WSSU confers honorary degrees to a senator and sports legend during spring commencement
See all the graduation excitement captured in these photos.
Winston-Salem State University honored two distinguished leaders with its highest recognition during spring commencement on May 9 as more than 800 graduates crossed the stage empowered to “depart to serve” at the Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum.
“On behalf of the entire university family, I am pleased to extend sincerest congratulations to the spring class of 2025,” said WSSU Chancellor Bonita J. Brown, who presided over her first spring commencement since leading the university.
“I applaud your dedication and determination to earn a degree. Commencement represents the culmination of several activities in and outside the classroom,” she said. “By definition, graduation means to move to the next level. Now the time has come to move to that next level. It is time to depart to serve.”
Before conferring degrees upon the graduates, Brown awarded honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees to North Carolina Senator Paul Lowe and former WSSU head football coach William “Bill” Hayes, in recognition of their distinguished contributions to public service and athletics.
“Winston-Salem State University reserves special honors for individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the institution, their professions and to the world,” Brown said prior to highlighting their achievements.
Senator Paul LoweLowe has represented District 32 (Forsyth County) for the past decade and has also served as pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Winston-Salem for two decades. He views his governmental service as an extension of his work as a pastor.
Throughout his tenure, Lowe has focused on the economic needs of North Carolinians, introducing bills to revive tax credits, attract businesses and create jobs.
He is former chair of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus and current chair of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus Scholarship Foundation, which raises over a quarter of a million dollars annually for scholarships for students attending HBCUs. He is a board member of and chaplain to the National Conference of State Black Legislators.
Brown has acknowledged Lowe for helping to sponsor legislation to establish a Nursing Fellows Program at WSSU and for introducing legislation for a new facility to house WSSU’s Health Sciences programs.
He has received numerous honors and awards including the Defender of Public Safety Award presented by the North Carolina Sheriff’s Association (2017); Black Business Ink’s “50 Most Influential African Americans in the Piedmont Triad” (2018) and POWER 100 (2018); Small Business Policy Champion (2023) and Small Business Jobs Champion (2019, 2000, 2021).
Lowe earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Bishop College in Dallas; his Master of Divinity from the Samuel Dewitt Proctor School of Theology of Virginia Union University; and his Doctor of Divinity from Drew University School of Theology in Madison, NJ, completing further study at Oxford’s Christ Church College in Oxford, England.
Married to the former LaGail Crews, he is a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., is a 33rd degree Mason, and is a lifetime member of the NAACP.
Bill HayesHayes became the head football coach for WSSU in 1976 and coached for 12 seasons, leading the Rams to three CIAA championships (1977, 1978, 1987); seven division championships; and two undefeated seasons in 1977 and 1978. He made history in North Carolina as the winningest coach at both WSSU and N.C A&T with 195 victories.
After his coaching career, he became the athletics director at NC Central University (NCCU), Florida A&M and WSSU. He implemented the $1000 Eagles, $1000 Strikes and $1000 HORNS programs, which he envisioned as fundraisers for the respective schools’ athletic programs.
Hayes has been inducted into at least 12 sports Halls of Fame, with the most notable being the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame, the Black College Football Hall of Fame, the Clarence E. “Big House” Gaines Athletics Hall of Fame (WSSU), the Alex Rivera Sports Hall of Fame (NCCU), the North Carolina A&T Sports Hall of Fame, and the CIAA John B. McLendon, Jr. Hall of Fame. He is also the recipient of the 2019 American Football Coaches Association Trailblazer Award and was awarded the 2024 Atlantic Coast Conference UNITE Award in February 2025.
Hayes earned a degree in physical education from NCCU, where he played four football seasons as a center and linebacker, winning three all-American citations. He has volunteered with the Boy Scouts of America for several years, earning the Silver Beaver Award and the Silver Buffalo Award for his service.
As with each spring commencement, WSSU’s Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to its recipient. Joel Ford, a member of the UNC Board of Governors, awarded Dr. Dawn Hicks Tafari with the award, which comes with a medallion and $12,500 cash prize.
Also, during the ceremony, three graduates were commissioned into miliary service: Jezebel A. Vega, U.S. Army active duty, second lieutenant, chemical corps; Kyle A. Agee, N.C. Army National Guard, second lieutenant, chemical corps; and Richard H.T. Arnold, N.C. Army National Guard, second lieutenant, transportation corps. The commissioning was led by Lt. Col. John P. Flach, U.S. Army, professor and chair of the Military Science Department at Wake Forest University.
