After 10 months on campus, Dr. Richard Carvajal will be offically installed as the 10th president of VSU on Oct. 27.

The university will host a three-day festival surrounding the installation, which will include appearances by dignitaries and well-known alumni, live music performances, a presidential tailgate and several other events. Carvajal will be sworn in by the Chancellor of the University System of Georgia, Steve Wrigley.

Carvajal took over as president on Jan. 1 of this year. Before this, he served as the interim president of Darton State College for two years and the president of Bainbridge State College for four years.

Since arriving on campus, Carvajal has focused a lot of his energy on a campaign to increase student retention. He has maintained a regular presence around campus and at VSU athletic events.

The three-day event will kick off on Thursday Oct. 26 with an invitation-only dinner and a celebration on the front lawn that will include games, music, food trucks, t-shirt paintings and more.

On Friday Oct. 27, there will be an invitation-only breakfast which will include special alumni guests and dignitaries. An installation ceremony will take place from 11 a.m. to noon in Whitehead Auditorium, followed by an installation reception on the Fine Arts Amphitheater lawn.

Concluding on Oct. 28, there will be events surrounding the VSU football game against Florida Tech at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium.

Some students are finding it hard to believe that it has taken so long for VSU to celebrate Carvajal.

“I think it will be cool, but it’s weird that it’s just now happening after 10 months,” Jordyn Berrian, a freshman history major, said.

Another student was happy to hear the festival was announced.

“This is very historic for our university,” Ashley Casey, a freshman nursing major, said. “I will definitely be attending the festival.”

One upperclassmen said Carvajal deserves these events.

“So far, I like him,” Daija McClenney, a senior psychology major, said. “I’ve seen him more than any other president since 2014.”

Written by Prince Robinson Jr., Staff Writer. Photo by Bryce Ethridge.