Capital Rotary Club

Our speaker at our meeting Wednesday, May 25^th was Mr. Bryan Stirling, Director of the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Governor Nikki Haley appointed Mr. Stirling as Director of the D.O.C effective October 1, 2013. He is responsible for a staff of over 5,700 employees at the Department of Corrections that operate 24 penal institutions across the state incarcerating more than 21,500 inmates.

Prior to joining the correctional system, Director Stirling served Governor Nikki Haley as her Chief of Staff from October, 2012 to September, 2013. From January, 2006 to October 2012, Director Stirling was a Deputy Attorney General for the State of South Carolina. He served as a Legislative Liaison reporting directly to the Attorney General.  Director Stirling entered public service after working as a lawyer in the private sector. From March, 2005 to January, 2006, he worked with McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLC in Columbia, S.C. His areas of emphasis included Government Affairs, Civil Litigation, and Real Estate.  Director Stirling received his Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina Law School in 1996 and previously received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from USC in 1991.

Our speaker at our meeting Wednesday, May 4^th was Dr. Jerry Mitchell, Research Associate Professor and Director of the USC Center for Excellence for Geographic Education.  His primary research areas lie in cultural responses to disaster, hazards education, and the use of geospatial technologies for vulnerability assessments.

Dr. Mitchell has authored more than forty articles and book chapters. Dr. Mitchell earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in history from Towson University and his doctorate degree in geography from the University of South Carolina in bustling, Columbia, SC.

Our speaker at our meeting on Wednesday, April 20th was Dr. Patricia Sullivan, History Professor at the USC Department of History.  Dr. Sullivan received her Bachelor’s degree from Molloy College, a Master’s degree from Boston College, and her Ph.D. from Emory University.

She is currently working on a book tentatively entitled, “To Achieve Our Country: Robert F. Kennedy and the Struggle for Racial Justice.”

Our speaker at our meeting on Wednesday, April 13th was Mr. Andy Shain, report and editor of The State Newspaper. For several years, Andy covered USC basketball, football, and baseball and assisted in producing GoGamecocks.com.  He currently covers Governor Nikki Haley and related politics, plus the University of South Carolina.  Andy earned his Bachelor’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.