where she serves as the provost’s chief strategic partner in advancing the university’s academic priorities and mission. She leads university-wide initiatives in academic excellence, faculty success, enrollment strategy, organizational effectiveness and innovation. Across Howard’s schools, colleges and administrative divisions, she develops strategies that strengthen institutional performance and position the university for long-term success.
Williams previously served as interim provost and chief academic officer, leading Howard’s academic enterprise during a period of institutional transition. As dean of the Howard University School of Education, she expanded research, strengthened community partnerships, launched academic programs and raised the school’s national profile.
A nationally recognized scholar, Williams focuses on educational leadership, governance and policy designed to advance urban school reform. Her work is grounded in a commitment to social justice through teaching, research, service and leadership. Her scholarship has contributed to national conversations on educational leadership, STEM education, public policy and educational access, equity and diversity. She has appeared on BET, CNN, ABC and radio outlets, has served as principal investigator and co-investigator on externally funded projects totaling more than $4 million and holds board leadership roles in higher education and research organizations.
A native New Yorker and Aggie, Williams earned a B.S. in elementary education from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and began her career as a public school teacher. She earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in educational policy studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with dual residency in education organization and leadership. She is also a devoted wife and proud mother.
College of Engineering
Ashley Coleman '09, ’10
Technology Development Manager
Duke Energy Emerging Technology Office
(Charlotte, North Carolina)
Ashley Coleman is a technology development manager in Duke Energy’s Emerging Technology Office, where she leads the customer technology team. Her team advances behind-the-meter solutions, including managed charging, distributed energy resource optimization, hardware-in-the-loop modeling and innovation prototyping. It also manages the Non-Demand Side Management/Energy Efficiency Innovation Program, approved by the North Carolina Utilities Commission.
Coleman has spent more than 15 years with Duke Energy in engineering and leadership roles spanning fossil-fuel and hydroelectric plant operations and maintenance, fuel-flexibility and efficiency testing, project engineering and emerging technology development. Her earlier work included evaluating non-lithium energy storage, hydrogen, distributed customer solutions and other clean technologies that could affect the energy industry over a five- to 15-year horizon.
She also managed Duke Energy’s Intellectual Property Committee and built strategic relationships with research organizations, universities, clean-technology venture capital firms and accelerator programs. She serves on the external advisory board for the STEPS4GROWTH program, which connects emerging research, innovation and entrepreneurship with practical opportunities in the evolving energy landscape.
A dual-degree holder from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Coleman earned a B.S. in architectural engineering and a M.S. in civil engineering, with a focus on energy efficiency.
John R. and Kathy R. Hairston College of Health and Human Sciences
Ora Lea Strickland, Ph.D. '70
Dean and Professor Emerita, Florida International University’s Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences; Professor Emerita, Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing
(John Creek, Georgia)
Ora Lea Strickland, Ph.D., is an internationally renowned nurse scientist, educator, author and health policy leader whose career exemplifies the distinction of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University alumni. A 1970 graduate with a B.S. in nursing, she was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing at age 29, one of the youngest fellows ever, and became a full professor by age 37. She also holds an MSN in maternal and child health nursing from Boston University and a Ph.D. in child development and family relations with a minor in sociology.
Strickland is dean emerita and professor emerita at Florida International University’s Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences. She is also professor emerita at Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, where she held the Independence Foundation Endowed Professorship in Research, among the earliest endowed professorships held by a nurse in the United States.
She was the founding editor and senior editor of the Journal of Nursing Measurement for 20 years and created the Nursing Citation Index, which became part of the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. She co-authored “Measurement in Nursing and Health Research,” the first nursing measurement textbook, now used in doctoral education internationally. She has authored or contributed to 23 books and more than 100 scholarly articles and won 10 American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Awards.
Her research documented Couvade syndrome among expectant fathers and drew coverage from more than 80 newspapers and 1,200 radio stations. She helped establish the National Institute of Nursing Research and consulted for the National Institutes of Health’s Women’s Health Initiative.
Strickland helped write North Carolina’s first nurse practitioner practice act, chaired the American Journal of Nursing Company board and consulted in more than 48 countries. As dean at FIU, she secured endowment status for the college within two years, raised more than $40 million in gifts and helped advance Florida legislation that generated about $120 million in additional funding for high-performing nursing schools.
A Hall of Fame honoree, she has also received national awards for her global impact.
College of Science and Technology
Kevin Norman Jeffries '96
Senior Explosion Safety Consultant, Fike Corporation
(Blue Springs, Missouri)
Kevin N. Jeffries is a senior explosion safety consultant with Fike Corporation and a safety, risk management, environmental, and fire and explosion protection professional with more than three decades of experience protecting people, facilities and businesses from industrial hazards. He is certified as a fire protection specialist, a fire and explosion investigator and an environmental and safety professional.
Jeffries, who earned a B.S. in occupational safety and health from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, is a recognized authority in fire, explosion, combustible dust, electrostatic and process safety. At Fike, he provides specialized expertise to industrial clients and organizations addressing some of their most challenging fire and explosion hazards. His experience includes hazard assessments, risk reduction strategies, incident investigations, facility evaluations and developing practical solutions to protect lives and preserve business continuity.
His work spans multiple facilities and major industrial projects, including more than 200 dust hazard analyses and projects involving significant capital investment.
Beyond his professional responsibilities, he serves in the safety and fire protection profession as a principal member of the National Fire Protection Association’s Technical Committee on Electrostatics Safety, which oversees NFPA 77. His work contributes to industry standards that influence safe practices nationwide. A longtime advocate for professional excellence and mentorship, he reflects the impact of a N.C. A&T education carried into a career of service, leadership and technical innovation.
Graduate College
Kanton T. Reynolds, Ph.D. '97, '14
Director of Undergraduate Programs and Associate Teaching Professor, N.C. State University
(Raleigh, North Carolina)
In Spring 2026, Kanton T. Reynolds, Ph.D. was inducted into the TGC Graduate Alumni Hall of Fame. A proud alumnus of North Carolina’s leading institutions, Reynolds earned a Ph.D. in leadership studies and an M.S. in industrial engineering from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University; an MBA from UNC-Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business; and a B.S. in industrial engineering from North Carolina State University. Reynolds’ selection to the prestigious Fulbright-Hays Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Education, reflects his scholarly excellence and commitment to global education. In Summer 2024, he spent a month in Colombia building sustainable academic partnerships, advancing international collaboration, and expanding global learning opportunities for undergraduate students.
His doctoral research on leadership development in post-colonial Malawi and interdisciplinary training in engineering, business and leadership have shaped a career spanning more than 20 years in industry and higher education. He has held leadership and technical roles at General Motors, IBM and Lenovo, and is a PMP®, ASQ Six Sigma Green Belt, and SDI® Facilitator.
Reynolds’ global engagement includes study in Ghana, South Africa, Malawi and Argentina; leading programs in Cuba and Honduras; service with the U.S. Embassy Lilongwe and The Carter Center; and participation as an International Election Observer in Guyana. He has served as dean and director of International Programs at Saint Augustine’s University and lecturer at N.C. A&T.
Currently, he is director of Undergraduate Programs and associate teaching professor at N.C. State University, overseeing advising and academic initiatives supporting more than 450 students. He is also a Park Faculty Scholar, NCAA Faculty Council on Athletics subcommittee chair, study abroad co-leader for programs in Rwanda and the United Kingdom, mentor to Fulbright, Gilman, and Payne scholars, and co-Principal Investigator on U.S. Department of State-funded research to diversify study abroad participation in East Africa.
Honors College
Laveda Casterlow McDowell '04
Associate Director of Strategic Operational Performance and Outsourcing, Biogen
(Research Triangle Park, North Carolina)
Laveda Casterlow McDowell is associate director of strategic operational performance and outsourcing at Biogen, where she manages relationships with key vendor partners. She focuses on strengthening vendor accountability, advancing operational excellence and developing business solutions that improve efficiency and reduce risk. She is also a health equity strategy and community engagement advocate at Biogen, building connections across corporate and community spaces.
A 2004 summa cum laude graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, McDowell earned a B.S. in biology. She also holds a M.S. in business administration, with a focus on supply chain management, from North Carolina State University. She recently completed the North Carolina Leadership Accelerator certification through The Partnership Inc., a program that develops leaders in industries driving the economy of the Research Triangle region.
McDowell’s work reflects a commitment to service and access, guided by a goal to “leave people better than [she] found them.”
Outside of work, she volunteers with Girl Scouts of the USA Troops 1333 and 3338. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., the N.C. A&T Alumni Association’s Raleigh-Wake chapter and Wake Chapel Church. She mentors young and aspiring professionals and helps raise scholarship funds through her family’s endowed scholarship at A&T, which supports students committed to excellence.
McDowell and her husband, LeRoy McDowell Jr., share son, Landon, and daughter, Logan. She enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants and supporting all things N.C. A&T.
Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering
Rabin Pokharel, Ph.D. ’22
Senior Field Process Engineer
ASM America, Inc.
(Portland, Oregon)
Rabin Pokharel, Ph.D., is a semiconductor engineer, researcher and inventor whose path from the rural district of Dhading, Nepal, to the forefront of the American semiconductor industry reflects the power of education, perseverance and innovation. He is a senior field process engineer at ASM America Inc., where he develops advanced epitaxial process technologies for leading semiconductor manufacturers.
His work has supported the introduction and optimization of manufacturing solutions for 2-nanometer-class technology nodes and contributes to pathfinding efforts for future 18A, 14A, and beyond-generation platforms. By translating materials science into scalable manufacturing processes, he helps enable advances in artificial intelligence, high-performance computing and communication technologies while strengthening U.S. semiconductor leadership.
As a first-generation international scholar, Pokharel joined the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in 2017 and earned a Ph.D. in nanoengineering in 2022. Under the guidance of Shanthi Iyer, he conducted research on next-generation semiconductor materials and devices, working with researchers across multiple institutions and using cleanroom facilities at N.C. A&T, North Carolina State University and Duke University. He presented his findings at national and international conferences and was recognized as an outstanding senior graduate research assistant. He also received an oral presentation award at the Carolina Science Symposium in 2021.
He is co-inventor of a U.S. patent for a Group III-V nanowire-based avalanche photodiode and has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications that have collectively earned more than 165 citations. As a graduate research assistant, he mentored fellow researchers, many of whom have gone on to work in the technology industry. He also volunteers with JCI Nepal.
Velma R. Speight Young Alumnus/Alumna Award
Terrell R. Morton, Ph.D. '11
Associate Professor, Identity and Justice in STEM Education; Faculty Director, DuSable Scholars Program; Coordinator, Human Development and Learning Program, College of Education, University of Illinois Chicago
(Chicago, Illinois)
Terrell R. Morton, Ph.D., is an associate professor of identity and justice in STEM education in the Department of Educational Psychology, College of Education, at the University of Illinois-Chicago. A fourth-generation Aggie, he graduated summa cum laude from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. He earned a master’s degree in neuroscience from the University of Miami in 2013 and a doctorate in education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2017.
A scholar-activist, Morton studies how identity shapes the persistence and engagement of racialized and minoritized students in postsecondary STEM education. Drawing on critical race theory, phenomenology and human development, his work examines Black students’ consciousness and actions within STEM. He advocates for identity, justice and joy as foundations of education and works to transform STEM learning environments into spaces that affirm students.
Morton collaborates with faculty, students and alumni across historically Black colleges and universities, including N.C. A&T, North Carolina Central, Morgan State, Morehouse, Spelman and Virginia State. He has secured more than $15 million in external grants and delivered more than 75 invited talks and presentations worldwide.
In 2015, Morton co-founded the Christine Avery Learning Center with his mother, CiCi Weston. The Asheville, North Carolina-based educational nonprofit serves more than 250 young people and their families, offering programs that support academic, spiritual, mental, social and cultural success. Across his scholarship, advocacy and community work, Morton strives to “walk it like I talk it.”
Julia S. Brooks Achievement Award
Kaleena Clarkson '04
Registered Dietitian, Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist
Morris Heights Health Center
(Bronx, New York)
Kaleena Clarkson, a New York native, serves as a registered dietitian and certified diabetes care and education specialist at Morris Heights Health Center, and has 20 years of experience serving underserved communities across New York City.
A 2004 graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Clarkson earned a bachelor’s degree in food and nutrition science/dietetics. She earned a master’s degree in nutrition and exercise science from Queens College in 2011. At N. C. A&T, she was initiated into the Alpha Phi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. in 2002. She has remained an active member for more than two decades and now serves through the Epsilon Pi Omega graduate chapter in Queens, New York.>
Clarkson serves as president of the N.C. A&T New York Alumni Chapter from 2023 to 2027, focusing on increasing engagement among chapter members and Young Aggies. She previously served as the chapter’s business manager.
Service runs deep in Clarkson’s life. She has volunteered for a decade with the Brooklyn chapter of Hashtag Lunchbag and co-founded its Queens chapter in 2021 in the neighborhood where she grew up to help address food insecurity.
An avid runner, Clarkson serves as a run captain for two Bronx-based community running groups, motivating others to improve their health through movement. She has completed four marathons around the world and aims to finish all six World Marathon Majors. She also races in support of causes such as Fred’s Team, which funds cancer research, and Autism Speaks.
Clarkson credits N.C. A&T with shaping who she is today and continues to give back through service and philanthropy, living out true Aggie Pride.
Howard C. Barnhill Distinguished Service
Lt. Col. Charles (Chuck) M. Coffin Jr. '76 (Ret.)
Senior Acquisition and Contracting Staff Officer, Defense Information Systems Agency (Air Force, Ret.); Senior Procurement Analyst/ Contractor, Defense Logistics Agency (U. S. Government, Ret.)
(Greensboro, North Carolina)
Lt. Col. Charles (Chuck) M. Coffin Jr. is a Philadelphia native and 1976 graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. An Air Force ROTC scholarship recipient and distinguished graduate, he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and was commissioned as a second lieutenant at age 20. He later earned an MBA in marketing from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville and an associate degree in information technology from Northern Virginia Community College.
Coffin retired from the Air Force in 1998 after 22 years in acquisition, contracting and program management. He then served the federal government and retired from the Defense Logistics Agency in 2019 after 20 years, including a decade as a senior procurement analyst and 10 years as a government contractor.
A 52-year member and 51-year life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., Coffin received its National Outstanding Alumni Brother of the Year Award in 1988. Since returning to Greensboro in 2018, he has served N.C. A&T as an Aggie Athletic Foundation board member and Silver Donor, AAF-Greensboro Chapter vice president, Aggie Certified Alumni Recruiter, Charles H. Moore Legacy Society member, Class of 1976 Golden Anniversary reunion committee co-chair and Beta Epsilon Chapter alpha adviser.
For 40 years, Coffin has mentored more than 200 A&T students. He and his wife, Mary, established the Charles M. Coffin Jr. and Mary T. Coffin Endowed Scholarship for students in the Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics. His service also includes Oak Ridge First Baptist Church, Guilford County civic organizations, Scouting America, the Salvation Army and March of Dimes.
