As the 14th president of Johnson C. Smith University, Clarence “Clay” Armbrister has had to navigate some of the most challenging times ever to hit higher education, as the pandemic brought unprecedented academic, financial, and health concerns. There was never a doubt in his mind however, whether the work was worth it.
“As a child, I watched how education transformed the trajectory of people’s lives,” Armbrister said.
Armbrister sees that same transformation happening with his students every day.
“JCSU wants to contribute to closing the economic upward mobility gap by bringing talented students who can go out and take on the jobs of the future,” Armbrister said.
His goal to transform JCSU into a top-tier HBCU is an ambitious one, but Armbrister believes it is attainable in a community like Charlotte.
“You have great strong leaders. And I don’t want to start naming them because I will forget someone,” Armbrister said with a laugh.
The Charlotte Region, he said, has a powerful mix of Black leaders and non-Black allies who have bought into the vision and belief that a community is at its best when it benefits everyone.
“Charlotte can be a beacon for other cities.” Armbrister said. “It’s just phenomenal and I can’t imagine there are too many places that are like Charlotte. I give a great tip of the hat to the business community and the broad and diverse leadership who were receptive, heard, and took action.”
Armbrister himself was recently named by QCity Metro as one of the Great 28, a list of Black Charlotteans who are shaping the city and pushing it forward.
And while Armbrister remains grateful for the recent accolades, he believes true success will be because of a collective effort. In fact, he tells people in other cities that all the time.
“I tell them, ‘you guys need to take a page out of Charlotte’s book about what inclusive leadership really looks like,’” he said.
Armbrister said in the last few years, the leadership changed from “talking the talk to walking the walk.”
He points to projects like Atrium Health’s planned Innovation District, and the intentional steps being taken to ensure the historically Black neighborhood of Brooklyn has its story preserved.
“It’s going to be phenomenal, it’s going to be transformative,” he said.
Armbrister remains inspired by the work being done today and said he is hopeful the seeds being planted today will allow our community to flourish for generations to come.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Armbrister said. “I would dare say there is no other place in the country that has the synergy and energy going on like we have here in Charlotte.”
