Office of the President Records, Philip Hunter Prince
Collection
Identifier: Series-0102
This series contains budget documents, correspondence, memoranda, and reports. The series spans 1991 - 1996 with the vast bulk of the material from July 1994 through May 1995 when Phil Prince served as President of Clemson University. A number of files related to restructuring from President Prince’s administration were left for President Curris to examine but are now filed in this series along with a few items post May 1995 on this subject.
Noteworthy subjects included in this series are budgetary matters, the restructuring of the University, development and the athletic program. Office of the President Records from Prince’s predecessor Max Lennon and successor Constantine Curris have been separated into Series 103 and 104 respectively.
There is one box of files concerning personnel and students that is restricted.
Philip Hunter Prince served as twelfth president of Clemson University, 1994-1995. He was born in Bostic, North Carolina on August 4, 1926 to Walter E. and Mary Palmer Prince. He attended schools in Erwin, Tennessee and received an athletic scholarship to attend Clemson College in 1944. His time at Clemson was interrupted by service in the US Army from 1944-1945. Returning to Clemson, he distinguished himself as a member of the Block “C” Club, Tiger Brotherhood, and Alpha Phi Omega as well as being Co-captain of the 1948 Football Team which won the 1949 Gator Bowl and Vice President of the 1949 Senior Class. Upon graduation, he attended Columbia University and Kings College prior to additional service in the Army in 1950-1951. Prince worked for Milliken Company in various management and executive position between 1951 and1967 and then served as vice president of the firm. In 1978, he became Senior Vice President of American Express Company. In 1983, he accepted a similar position with Synco Property, Inc in Charlotte until his retirement in 1985.
Phil Prince has a distinguished record of service as a Clemson alumnus servicing on the Board of Visitors in 1971, Alumni National Council 1974-1976. Beginning in 1982, Prince served on the Board of the Clemson Foundation becoming its President in 1989. That year, the Clemson Life Trustees elected him to become a Life Trustee. He had received the Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 1983 and the Clemson Medallion in 1989.
With the resignation of Clemson President Max Lennon in February of 1994 the Board of Trustees chose Prince to serve as Acting President. Prince served for eleven months and was named President by the Board on September 30, 1994. This short tenure witnessed major changes in the organization of the University with the number of colleges reduced from nine to four (eventually five) and the number of vice presidents from seven to four as well as the privatization of a number of auxiliary services such as the bookstore and laundry. The planning and implementation of this reorganization consumed Prince’s attention and was not without some controversy. Once fully implemented, this organizational structure continued for the coming two decades, a singular achievement for this transitional presidency. Phil Prince was recognized for his leadership and life long commitment to Clemson with an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree from Clemson in May 1995.
Prince married Celeste Orr in 1950. They have two sons, Kevin and James.
Information for this biographical note is from Series 38, Phil Prince folder and Holley Ulbrich “The Beloved Son: Philip Hunter Prince, 1994-1995” in Tradition: A History of the Presidency of Clemson University. 2nd ed. Donald McKale and Jerome V. Reel Jr.; Mercer: Macon GA, 1998, pp. 282-300.
2.5 Cubic Feet (consisting of 6 document boxes and one oversize folder)
English
This series contains budget documents, correspondence, memoranda, reports, and other material organized in an alphabetical subject file.Scope and Content
The files reflect the Office of the President’s alphabetical/subject filing system and are arranged alphabetically by folder title or the last name of the correspondent. The documents within each folder are arranged in chronological order.
These records originated in the Presidents Office and are part of accessions 99-13, 02-4 and 03-48.
Michael Kohl processed this series in 2006 with help from student assistant Emily Eastes.
Kristi Roberts entered the finding aid into Archivists' Toolkit in July, 2010.
Part of the Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Repository