Have you ever wondered why the Clemson Tigers first ran down “the hill?” Or how much blue cheese the University produces a year? Or how much acreage the Clemson Forest covers? Wonder no more!

Here are some interesting facts about Clemson University that you may not have known.

• Dean Esin Gulari, of the College of Engineering and Science, serves on the National Science Board, a position appointed by the U.S. President and confirmed by the Senate.
• Clemson’s TAPS yearbook was named the most outstanding college yearbook in the country in 2008 for the fourth year in a row. TAPS has been a Clemson tradition for 100 years.
• According to a national survey, Clemson students say they receive an education in a challenging intellectual environment that includes opportunities to work closely with instructors and other students inside and outside the classroom.
• Florida elementary schools are getting a significant boost to teacher recruitment efforts with a legislative endorsement that puts more African-American men at the head of the classroom. It’s modeled after Call Me MISTER®, a program based at Clemson, with an original goal of doubling the number of African-American men in S.C. elementary schools.
• Planetizen Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs ranks Clemson 7th among programs offering master’s degrees and ranks historic preservation program as one of the 10 best in the U.S.
• The University offers an overall 14-to-1 faculty/student ratio, and nearly half of Clemson’s classes have fewer than 20 students.
• Princeton Review’s “Best 296 Business Schools” ranks Clemson’s MBA program among the “most competitive” in the U.S.
• According to TOP500, Clemson has the No. 62 supercomputing site in the world and No. 6 among all U.S. universities.
• Clemson enrolled nearly a third of the state’s Palmetto Fellows in 2007, and more than half of freshmen ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class.
• The Clemson Experimental Forest (CEF) is 17,482 acres and has nearly 45 miles of maintained roads and more than 100 miles of designated trails.
• In The Chronicle of Higher Education’s list of “Great Colleges to Work for,” Clemson appears in the “Collaborative Governance” category for proactive involvement of faculty in decisions related to academic programs.
• During Earth Week 2008, Harcombe Food Court didn’t use food trays, and as a result reduced water consumption by 4,585 gallons and saved $138 in energy costs during lunchtime as part of the Trayless Dining Initiative.
• Clemson’s Habitat for Humanity chapter was named Campus Chapter of the Year by Habitat for Humanity International in 2008 for its strong relationship with the Pickens County affiliate and for being a leader in green building practices.
• Through Earth Week 2008, Schilletter Dining Hall reduced its food waste by .25 oz. — or 8.1 percent — per person, resulting in an overall decrease of 711 lbs. per week.
• About 43,000 lbs. of blue cheese is produced each year, most of it sold directly to you or many top restaurants in town.
• HEALTHCARE DESIGN named David Allison one of “Twenty Who Are Making a Difference” in the health care design field.
 He’s director of Clemson’s architecture and health graduate program and director of the project to establish the Center of Economic Excellence in Health Facilities Design and Testing.

• Clemson’s applied economics Ph.D. program was ranked ninth nationally in the 2007 Top Research Universities Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index by the Chronicle of Higher Education.  

• Kiplinger’s financial magazine ranks Clemson No. 34 among the top 100 “Best Values in Public Colleges” for 2008.
• BusinessWeek ranks Clemson’s undergraduate business program as 22nd among public schools (2008 ranking of “The Best Undergraduate Business Schools”).
• “The most exciting 25 seconds in college football” began as a simple practicality. Players dressed across the road from the field and would run from there, through the gate and down “The Hill” to the field.
• The Corporation for National and Community Service has named Clemson to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll With Distinction for exemplary service efforts and service to disadvantaged youth.


• Lamont Flowers, Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership and executive director of the Houston Center, is the 2008 recipient of the Scholars of Color Early Career Contribution Award by the American Educational Research Association.
• The National Academy of Sciences invited President Jim Barker to address its 2008 international symposium in Washington, D.C., on collaboration and the CU-ICAR story.
• Clemson Video Productions’ “Expeditions with Patrick McMillan” (aired on ETV) won the International Academy of Visual Arts Gold Davey Award and the Diamond Statues of Distinction Media Achievement Award.
• Former Clemson All-Americans Jonathan Byrd and D.J. Trahan competed in the 2008 Masters April 10-13 in Augusta, Ga. It was the first time Clemson has had two former players participate in the same Masters. The two players were teammates on Clemson’s 2000 team.
• Alumnus Jimmie Dyess is the only person in history to receive both the Carnegie Hero Award and the Medal of Honor. He won the first as a 19-year-old Clemson student, showing bravery in peacetime by rescuing two drowning women off Sullivan’s Island. He won the second fighting in the South Pacific 16 years later.
• The Charles H. Houston Center for the Study of the Black Experience in Education at Clemson University was established in 1988 to disseminate information and address issues pertaining to the educational experiences and outcomes of African Americans at all levels of the educational system.
• According to results of the 2007 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), students report receiving a challenging academic experience at Clemson University that is supported by a collaborative learning environment.
• The Bridge program is a collaborative initiative with Tri-County Technical College that provides students a blend of academic and residential life during the freshman year at Tri-County Tech, then a seamless transition to Clemson for the sophomore year.
• The Clemson University Genomics Institute has developed an international reputation as a leading research and training center for discovering and analyzing genes. In fact, it has one of the largest collections of genetic materials in the world.
• PEER, a Clemson program designed to assist minority College of Engineering and Science students, celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2007.
• According to results of the 2007 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), 78 percent of seniors report they had participated in volunteer service activities while at Clemson.
• Every spring, the Women’s Alumni Council hosts a “Bring Your Daughter to Clemson” weekend for girls ages 6 to 17 to learn more about the college experience and explore possible career paths.
• The Clemson Renaissance Center, home to the University’s program for entrepreneurial, experience-based graduate education, is housed in the historic Liberty Building in Greenville, S.C.
• The Rutland Institute for Ethics provides the campus and the community with a forum to explore ethical issues, especially those affecting the Clemson family.
• SAT scores and graduation rates of Clemson students rank in the top 25 among national public universities.
• Clemson’s Academic Success Center earned international acclaim as the Outstanding Supplemental Instruction Program in 2006.
• Clemson attracted more than $141 million in externally funded research and sponsored program awards in 2006-07, the highest in University history.
• The Institute for International Sport named Clemson an All-American Sportsmanship School for 2007-2008.
• The Princeton Review ranked Clemson’s Michelin Career Center fourth in the nation among college and university career/job placement services.
• Clemson graduate and local businessman Joe Turner bought his first Wendy’s restaurant in 1981 and now owns fifty, including the one in Clemson.
• Clemson townsperson the late Dr. Bill Hunter is credited with the suggestion to move the Clemson vs. USC football game from Big Thursday (always in Columbia) to alternating Saturdays at both campuses.
• Former Clemson President R.C. Edwards once created a day when people were allowed to streak on campus without legal consequences.
• Clemson graduate and former IPTAY Director George Bennett is credited with starting the Welcome Back Festival.
• Clemson townsperson Jim Burns, a retired Clemson employee, was the founder of the Clemson Volunteer Fire Department.
• Clemson professor emeritus, Dr. Taze Senn is the permanent president of the Class of ’39.
• Judge Keller’s downtown business got its name when Clemson cadets were told to take their uniforms to Keller’s store and let him “judge” it to make it fit.
• Clemson Mayor Larry Abernathy and former University President Walter Cox established the first joint “town ‘n gown” committee in 1984.