The Riley Institute®

Calendar

OCTOBER 7: Information session for the Midlands Diversity Leaders Initiative Spring 2009 Class. For more information, click here.

OCTOBER 14: Lowcountry Diversity Leaders Initiative. For a complete schedule of class dates, click here.

OCTOBER 16 : Upstate Diversity Leaders Initiative. For a complete schedule of class dates, click here.

OCTOBER 29-30: Religion in Europe Conference

NOVEMBER 16-22: "Voices of the Future for APEC" program in Peru. For more information, click here; to view past APEC programs, click here.

NOVEMBER 19: Marshall Goldman, The Rise of the Petrostate

JANUARY 12, 2009: Annual Wilkins Legislative Award Dinner in Columbia, S.C.

JANUARY 15-17, 2009: Conference on State Constitutional Reform in partnership with the Charleston School of Law

FEBRUARY 1-7, 2009: Former U.S. Ambassador Thomas Boyatt, Woodrow Wilson Fellow in Residence

MARCH 13-14, 2009: Emerging Public Leaders 2008-09 presentations

MARCH 17-18, 2009: China's Global Rise Series: Will China Democratize? Perspectives on Political Reform in China



 

Secretary Richard W. Riley

THE HONORABLE RICHARD W. RILEY INDUCTED INTO THE
S. C. HIGHER EDUCATION HALL OF FAME

On Wednesday, September 23, 2008, the Harry M. Lightsey, Jr. Society officially inducted The Honorable Richard W. Riley into the South Carolina Higher Education Hall of Fame at a black-tie banquet held at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

The South Carolina Higher Education Foundation, Inc. was created as a partner to support the Commission on Higher Education (CHE) in its advocacy role for the state's public and private institutions of higher learning.  The SC Higher Education Foundation's mission is to provide funding for statewide CHE programs that fall outside the scope of state funding.

"We started the foundation 8 years ago to advocate for a broad range of topics including better alignment of the K-12 and the post-secondary programs, better campus safety, and improved teaching in our colleges," said Dalton Floyd, current President of the Foundation.  "Two years ago we created the Lightsey Society to honor those who have contributed in extraordinary ways to higher education in South Carolina and to encourage others to excel in their efforts on behalf of higher learning.  We are honored to have Governor Riley as this year's recipient." 

Few in South Carolina's history have embraced education issues and fought for reform with the passion and compassion of Richard Wilson Riley.  He is an esteemed education leader, visionary, beloved governor of South Carolina (1979–87), U.S. Secretary of Education (1993–2001), public servant, lawyer, statesman, devoted husband, father, and grandfather.  His hard work and many accomplishments have positively impacted untold lives.

A native of South Carolina, Riley was born in Greenville County.  In 1954, he graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree in political science from Furman University. After serving two years as an officer on a U.S. Navy minesweeper, he went on to earn a law degree in 1959 from the University of South Carolina.  He started his political career when he was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1960.

"Harry Lightsey was a wonderful human being and a wonderful educator.  I am so honored to receive this award," said Governor Riley. In his acceptance speech, Governor Riley also touched on a couple of key themes for education.

 

The Honorable Eibhlin Byrne,
Lord Mayor of Dublin

THE HONORABLE EIBHLIN BYRNE,
LORD MAYOR OF DUBLIN, IRELAND

The Riley Institute at Furman welcomed to Furman the Honorable Eibhlin Byrne, Lord Mayor of Dublin, as part of the J. Kelly Sisk Lecture in Public Affairs series.

The Honorable Councillor Eibhlin Byrne delivered an address, "Moving the Celtic Tiger: Civic Leadership in 21st Century Dublin" on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 at 8 p.m. in Shaw Hall, Younts Conference Center, Furman University.

She was elected the 339th Lord Mayor of Dublin, Ireland, in June 2008. A member of the Fianna Fáil (Republican) party, she is the sixth woman to hold this title. As Lord Mayor, she sees her position as “about more than just politics.” Her goal is to unify the various interests in Dublin: the city’s objectives of being a knowledge city and an innovative and creative city, the city’s desire to promote enterprise that can compete in the global economy, and the citizens’ need for their voices to be heard, particularly those who are homeless, abused, or neglected.

more . . .


HEWLETT FOUNDATION AWARDS RILEY INSTITUTE AT FURMAN ADDITIONAL $400,000 TO SUPPORT PUBLIC EDUCATION STUDY

Grant brings total funding for Riley Institute project to $1 million

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation has awarded the Riley Institute at Furman University a $400,000 grant to support its continuing research and policy programming on public education in South Carolina.

The full press release is available here; to view The Greenville News article, click here. To access information and findings of the education study, you may click on the tab "Education", or click here to go directly to the site.

 

RECENT EVENTS

Missed one of our events, but still want to hear John Glenn's and Mike McConnell's address as well as others including Lesley Stahl and Newt Gingrich, view them on-line at furmanchannel.com

  • The Riley Institute Releases the Results of a Two-Year Public Education Study. For more information, click here.

 

The Riley Institute is deeply saddened by the loss of one of our own, Mrs. Ann "Tunky" Yarborough Riley, the former First Lady of South Carolina, and wife of former Governor and U.S. Secretary of Education, Richard W. Riley. To view The State article, click here; a second State article, click here.

 

 


 

Richard W. Riley

The Riley Institute at Furman, named in honor of former U.S. Secretary of Education and S.C. Gov. Richard W. Riley, is a multi-faceted, non-partisan institute affiliated with the Department of Political Science at Furman University.

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Contact the Institute, click here


The Richard W. Riley Institute of Government, Politics and Public Leadership at Furman University
3300 Poinsett Highway, Greenville, S.C. 29613 | 864.294.3251 |
info@rileyinstitute.org