Lumbee Guaranty Bank, headquartered in Pembroke, North Carolina, gave the first financial gift in support of the new Native American Leadership Development Program at Campbell University.
According to Kyle Chavis, chief executive officer of Lumbee Guaranty, the gift is an “investment that will pay dividends to the residents, businesses and governmental entities across our state.”
“Our bank is proud to support the efforts of Campbell University to develop and equip Native leaders in North Carolina,” Chavis said. “We are excited to partner with the University in this important initiative and look forward to the successes that will result from this project.”
The leadership program, a cooperative effort of the School of Education & Human Sciences, the Lundy-Fetterman School of Business and the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs, is expected to launch this summer, led by deans Dr. Alfred Bryant and Dr. Kevin O’Mara. The first cohort of tribal leaders and members across the state will engage in a multidisciplinary training opportunity coordinated and facilitated by Campbell professors, local officials and subject matter experts with the goal of creating equipped and empowered leaders, resulting in future growth, success and nation building in the North Carolina tribes.
“The American Indian Leadership Development Program will provide a great service to the American Indian tribes of our state,” Bryant said. “Campbell is honored to be able to take the lead on this worthy partnership endeavor. I want to give a huge thank you to Lumbee Guaranty Bank for their significant contribution to the program.”
Executive Vice President Dr. John Roberson said he is proud to see Campbell’s emerging partnership with the Commission and is honored to use Campbell’s educational resources to meet the needs within the state’s tribes.
“The American Indian Leadership Development Program is Campbell’s inaugural offering and a result of this new collaboration,” Roberson said. “The University is pleased that others, like Lumbee Guaranty Bank, are seeing value in the partnership and investing in its success.”
North Carolina is home to the largest American Indian population east of the Mississippi River, and the eighth-largest Indian population in the United States.