He is replacing Beverly Washington Jones, a popular and long-tenured professor and administrator who has served as NCCU's chief academic officer since 2005 and was considered for the top job that ultimately went to Nelms.

Jones will return to the history department faculty. She could not be reached today.

A spokesman for Nelms declined to explain the change today except to say the chancellor has been steadily creating his own leadership team since arriving in Durham last summer.

Jones, 59, is a Durham native who grew up just down the street from NCCU. As a child, she lost herself within the pages of books at the Stanford L. Warren Library, just a few blocks from NCCU on the same side of Fayetteville Street.

The intellect sparked at that local library -- a hub of learning for Durham's black community -- sent her on quite a journey.

A historian with two degrees from NCCU, Jones spent 25 years on the faculty there before moving into administration in 1999 as dean of the University College. In 2005, then-Chancellor James Ammons, looking for someone with a deep well of respect on campus to quell some discontent within the faculty ranks, tapped Jones to be the university's top academic officer.

Nelms, who came to NCCU last year from Indiana University, has already made significant changes to his cabinet, hiring new vice chancellors in finance and administration and student affairs. Along with the provost position, he is also looking to fill one other vice chancellor slot.