Founder's Day Convocation Program

The Founder’s day ConvoCaTion CommemoraTing The one hundred FIFTY-FIVE year hisTory oF BenediCT College

Thursday, the Twentieth of March Two Thousand and Twenty-Five Eleven O'Clock in the Morning Antisdel Chapel Benedict College Columbia, South Carolina Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis President and CEO

A LETTER FROM THE FOUNDER This letter was written by Mrs. Bathsheba A. Benedict to Dr. Moorehouse, general secretary of the American Home Mission Society, on August 17, 1888. Mrs. Benedict responded to an invitation to appear at the school’s annual fund-raiser.

August 17, 1888

Dear Sir, Your letter came in due time, found me absent from home hence the delay in answering. I thank you for your kind invitation to be present at the Institute on the 26th of September. It would give me much pleasure to be present, to look into the faces and take hands of the teachers, benefactors, and friends of the Freedmen’s schools. As iron sharpeneth iron, so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. May God’s blessing rest upon you this Memorial Day. May He guide you in all your deliberations and give you all the wisdom you need. I have never had any misgiving but that the Freedmen’s schools were His own right-hand planting. May God put it into the hearts of the friends to give liberally that the fund may be raised. May I have a mind to do as he would have me to do. Remember me kindly to the friends present.

The journey is long. I do not think it wise to attempt it. May God be with you is the prayer of your friend.

B. A. Benedict

A BRIEF HISTORY OF BENEDICT COLLEGE Benedict College, originally Benedict Institute, was founded in 1870 under the auspices of the American Baptist Home Mission Society. Mrs. Bathsheba A. Benedict of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, provided financial support for the establishment of Benedict. Adding to a small bequest from her husband, Mrs. Benedict provided $13,000 towards the purchase of an eighty-acre plantation near Columbia, South Carolina, as the site for a new school for the recently emancipated people of African descent. Benedict Institute set out from humble beginnings in a dilapidated former mansion owned by a person who enslaved others to prepare men and women to be “powers for good in society.”

During the first quarter century of its existence, Benedict Institute’s educational programs addressed the severely limited economic and social conditions of the Black population in the South. The Institute’s original objective was to train teachers and preachers, and its first curriculum included, of necessity, reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic, and religion. Later, the curriculum was expanded to include the traditional college disciplines and an industrial department offering carpentry, shoemaking, printing, and painting.

On November 2, 1894, the institution was chartered as a liberal arts college by the South Carolina Legislature and the name “Benedict Institute” was changed to Benedict College”.

From its founding to 1930, a succession of northern white Baptist ministers and educators led Benedict College. The year 1930 signaled the succession of African American presidents at the College.

Over the years, the College has experienced steady growth in its academic and co-curricular programs and its physical plant. During recent decades, this growth has included land acquisition, construction of new residence halls and recreational facilities, renovation and upgrades of numerous facilities, and extensive community development efforts.

The College currently offers bachelor’s degree programs in twenty-six major areas of study.

Benedict College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award baccalaureate and master’s degrees. (Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia, 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Benedict College.) The College’s Social Work Program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; the Environmental Health Science Program is accredited by the National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council; the Tyrone Adam Burroughs School of Business and Entrepreneurship is accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, the Environmental Engineering Program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), and the Art Program is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design.

On June 30, 2017, Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis was appointed by the Board of Trustees as the 14th and first female President of Benedict College. Intentional, professional, and thoroughly committed to the proliferation and transformation of colleges and universities that serve underrepresented men and women of color, Dr. Artis brings to Benedict College a depth of knowledge in higher education and an enthusiasm for students’ success that is unmatched in today’s higher education arena.

Under Dr. Artis’ leadership, Benedict College completed a 5-year Strategic Plan entitled - Bold Execution of a Strategic Transformation - The B.E.S.T. Plan and is currently guided strategically by B2: Focus on the Future. The College has stabilized our financial position, streamlined our programming, embarked on an aggressive capital improvement plan, decreased tuition, increased admission standards, increased our enrollment, and exceeded our fundraising targets. These efforts have received national attention and in March 2019, the College received the ACE Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformation and in the same year was honored by HBCU Digest as the HBCU of the Year. These and other initiatives represent TheBESTofBC!

MR. TYLER MCALLISTER Founder’s Day Convocation Speaker Tyler McAllister graduated twice from Benedict College earning a B.S. degree in Business Administration in 2017 and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree with a concentration in supply chain management in 2020. McAllister was selected as the 2017 Tyrone Adam Burroughs School of Business and Entrepreneurship’s Most Outstanding Senior as well as the School’s 2017 Best Senior Project Award recipient. He was a scholar and an athlete who was recognized as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s (SIAC) Commissioner’s All-Academic Team from 2014-2017. McAllister also earned the highest-grade point average on the football team from 2015-2017.

McAllister used his Benedict College education to get from where he was, to where he is as evidenced by his promotion from Operations Area Manager II at Amazon in 2016 to Production Controller for Target Distribution in 2019. His MBA degree provided additional opportunities for advancement from Manufacturing Department Manager for the PepsiCo in 2022 to his current position of Third Party Logistics (3PL) Warehouse Fulfillment Senior Manager since 2023 at Charlotte, North Carolina. In his current position, Mr. McAllister supervises Warehouse Fulfillment Operations for the PepsiCo in Joliet, Illinois; Whiteston, Indiana; Memphis, Tennessee; Orlando, Florida; and Charlotte, North Carolina.

At each level of career advancement, McAllister relied upon the knowledge he gained and the skills he developed at Benedict College. His academic accomplishments qualified him as a recipient of the President’s List; his involvement in athletic competition brought him awards on the field and success in the classroom; his work off-campus with the Sisters of Charities and his service-learning activities on campus, created the quintessential Benedict College graduate.

McAllister, through precept and example, believes that a salient component of success is to share it with the wider community.. The Business Administration Department wrote that McAllister was recommended for this occasion “based upon his impressive academic record and his impeccable character. He is an adamant professional who keeps a positive attitude. Although his schedule is busy, he finds time to provide service to his community and to mentor students.”

Indeed, Mr. Tyler McAllister represents “TheBESTofBC!”

THE FOUNDER’S DAY CONVOCATION Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis President and CEO Presiding PRELUDE: ……………………… Alpha and Omega……………..……………....Israel Houghton arr. Ronald Green Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble Mr. H. Wade Johnson, Director of Bands Mr. Ronald T. Green, Assistant Director of Bands THE ACADEMIC PROCESSION: …Pomp and Circumstance...............................................Elgar Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble The assembly will please rise when the academic procession enters the Chapel and remain standing through the singing of the first stanza of Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing.

THE PRESENTATION OF THE COLORS…………………………………..…Benedict College Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC)-Color Guard THE ANTHEMS: The Star-Spangled Banner............... Francis Scott Key and John Stafford Smith Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble Mr. H. Wade Johnson, Director of Bands Mr. Ronald T. Green, Assistant Director of Bands Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing ………………….…James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson Faculty/Staff Chorale and the Benedict College Choir Mr. J. David Bratton Director of Choirs Mrs. Rosemary Griffin, Assistant Director Dr. Dawn Mills Campbell, Director of the Faculty/Staff Chorale THE OPENING REMARKS ...........................................................................Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis THE INVOCATION .............................................................................Minister Cameron Seawright Student Campus Minister THE OCCASION ................................................................................................Ms. Autumn Tisdale Miss Benedict College 2024-2025 THE READING OF THE HISTORY OF BENEDICT COLLEGE ..............Mr. Scott E. Blanks Professor of Theater Arts Unit MUSIC: ……………………..Goodness of God……………………………….……….CeCe Winans arr. Ronald T. Green Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble

THE INTRODUCTION OF THE SPEAKER..……………………………...….Mr. Malik Hudson Mister Benedict College 2024-2025 THE CONVOCATION SPEAKER...................................................................Mr. Tyler McAllister Third Party Logistics (3PL) Warehouse Fulfillment Senior Manager PepsiCo Charlotte, North Carolina THE RESPONSE ............................................................................................. Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis MUSIC: ………………………….. He’s Able…………………………………..…Deitrick Haddon Benedict College Faculty/Staff Chorale and College Choir THE INDUCTION OF ALUMNI INTO THE BENEDICT COLLEGE HALF CENTURY CLUB AND RECOGNITION OF OTHER CLASSES........................................................................................................Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis THE FOUNDER’S DAY LITANY .........................................................................Ms. Emmie Davis Instructor of English English, Foreign Languages, and Mass Communication Unit THE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS............ Mrs. Leandra Hayes-Burgess Vice President for Institutional Advancement THE ALMA MATER……………………………………………………………..…..Anna Douglas Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble, and Benedict College Faculty/Staff Chorale and College Choir THE RETIRING OF THE COLORS ……………………………………………Benedict College Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC)-Color Guard THE BENEDICTION ............................................................................Minister Cameron Seawright The assembly will please rise for the benediction and thereafter the ushers will direct the recession.

THE ACADEMIC RECESSION: Pomp and Circumstance ...................................................Elgar Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble POSTLUDE: I’m so Glad……………………………………………………...arr. Ronald T. Green Benedict College Instrumental Ensemble

THE FOUNDER’S DAY LITANY LEADER:

In 1870, Mrs. Bathsheba A. Benedict founded Benedict Institute, under the auspices of the American Baptist Home Mission Society.

AUDIENCE: The institution encourages its students to become “powers for good in society.”

LEADER:

In 1894, Benedict Institute won its college charter, becoming Benedict College, and awarded its first Bachelor of Arts degree in the same year.

AUDIENCE: More than 18,000 students have received undergraduate degrees from this institution.

LEADER:

Fourteen presidents have led the College since its founding: Timothy L. Dodge, Lewis Colby, E.J. Goodspeed, Charles E. Becker, Abraham C. Osborn, Byron W. Valentine, Clarence B. Antisdel, John J. Starks, John A. Bacoats, Benjamin F. Payton, Henry Ponder, Marshall C. Grigsby, David H. Swinton, and Roslyn Clark Artis.

AUDIENCE: Benedict College will be a leader in providing transformative learning experiences for a

diverse student body.

LEADER:

Students are defined by superior cultural and professional competencies that are nurtured and developed by faculty, staff, and stakeholders who value innovation, customer service, community, and industry engagement.

AUDIENCE: Alumni of the College are among the nation’s most responsible and talented citizens and

represent TheBESTofBC. LEADER:

We remember and revere the hundreds of faculty and staff, living or deceased, who have contributed to the development and effectiveness of this College.

AUDIENCE: To them we give thanks for their faithfulness in all things, both large and small.

LEADER:

We are grateful for the community which has received Benedict College into its midst and supported us for more than 150 years.

AUDIENCE: We are grateful for all assistance, and we pledge to be of continuing service to the needs

of the community.

ALL:

In the millennium, during a period of unprecedented growth and development, the institution draws on its rich past to remain one of the nation’s premier Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Written by the late Mrs. Doris Wright Johnson

2025 HONOREES CLASS OF 1975 INDUCTEES

Mr. Alvin Abney Mr. Harold L. Adams Mr. Ernest Alexander Ms. Carlean Alford Mrs. Barbara Moore Anderson Mrs. Doris D. Jeter Anderson Ms. Terry Andrews Baker Mrs. Jannice Inez Dean Bannerman Ms. Shirnetha Robinson Belk Mr. Charles Larry Bennett Ms. Sonja Benson Mrs. Viola Hayes Best Miss Ruby Mae Black Mrs. Judy K. Bradley Mrs. Essie Green Brisbon Mrs. Darlene L. Gadson Brooks Ms. Barbara Evone Brown Ms. Laura Ann White Bryant Mr. Rodney Bryant Mrs. Earlene Burgess Ms. Jacqueline Burnett Dr. Tyrone A. Burroughs Mrs. Sandra Mathis Burton Mrs. Edna L. Butler The Honorable Benjamin F. Byrd Mr. James Byrd Ms. Gwendolyn Cameron Mrs. Ernestine Holmes Canty Mrs. Sarah Carroll Mrs. Linda Williams Cayruth Mr. Micheal Cayruth Mrs. Martha R. Ealey Chandler Mrs. Barbara Griffin Chapman Mr. James E. Clinkscales Mrs. Frances Rose Taylor Clinton Mrs. Beverly Smith Clyburn Ms. Sharon Lorraine Coakley Mr. Ronald Coaxum Mr. Marvin Cohen Mr. Ludrick Cooper Mrs. Alma Wilds Davis Mr. Samuel C. Diggs Mrs. Annie M. Dodd Mrs. Janette Gee Donawald

Mrs. Carolyn Drummond Dowtin Ms. Toni Marcella Harris Dozier Mr. Michael Drescher Mrs. Jacosahia Tisdale Edmond The Honorable Peggy A. McFadden Elmore Ms. Angela L. Evans Mrs. Brenda Pyatt Ferguson Mrs. Martha Finley Mr. William Terry Forrest Mrs. Gwendolyn B. Dizzley Fraiser Mr. Ernest L. Fulton Mrs. Elaine Evans Funderburk Mrs. Mona L. Funderburk Mr. Joseph A. Gadson Ms. Jackie McFadden Garnier Ms. Paula Gibbs Mrs. Gloria Jean Blackmon Gordon Ms. Lillie Edmond Graham Mr. Karl Vincent Green Mrs. Thelma A. Greene Ms. Mary Francis Hannah Ms. Elaine Rumph Harris Mr. Marion D. Harrison Mr. Seffton L. Hemingway Mrs. Gwendolyn Gibson Henderson Mr. Willie Clyde Henderson Mrs. Brenda Warren Herrington Ms. Rose Hill Mrs. Fredrica P. Hilton Mrs. Rose Marie Hinson Mrs. Jesse Hipps Mrs. Janice I. Hodye Ms. Mary Coach Holmes Mrs. Rosa Solomon Holt Mr. Willie M. Houser Mr. Norman Howard Ms. Pamela Howard Mrs. Barbara H. Hughes Mr. Pressly Hughes Ms. Janice Clarice Jackson Mrs. Jennie McCants Jacobs Mrs. Clary A. James Rev. Frank James

Mr. Irick James Mr. Larry James Mr. Thomas E. James Mrs. Ella Smith Jenkins Mr. Tyrone Johns Mr. J. Leroy Derrell Johnson Mrs. Rosetta Hayes Johnson Mrs. Sandra Johnson Mrs. Sheila Drakeford Johnson Mr. Donald H. Jones Ms. Learnie R. Jones Mr. Stanley Jones Mrs. Lenora Blanding Kennedy Mrs. Margaret Clyburn Lawhorn Mrs. Olivia E. Wilson Lawson Mrs. Bessie H. Lee Ms. Learine R. Jones Lewers Mrs. Alma W. Mack Mrs. Deloris Rivers Mack Mr. Wallace Makupson Mr. Norman Mansell Ms. Stella McCrae Mrs. Linda Perry McNair Mr. John E. Mender Mrs. Harriet C. Miller Mr. Shead Mills Mrs. Evelyn Artison Moore Mr. Joseph Moore Dr. Marthena Grate Morant Mrs. Lavern Blackmon Moss Mr. Frank Munnlyn Mr. Glenn Murray Mr. Clyde Myers Mr. Clark Eugene Nesbitt Mr. Donald Nesmith Mrs. Margie Dixon Olewunne Mrs. Virginia Hall O'Neal Mrs. Annie M. Perry Mr. Reginald Phelps Mr. Richard Pickett Ms. Elease Portee Mrs. Vivian Smalls Porter Mrs. Deborah Wright Powell Mrs. Millicent D. Pringle

Mr. Peter S. Prioleau Mrs. Vera Benson Randall Mrs. Mary J. Middleton Rankin Rev. Redfern, II Mr. Ronnie J. Reeves Mrs. Ann Singleton Rice Mr. John H. Richardson Mrs. Deborah Deberry Ritter Mr. Larry Robinson Mrs. Bevelyn Ross Ms. Betty Moore Ryans Mrs. Gladys Raysor Salley Mrs. Margaret Sanders Ms. Joan Self Ms. Dorothy Shirley Ms. Effie Simmons Mr. Joe M. Simmons Mr. Samuel M. Simpson, Jr. Ms. Ballery V. Skipper Mr. Agieuary J. Smith Dr. Carlos L. Smith Mr. Eugene Smith Mrs. Sandra E. Mungin Smith Mr. Talmadge A. Smith Mr. Isaiah Solomon Ms. Lanette Weston Stevens Mrs. Lou Bertha White Stewart Mrs. Bertha L. Stocker Mr. Robert Stokes Mrs. Edith Corley Stone Ms. Carolyn Woods Sumter Mr. Robert E. Thomas Mr. Richard Varn Mr. Remmer Vereen Mrs. Deborah A. Sims Walker Mrs. Sandra K. Sharp Walker Mrs. Claudette G. Dowling Warren Mrs. Valerie S. Washington

Mr. Freddie Whaley Ms. Marcella Whaley Mr. Larry White Mr. Lawrence White Mrs. Barbara J. Wiggins Mrs. Mary McCray Wiggins Ms. Gleen Vivian Kearse Williams Mr. Ransom C. Williams Mrs. Rhonda Williams Rev. Thomasine Roberts Williams Mr. Wendell Waldo Williams Mrs. Geraldine Ashford Wilson Mrs. Jacqueline Sanders Wilson Mr. Richard E. Wilson Mr. Willie Woods Mr. George A. Worsley Mrs. Marietta Ascue Worthy Ms. Zena Deas Young Deceased “and departing leave behind us, foot prints on the sands of time” Mr. Howard L. Adams Mr. Leon Ashley Mrs. Patricia W. Brumfield Ms. Madline Chandler Mr. Donald Coaxum Mr. William Edward Cobb Mr. Melvin Crawford Mr. Monroe Cusaac Ms. Theresa Rogers Davis Mrs. Vivian Stephens Davis Mr. William L. Davis Mrs. Beverly Thomas Dorrah Mr. Robert Fields Mrs. Vivian Fields Mr. Freddie D. Foster

Mr. Solomon I. Foster, Jr. Mrs. Francenia Davis Gadson Dr. Richard A. Gadson Ms. Beverly Gethers Mr. Bezzlee Giles, Jr. Ms. Shirley A. Hudley Gilliard Mr. J. P. Graham Mrs. Mattie Rutherford Harris Mr. Eric Hunter Mrs. Gloria W. James Mrs. Gwendolyn G. Bennett Jamison Dr. Beverly M. Johns Dr. Cora Guider Johnson Mrs. Sandra Fay Chestnut Jones Mr. Abram J. Kennedy Mr. John W. King, Jr. Mrs. Gloria H. Lesane Mrs. Jacqueline Humes Mackey Mr. Willie Mangham Mr. Thomas Marion Mrs. Essie Louise McCants Mrs. Carolyn McCullough Ms. Sadie M. Middleton Ms. Leitha Samuels Morgan Mrs. Brenda Moultrie Mr. William Murphy Mr. Bobby James Pearson Mr. James Rhinehart, Jr. Mrs. Mae C. Stevens Mr. Merriett M. Taylor, Jr. Mr. Leonard R. Thomas Dr. Jesse Thompson Mr. Frank E. Williams, Jr. Mr. Squire Wilson Mr. L. E. Woods Mrs. Laverne Woods Mr. Denver Wright Mrs. Hazel M. Wright

PREVIOUS HALF CENTURYCLUB INDUCTEES Class of 1974 Ms. Linda Campbell Ms. Mary L. Harmon Mr. Edward W. Robinson Mrs. Linda Stringer Smith Mrs. Sandra D. Smith Mrs. Pearl B. Thomas

Class of 1973 Mr. Michael R. Jacobs Ms. Jacqueline Burnett Jones Mrs. Alma Jane Mills

Class of 1972 Dr. Incentlee B. Lemon Mrs. Elaine Dowdy Melvin Ms. Elizabeth Wolfe

Class of 1968 Mrs. Doris J. Andrews Mrs. Geraldine S. Parker Ms. Beverly Washington Dr. Joseph A. Watson

Class of 1966 Mrs. Jessie H. Chandler Ms. Alexzena Irving Furgess Mrs. Harriet M. Perkins Mrs. Naomi Woodson Scipio

Class of 1965 Mr. James Chandler Ms. Louise Entzminger

Class of 1964

Mr. James Edwards Class of 1971 Mrs. Cedelle English Gates

Dr. Malqueen Howell Richardson Mr. Christopher Smith, Jr.

Class of 1963 Mrs. Marlene Murphy McClerklin

Class of 1970 Mrs. Beverly J. Byrd Mr. Charles Morant

Class of 1962 Ms. Maxine Peterson Pearson

Class of 1969 Mrs. Lillian Crosby Brown Mrs. Linda Morant

Class of 1961

Mr. Robert Brown, Jr.

THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER

ALMA MATER

O say, can you see, by the dawn’s early

Where the Golden sunshine falls,

light,

Rustling leaves about her,

What so proudly we hailed at twilight’s

Breezes whispering round her walls

last gleaming,

Stands our Alma Mater.

Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,

Students all a sturdy band,

O’er the ramparts we watched were so

Loud our voices ringing;

gallantly streaming?

Of her kindly helping hand, Of our love, we’re singing.

And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

We’ll remember in the years

Gave proof through the night that our flag

Coming swiftly towards us,

was still there,

All the smiles, but not the tears,

O say does that Star-Spangled Banner yet

Alma Mater brought us.

wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave

If the path of life be dim, And the way be dreary, Alma Mater points to Him Who will guide the weary.

LIFT EV’RY VOICE AND SING Till earth and heaven ring,

(CHORUS)

Ring with the harmonies of liberty;

Alma Mater strong and true,

Let our rejoicing rise,

Alma Mater ever.

High as the listening skies,

Benedict, we sing to you,

Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.

Faithful we forever.

Sing a song, full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song, full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.