Claibourne D. Smith Admin Bldg. Dedicated – Photo Slideshow

Delaware State University has honored the unwavering longtime Board of Trustees leadership of Dr. Claibourne D. Smith by dedicating the Administration Building in his honor.

More than 200 present and former board members, University administrators and staff, as well as abundant family and friends gathered for a ceremony that culminated with the unveiling of the edifice’s new name – the Claibourne D. Smith Administration Building.

For images from the ceremony, click on the below link:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/48216028@N03/sets/72157653153217170/show

Dr. Smith has served on the University’s Board of Trustees since 1988 and was chairman from 1992 to 2015, save 16 months between 2008 and early 2010 when he stepped down temporarily to serve as the institution’s acting president.

Current Board Chairman David Turner, his successor as chairman, noted that Dr. Smith’s primary aim has been consistent throughout his more than two decades of board leadership – to empower the University to best serve its students to achieve academic excellence and fulfill their dreams.

“As DSU continues to advance its mission and vision into the future, the valuable contributions that Dr. Smith has made will continue to have a lasting impact on our ability to help students be fully prepared to leave campus ready to make their marks on the world,” Chairman Turner said.

DSU President Harry L. Williams noted that his ongoing tenure as president benefited not only from Dr. Smith’s board chairmanship support, but also from the University he inherited from the then-acting president.

“During the more than one year period that Dr. Smith served as the acting president, his leadership provided the needed stability that made it a smooth transition when I was hired to take over the helm of the University,” Dr. Williams said.

“It was a very unique situation to have such a capable individual who could serve in two distinctly different leadership capacities – as a Board of Trustees chairman who led a group that deals with high-level governance issues, and as an acting University president who dealt with the day-to-day administrative challenges of running a major university,” the DSU president said.

Dr. Smith said he was “proud, humbled and honored” for this recognition. With gratitude he spoke of his life, which began in the segregated schools of Memphis, Tenn., from which circumstances he rose to become among the first two in his family to go to college. He would go on to complete a Ph.D. and enjoy a fulfilling career as a research chemist with DuPont – where he would meet his wife Roseann.

He said his work with DuPont led to the community service work he did outside of his livelihood in the areas of fair housing, crime and justice, adolescent pregnancies, education, and ultimately Delaware State University.

“My appointment by Gov. Mike Castle to Delaware State’s Board of Trustees in 1988 provided me with a great opportunity to learn and understand the issues of educating first generation, low-income students like myself,” Dr. Smith said. “My evolution as a trustee leader was driven by my passion for education and a deep desire to make a difference to students who are pursuing their dreams.”

Although he chose to step down as board chairman in January, Dr. Smith has indicated that he will continue to serve as a Board of Trustees member until his term ends in 2016.

Photos and article by Carlos Holmes.