The Investiture ceremony began with a Presentation of Colors by the US Coast Guard Sector Humboldt Bay and Wiyot blessing, and featured remarks from city managers, a student, alumni, and more.
The President highlighted relationships with local residents, tribal communities, and student veterans during his welcome address.
“Humboldt is an amazing place with special people,” Jackson said. “It is a place filled with pride. It is a place filled with caring faculty, staff, and students. … When the redwoods whisper there’s a peace, a silence, a moment of command that overcomes us. When the ocean roars, we are reminded of our place—its power and our sustainability. However, when the redwoods whisper and the ocean roars, there’s Humboldt. An amazing place where our students’ dreams come true.”
Chancellor White and CSU Trustee Lillian Kimbell presented the Presidential Medallion to President Jackson. The Presidential Medallion is a symbol of President Jackson’s responsibilities to the University.
Defined as the “act or ceremony of conferring the authority and symbols of a high office,” an investiture is an academic ceremony in which a new leader is “vested” with the official powers of office. The investiture provides an opportunity to welcome a new chapter in a university’s history and celebrate as a community.
The installation of a new president is a ceremony of dignity with many academic traditions and protocols. It includes an academic procession of delegates from other colleges and universities as well as the institution’s own faculty. Marchers wear the colorful academic regalia of their own institution. Interspersed with musical selections, the event includes greetings from members of the university community.
At a fundraiser dinner after the ceremony, more than $160,000 was raised to directly support HSU student scholarships.
