Campus News

BOV changes residency requirement

The Citadel Board of Visitors (BOV) voted to raise the minimum number of semesters students pursuing a cadet degree must complete on campus in the South Carolina Corps of Cadets. Beginning with the Class of 2024, cadets are required to live on campus for six semesters (or five with one approved study abroad semester) rather than four.

The BOV voted unanimously to raise the minimum cadet residency requirement during a December 2 meeting on campus.

Citadel provides best ROI of public institutions in S.C., according to Georgetown University study

A first of its kind report by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) attempts to answer the question about whether a college degree is worth the investment. In the report, entitled A First Try at ROI: Ranking 4,500 Colleges, college and universities were ranked according to short and long-term return on investment (ROI) for students. An online table allows users to sort data on tuition, median student debt and median earnings for each institution. According to the table, The Citadel provides the best ROI in South Carolina when compared to the state’s other 11 public, four-year colleges and universities.

A First Try at ROI: Ranking 4,500 Colleges was created using data from the U.S. Department of Education’s expanded College Scorecard. The CEW’s report calculates the ROI in various stages of a graduate’s career.

The CEW lists each institution’s current ROI incrementally in the form of net present value (NPV), from 10 to 40 years after graduation. The NPV is how much a future sum of money is valued today.

Compounded over time, the return on investment for a Citadel education is as follows:

10-year: $133,000 15 year: $357,000 20 year: $560,00 30 year: $560,000 40-year: $1,197,000

Comparatively, Clemson’s ROI is second; Coastal Carolina, third; and College of Charleston, fourth, followed by Francis Marion.

This is your Winter 2020 issue. A reminder that alumni news prints three issues each calendar year. The Citadel magazine, produced by the college, is sent to members in the fall of each year. It does not contain Within the Ranks.

The Citadel family says goodbye to mascot

He adored going to football games almost as much as cadets adored him.

General Robert P. Carson, also called “General” or “G2,” was known to stand in his backyard pointing his nose in the direction of the stadium early on Bulldogs’ home football game days. “He just couldn’t wait to get there to see everybody…he just knew it was a game day,” said John Bradford, D.V.M., General’s veterinarian and caretaker. “One of his other favorite things was sprawling out on ice when it was hot.”

General, one of The Citadel’s two mascots, passed away quietly in the evening hours of Sept. 13 in the campus home where the mascots lived with the Bradford family. General was 8 years old.

“General was playing not 20 minutes before he passed away with no suffering and with Boo curled up next to his side,” Bradford said.

Bradford, who had cared for G2 and Boo X since they were puppies, said the bulldog had not shown any signs of illness. He explained that G2 likely died from an embolism which he said is not uncommon for bulldogs, who often don’t live past the age of 10.

“General was a rock star. It would take us forever to get from our house on campus to the stadium or basketball games—there were so many cadets and visitors wanting to take pictures,” Bradford said. “He was a diva—he loved the attention. He knew exactly how to pose, too. General was a natural.”

General and Boo X, who became The Citadel mascots in 2013, had two litters of puppies together. It is not yet known if one of those bulldogs will eventually be asked to report for duty to replace G2.

The college held a memorial for General later in the semester, when he was interred in The Citadel Mascot Memorial Columbarium located at Johnson Hagood Stadium.

Cadet Paul Rhyne II is among the top 10 Army ROTC cadets in the nation, and “above the best” according to Maj. Gen. John Evans, commanding general at the U.S. Army Cadet Command.

As part of an annual video countdown of the top 10 cadets, Army ROTC command announced on November 16 that Rhyne is #7.

Rhyne will accept an Army commission to become an officer prior to graduating in May and is being assigned to the aviation branch. He is a pre-med biology major from Irmo, South Carolina, where he attended Dutch Fork High School. Rhyne is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi academic honor society, the Pre-Med Society and The Citadel Flying Club. He has earned Gold Stars for academic excellence while at The Citadel among other honors, and serves as a cadet officer.

Each fall, the U.S. Army Cadet Command selects 10 college seniors for its national order-of-merit list. Rhyne’s accomplishment marks the third consecutive year an Army ROTC cadet from the South Carolina Corps of Cadets has earned a slot in the top 10.

The order-of-merit list is based on several criteria including grade point average, performance on the Army Physical Fitness Test, college athletic participation and performance during college ROTC training and Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

The Citadel's annual Career Fair, hosted by The Citadel Career Center, connected cadets with potential employers in October.

2020 Football Schedule

Sept. 5 2 p.m. vs Elon Johnson Hagood Stadium Sept. 12 TBA at Wofford Spartanburg, S.C. Sept. 19 6 p.m. vs Charleston Southern Johnson Hagood Stadium Oct. 3 2 p.m. vs ETSU Parents' Weekend Johnson Hagood Stadium Oct. 10 TBA at Mercer Macon, Ga. Oct. 17 2 p.m. vs Chattanooga Johnson Hagood Stadium Oct. 24 2 p.m. vs Furman Johnson Hagood Stadium Oct. 31 TBA at VMI Lexington, Va. Nov. 7 2 p.m. vs Samford Homecoming Johnson Hagood Stadium Nov. 14 TBA at Clemson Clemson, S.C. Nov. 21 TBA at Western Carolina Cullowhee, N.C.