By Norm Miller, LC News
PINEVILLE (LCNews) – Louisiana College President Rick Brewer’s alma mater, Charleston Southern University, honored him as distinguished alumnus of the year May 5.
“Dr. Brewer received the highest honor bestowed upon a graduate from Charleston Southern University,” said LC’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees Randy Harper, who is pastor of Bellaire Baptist Church, Bossier City. “Dr. Brewer more than fulfills Charleston Southern’s parameters for this singular and noteworthy honor.”
CSU’s website states its distinguished alumnus of the year award “is the most prestigious award given by the Alumni Association and is the hallmark of an alumnus who strives for excellence in all endeavors. It honors the person who has distinguished him or herself in three areas: service to the university, service to the community and achievement in his or her field of endeavor.”
“Cathy and I are as grateful as we are humbled by this thoughtful recognition,” Brewer said. “While God gets all the glory, I must express how gratifying it is to be recognized by my peers and fellow alums for the career investment we made at CSU.”
While at the South Carolina Baptist Convention-affiliated school, Brewer helped double enrollment at CSU from 1,600 to more than 3,400 students, increased unrestricted giving and endowment support, and improved freshman-to-sophomore retention from 50 to 78 percent.
Under his leadership, the integration of planning, budgeting and assessment with broad-based campus participation led to additional academic programs and facilities, such as an athletic facility, state-of-the-art science building and an expansion of a building for the School of Nursing.
Brewer is the only CSU alum to become a college president. Unanimously elected as president of LC in April 2015, Brewer left his role at CSU as vice president of student affairs and athletics.
Louisiana College’s trustees are “proud to have Dr. and Mrs. Brewer serving the families of Louisiana College,” said Harper, “During the two years he has led the college, our president has continually demonstrated excellence while maintaining high ethical and academic standards. His commitments are not window dressing but are reflective of his heart for God and for engaging in Kingdom work within the context of Christian higher education.”
Harper said he and LC’s trustees are “grateful for the decades of expertise and experience” Brewer brings to Louisiana College from his alma mater, where he served in a variety of roles for nearly 28 years.
“When I arrived at CSU, the university was struggling,” Brewer said. “Over a period of years, however, we moved from survival to stability to success.
“The VISION 2020 plan we are both crafting and implementing at Louisiana College I believe will evoke a similar pattern as we experienced at CSU,” Brewer said. “With the team God has at LC, I am confident we will reap similar rewards if we keep pressing on.”
