Benjamin E. "Benny" Nichols, Chief of the Fayetteville Fire Department, has dedicated more then three decades of his life to firefighting, availing himself over the year of opportunities to perfect his educational and professional skills on the way to being named Chief in 2004.

Greatly influenced by the 1994 murder of an African American couple by a white supremacist, Benny began to ask himself what we could do through the fire department to improve race relations. He was well aware that many of Fayetteville's black citizens resented that the fire station in the predominantly African American part of the city was closed more than 20 years before and never replaced. In addition, he knew that the fire department, composed primarily of white males, wasn't representative of the community's racial diversity.

Nichols was determined and persistent. He approached officials at Fayetteville State University, a historically black university, about building a fire station on its land and, at the same time, offering a four year degree in fire science that would include internships at the station. It took 10 years for this dream to become a reality but in 2004, Nichols found an enthusiastic partner in Fayetteville State's new chancellor.  Shortly thereafter, construction began on a $3.5 million fire station.

To create a new feeder system for minority and women firefighters, Nichols worked with educators at E.E. Smith High School to initiate a fire service curriculum to start students on a career path at an early age.  Students can receive credit towards an Associate Degree in fire science at Fayetteville Technical Community College.  Now, the programs are offering fire science education at several levels and are beginning to attract ever greater numbers of minorities and women to the Fayetteville Fire Department.