Winthrop University board names new leader after chairman’s recent death
Winthrop University will turn to an alumnus, former York County Councilman Joel Hamilton, to lead its board of trustees following the death of long-time area political icon Glenn McCall.
Hamilton was elected vice chairman in June, but will fill almost all of that two-year term as chairman instead.
McCall died last week at age 71 due to complications surgery, according to The State newspaper.
McCall chaired the budget committee for the Republican National Committee and co-chaired the 2020 Republican National Convention Committee, according to the South Carolina Republican Party. He was National Committeeman for the state party since 2008.
An Air Force veteran and former senior vice president with Bank of America, McCall was appointed to the Winthrop board by the state education superintendent in 2011. The state legislature appointed him to an at-large seat in 2014 and he was re-elected for a term that runs through 2027.
Last month, McCall was elected to his second two-year term as board chairman.
“Although there is no replacing a leader as naturally gifted as Glenn McCall, I feel very blessed to have had the unique opportunity to learn from and observe Glenn over the many years I knew him,” Hamilton said in a statement released by the Rock Hill university.
About Winthrop University
The board of trustees is the governing body for Winthrop, a public university of nearly 5,000 students. Winthrop was founded in 1886 as a training school for teachers.
Winthrop has been in Rock Hill since 1895, and began admitting undergraduate men in 1974. Winthrop transitioned from a college to a university in 1992.
In addition to an education program that’s produced many public school teachers throughout the region, Winthrop offers more than 150 bachelor’s, master’s, minor and program degrees.
Joel Hamilton to take on new Winthrop role
Hamilton, a Rock Hill attorney, graduated from Winthrop in 2006.
He was elected to York County Council as a Republican in 2018, in a since redrawn district that covered parts of Rock Hill and Fort Mill at the time. Hamilton opted not to run for re-election four years later.
Two years ago, state Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver designated Hamilton for a seat on the Winthrop board.
Hamilton led York County’s economic development committee while serving on council, and has been part of numerous business and civic organizations in recent years.
The Winthrop board will meet in late October to elect a new vice chair. Though Hamilton takes over during unexpected and difficult circumstances, Winthrop President Edward Serna believes he is fit for the role.
“Glenn’s leadership was unmatched, but Joel is poised and capable to make a real impact in ways he may not have thought likely or possible a short time ago,” Serna said in a news release from the school.
