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About the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business

About Us

Mission

The Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business graduates servant leaders equipped with 21st-century skills to thrive in a dynamic global economy.

Vision

The Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business will leverage the strengths of its Foundational Disciplines (academic departments) to create Signature Programs. These business-critical competencies will be a differentiator and contribute to Clemson University's rise in educational relevance on a national level.

About Us

Through an immersive educational experience, in and out of the classroom, our students become proven, market-ready leaders poised to shape the future. Through high levels of interaction and collaboration among students, faculty, alumni, business and industry, the College nurtures individual development, bolsters entrepreneurial thinking, spurs social and economic prosperity, provides customized professional education and sparks a lifelong desire for learning. From the classroom to the community, we develop bold leaders who have a positive and lasting impact on society.

The College is leveraging the strengths of its academic departments to create Signature Programs:

  • Leadership
  • Business Analytics
  • Sales Innovation
  • Digital and Brand Marketing
  • Financial Markets
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Value Chain and Advance Manufacturing
  • Customer Experience (CX)

These business-critical competencies will be a differentiator and contribute to Clemson University's rise in educational relevance on a national level.

Essential Skills vital to 21st-century business that every Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business student should learn before graduation:

  • Interpersonal skills
  • Business analytics and financial fluency
  • Interdisciplinary confidence
  • Team and project management
  • Global Awareness
  • Leadership presence

The Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business' Core Values are instilled in our culture and embraced by faculty, students and staff. As a college in the business of educating our students about business, our faculty teach, and students are expected to comprehend the importance of:

  • Ethics and integrity
  • Resiliency
  • Inclusiveness
  • Innovativeness

College History

1933: School of Textile Science

1933: Horace Harold Willis appointed dean

1938: Sirrine Hall was completed, originally known as the Textile Building

1942: Robert Knight Eaton appointed dean

1946: Hugh Monroe Brown appointed dean

1957: Gaston Gage appointed dean

1962: The School of Textile Science became the School of Industrial Management and Textile Science

1963: Wallace Dabney Trevillian appointed dean

1967: The John E. Walker Department of Economics was established

1969: The School of Industrial Management and Textile Science became the College of Industrial Management and Textile Science

1978: Sirrine Hall renovated, attic converted to academic space

1980: Thomas Daniel Efland appointed dean

1981: Ryan Custer Amacher appointed dean

1982: The Department of Marketing was established

1990: Sirrine Hall placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings

1992: Jimmy D. Sheriff appointed dean

1992: The College of Industrial Management and Textile Science became the College of Commerce and Industry

1993: Jerry E. Trapnell appointed dean

1994: The College of Commerce and Industry combined with the Colleges of Nursing and Education to form the College of Professional Studies

1995: The College of Professional Studies became part of the new College of Business and Public Affairs

2000: The College of Business and Public Affairs became the College of Business and Behavioral Science

2004: T. Bruce Yandle appointed dean

2006: David W. Grigsby appointed dean

2007: Claude C. Lilly III appointed dean

2012: Charles K. Watt appointed dean

2013: Enrollment reaches more than 3,500

2014: Bobby McCormick appointed dean

2016: Enrollment reaches more than 4,000

2016: The College of Business and Behavioral Science became the College of Business

2017: Enrollment reaches more than 4,500

October 27, 2017: New Building Groundbreaking

July 2018: Wendy York appointed dean

2018: Enrollment reaches 4,762

2019: Enrollment reaches 5,076

2020: College of Business moves from Sirrine Hall to the newly named Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business at 225 Walter T. Cox Blvd.

2020: Enrollment reaches 5,517

2021: Enrollment reaches 5,944

2022: Enrollment reaches 6,359

Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business
Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business | 343 Chandler L. Burns Hall, Clemson, S.C. 29634