The College of Charleston Looks Back on 2025
Between new programs and initiatives, philanthropic milestones, academic awards and athletic feats, 2025 was an exciting and transformative year!
As we look forward to the new year and all the possibilities it will bring, it’s always good to reflect and build on what we have accomplished and experienced in the year past. And, at the College of Charleston, that is quite a lot! From launching new academic programs and establishing meaningful partnerships to discovering a time capsule and relishing a rare snow-covered campus, 2025 was indeed one for the books!
Here, in no particular order, are some of the highlights of 2025!
A time capsule from 1974 was found at the Stern Center!
A rare snowfall started off 2025!
This year, the College of Charleston introduced new academic programs, including a new Doctor of Education in Learning and Inquiry in Practice, which emphasizes community partnerships, policy, and applied research, and a new Executive DBA created to support senior leaders through applied, practice-driven scholarship.
Community partnerships have been a theme at the university, which launched a new EPIC Scholars program to allow students at South Carolina technical colleges – including Trident Technical College – direct admission into the College’s B.P.S. program. In addition, the College continued working closely with the Medical University of South Carolina, establishing a new innovative BLOCKS partnership that allows Honors College students to gain hands-on experience in cancer research at MUSC’s Hollings Cancer Center.
Other community initiatives that the College established in 2025 include the Fitness and Community Health Testing program and the South Carolina Talent Initiative, positioning the College of Charleston’s financial aid package as the best in the state.
That’s not the only thing the university was “best” at this year! The College was ranked as the top institution for short-term study-abroad programs.
Another area where the College enjoyed high rankings this year was athletics. Our student-athletes shined, including volleyball middle blocker Caitlyn Callahan, an MBA candidate, who became the first CAA volleyball student-athlete to earn Academic All-America honors since 2019; women’s basketball guard Taryn Barbot, who was named the CAA Preseason Player of the Year and Preseason All-CAA First Team for the second straight season. Women’s basketball was also picked first in the annual Coaches’ Poll.
Off the court, the equestrian team was ranked second in the nation after Dartmouth, head sailing coach Connor Blouin was named to Washington College Hall of Fame and golfer Kieron van Wyk ’25 captured the season-opening tournament on the Advocates Professional Golf Association Tour, becoming the first amateur golfer to win an APGA event since the tour started in 2010. Then, he earned the top spot in the final 2024–25 Bridgestone APGA Collegiate Rankings.
Another record was broken this fiscal year when the College hit a philanthropy milestone, bringing in a total of $33.1 million – the largest amount raised in the College’s 255-year history.
The College received a significant gift from the Schoen Foundation to support our military and veteran students.
One of the most significant gifts in our school’s history comes from Beemok, the family office of philanthropists Ben and Kelly Navarro, which will allow the School of Business to construct a best-in-class business school building. Beemok also provided the space and resources for the new Center for Intentionality, which opened its doors on Rutledge Ave. last October.
Like the Center for Intentionality, the Life Design Center is a new program that taps into the concept of wellbeing. Kristen McMullen, a certified Designing Your Life coach, was appointed the executive director for the Life Design Center.
Other new appointments this year include Steve Schreiner, dean of the School of Engineering, Computing, and Mathematics; Sasan Poureetezadi, chief information officer; and Jason Coy, dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Our faculty and staff were recognized numerous times, including at the annual Celebration of Faculty with the Distinguished Faculty Awards and at the Staff Awards Celebration Luncheon.
In addition, Tom Martin, executive-in-residence in the communication department, received the 2025 Institute for Public Relations Lifetime Achievement Award; Carlos Brown, assistant professor of music and director of choral activities, received the Dale Warland Award in Choral Conducting; Bernard Powers, professor emeritus of history, received a South Carolina Governor’s Award in the Humanities; and Karen Smail, associate professor of applied exercise science, received the South Carolina Association for Physical Education and Sport‘s 2024 Higher Education Teacher of the Year award.
Students were also recognized this year, including the winners of the AI Innovation Challenge and the EXPO 2025, the annual celebration of student research. Students had multiple research opportunities from grants like the SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research with Faculty) grant that allowed Monika Angner to go on the College’s annual Dinosaur Expedition, where she discovered the skeleton of a giant marine lizard that swam in the prehistoric seas.
The College of Charleston Orchestra took a different kind of expedition on Feb. 26, when it performed at Carnegie Hall, a transformative experience made possible by Frank and Peggy Oldham.
While the orchestra was visiting New York City, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Carl Bernstein visited campus, as did filmmaker Ken Burns later that spring.
The College also welcomed more than 2,500 alumni, families, students and friends to campus for Homecoming events, including the homecoming parade, an oyster roast in the Cistern Yard and the Alumni Awards ceremony.
Our newest alumni, the Class of 2025, headed off for their own journeys, while our newest crop of Cougars were welcomed to campus at convocation in August, promising many more great years to come!
Happy New Year, Cougars! Here’s to making 2026 our best year yet!
