When Christopher Shearin was attending high school, a counselor told him he was “not college material.” In December 2025, Shearin will complete a master’s in public administration at North Carolina Central University (NCCU), his third college degree.
Shearin grew up in public housing in Durham. “You saw so many people with talent in basketball, football, etc.” he said. “They didn’t have the work ethic or the opportunity or the grades to go to the next level. When you are in that type of environment, you always have to look for a way out or risk being trapped.”
Shearin’s way out was the U.S. Navy. He enlisted on June 25, 1991, and served for the next 27 years.
During those years he took part in drug interdiction, patrolling 110 by 61 nautical miles between several Caribbean islands and part of Columbia.
“A P3 (plane) would fly over and spot a drug boat,” Shearin said. “We would intercept the boat.”
Later, while based out of the Middle East, he provided intelligence to ships that were at risk of being hijacked by Somali pirates.
Besides Augusta, he was based in Norfolk, Virginia; Sasebo, Japan; Bahrain; Naples, Italy and Puerto Rico. At the height of his career, he was in charge of 180-225 people.
He retired from the Navy on January 31, 2018, as a senior chief, the second-highest pay grade for an enlisted man.
Let’s Get Cooking
He returned to Durham with the intention of training as a chef and opening a restaurant. He completed a year in a culinary arts program, but during winter break found out the school had declared bankruptcy and was closing.
“I had to pivot,” Shearin said.
He recalled NCCU from his early teenage years, when he would walk up and down Fayetteville Street. His younger sister, wife, wife’s sister and brother-in-law all attended NCCU.
Enrolling, however, was not an easy decision.
“I was going to be one of the oldest people in any program,” Shearin said. “I was a little afraid. Oh man, can I do it?”
The answer was yes. He completed a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies in 2021 and a second bachelor’s degree in political science in 2023, summa cum laude.
Moving Fast
He planned to follow up on his bachelor’s degrees by earning a master’s in political science at James Madison University in Virginia. But he changed his mind after conversations with faculty mentors Sandra Rogers, Ph.D., and Emmanuel O. Oritsejafor, Ph.D., chair of the department of political science.
“Dr. O, he was like, ‘you love Durham,” said Shearin. “Your ultimate goal is to be mayor of Durham. Why would you leave?’”
With the help of Oritsejafor and Rogers, Shearin completed his application, letters of recommendation and other tasks and was admitted to the NCCU Master of Public Administration program in a record five days.
In addition to coursework, he became president of Democracy Matters, a non-partisan club that promotes voter registration. He also became a fellow at Courageous Conversations, a nonprofit that promotes hard conversations about race and racism.
Rallying Around
In August 2024, about one year into his master’s program, Shearin was diagnosed with prostate cancer. When it was discovered, the cancer was on the border between stage 2 and 3 in severity.
Shearin had his doubts about being a graduate student while being treated for cancer. He reached out to S. Nicole Diggs, Ph.D., a faculty member in public administration.
“I said, I’m going to drop out, because I need to fight this fight,” Shearin said.
“She looked at me and said, ‘you are not dropping. You are an excellent student. We know the type of work you do. We are going to rally around you.’”
And they did. Though “mentally drained and physically drained,” from radiation treatment, Shearin still completed all his assignments – although he occasionally missed classes and sometimes needed extensions on assignments.
On June 2, 2025, Shearin was declared cancer-free.
Next Steps
Short of being elected mayor, Shearin would like to work for the City of Durham in urban development and public housing.
Along the way, he aims to earn a doctorate, perhaps in organizational leadership or public administration. He is going to meet with several NCCU faculty to develop a plan.
Now 53 and having earned three college degrees, Shearin is asked what he thinks about that high school counselor who declared him “not college material.”
“Nobody can define who you are,” he said. “You get to define who and what you are over and over and over.”