Excellence Crowned as Mister Allen Returns to the Royal Court
By Javar Juarez | New Progressive Journal | September 23, 2026
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Allen University made history Tuesday night when Zechariah Addison was crowned Mister Allen University, restoring a place in the university’s coronation tradition that had gone unfilled for years. Beside him at Chappelle Auditorium stood Kristen M. Coleman, crowned the 94th Miss Allen University.
The evening’s “Gold and Grandeur” theme gave the ceremony its splendor. Its lasting significance rested with the students: a new Mister Allen accepting the responsibility of defining the role for those who follow, a Miss Allen determined to listen to her peers, and a royal court whose ambitions reach from health care and business to education and community service.
“Our school has not had a Mr. Allen in a very long time,” Addison said in an interview before the ceremony.
“Today is a big step for not only Allen but for me.”
Addison, a junior biology major with a pre-health concentration, said being among the first students in years to hold the title means “setting the standard” on campus.
He spoke of standing up for others, showing respect and taking academics seriously.
Those expectations reflect the direction of his own life. An emergency medical technician and a member of Allen’s cross-country and track teams, he hopes to become a health care professional serving places where treatment is difficult to obtain.
“I just want to be able to provide care in those areas where care is limited,” he said.
Coleman brings a different, equally personal mission to the crown. A Columbia native and third-generation Allen student, she has made student wellness and personal growth central to her platform. She told NPJ she hopes fellow Yellow Jackets will face their fears, recognize their worth and see a future beyond their current circumstances.
Her plans begin with listening. Coleman, a senior business administration major concentrating in management, said she wants to bring students programs “that the students directly tell me that they need.”
“Because my job is to serve the students ultimately,” she said.
She also sees an opportunity to strengthen Allen’s ties with its alumni.
Staying engaged and keeping communication open, Coleman said, can connect people who want to give back with ways to make a difference on campus.
The two new leaders were joined by a court that gave the audience a fuller picture of young people preparing to lead.
The freshman representatives were Eryck McClain and Addison Lyons; the sophomore representatives were Jahiem Speller and Alivia Pettit.
Langston Blakley and Jeramyah Adams represented the junior class, while Arntrez Ross and Starlecia Foster represented the seniors.
Their interests extend well beyond the ceremony. The program described student athletes, entrepreneurs and campus leaders, including Speller, a banking and finance major who is also a track captain and campus barber; Adams, a softball player involved in financial education; and Foster, an accounting major balancing motherhood, work and college.
Together, they offered the kind of answer Allen’s community can give to doubts about the next generation: young people are already studying, serving and building futures for themselves and others.
The ceremony placed that promise inside an Allen tradition. After the court’s entrance, Addison and Coleman took the royal oath and were crowned.
The oath called on them to pursue excellence in scholarship and service, uplift fellow students and honor the generations of Yellow Jackets who came before them.
Interim President Dr. Stanley J. Pritchett Sr. carried that charge into his closing remarks. He congratulated the newly crowned Mister and Miss Allen and every member of the court, urging them to represent the university with dignity, confidence, humility and excellence.
“Leadership is measured by the service you provide, the example you set, and the lives you touch,” Pritchett told them.
The celebration would end, he reminded the court, but the work of leadership would continue the next day.
“Continue to lead with courage, serve with compassion, and walk with purpose.”
That is the measure awaiting Allen’s 2026–27 royal court. Tuesday night restored the Mister Allen title and honored a new Miss Allen.
What Addison, Coleman and their fellow students do with those roles will carry the evening’s history into the lives of the people they serve.
Javar Juarez is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of the Columbia Urban Broadcast Network (CUBN), an independent investigative news outlet based in Columbia, South Carolina, and a member of the South Carolina Press Association. He is also President of the Capital City Chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute.
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