Benedict College Celebrates 153rd Founder’s Day Convocation

Benedict College Celebrates its’ 153rd Founder’s Day Convocation on Thursday, March 23 at 11 a.m. at Antisdel Chapel.

Benedict’s Founder’s Day Convocation is an annual tradition when the campus community comes together to celebrate the founding of the institution by Bathsheba Benedict in 1870.

Speakers for the event include Ms. Donika Gray and Dr. Carlye DeNay Summers.

Ms. Donika Gray, is 2008 Honor’s Graduate of Benedict College where she earned a Bachelor of Social Work degree. Gray has provided more than 15 years of counseling and mental health service experience with the incarcerated, including the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Gray is an exceptional social worker who uses the skills and content learned at Benedict College to advocate for public policies that educate, engage, and enlighten.

Dr. Carlye DeNay Summers, paved her own trail of academic success and achievement at Benedict College from 2010 – 2014, Dr. Summers was on the Dean’s List as well as membership in the Alpha Chi National College Honor Society. Summers was an Honors Program, Summa Cum Laude graduate of the School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) earing earning a Bachelor of Science degree in biology.

About Benedict College (www.benedict.edu)

Founded in 1870 by a woman, Bathsheba A. Benedict, Benedict College is a private co-educational liberal arts institution, offering 26 competitive baccalaureate degree programs. The Midlands HBCU welcomes students from all 46 counties in South Carolina, 30 states across America, and 26 countries around the world.

Benedict has a diverse faculty and importantly, 80 percent of courses are taught by full-time faculty.

There are over 18,000 proud Benedict Tigers throughout the nation. Benedict College has been a community leader for over 150-years and is a significant contributor to South Carolina and the region. Contributing $130 million and 1,218 jobs in total local and annual economic impact, a Benedict graduate working full-time throughout his or her working life can expect to earn $1.1 million in additional income because of their Benedict College degree.

Benedict College has been highly regarded and exceptionally ranked for its programs by several academic and traditional publications.  For example, Benedict College was ranked as one of the top baccalaureate colleges in the nation by Washington Monthly magazine for creating social mobility and producing cutting-edge scholarship and research.  In 2019, Benedict College received the 2019 ACE/ Fidelity Investments Awards for Institutional Transformation and was named the HBCU of the Year by HBCU Digest. Benedict College was listed among the top half of ranked HBCUs in the 2022 edition of Best Colleges by US News and World Report.