CONTACT: LISA GARRETT, EXT. 2315

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 4/28/2000

PENDLETON --- Dr. James Hudgins, nationally acclaimed executive director of the S.C. Technical College System, will address the graduating class of 2000 at Tri-County Technical College's 37th annual commencement at Clemson's Littlejohn Coliseum.

Three-hundred and sixty-seven graduates will be recognized at the annual spring commencement scheduled for Monday, May 15, at 8 p.m. In addition to families and guests of the graduates, alumni and friends of the College are invited to attend the ceremony.

Since he assumed the director's role in March of last year, Dr. Hudgins has worked daily, leading the S.C. Technical College System forward into the new millennium by encouraging all of the colleges to work as a cohesive unit in establishing the SBTEC legislative agenda which includes increased funding for the System.

Prior to his role as director, Dr. Hudgins served for 13 years as president of Midlands Technical College in Columbia. During his presidency, Midlands doubled its enrollment to become the largest technical college in South Carolina and the third largest college in the state.

He also previously served as president of Central Carolina Technical College (CCTC) in Sumter. During his tenure, Dr. Hudgins organized the college's foundation and introduced new educational programs designed to meet the needs of local businesses and industries. Prior to working at CCTC, he was vice president for educational affairs at Piedmont Tech. He began his technical college career at Greenville Tech where he served as a counselor to students.

While serving as president of the South Carolina Association of Colleges and Universities, he was an active participant in the ongoing discussion to restructure higher educational in South Carolina. He has enhanced regional awareness of the System by serving as chairman of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). He is the only two-year college president to chair the Commission on Colleges of SACS.

He served as president of the Southern Association of Community, Junior, and Technical Colleges. He also served as a board member of the American Association of Community Colleges and as vice chair of the Board of the Community Colleges of the Air Force.

Among his most recent accolades are the 1997 National Leadership award from the National Council for Organizational and Staff Development and the 1998 Distinguished Service Award from the S.C. Commission on Higher Education.

He holds A.B., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees from Bob Jones University and has an M. A. degree in educational administration from Furman University.
-30-