Lifelong Tigers

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iphoneTOTMscreenIntroducing Tigers on the Move

Ever want an easy way to find out what an old classmate is doing now? Or a quick way to send a message to the Clemson Family about your newest job, impending nuptials or move to a new location?
“Tigers on the Move,” a new interactive Web portal, will allow you to do just that. A complement to the alumni news found in Clemson World magazine, this site will allow for real-time, immediate updates and searchability.
Check it out at TigersOnTheMove.com and submit your latest Tiger news today!

RINGsepiaGetting (more) social

Are you a ring-wearing Clemson alum? We have recently launched a Twitter feed and Instagram page dedicated to the Clemson Ring. Share pictures of you and your ring, indicating your class year and location by tweeting @ClemsonRing and tagging ClemsonRing on Instagram.

Students have chosen Ashby B. Bodine as the 2013 Alumni Master Teacher.

MasterTeacher2013Bodine is professor emeritus/visiting professor in the Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences in the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences.
Bodine’s research has been on the biochemistry and immunology of archaic vertebrates, in particular, sharks, rays and skates. Since 2006 an interdisciplinary Creative Inquiry team mentored by Bodine has been researching an anti-tumor protein from the bonnethead shark that has great potential for use in anti-cancer treatments.
Bodine has received the Godley-Snell Outstanding Agricultural Research Award, the Class of ’39 Faculty Award for Excellence, the Gamma Sigma Delta Outstanding Teacher Award, the National Scholars Program Award of Distinction and the Outstanding Teacher Award from the National Association for Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture.
The Alumni Master Teacher Award for outstanding undergraduate classroom instruction is presented to a faculty member nominated by the student body and selected by the Student Alumni Council.

Class of 1963Class of ’63 celebrates golden anniversary

This year marked the Golden Tiger Reunion for the Class of 1963. Bobby Kemp ’63 drove the same car to reunion that he drove off campus on graduation day. The car even had its original Clemson College parking decal. See page 46 for news on the Class of 1963’s reunion gift.
More than 450 attendees returned to campus for Reunion Weekend, and alums from the Classes of 1939
through 1963 gathered to reminisce and reconnect with the Clemson Family.

Alumni Association names new board members

The Clemson Alumni Association Board of Directors has elected four new members to take office July 1.
Gary E. Clary ’70 of Central, a retired circuit judge and certified mediator and arbitrator, will serve a two-year term. An IPTAY representative emeritus, he has served as a member of the Alumni Association National Council and is a past president of the Cherokee County Clemson Club and now a member of the Fort Hill Clemson Club.
Mike Dowling ’93 of Greenville, chief financial officer of Southern First Bancshares will serve a three-year term. He served on the Student Alumni Council and is a past-president of the Clemson University Young Alumni Council. He has also served as an Alumni National Council representative and Board of Visitors representative.
Patsy Siebert DuPre ’80 of Hendersonville, N.C., will serve a three-year term. An independent contractor in Washington, D.C., she was on the board of the Washington-Baltimore Clemson Club before moving to N.C. Members of the President’s Leadership Circle, she and her husband have a son at Clemson.
Heather Simmons Jones ’97, M ’12 of Columbia, founder and CEO of Opus 3, a firm specializing in economic development, human resources and labor relations, was re-elected to a two-year term. She was a charter member and officer for both the Coosawhatchie and Anderson Area Clemson clubs and is a board member of the Columbia Clemson Club.
The alumni board has 23 members and is the governing body for the Alumni Association. Primary responsibilities include general oversight of programs and initiatives of the Alumni Association, financial audit and review, creation of governing policies and strategic planning.

DOING IT RIGHT, DOING IT BETTER

SeniorPlatoon2013Marching into history

This spring, members of the Clemson Senior Platoon once again gathered on campus to celebrate their Clemson history. The first drill team ever established at Clemson, the platoon was founded in 1930 by Gator Farr as a way to reward senior cadets for three years of hard work. The group remained active from 1930 through 1960, when Clemson became a civilian school.
The platoon has performed at home football games, bowl games and even once at Yankee Stadium. Through the years, the Clemson Senior Platoon has contributed more than $25 million back to Clemson, making it one of the most generous groups in the University’s history. Under the leadership of Sanford Smith ’55, the platoon still performs at events such as the First Friday Parade and Military Appreciation Day.

Alumni and students mark National Week of Service

For the fifth year in a row, alumni clubs and groups celebrated a National Week of Service. The first week of April, 20 alumni groups, from Montana to New England, joined together in community service projects that ranged from packaging, cooking or delivering meals to working with Habitat for Humanity and other nonprofits.
This year, the event was coordinated with the annual University week of service, and through Clemson Sweep and the Unity Project, students participated in on- and off-campus service projects.


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FlagSCBecome a Clemson advocate!

The Enterprise Act, a bill that would allow Clemson to operate some of its non-academic functions more like a business, was passed by the S.C. Senate this spring, but didn’t make it through the House before the legislative session ended. The bill would give the University’s Board of Trustees the authority to move such functions as athletics, research and economic development into a new “enterprise division” that would be able to do such things as buy and sell property without going through the process required for state agencies.
It’s needed, Clemson officials say, because the bureaucracy of state government frequently inhibits the institution’s ability to undertake projects with private business and industry in a timely manner to respond to market conditions. You can be an advocate for Clemson at the state level. For more information, or to sign up, go to clemson.edu/governmentalaffairs.

Rondrick E. Williamson ’95

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Rondrick Williamson

Rondrick Williamson is a frequent guest on the television show, The Doctors.

Beautiful doctor from the inside out

Dr. Rondrick Williamson was selected to be in the “2013 Most Beautiful Doctors in America, Men’s Edition” calendar published by the award-winning medical television show The Doctors — and he deserved to be.
Whether or not the criteria for selection were based on appearance alone, Williamson qualified in ways that go beyond the surface. As a frequent guest on The Doctors, the Atlanta podiatric physician offers health advice in his field. He’s not only a successful physician, but also an entrepreneur; a TV talk show host for “Perspectives TV;” and a philanthropist as the founder of The Rondrick Williamson Foundation, a nonprofit organization that grants college scholarships to disadvantaged students.
Columbia native Williamson understood at an early age that education was the ticket to his future. Growing up in public housing, the biological sciences major was inspired by his mother, a single parent, to work hard. Williamson’s hard work paid off, culminating in a medical degree.
Williamson was named a 2013 member of the Columbia Housing Authority Wall of Fame, which celebrates the achievements of past residents. The feeling among his neighbors was not if he would be successful, but when it would happen.

Screenwriter: Kendall Sherwood ’09

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Kendall Sherwood

Kendall Sherwood came to Clemson with hopes of becoming an actor, but she left as a screenwriter. You might see her name on the credits for “Major Crimes,” a spinoff of the popular TV series, “The Closer,” where she is the writer’s assistant and script coordinator.
Because of Clemson’s requirement that theater majors must have experience in every facet of the field, Sherwood took classes in directing, acting, tech and writing. In one of her playwriting classes, she realized her love for writing and became interested in writing for TV shows.
This led her to Northwestern University where she earned an MFA degree in Writing for the Screen and the Stage. This program allowed Sherwood to pursue a career in TV writing while still writing for theatrical plays.

Planet hunter: Dirk C. Terrell ’87

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Physics major Dirk Terrell’s work was recognized as one of CNN’s Top Ten science stories for 2012. He helped discover a planet.
Terrell’s research in the area of binary star systems contributed to a Yale University-led project that identified and confirmed the existence of the first known planet orbiting a pair of suns — that’s in turn orbited by a second set of distant stars. The planet was named PH1 — Planet Hunters discovery number one — after the citizen astronomer organization, Planet Hunters, whose members first spotted it.
Terrell is the section manager for the Astronomy and Computer Systems section in the Department of Space Studies at Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo. He received a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of Florida and was a NASA graduate research fellow.

“Numerical Methods Guy”: Autar K. Kaw M ’84, PhD ’87

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Autar K. Kaw, who received his master’s degree and Ph.D. in engineering mechanics from Clemson, was recognized for his exceptional work as a professor at the University of South Florida. He’s one of four recipients of the 2012 U.S. Professor of the Year award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. This highly selective award is considered the nation’s highest honor for engaging and influencing undergraduates.
It’s not the first time Kaw has been recognized for his outstanding teaching; he also received the National Outstanding Teaching Medal from the American Society for Engineering Education in 2011.
Kaw has taught mechanical engineering at the University of South Florida (USF) for 25 years — plenty of time to develop his teaching techniques. His teaching method utilizes new technology, such as social media, to help his students understand the complex mathematical modeling involved in mechanical engineering.
Students at USF aren’t the only ones benefiting from Kaw’s innovative teaching methods. He has dedicated his career to helping engineering students around the world and provides educational tips on his blog and through YouTube video lectures. Known as the “Numerical Methods Guy,” Kaw has helped thousands of students by redefining traditional teaching.

New York Botanical Garden (-er): Jaime E. Morin ’11

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Jaime Morin is assistant curator at the prestigious New York Botanical Garden in Bronx, N.Y., where she demonstrates her passion for showing the connection between people and plants. One of her responsibilities includes developing information and descriptions for the new native plant garden that will open in May.
Morin, originally from Connecticut, first learned about Clemson from a high school chemistry teacher. When she and her mother visited campus, she was very impressed with the friendliness of the people.
She began as a genetics major, but didn’t have dreams of medical school or long days in a research laboratory. After working for a plant nursery in her hometown during her summer break, she realized that horticulture was her passion. That fall she took HORT 101 and promptly changed majors.
During her time at Clemson, Morin played piccolo in Tiger Band, was a Bartlett Tree Foundation Scholar and worked at the South Carolina Botanical Garden (SCBG). She credits her work with SCBG for sparking her interest in public horticulture and plant collecting.

Making a difference: Wendy Harper-Olesky ’91

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When financial management major Wendy Harper-Oleksy graduated from Clemson, she didn’t expect that volunteering for a nonprofit group would become a large part of her future.
Wendy and her husband, Ed, adopted two sons from Ethiopia — Wodajo and Telda. What began as a group of mostly adoptive families with an idea to bring water to their children’s villages grew into an organization working alongside locals to identify needs in the Ethiopian villages.
Last November, Harper-Oleksy traveled to Ethiopia with WEEMA International, www.weema.org, whose mission is to provide comprehensive support to underserved communities. She serves on the board of directors for the organization.
Harper-Oleksy has made new Clemson connections after moving to Winston-Salem, N.C. She became close friends with Kim Murph Fansler ’92; their 10-year-old sons Wodajo and Ty are best friends and hope to room together at Clemson in 2021. In addition, the boys are in the same class in school, and are taught by Kelly Hahne, who attended Clemson.

Leadership Award: Louis B. Lynn ’70, M ’72

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Louis B. Lynn

Louis Lynn was presented with the 2012 Ronald H. Brown Leadership Award from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority Business Development Agency. This award recognizes exceptional leaders who have made great strides in creating diversity in the public or private sector.
Lynn is president of ENVIRO Ag Science Inc., one of the largest African-American-owned landscape and construction firms in South Carolina. The firm has approximately 100 employees and was recognized as number four of the 25 Fastest Growing Companies in the state. Headquartered in Columbia, the company has offices in Jacksonville, N.C., Atlanta and Los Angeles. Earlier this year, Lynn was one of 30 small-business owners invited to participate in a White House Business Council, Minority Business Leaders Briefing about the fiscal cliff.
Elected to seven four-year terms on the Clemson University Board of Trustees, Lynn serves on the BB&T National Bank Board and chairs the Trust Committee. He also serves on the boards of many regional and state organizations.

“One of the best of the best”: Rita Bolt Barker ’01

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Rita Bolt Barker was the first woman elected Clemson University student body president; her leadership verve has continued to grow. She has recently been described as “one of the best of the best” by the American Bar Association when they named her as one of only 12 lawyers across the country to receive the prestigious Distinguished Environmental Advocacy Award. The award recognizes the contributions of lawyers to the development of law, policy and programs in the areas of energy and the environment.
Bolt Barker double majored in political science, and speech and communications at Clemson. She received her law degree from Harvard Law School. Her work as an environmental lawyer with the Greenville law firm Wyche includes advising clients on federal and state environmental laws. She also advises businesses on assessing environmental risks and incentives associated with corporate transactions, including mergers, acquisitions and real estate deals, including brownfield redevelopment.
Bolt Barker has been listed in Best Lawyers in America and as a “Rising Star” by South Carolina Super Lawyers. She was also named “Legal Elite” and one of the Upstate’s “Best and Brightest Under 35” by Greenville Business Magazine.
Chair of the board of directors for Greenville Forward, Bolt Barker also serves as vice president of the board of directors for the Friends of the Reedy River and is a member of the City of Greenville’s Green Ribbon Advisory Committee and Brownfield Task Force. She teaches a course on environmental law and conservation advocacy at Furman University.