Furman University President David Shi to Have Center for Sustainability at Cliffs Cottage Named in his Honor
August 31, 2009
GREENVILLE, SC – August 31, 2009 – Furman University’s new Center for Sustainability will be named for president David Shi in recognition of his service to Furman and the national leadership he has provided in sustainability and energy conservation, one of the priorities of the higher education sector.
Shi is retiring next June at the end of the 2009-10 academic year, capping 16 years at the helm of Furman. His name will grace the new academic center to be located in the Cliffs Cottage, which will be retrofitted this fall for office and meeting space for the university’s award-winning sustainability initiatives.
“The executive committee of the Furman Board of Trustees unanimously approved naming the new sustainability center for president Shi,” said trustee chair Kathy McKinney. “This is a fitting tribute in that it recognizes the many initiatives David has championed during his time at Furman. These include enhancing the university’s national reputation, developing stronger ties to the local community, renewing the campus infrastructure, and promoting the concept of engaged learning — as well as recognizing his leadership in the area of sustainability in higher education.”
The David E. Shi Center for Sustainability will coordinate Furman’s academic, co-curricular and community outreach activities related to sustainability, meant to ensure that the resources and opportunities of this generation are available in the future through conservation and stewardship of the environment. It will be located in Cliffs Cottage, adjacent to the Susan Shi Garden, named for the Furman First Lady.
Cliffs Cottage, which will end its public tours at the end of August, is Southern Living magazine’s first “green” showcase home. Built on campus in 2008, it has served as a model of environmentally responsible design, sustainable building techniques and materials, and energy-saving systems. Using solar and geothermal systems, it a net producer of energy.
Shi, a 1973 Furman graduate, has solidified his alma mater’s stature as one of the nation’s finest liberal arts colleges. Early in his presidency, he coalesced numerous programs into the concept of “engaged learning,” which many other colleges and universities have since emulated. He taught history for 17 years at Davidson College before he joined the Furman administration in 1993 as vice president for academic affairs and dean.
A year later, the Atlanta native became the 10th president in Furman’s history, succeeding the late John E. Johns.
Shi, who holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Virginia, is a widely published newspaper columnist and public radio essayist. He is the author of books including The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture and Facing Facts: Realism in American Thought and Culture and a collection of essays, The Bell Tower and Beyond: Reflections on Learning and Life. He is co-author of the best-selling textbook, America: A Narrative History.
