‘It’s Great To Be Home’
Kevin Howell ’88 returns to NC State to serve as the 15th chancellor of the university.
Some 200 miles separate Shelby, N.C., from Raleigh. And they are miles that Kevin Howell ’88 remembers covering on his trip from his hometown in the Carolina foothills to NC State in the early 1980s, when his father first drove him to college for his freshman year. It’s something he still calls “a big deal.”
When Howell recounts that sojourn, he celebrates the value that his parents placed on education and instilled in him. It’s one that’s never waned, he says. Clearly, NC State underscored that value for him. His time as a student would see him wrestle for two years, major in political science and turn his attention to leadership, carving out a powerful legacy as student body president.
“Like most incoming freshmen, I didn’t understand the profound effect this university would forever have on my life,” Howell says. But NC State had such a profound effect that Howell now views his return to the university as a homecoming. In March, at a ceremony in Talley Student Union, he was named the university’s 15th chancellor, succeeding Randy Woodson after a 15-year career in the position. In May, Howell began his tenure in that post. He is the third alumnus to serve as chancellor. At the announcement ceremony, Howell used that trip with his father from Shelby to Raleigh as a reference point.
“Like most incoming freshmen, I didn’t understand the profound effect this university would forever have on my life.”
–Kevin Howell ’88
“Wolfpack Nation,” he told the crowd of legislators, alumni, assistant to the chancellor for external affairs, staff and students, “I’m even more excited today than I was on that day when I left home for college.
“And it is certainly the highest honor and privilege that I can say to be the 15th chancellor, your chancellor, of this beloved university we call NC State University.”
Howell has a track record of “coming back home” to NC State. He’s twice worked for the university, first from 2006 to 2016 as assistant to the chancellor for external affairs, heading up NC State’s legislative strategy and serving as legislative liaison to state and local government agencies and their leaders. During that stint, he also served as interim executive director of the NC State Alumni Association from 2009 to 2010. From 2018 to 2023, he was vice chancellor for external affairs, partnerships and economic development. In that role, he fostered relationships and economic partnerships, leading job creation and investments, while highlighting the power of North Carolina as an economic driver.
“He’s left me twice,” Woodson joked at the announcement ceremony. “But he keeps coming back. And that’s a great thing.”
Most recently, Howell served as chief of external affairs for UNC Health and UNC School of Medicine, where he helped shape public policy and legislation for the health care system including 19 hospitals, more than 900 clinics, 3,000 physicians and more than 40,000 employees. He’s also previously worked as senior vice president for external affairs with the UNC System, as well as serving as a legislative liaison for governors. Howell’s résumé is a testament to his dedication to the state. In his various roles, he advocated to the legislature for such NC State projects as the James B. Hunt Jr. Library, Fitts-Woolard Hall and the Plant Sciences Building, to name a few.
“Kevin Howell is a born leader with a long record of service to North Carolina, the UNC System and NC State University,” said University of North Carolina President Peter Hans when he announced Howell’s appointment in March. “His deep relationships across the state have helped drive investment and growth. I am confident that he will strengthen NC State’s role as a frontier research university, keeping North Carolina competitive in the most important fields of our future.”
If that’s how Howell is known professionally, he says his wife, Aleta, a 1989 graduate, and their two adult daughters know him personally as someone who is always excited. And that could be no clearer in the vision of legacy, innovation and leadership he’s already setting for NC State, which he frames as, “A rising tide lifts all boats.”
And as NC State was once a destination for a young freshman from Shelby, it’s now a place that Howell calls home.
“Wolfpack, it’s great to be home,” Howell said in a recorded video message to the NC State community soon after his appointment in March. “Home to a place that serves the people of our great state, our nation and our world. A place that opens doors for students, conducts groundbreaking research and serves as an economic engine for the people of North Carolina. A place that truly is a university for the people.”
Photography by Marc Hall ’20 MA and Becky Kirkland, NC State
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