Immediately following the Civil War in 1865, a robust education agenda was begun in Fayetteville's African American community with the founding of the Phillips and Sumner Schools for primary and intermediate learning.

In 1867, the schools consolidated to form the Howard School, following the vision of the Freedmen's Bureau chief General Oliver O. Howard who erected a building on a tract of land generously donated by seven prominent African American men – Matthew N. Leary, Andrew J. Chestnutt, Robert Simmons, George Grainger, Thomas Lomax, Nelson Carter, and David A. Bryant – who together paid $136 for two lots on Gillespie Street in Fayetteville and formed among themselves a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees to maintain the property for the education of local black youth.

[6] Following a succession of leaders, in 1883, Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith, a graduate of Shaw Collegiate Institute (later Shaw University) in Raleigh, N.C., was appointed Principal and Chief Administrative Officer of the State Colored Normal School and began a fifty-year commitment of leadership and affiliation interrupted only by opportunities to honorably serve his country – once as Resident Minister and Consul General of the United States to Liberia and later as Regimental Adjutant of the Third North Carolina Volunteer Infantry during the Spanish–American War.

During his distinguished tenure, Dr. Smith oversaw the school's move to a permanent site on Murchison Road and personally deeded additional land to bring its holdings to 92 acres, including a physical plant of several major buildings and cottages.

Later, in 1959, under the presidency of Dr. Rudolph Jones, a revision of the school's charter authorized a curricular expansion to include programs leading to degrees outside the teaching field.

It was also during Dr. Jones' presidency that the school became Fayetteville State College in 1963 and significant additions were made to the physical plant to accommodate a rapidly growing enrollment.

Additionally, several innovative initiatives sprang forth under the leadership of Dr. Lyons including the Fort Bragg-Pope Air Force Base Extension Center that, in collaboration with the newly established Weekend and Evening College, provided military personnel and other full-time employees the opportunity to further their education.

Under her leadership, the university greatly expanded undergraduate and graduate program offerings, secured important specialized accreditations, and became third in the UNC system in distance-learning enrollments.

The primary mission of Fayetteville State University is to provide quality education to its students through a basic liberal arts foundation, specialized professional training, and specific graduate programs.

[16] An active intramural program offers students the opportunity to participate in flag football, basketball, track and field, soccer, and swimming.

[17][18] Fayetteville State University enjoys a robust performing and fine arts program that has featured artists including Dance Theatre of Harlem, Take 6, Mitch Capel, and many others.