Clemson University TigerPrints Clemson Commencement Programs Academic Affairs 8-7-1993 Clemson Commencement Program, August 1993 Clemson University Follow this and additional works at: https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/comm_programs Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. code). Use of these materials beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. For additional rights information, please contact Kirstin O'Keefe (kokeefe [at] clemson [dot] edu) For additional information about the collections, please contact the Special Collections and Archives by phone at 864.656.3031 or via email at cuscl [at] clemson [dot] edu Recommended Citation University, Clemson, "Clemson Commencement Program, August 1993" (1993). Clemson Commencement Programs. 80. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/comm_programs/80 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Academic Affairs at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in Clemson Commencement Programs by an authorized administrator of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact [email protected]. CLEMSON UNIVERSITY Graduation Exercises August 7, 1993 Clemson, South Carolina For your convenience, a First Aid station is located at Portal 0. Littlejohn Coliseum is equipped with a fire alarm evacuation system. In the event of activation - as noted by sustained horns and flashing strobe lights - please proceed to the closest avai lable exit. Remain outside the building until fire officials deem the building safe to re-enter. No smoking is permitted in the seating area of Littlejohn Coliseum. Cigarette receptacles are provided around the outer concourse. You are requested to refra in from loud expressions of pleasure for individual graduates. Such expressions frequently detract from the recognition due the next graduate in line. Your cooperation is respectfully but urgently requested. Graduation Saturday, August 7, 1993 11:00 a. ni.. Littlejohn Coliseum ORDER OF CEREMONIES (Audience will please stand as faculty and candidates march in and remain standi ng fo r the invocation) Invocation Steven J. Bagwell Conferring of Honorary Degrees President Max Lennon Recognition of the Deans of the Colleges Provost J. Charles Jennett Conferring of Degrees and Delivery of Diplomas President Max Lennon Recognition and Presentation of Awards Board of Visitors Graduate Teach ing Assistant Frank W. Breazeale, Organist Kevin Davidson, Soloist Dr. Carolyn Briscoe, University Marshal HONORARY DEGREE CHARLES W. COKER DOCTOR OF HUMANITIES Charles W. Coker, distinguished South Carolinian, award-winning business execu- tive and community leader, is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sonoco Products Company, a Fortune 500 giant and one of the state's major industries. Mr. Coker was raised in the Darlington County community of Hartsville, the loca- tion of Sonoco's corporate headquarters. He is a graduate of Woodberry Forest School in Virginia and received the Bachelor of Arts degree (1955) from Princeton University and a master's degree (1957) in business administration from the Harvard Business School. Mr. Coker began full-time employment with Sonoco in 1958, was named Executive Vice President in 1966 and became President in 1970. In 1990 he was named Chair- man of the Board and maintained the title and responsibilities of Chief Executive Officer. Today's Sonoco Products Company evolved from modest beginnings around the turn of the century. It began as a South Carolina home-grown company in 1899, founded as Southern Novelty Company, a family-owned business, by Mr. Coker's great- grandfather, Major James Lide Coker. Working in a rented warehouse in Hartsville, the company's twelve employees manufactured paper cones used by the textile industry in the winding of yarn and threads. Although still making textile cones, Sonoco has diversified its product line into scores of packaging products with a multitude of industrial and consumer applica- tions. The company has become a global giant, with more than 250 plants on five continents and approximately 16,000 employees, some 3,000 of whom are in South Carolina. During Mr. Coker's 22 years of leadership as President, sales of the company have grown from $125 million to more than $1 .8 billion at the end of 1992. The company's 1992 Fortune 500 ranking in sales was 231st, in net earnings 149th, earn- ings as a percent of sales 127th, and as a percent of equity 104th. In addition to his directorship at Sonoco, Mr. Coker also serves on the boards of NationsBank. Springs Industries, Carolina Power and Light Company, Sara Lee Corporation, American Forest and Paper Association, Palmetto Seed Capital Corpora- tion, The University of Virginia Darden School Foundation, and Hollings Oncology Center. Active in both civic and business affairs, he is a member of the Palmetto Business Forum, a past president of the Hartsville Rotary Club and the Pee Dee Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He is a recipient of the Silver Beaver Award for out- standing service to scouting. Many times he has been honored by his peers for leadership and achievements in the business world. In 1985 he was named South Carolina Businessman of the Year by the S. C. Chamber of Commerce, and in 1991 he was inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame. His leadership, dedication and commitment have provided industrial growth, job opportunities and other economic and social gains for South Carolina as well as for the country. Charlie Coker's numerous accomplishments have brought great credit to himself and to the State and are held in the highest regard by his friends and fellow South Carolinians. It is a privilege to honor him with the presentation of the honorary degree, Doctor of Humanities. HONORARY DEGREE BUTLER C. DERRICK, JR. DOCTOR OF LAWS The Honorable Butler C. Derrick, Jr., who represents South Carolina's Third Con- gressional District, is serving his 10th term in Congress. Mr. Derrick, who first was elected to Congress in 1974, is a chief deputy whip, a leadership position which is the fifth most senior in the House leadership and helps set the legislative agenda and build coalitions for passage or defeat of major bills. Congressman Derrick's appointment is the first time in 130 years that a South Carolinian has been named to a top leadership post in the U. S. House of Representa- tives. As Vice Chairman of the powerful Rules Committee, he is involved in almost every piece of legislation debated on the floor of the House. Th is committee, considered one of the three most influential committees in the House, determines which legislation is considered as well as how and when it will be debated on the House floor. He has long been a good friend to Clemson University and a strong supporter of Clemson's work to serve the textile industry, continuing education needs, and agricul- tural research and cooperative extension work. Congressman Derrick won approval of funding for the National Textile Center to help U.S. textile makers be more competitive with markets overseas. The center is lo- cated at Clemson and at three other member institutions. Congressman Derrick also secured a $1 .5 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to equip the University's teleconferencing center in the planned continuing education and conference center. The grant will enable the new facility to serve as an " electronic classroom" by transmitting its classes around the world. He attended the University of South Carolina and earned a law degree at the University of Georgia (1965). Four years later he was elected to the S. C. House of Representatives, the beginning of his long legislative career. He continued to practice law in Edgefield until he was elected to Congress in 1974. Known by his colleagues as a congressman with a quiet operating style, Derrick often works behind the scenes to get things done. This legislative style and his moder- ate, conservative political philosophy are attributes which Derrick brings to his leader- ship position. Now in his 19th year in the House of Representatives, Congressman Derrick has compiled an outstanding record of being a strong spokesman and advocate on matters and issues affecting his district and state. It is a special privilege for Clemson University to honor this distinguished South Carolinian and American. We hold his achievements in the highest regard, and it is a pleasure to award him the honorary Doctor of Laws degree. BOARD OF TRUSTEES Billy L. Amick, Chairman __________________________ Batesburg J. J. Britton, Vice Chairman __________________________ Sumter Louis P. Batson, Jr. ------------------------------ Greenville w. G. Deschamps, Jr. ____________________________ Bishopville Lawrence M. Gressette, Jr. _________________________ Columbia Harold D. Kingsmore ---------------------------------- Aiken Louis B. Lynn ------------------------------------ Columbia Patricia H. McAbee ------------------------------ McCormick Thomas B. McTeer, Jr. _____ __ ______________________ Columbia Buck Mickel ------------------------------------- Greenville Philip H. Prince ________ ______________________ Pawleys Island Joseph D. Swann ------- ----------------- --------- Greenville Allen P. Wood - ------------------------ ------------ Florence Trustees Emeriti Fletcher C. Derrick, Jr. ______________________ _____ Charleston William N. Geiger, Jr. ------------------------------ Columbia Paul W. McAlister ----------------------------------