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TO HONOR THE LIFE AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE FIFTH PRESIDENT OF SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY, PROMINENT AFRICAN AMERICAN DR. MILLIGAN MACEO NANCE JR., A NATIVE OF COLUMBIA.
Whereas, born in 1926, Dr. Nance was the son of the late Milligan Maceo Nance, Sr., and Louella Stewart Nance. He attended and graduated from Booker T. Washington High School before enrolling at South Carolina State in 1942 on a music scholarship. Upon the completion of his freshman year he was called to serve his country in World War II as a member of the United States Navy. Upon his military discharge in 1946, he returned to South Carolina State, then known as "State College," to continue his education. He completed these studies in 1949, earning a bachelor's degree in English; and
Whereas, upon his graduation, he began his career at South Carolina State in the ROTC Supply room. A year later, he had the good fortune of marrying his college sweetheart Julia Washington, the daughter of J. Irwin Washington, who then served as the business manager at South Carolina State. Upon a demand by President Turner that employees needed to upgrade their education or find other employment, Nance attended New York University and in 1953 he received his Master of Science degree; and
Whereas, returning to South Carolina State, Nance worked his way up the ranks, achieving business manager by 1959. When President Turner was pressured by Governor McNair into leaving office in 1967, after nearly a decade of turmoil on campus, a new president was needed to lead the school. An interim committee named Nance the acting president of South Carolina State College on June 24, 1967; and
Whereas, with Nance now at the helm, he and his administrators developed a comprehensive plan to stabilize and build upon all areas of the college. These plans were short lived, however, as tragedy struck during a student protest of the All-Star Triangle Bowling Lanes. On February 8, 1968, as tensions between law enforcement and protesters boiled over, three students were killed and twenty-eight were wounded as the South Carolina State Highway Patrol opened fire on two hundred unarmed black student protestors. The incident became known as the "Orangeburg Massacre,"; and
Whereas, it is, however, from the aftermath of this tragic loss of life, that President Nance's legacy was born. As tensions cooled, Nance revised his vision for the college and began, slowly and methodically, to lead the college out of the chaos. For his efforts, the board of trustees rewarded him officially with the position of president and he was inaugurated on June 23, 1968. Only forty-one years of age at the time of his inauguration, he was the youngest and the first alumnus to hold the position of president. Despite his youth, he spent the next nineteen years deftly leading the school through a period of growth and prosperity through expert delegation of duties, a careful eye to all corners of the school, and compassionate interactions with the students, faculty, and community; and
Whereas, Dr. Milligan Maceo Nance, Jr., retired from the presidency of South Carolina State in 1986 at the age of sixty-six and was bestowed with the honored position of president emeritus. In March of 2001, Nance passed away, survived by his loving wife and his two sons, I. Maceo Nance and Robert M. Nance, and his four grandchildren. A great leader of his time that was able to unite his community in a way that perhaps no one else could have, he left an indelible mark on the State of South Carolina, and the institution he was so proud of, South Carolina State University;
Whereas, a man who stepped up during a time of great need, Dr. Milligan Nance Maceo, Jr., was a public servant dedicated to the growth and stability of South Carolina State. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, honor the life and achievements of the fifth president of South Carolina State University, prominent African American Dr. Milligan Maceo Nance, Jr., a native of Columbia.
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