8. Stay true to your core DNA.

Midway into the decade, President Barker threw another challenge into the mix by asking if a top-20 Clemson would “still be Clemson.” Would Clemson have to change its core DNA to achieve the vision? When told no university like Clemson had ever reached the top 30, President Emeritus Phil Prince simply said, “Then we’ll be the first.” He was right. Since 2000, Clemson’s commitment to public service and its sense of community have been strengthened.

The Bridge to Clemson seamless transfer program offers greater access to a Clemson education than ever.

A “Clemson Stimulus Program” provided need-based grants, scholarships and jobs to students hardest hit by the recession of 2008.

Faculty and staff facing a mandatory furlough contributed nearly $80,000 in a matter of weeks to a voluntary “furlough relief fund” to help staff at the low end of the salary range.

Renovations to historic Fort Hill kept the founder’s home open to the public, as required by Thomas Green Clemson’s will.

A combination of land sales, collaborations with other agencies, state earmarks and private donations substantially enhanced facilities and programs at PSA Research and Education Centers.

The Clemson Habitat for Humanity chapter has built more houses than any other college chapter — 16 of them since 2000 — and earned National Chapter of the Year honors in 2008.

Clemson’s Public Service Activities division collaborated with educational radio and television to extend its outreach efforts — a one-hour radio program called “Your Day” airing four days a week, and a nature program — Expeditions with Patrick McMillan — that now airs on 44 PBS stations nationwide.

Clemson has been nationally recognized as a Campus with a Conscience and named among Princeton Review’s 100 socially responsible colleges and universities.

It was included in the inaugural edition of The Guide to Service-Learning Colleges and earned a Carnegie Foundation citation for community engagement.

Clemson students were recognized by Campus Compact for 70 percent student-voter turnout in the 2008 Campus Votes Challenge.

Clemson students contributed more than 126,000 service hours last year.