President's Report 2007 - Benedict College

BENEDICT
COLLEGE
Chairman’s Message
Dear Benedict Family and Supporters,
You have before you the newest President’s Report, outlining what Benedict College has accomplished, under the administration of
Dr. David H. Swinton.
Dr. Swinton came to the Columbia campus in 1994 and since then, the school has renovated and built new facilities, increased the
strength and size of its faculty, grown its student body and continues to have an astonishing impact on the greater community.
I invite you to drive around the neighborhoods surrounding our campus. Revitalization is too tame a word to describe what’s
happened around the Benedict College campus. “Extreme makeover” might be closer. And that’s just the buildings. Remember,
there are people inside those buildings, living and working and helping others live a better life, too, in outreach that extends beyond
working in the community to living there, too.
Benedict is truly helping to create a whole new Columbia.
The College has given me the opportunity to share in the blessing that is uniquely
Benedict. We have given thousands of African Americans for generation’s similar
opportunity.
Benedict continues to command affection and respect from its alumni and
supporters, generating more than $25 million in contributions in just the past
three years.
Many of these gifts come from alumni now working in careers that don’t
command large salaries: teachers and ministers, social workers and counselors, to
name just a few. These are people in jobs that have a huge impact on the people
– young and old – they serve, and on our society as a whole. And they know that
Benedict has helped empower them to do well, and to do good.
One of the things I appreciate most about Benedict is the diversity of learning and
service the school offers its students and the community, all within the context of
giving our students a superior college education. These are promising students to
be sure, but they come here with much to learn.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, “Genius without education is like silver in the
mine.” With your support, Benedict continues to grow as a place where genius is
mined and futures are forged.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and to read this report. Please
consider taking the time to visit the campus, too, either in person or on the Web at www.benedict.edu. Stop by to hear some “joyful
noise” at Antisdel Chapel from the hearts and souls of our award-winning gospel choir. And stop by the new football stadium and
hear some “joyful noise” there, too, as we cheer on our Tigers!
Sincerely,
Dr. Charlie W. Johnson
Board of Trustees, Chairman
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