Rev. Neal was a compassionate force who gave voice to the voiceless and stood tall for those who could not. In addition to being the co-chair of the South Carolina Progressive Network, Neal was also a member of the NAACP, the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., and many other...
Dr. Roy I. Jones is a lifelong educator who has served in South Carolina institutions for nearly 40 years. Jones is the Executive Director of the Call Me MiSTER program and Provost Distinguished Professor in Clemson University’s College of Education. MiSTER works to...
Juneteenth celebrates the day that Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas and informed the inhabitants there about the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves. This was two and a half years after the proclamation was officially...
Reverend James S. Hall Jr. was born in 1932, in Marion, S.C. to Reverend James S. Hall Sr. and Mrs. Eliza Hall. Hall attended primary school in Marion and then earned a B.S. in Education and a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Morris College in Sumter, S.C.
Rev. Dr. Benjamin James Glover was born in the Promised Land community near Greenwood, S.C., on October 26, 1915. From the age of seven, he was inspired to accept the calling of becoming a pastor and prepared himself for a lifetime of teaching and educating people about God...
Judge Richard E. Fields was born and raised in Charleston, S.C. He attended high school at the Avery Institute, graduated from West Virginia State College in 1944, and earned his law degree in 1947 from the Howard University School of Law. He was one of the first African...
Mignon L. Clyburn became the first woman head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) when she was appointed Acting Chair by President Barack Obama in May 2013. She was also the first African American woman nominated to the commission. She served on the FCC for...
Srikanth Pilla is a man of many degrees — receiving his B.S., M.S., and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering before attending Stanford University to complete his postdoctoral training. He worked as an assistant scientist at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, the University...
Sherine Chan Co-Founder of Neuroene Therapeutics After spending her early professional life in medical research and education, Sherine Chan has turned to the world of entrepreneurship. Alongside her role as an Associate Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina...
The 2019 David Wilkins Civic Leadership Award, an initiative of The Riley Institute at Furman University, was given to Charlestonian Nella Barkley. Barkley, a community leader for much of her life, has always looked for ways to improve the lives of South Carolinians.
For the last 15 years, The Riley Institute at Furman University has recognized a state legislator with the David Wilkins Legislative Award. Named for the former Speaker of the House and U.S. Ambassador to Canada, the award is given to a legislator who shows leadership,...
Rear Admiral Reubin B. Bookert is a native of Columbia, S.C. He graduated from C.A. Johnson High School in 1968 and North Carolina A&T State University with a B.S. degree. He also earned degrees in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College and a...
Many enthusiasts dream of starting a business around their obsessions. Greg Higgs is one entrepreneur who actually did it. Already a junkie for vehicles at an early age, Greg laid the groundwork for Fab Fours as a child by developing his skills as an artist. He went on to...
Many people have dreams of shaping the future, and for Dr. Juan Caicedo, those dreams are a reality. A professor and department chair of the University of South Carolina College of Engineering and Computing, Juan specializes in Structural Dynamics to make our world safer...
Is it possible to detect concussions in just the blink of an eye? Thanks to Dr. Nancey Tsai, the answer is yes. As a clinical associate professor of neurosurgery at the Medical University of South Carolina, Nancey invented a device that uses videography to detect subtle...