South Carolina State University President Alexander Conyers on Friday announced that the university’s new $31 million library will include a wing to house the Dr. Emily England Clyburn Honors College.
Conyers made the announcement at the annual Honors Scholars Induction Ceremony and Breakfast, during which six new Clyburn Scholars joined the college’s ranks, at the Presidents State Room on campus. The president said the Honors College wing will include a statue of the late Dr. Emily England Clyburn, for whom the college is named, and her husband, U.S. Rep. James E. Clyburn.
“As we started the pricing
out the library and seeing what newer libraries in the state cost in today’s dollars, I realized we could get more with the state’s allocation than we initially envisioned,” Conyers said. “So, I thought about the need – the great need for a place for our honors students that is worthy of Dr. Clyburn’s name.”
The Honors College had operated out of a small campus house that needed renovation until moving to shared space in SC State’s Engineering & Computer Science Complex last year, hence the need for a dedicated space.
“I thought there could be no more fitting recognition than a wing of our new library given her long, distinguished career as a librarian and her
master’s degree in library science,” Conyers said. “What a great way to honor Dr. Clyburn and give our honors students the space they need – a conference room, classroom and office space for their advisors.”
Funded by the state of South Carolina in the 2024-25 budget, the new library will replace the 56-year-old Miller F. Whittaker Library. The project is in the preliminary phases of the state’s approval processes, after which an architect will be employed for the design. University officials estimate the building’s size at 50,000 square feet and plan to place it on the site that formerly housed Bradham and Manning Halls.
