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Chapel Hill Fire Chief Jay Mebane, who was tapped to head the department in June 2023, will deliver ������’s Spring Commencement keynote address May 13 at the Durham Performing Arts Center.

Mebane is a native of Burlington and holds an associate degree from ������nical Community College, a bachelor’s degree from Fayetteville State University, and is a 2022 Master of Public Affairs degree graduate at the University of North Carolina–Greensboro. Chief Mebane has completed numerous other leadership and fire service certifications.

Chief Mebane started his public service career almost 20 years ago with the City of Burlington in the Police Department’s Animal Services Division in 2006. He joined the Burlington Fire Department in 2008 and ascended the ranks to fire captain in 2016. He became an assistant chief – fire marshal in 2018 and served in that capacity until January 2019 when he became Burlington's Inspections Department director. In 2020, Mebane was selected to serve as Burlington Fire Department's fire chief before accepting the Chapel Hill position in 2023.

Mebane said he’s proud to have become a fire chief.  

“I had a lot of people in the service who believed in me at a very early stage in my career,” he said. “When that opportunity came, those same individuals said I had to apply. And I did and I got it. It wasn’t for me — it was for them because they believed in me.”

Mebane had his first interaction with the fire service when, at a very young age, he was playing with a lighter and accidentally started a fire.

“That’s the first time I really saw what firefighters did,” he said.

Mebane said ������ was the right fit for him when he acquired his associate degree.  

“I loved it,” he said, noting that people at the College were extremely responsive to questions and with offering assistance.  

“The [Durham] fire chief and battalion chiefs and assistant chiefs taught classes at ������,” Mebane said. “They stayed committed to you and let you know they were available to ask questions.”

For ������ graduates and students, Mebane said he encourages them to triumph through adversity with gratitude.

He also wanted to share with prospective students how ������ can be a good home for them.

“If you want to attend a school or have professors and other staff who believe in you and encourage you to keep going who will help you through the great times and tough times, ������ is a school you need to attend,” he said.