N.C. A&T Alumna Establishes Endowment Scholarship for Students in the College of Education

Dr. Lois Fears ’53 has been a persistent leader in the field of education and has dedicated 51 years of her life to being an educator. Growing up in rural Madison, North Carolina, she was raised on a tobacco farm and was the youngest of 14 siblings. Her parents always instilled in them the importance of upward education.

“As a child, I was surrounded by greatness because my sisters set the bar really high for me with their schooling, and I felt like I had to be the best example of myself,” said Fears. “Being raised on a farm also taught me that I had to work hard in order to have a good quality of life.”

During her adolescent years, which was in the segregation era, Fears and her siblings had to walk eight miles each day for their education. When she started her junior year of high school, she found herself walking alone. Her mother decided that something had to be done for the black students in Madison.

“My mother went to the school board meeting and petitioned on my behalf that she was tired of her child walking alone to school and that the colored students needed a bus. The school board voted and my senior year of high school, I rode the bus to school,” said Fears. “What my mother did for me and other students showed me if you set your mind to something, anything is possible.”

After high school, Fears received her bachelor’s degree in home economics from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in 1953. She also received her master’s degree in early childhood education from Tufts University in 1956, and her doctorate degree in education from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) in 1982.

At one point in her career, she worked at N.C. A&T’s laboratory school in the Department of Economics with children ages four and five years old. After receiving her master’s degree, she became a faculty member at Hampton (Institute) University in the Department of Early Childhood Education as a laboratory school teacher and associate professor for 29 years. After she retired from Hampton University, she worked as an early childhood education consultant with the Department of Army, Headquarters’ Training and Doctrine Command based in Fort Monroe, Virginia. She retired in 2006 with 51 years of service in education.

In 2018, the Dr. Lois M. Fears Endowed Scholarship in Education was established in. Fears’ name for A&T students. Her decision was motivated by the foundation that A&T gave to her as a student and her passion to help others excel.

“I wasn’t an “A-honor roll student, but I worked really hard to achieve my education degrees. So I wanted to start a scholarship for students who were not high-achieving students but showed potential and aspiration to be hard workers,” said Fears.

The Dr. Lois M. Fears Endowed Scholarship in Education is for students majoring in grades K-6 elementary education with a focus in STEM education and have passed the Praxis Core test for entry. The student must have a 2.8 or higher GPA and must demonstrate financial need. After one year, students are eligible to reapply for the scholarship if maintaining minimum academic standards