2025 Homecoming Parade Grand Marshal

2025 Homecoming Parade Grand Marshal

by Ja'Nysha Shelley

Fort Valley State University (FVSU) is honored to announce distinguished educator, founder and director of the Cooperative Developmental Energy Program (CDEP), and nationally recognized mentor honored for six decades of his service to higher education - Isaac J. Crumbly, Ph.D., as the Grand Marshal for the 2025 Homecoming Parade.

Crumbly, currently serving as the associate vice president for Careers and Collaborative Programs at FVSU, has served the university in numerous roles, including professor, director, dean, researcher, associate vice president and vice president. His distinguished career is marked by innovation, mentorship and program development that has profoundly shaped opportunities for FVSU students.

In 1983, Crumbly established CDEP with grant support from the U.S. Department of Energy. What began as a summer energy internship program evolved into a nationally recognized dual-degree STEM pipeline initiative. In 2022, the program evolved from a bachelor's/bachelor's dual degree initiative to a bachelor's/graduate dual degree program. Today, CDEP boasts partnerships with more than a dozen leading universities, including University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Georgia Institute of Technology, Pennsylvania State University, the University of Alabama and the University of Texas at Austin. Through these collaborations, FVSU has awarded 269 bachelor's degrees in biology, chemistry and mathematics, while partner institutions have conferred more than 190 additional bachelor's and graduate degrees in engineering, geology, geophysics and health physics.

Also, a part of Crumbly's devotion to expanding access to STEM, he founded the Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Academy (M-SEA) in 1993, a pre-college program for academically talented students in grades 9-12. To date, more than 1,000 students have participated in M-SEA, many advancing into the CDEP pipeline and pursuing careers in science and engineering.

Nationally recognized for his groundbreaking contributions and research endeavors, Crumbly has received various accolades. Including a commendation from President Ronald Reagan in 1988 for his exemplary achievements as an educator, researcher, and role model. The Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring from President Barack Obama in 2009. Later in February 2009 he was appointed to President Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

STEM Undergraduate Education Working Group. His lifetime achievements have also been recognized with receiving the Lifetime Achievement in Academia Award from the National Society of Black Engineers. The 1999 AAPG Special Award, the 2024 AAPG Grover E. Murray Distinguished Educator Award and the 2021 SEG Special Commendation Award. Crumbly is an ingenious leader and remarkable mentor, whose legacy continues to inspire future generations of scientists and engineers,

The Homecoming Parade will take place on Saturday, October 4, at 9 a.m. in downtown Fort Valley, Georgia. For more information about the parade and FVSU's Homecoming 2025 celebration, visit www.FVSU.edu/Homecoming.

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