Appalachian State University
Installation of Dr. Heather H. Norris, Eighth Chancellor of Appalachian State University
The ceremony will last approximately 90 minutes.
App State is committed to promoting opportunity, access and civil rights based on a disability. If accommodations are needed in order to participate in the event on the basis of a disability, contact the Office of Access and Opportunity: Disability Resources ([email protected] or 828-262-3056) at least two weeks prior to the event.
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Additional participation details will be shared closer to the event. With questions about the event, contact the Office of University Events at [email protected].
App State ROTC’s Pershing Rifles
Words by Francis Scott Key
John Higgins, Arranger
Kathryn Long ʼ25, 2025-26 University of North Carolina System Presidential Scholar
Peter Hans, President of the University of North Carolina System Wendy Floyd Murphy, UNC Board of Governors chair Mark E. Ricks, Board of Trustees chair David Jackson ʼ00, President and CEO of Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Brandon Adcock ʼ06, App State Alumni Association Dr. Jim Westerman, App State Faculty Senate chair Samantha Williams, App State Staff Senate chair Abby Silva, App State Graduate Student Government Association president Nicole Tran, App State Student Government Association president
Appalachian Brass Ensemble and Choir
Charlie King ʼ74 and ʼ75, Past Interim President of James Madison University
Peter Hans, President of the University of North Carolina System
Mr. C. Philip Byers ʼ85, UNC Board of Governors member
The Honorable Rebecca Eggers-Gryder ʼ83
Dr. Heather Norris, Chancellor
President Hans
Vocalist Kathryn Haycraft, soprano, double major in music performance and communication sciences and disorders
Dr. William Gilbert Spencer, Composer and Arranger
Performed by App State Marching Mountaineers
Dr. Heather Hulburt Norris assumed her role as chancellor of Appalachian State University on March 1, 2025, upon being elected to the position by the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors.
Her career has been characterized by her strong, collaborative leadership and service to both App State and the greater community, and she brings more than two decades of academic leadership, vision and expertise to her role as chancellor.
Norris has overseen strategically managed enrollment growth at the university, with App State experiencing significant growth in both the Hickory campus and App State Online student populations for 2024–25, as well as a record enrollment of students for the spring 2025 semester. Her leadership at App State has demonstrated a strong emphasis on developing and advancing new models and markets for academic delivery and expanding access to education for more people in North Carolina.
She joined the university in 2003 as an experienced assistant professor in the Walker College of Business and rose steadily through the academic ranks to become the seventh dean of Walker College in 2016.
In recognition of her trusted leadership and her passion for advancing the success of App State, Norris was appointed interim provost and executive vice chancellor in February 2020, assuming full responsibilities in May 2021. In this capacity, she oversaw the strategic direction of academic affairs, ensuring continuity and resilience in academic operations during the pandemic.
Norris served as interim chancellor from April 2024 to March 2025. During this time, she increased fundraising, bolstered community relationships and led the university through its response and recovery efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
Norris has built a reputation of leading by example, serving to inspire the faculty, staff and administrators who have worked alongside her, as well as the students she has taught and mentored. She is dedicated to community engagement, driving innovation, fostering key partnerships, and facilitating excellence in teaching, learning, research and student success.
Norris is App State’s eighth permanent leader. Over the course of its 125-year history, the university has had 11 total leaders, three of whom served in the interim capacity of the role for brief periods. Dr. Blanford Barnard “B.B” Dougherty — co-founder of Watauga Academy, the school that would become App State — led the institution for 56 years (1899–1956) through its transitions from Watauga Academy to Appalachian Training School, Appalachian State Normal School, and, most recently, Appalachian State University.
The following permanent App State leaders succeeded him: Dr. William H. Plemmons (1955–1969); Dr. Herbert W. Wey (1969–1979); Dr. John E. Thomas (1979–1993); Dr. Francis T. Borkowski (1993–2003); Dr. Kenneth E. Peacock (2004–2014); and Dr. Sheri Everts (2014–2024).
The Appalachian State University mace is carried by a senior faculty member in all academic processions. Traditionally, the macebearer precedes the chancellor of an institution, both upon entering and leaving a ceremony. The mace serves as a symbol of authority just as it did during the Middle Ages, when a macebearer accompanied an official taking office or opening court.
The App State mace symbolizes the university’s mountain heritage, the rustic location and the sophistication of an emerging, national leader in higher education. Its design, as a walking stick with a base constructed of rough-hewn log and finished molding, is appropriate to the natural environment of the area. At the top of the mace is a soaring, red-tailed hawk native to the area. The hawk symbolizes power and authority, as well as the empowerment of education. The talons are grasping a sphere containing two quartz crystals. The first crystal represents the global nature of the university, its educational programs and its alumni and students. The second crystal is a reproduction of Grandfather Mountain.
The relief of the letters ASU within the pine cone are crafted in black enamel and are gold plated. The various bands represent the flora and fauna native to the area. The black walnut, one of the strongest of woods, was used to symbolize the staying power of the university.
The medallion is a symbol of authority and leadership, typically worn by a college or university chancellor during ceremonial occasions. It represents the trust and authority invested in the chancellor by the institution's governing body. In academic regalia, the use of medallions is traced to the Middle Ages. Colleges and universities have traditionally used both ceremonial and commemorative medallions. As part of the 95th anniversary of Appalachian State University, a commemorative medallion was commissioned in 1994 and is worn by the chancellor on ceremonial occasions.
