H*3612 Concurrent Resolution, By Webb, Leach, Allen, Allison, Altman, Askins, 
Bales, Barfield, Barrett, Battle, Bingham, Bowers, Breeland, G. Brown, J. Brown, 
R. Brown, Campsen, Carnell, Cato, Chellis, Clyburn, Coates, Cobb-Hunter, 
Coleman, Cooper, Cotty, Dantzler, Davenport, Delleney, Easterday, Edge, Emory, 
Fleming, Freeman, Frye, Gilham, Gourdine, Govan, Hamilton, Harrell, Harrison, 
Harvin, Haskins, Hayes, J. Hines, M. Hines, Hinson, Hosey, Howard, Huggins, 
Jennings, Keegan, Kelley, Kennedy, Kirsh, Klauber, Knotts, Koon, Law, Lee, 
Limehouse, Littlejohn, Lloyd, Loftis, Lourie, Lucas, Mack, Martin, McCraw, 
McGee, McLeod, Meacham-Richardson, Merrill, Miller, Moody-Lawrence, J.H. Neal, 
J.M. Neal, Neilson, Ott, D. Owens, Parks, Perry, Phillips, Quinn, Rhoad, Rice, 
Riser, Rivers, Robinson, Rodgers, Rutherford, Sandifer, Scarborough, Scott, 
Sharpe, Sheheen, Simrill, Sinclair, D.C. Smith, F.N. Smith, G.M. Smith, 
J.E. Smith, J.R. Smith, W.D. Smith, Snow, Stille, Stuart, Talley, Taylor, 
Thompson, Townsend, Tripp, Trotter, Vaughn, Walker, Weeks, Whatley, Whipper, 
White, Wilder, Wilkins, Witherspoon, A. Young and J. Young
 A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION PROUDLY PROCLAIMING THE PRIDE AND EXCITEMENT OF THE
 MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA ON THE RECENT
 ANNOUNCEMENT BY TIME MAGAZINE NAMING CLEMSON UNIVERSITY THE "PUBLIC COLLEGE OF
 THE YEAR"; AND KIPLINGER'S MAGAZINE RANKING CLEMSON UNIVERSITY THE BEST VALUE
 IN SOUTH CAROLINA'S PUBLIC COLLEGES AND TWENTY-FIRST AMONG THE TOP ONE HUNDRED
 BEST VALUES IN PUBLIC COLLEGES NATIONALLY.

   02/21/01  House  Introduced, adopted, sent to Senate
   02/22/01  Senate Introduced, adopted, returned with concurrence SJ-6

PROUDLY PROCLAIMING THE PRIDE AND EXCITEMENT OF THE MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA ON THE RECENT ANNOUNCEMENT BY TIME MAGAZINE NAMING CLEMSON UNIVERSITY THE "PUBLIC COLLEGE OF THE YEAR"; AND KIPLINGER'S MAGAZINE RANKING CLEMSON UNIVERSITY THE BEST VALUE IN SOUTH CAROLINA'S PUBLIC COLLEGES AND TWENTY-FIRST AMONG THE TOP ONE HUNDRED BEST VALUES IN PUBLIC COLLEGES NATIONALLY.

Whereas, Clemson University is a big public university (14,000 undergraduates and 3,500 graduate students) known for agriculture, engineering, architecture, business, and a nationally ranked football team. Well, add one more sparkle to that list of what Clemson does well: creatively teaching students to communicate; and

Whereas, Time Magazine articulately describes Clemson University as being on the cutting edge of the communication-across-the-curriculum (CAC) movement, in which faculty integrate not only writing but also oral, visual, and electronic communication in all the disciplines; and

Whereas, Clemson requires students to take six communication-intensive credits and rewards professors for encouraging their students to do more writing, talking, and even e-mailing; and

Whereas, Clemson's renewed communication emphasis started in 1987 with the arrival of Art Young, who holds the nation's first endowed chair in technical communication (a joint appointment in English and engineering), established by a gift from South Carolinians Robert and Betsy Campbell. Professor Young came from Michigan Tech, where industrial recruiters told him graduates had technical knowledge but needed to enhance their communication skills. So while still at Michigan Tech, Young started one of the first writing-across-the-curriculum programs; and

Whereas, Professor Young brought his expertise to Clemson and started a workshop for faculty who wanted to teach students better how to write and speak. Today that fledgling program is housed in the Roy and Marnie Pearce Center for Professional Communication and Class of 1941 Initiative, which, with its four million dollar endowment, provides training and grants to encourage faculty to teach creatively, to have students spend at least part of class time writing, talking about, and even drawing the concepts being taught. "Under the traditional lecture method, the retention rate is nil," says Carl Lovitt, former director of the Pearce Center. "If you give students the opportunity to talk about what they're learning, they'll learn it better."; and

Whereas, the result has been a cultural change throughout Clemson University. In science, engineering, humanities, and business classes, students spend less time hearing lectures and taking exams and more time keeping journals, making presentations, and using the Internet to converse electronically with classmates and with peers at other schools. "What all of us want to do is teach our students to think," says Psychology Professor Patti Connor-Greene, who has happily switched from all lecturing, traditional testing, and even term papers; and

Whereas, Clemson faculty members are encouraged to stretch the boundaries. Biology Professor Jerry Waldvogel, who bears a remarkable resemblance to Charles Darwin, dresses like the 19th century naturalist when his classes study evolution; and

Whereas, to help select this year's winner, TIME Magazine's editors called on nine experts -- first, to identify issues critical in higher education; and second, to guide the editors to specific institutions that are addressing those issues effectively. While the panel of experts advice was invaluable, the final selection was made by the editors; and

Whereas, remembering nothing succeeds like success, shortly thereafter, the editors of Kiplinger's Magazine ranked Clemson University the best value in South Carolina's public colleges and twenty-first among the top one hundred best values in public colleges nationally; and

Whereas, Kiplinger's editors used a number of criteria to select the best buys, including entrance standards, graduation rates, student-faculty ratios, per pupil spending, and expenditures on library resources. After quality came affordability measurers, such as total cost, financial aid, and average amount debt students accumulate prior to graduation. Quality counted for seventy-one percent of the score, while affordability counted for twenty-nine percent. The formula weighted quality greater because "value is not synonymous with cheap", noted the editors; and

Whereas, realizing that education is emblazoned on the minds of all South Carolinians, we applaud the efforts of this fine land-grant university in striving to achieve the vision of Thomas G. Clemson. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

That the members of the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina, by this resolution, proudly proclaim their pride and excitement on the recent announcement by TIME Magazine naming Clemson University the "Public College of the Year"; and Kiplinger's Magazine ranking Clemson University the best value in South Carolina's public colleges and twenty-first among the top one hundred best values in public colleges nationally.

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to President James F. Barker.