Fayetteville State University cut the ribbon on a $69.3 million College of Education building this week, a four-story, 72,027-square-foot facility built to train the next generation of North Carolina teachers at a moment when the state is struggling to keep the ones it already has. The building includes more than 30 dedicated learning and collaboration spaces, a mock courtroom, study areas, a fourth-floor balcony, and over 60 private faculty offices, consolidating education programs that had been scattered across campus into a single hub.
The project's completion connects directly to a workforce problem playing out across North Carolina classrooms. A March report from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction recorded a 10.11% public school teacher attrition rate for the 2024-2025 school year, amounting to 9,107 teachers, along with a 7.4% vacancy rate that has left roughly 1,000 classrooms statewide without a permanent certified teacher. As reported by ABC11, Chancellor Darrell Allison said the university is “doubling down on its educational investment” in Fayetteville, Cumberland County, the Sandhills region, North Carolina and beyond.
Brooke Guglielmello, an Army veteran and junior at FSU, told the station that educators are needed “now more than ever.” Guglielmello plans to pursue a master's degree in guidance counseling and intends to teach in Cumberland County after graduation. Moriah Tymes, a Fayetteville native and senior studying elementary education, said the new building lets students “teach freely, learn techniques and feel comfortable.”
A Design Rooted in the University's Founding
Fayetteville State University is North Carolina's second-oldest historically Black college and university, with a history spanning 159 years. The school traces its origin to November 29, 1867, when seven Black men pooled $136 to purchase land and establish what was then called the Howard School, according to BizFayetteville. In 1877, it was designated the State Colored Normal School, becoming North Carolina's first state-supported institution for training Black teachers, before later renamings to Fayetteville State Teachers College in 1939 and Fayetteville State University in 1969.
Nicholle St. Leone, an archives technician at the university, said African Americans created a permanent educational institution with the help of the seven founders, and that FSU is “reestablishing and redefining itself as a leader of education in North Carolina,” per ABC11's account. The new building was designed by architecture firm Moody Nolan, in one of the final projects led by the firm's late founder, Curt Moody. The design incorporates abstract references to FSU's seven founders throughout its exterior canopy, brickwork, glass, woodwork, stairways and lighting, the university said. A new lobby painting by artist Jerry Lynn was also permanently installed at the grand opening.
Groundbreaking to Ribbon-Cutting
The state-funded project broke ground on December 12, 2024, at the north end of campus near Willis B. McLeod Hall, replacing the aging G.L. Butler Building after the North Carolina General Assembly approved capital appropriations, according to CityView NC. State legislators representing Cumberland County secured those legislative capital allocations in 2021 and 2022. The education building is part of a broader $200 million state capital allocation to FSU that has leveraged more than $500 million in total campus investment under Chancellor Allison, including the $50 million Bronco Pride Hall residence hall that opened in August 2025. The university is also constructing a new Student Health and Wellness Center and a parking deck as part of the same expansion.
During the grand opening ceremony, contractor Metcon Construction announced a $250,000 corporate contribution and instructional partnership supporting FSU's new Bachelor of Science in Construction Project Management degree program, BizFayetteville reported. FSU launched that construction management program in spring 2025 in collaboration with local community colleges and industry partners. The College of Education itself enrolls more than 800 students across undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels, and in 2024 celebrated the 30th anniversary of its Doctor of Education program in Educational Leadership, which first welcomed students in 1994 with a focus on transformative leadership and equity in PK-12 and higher education administration.
Will New Buildings Fix an Old Pipeline Problem?
Whether new facilities can actually reverse the state's teacher shortage remains an open question. State education data released in March showed that for every five candidates who enter North Carolina's Educator Preparation Programs, only two complete their training and enter public school classrooms, while eight active teachers leave the profession during that same span, according to WCNC. State officials have emphasized that recruitment alone cannot offset current departure rates.
In May, North Carolina lawmakers introduced Senate legislation directing state education agencies to build expedited “earn while you learn” apprenticeship pathways into teaching to supplement traditional university degree programs, as reported by the Carolina Journal. The proposal would create pathways spanning high school work-based learning, community colleges and online UNC degrees. For now, Fayetteville State's new building stands as a physical bet that a larger, better-equipped training ground can help stem losses that, by the state's own numbers, still outpace the graduates entering North Carolina's classrooms each year.
