A $100,000 gift from the Rehab Therapy Foundation Inc. will further assist North Carolina Central University School of Education graduate students enrolled in its Communication Disorders program.
The H. Donell Lewis Graduate Fellowship is named in honor of H. Donell Lewis, Ph.D., a renowned speech pathologist and retired director of NCCU’s Communication Disorders Program. Lewis has been a longtime advocate for the university and played a significant role in several large gifts to fund academic initiatives and student scholarship needs at the university.
“Dr. H. Donell Lewis is a champion for North Carolina Central University,” said Chancellor Johnson O. Akinleye. “Dr. Lewis’ most recent act of support through the Rehab Therapy Foundation Inc. in the form of an endowment will continue to advance our quest to fulfill The Eagle Promise by preparing the best students in the field of speech and language pathology.”
Lewis, a native of Loris, S.C., joined the NCCU faculty in 1984. Under his leadership, the Communication Disorders program achieved its first national accreditation by the Council of Academic Accreditation. Lewis also played a significant role in establishing NCCU’s radio station, WNCU, by securing more than $2 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Originally published June 20, 2019.