Caldwell Fellows 50th Anniversary

This past February, Special Collections joined a weekend of celebrations in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Caldwell Fellows program at NC State.  

"The Caldwell Fellows program at NC State University, building on the legacy of Chancellor (1959-1975) John T. Caldwell, invests in students selected during their first year at NC State who share a passion to learn, grow and serve others... and facilitates the goal of maximizing the college experience by providing intensive programming and leadership training, as well as by fostering collaborative interaction with alumni, faculty and community partners. Supported by endowers, this comprehensive program is dedicated to student development as individuals and as servant-leaders now and throughout their lives as NC State alumni.

(source: Caldwell Fellows website)

Chancellor John T. Caldwell speaking to Student Senate, circa 1965.

The program originally developed as a result of funding from the Smith Richardson Foundation in Greensboro in 1968, which founded five leadership development programs across university campuses in North Carolina. When the Richardson grant funding ended, the NC State Alumni Association and the Division of Student Affairs made a commitment to continue the NC Fellows at NC State. Upon the retirement of then-Chancellor John T. Caldwell in 1978, NC State alumni established the university’s first merit scholarship program for new students. The program in its current form extends the merit scholarship component, with an additional enrichment-stipend scholarship awarded to help the student gain additional learning experiences during their time at NCSU.

Caldwell Fellows alumni viewing archival materials from their time as students.

To celebrate this milestone anniversary, Special Collections brought a show and tell of materials from the archives. Materials on display included photographs, event programs, speeches, and clippings documenting John T. Caldwell's leadership as chancellor of NC State, as well as materials reflecting the evolution of the Caldwell Fellows program. The following night, the Wolf Tales mobile video storytelling program collected 12 recordings with a wide range of Caldwell Fellows alumni, current students, and staff, as well as family members of Chancellor Caldwell. The recordings will be made available on the SCRC's Rare and Unique Digital Collections in the coming months.

Photographs and documents from the Caldwell Fellows program and Chancellor John T. Caldwell.

Caldwell Fellows alumna Courtney Horton reads a summary of a student-led outdoor excursion in which she took part as a student.

Special Collections holds collections documenting the life and career of John T. Caldwell, including a 3-part video interview with Caldwell, a video of a party hosted at the Chancellor's residence for a Peace Corps group training at NC State in 1964, photographs, records of Caldwell's time as Chancellor, and his personal papers. Additionally, materials documenting the evolution of the Caldwell Fellows program can be found in our University Archives collections.