Riley, who just completed an eight-year appointment as the nation's Secretary of Education, is a 1954 Furman graduate. His non-salaried duties at the school will begin immediately.

In addition to serving as the Distinguished Professor of Government, Politics and Public Leadership at Furman, Riley will be senior advisor and chair of the Advisory Board of the Richard W. Riley Institute of Government, Politics and Public Leadership. The Riley Institute, which was established at Furman in the fall of 1999, hosts symposiums on national issues, provides scholarships for political science students, and conducts workshops for secondary school teachers of government.

"We are thrilled that Dick Riley has agreed to join the university in such a considerable role," said Furman president David E. Shi. "There has not been a more consummate statesman nor a more decent and gifted public servant than Dick Riley, and his contributions to Furman's political science department will be invaluable. Dick has given a great deal of his time and energy to his alma mater over the years, and we are grateful that he continues to be such a faithful alumnus."

Riley said that his involvement at Furman will be "substantial." The former Education Secretary and South Carolina Governor will also work with the law firm of Nelson Mullins Riley and Scarborough and the University of South Carolina.

Shi said that Riley's new duties at Furman include conducting research as well as speaking to political science classes on issues of government and public policy. As senior advisor of the Riley Institute, he will host the program's annual Conference on Government, Politics and Public Leadership and assist the university in raising money to support the Institute's many programs.

"I am very proud of my alma mater, Furman University, and greatly honored to be part of the Riley Institute and the Department of Political Science," Riley said. "My first obligation is to do what I can do to ensure that the Riley Institute is properly funded and to help make the political science department at Furman the best in the country."

President Clinton named Riley Secretary of Education in 1992, and Riley earned universal praise for his efforts to raise academic standards, improve instruction for the poor and disadvantaged, and expand grant and loan programs for college students. He was the longest serving U.S. Secretary of Education in the nation's history.

Riley, who was first elected to political office in 1962 and served as Governor of South Carolina from 1979 to 1987, has had a long history of service to Furman. He was president of the Alumni Association's Board of Directors from 1968 to 1970, and received the Alumni Service Award in 1971. He was named to the Alumni Hall of Fame in 1981 and received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1985. Furman's mathematics and computer science building is also named in his honor.