Presbyterian College hosts baccalaureate service

Presbyterian College hosts baccalaureate service

Presbyterian College hosted its baccalaureate service for its graduating class on Friday, May 13, 2016.

“Even as you go your different ways after tomorrow, the relationships you built at PC will last a lifetime,” Presbyterian College President Bob Staton told the graduating class.

Presbyterian College hosts baccalaureate serviceThe class of 2016 was addressed by Rev. Dr. R. Bentley Anderson, associate professor of African and African-American studies at Fordham University. Anderson is an ordained Roman Catholic priest and member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). He is the author of “Black, White, and Catholic: New Orleans Interracialism, 1947-1956” and several articles that deal with the issue of race and religion in post-World War II America.

Born in New Orleans, La., and reared in Atlanta, Ga., Anderson is a graduate of Presbyterian College, having earned his Bachelor’s degree in history in 1981.  He also holds a Master’s degree in history from Monmouth University and a Doctorate in history from Boston College. His Divinity degree was earned in Canada at Regis College, Toronto School of Theology.

Before entering the Jesuits in 1986, he served on active duty as a U.S. Army Signal Corps officer in Alaska and New Jersey.  While a student at PC, he was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha social fraternity, Varsity Football manager for four years, member of Blue Key Honor Society, President of the Student Government Association, recipient of the U.S. Army ROTC Wysor Saber, selected for “Who’s Who in American Universities and Colleges” as well as PC’s “Outstanding Senior Award” for 1981.  As President of the SGA, Anderson and his student government administration were responsible for instituting the Honor Code pledge that freshmen take at the beginning of their academic career at the college.

“A portion of your adult life ends tomorrow, but that ending is a beginning,” Anderson told the class. “You are being sent forth.”

“You and I were prepared to go out in the world by the faculty, the backbone of the college,” he added. “When you go out to the world, remember the college’s words ‘Dum Vivimus Servimus—while we live, we serve.’ We serve out of love for love.”

 


 

Presbyterian College is located on a striking 240-acre campus in Clinton, between Columbia and Greenville, S.C. Offering challenging academics and a culture of honor, ethics, and service that prepares students to be leaders in communities, PC offers its students the benefit of engaging with an exceptional faculty who take individual interest in their students’ well-being, both personally and in the classroom. The Presbyterian College School of Pharmacy opened in 2010, and is dedicated to the ideals of leadership, honor to the profession, and service to the community. For more information about Presbyterian College, visit www.presby.edu.