Founded in 1870, Benedict College is a private, co-educational liberal arts institution located in Columbia, SC (link is external), and currently has over 2,470 students enrolled in baccalaureate degree programs. Benedict College was recently ranked for the six consecutive years (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015) as one of the top baccalaureate colleges in the nation by Washington Monthly for creating social mobility among low-income students, producing cutting edge scholarship and research. Benedict has been recognized by the National Civic Engagement Award from The Washington Center for encouraging students to give back to the community, which is the heart of the College’s vision and mission. Benedict College earned four President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll Awards from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), a federal agency charged with improving lives, strengthening communities, and fostering civic engagement through service and volunteering. CNCS is responsible for leading President Barack Obama’s national call to service initiative. President Obama personally thanked Benedict College for its commitment to volunteerism during a nationally televised White House Town Hall Meeting held on Benedict’s campus on March 6, 2015.
Benedict also was named one of the top 100 institutions in the nation, graduating African-American scholars in by Diverse Magazine. Dr. David Holmes Swinton is the thirteenth president of Benedict College. Since Dr. Swinton’s appointment in 1994, the College has dramatically increased enrollment, particularly among male students. As a result of this tremendous growth, Benedict has the second largest undergraduate population of the 20 private institutions in South Carolina. He has become the third-largest College in The College Fund/UNCF network. Benedict has over 17,000 alumni throughout South Carolina and the United States. The College has been “a power for good” in the community for over 146 years. It is a significant economic contributor to the region and South Carolina, with a local annual economic impact of over $106.7 million.
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