Alexander Conyers, 13th President South Carolina State University Inaugural

Alexander Conyers is the 13th president of South Carolina State University. Prior to this role, he served the university as interim president, acting president and vice president for strategic alliances and initiatives.

Col. Conyers is an experienced servant leader having served over 28 years in the U.S. Army. He is a proven leader who has led complex organizations in areas of leadership, recruitment, retention, training, human resources, finance and budget, safety, and accreditation. His assignments consisted of many stateside locations including two tours at the Pentagon and South Korea, Canada, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Conyers previously served in Washington, D.C., in the Senior Executive Service (federal government just below presidential appointees) as the deputy assistant secretary of the Army (Review Boards); a two-star general equivalent. In this capacity, he led the Army Review Boards Agency, which on behalf of the secretary of the Army serves as the highest administrative level for review and appeal of personnel actions taken by lower levels of the Army. The agency administers 12 different boards and adjudicates over 20,000 cases annually from soldiers, veterans, and family members. He was responsible for boards that adjudicate cases involving evaluation and promotions, discharge upgrades, physical disability, eliminations, the parole board for military prisoners, and other cases.

He completed his military career in 2016 after rising from private to colonel as the leader of the Army’s largest and most complex military police brigade. He led over 3,600 soldiers and civilians across four military installations: Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, Ft. Stewart, Georgia, Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, and Ft. Drum, New York. He was also responsible for the safety of the Ft. Bragg community with a population of over 100,000 personnel.

Col. Conyers remained intimately involved with SC State while serving in the Army. He served as a member of the SCSU Board of Visitors, chairman of the Student Relations Committee for the SCSU National Alumni Association, and a member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Committee. He was featured as a 2016 honoree on the Stellar Alumni Calendar. He has also been inducted into SC State ROTC Hall of Fame and most recently served as the president of the Washington, D.C., Chapter of the National Alumni Association.

A Manning, South Carolina, native. Col. Conyers holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from SC State, a master’s degree in corrections from the University of South Carolina, and a master’s degree in public administration from Troy University. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and The University of North Carolina’s Leadership, Excellence and Development (LEAD) program. He is a member of several professional associations, including the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education, and a former adjunct professor at Upper Iowa University.

He is married to First Lady Agatha Conyers, and they have two children, Ace and Aly.

Schedule of Events

Monday, September 26

Pre-Inaugural Concert 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM featuring Joshua Rogers, American Gospel singer at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center

Thursday, September 29

First Lady’s Scholarship Luncheon 12:00 Noon, Orangeburg County Conference Center, 1645 Russell Street, Orangeburg, SC

Friday, September 30

Investiture Ceremony 10:00 AM, Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center

Reception immediately following Investiture

Inaugural Concert 7:00 PM, featuring Angie Stone, American R&B soul singer-songwriter, Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center

Saturday, October 1

SC State vs. U of SC 3:00 PM at Williams-Brice Stadium, 1125 George Rogers Blvd, Columbia, SC