Quattlebaum gift supports the Harvey S. Peeler Jr.
College of Veterinary Medicine
For the first time, students in the state of South Carolina pursuing a career in veterinary medicine will be able to do so close to home. This long-awaited vision for Clemson University and the entire state was recently given a significant boost thanks to a gift that will name the Andy Quattlebaum Pavilion and the Quattlebaum Hub, the vibrant academic center of the new Harvey S. Peeler Jr. College of Veterinary Medicine, where students will attend classes, study, unwind and socialize.
The Quattlebaum family has supported this project from its inception. When they lost their beloved son, Andy, at age 22, Don Quattlebaum ’76 and his late wife, Hayden Blackwell Quattlebaum, knew that the best thing they could do to channel their grief in a positive direction was to provide meaningful and lasting support for Andy’s passions. The Andy Quattlebaum and Blackwell Family Foundation was created for that purpose. It honors Andy’s legacy of compassion, care and positive energy by supporting various initiatives, including education, veterans, conservation, the outdoors, animals and veterinary schools. Andy also loved Clemson and cherished his time on campus, much of it spent with his constant companion, his yellow Labrador retriever, Oak.
For years, the Quattlebaums had taken their animals, including Oak, to the College of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State University for treatment. This is also where they first met Steven Marks, who would eventually become founding dean of Clemson’s new college of veterinary medicine. There, they witnessed firsthand the incredible work of the veterinary school and the passion the students felt for it. They knew that if a teaching veterinary school ever came to South Carolina, they wanted to be a part of it.
Hayden Quattlebaum passed away in 2023. “She knew progress was being made toward a veterinary school at Clemson, and she was all in for it,” Don says.
The foundation’s gifts to Clemson include the Andy Quattlebaum Outdoor Education Center at the Snow Family Outdoor Fitness and Wellness Complex on Clemson’s main campus and Andy’s Cottage at the Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science in Georgetown, South Carolina. This new gift to name the Andy Quattlebaum Pavilion and the Quattlebaum Hub is the latest contribution to honor Andy’s and Hayden’s legacies and their love for animals and Clemson. It also includes the Don and Hayden Quattlebaum Endowed Professorship and the Andy Quattlebaum and Blackwell Family Foundation Endowment for Veterinary Medicine.
“South Carolina has a huge need for veterinarians of all types, and until now, we have been sending our brightest students to North Carolina or Georgia, with no guarantee that they would return to the state,” Don says. “The new vet school will fill a need that has existed for a long time, and we are proud to be a part of it.”
Don Quattlebaum’s Clemson history spans four generations. His grandfather, McQueen Quattlebaum, graduated in 1909. His father, Alexander McQueen Quattlebaum, graduated in 1934, taught engineering and served on the Clemson University Board of Trustees. Don’s son, Andy, also attended the University.
