Presidential Scholars aim to elevate student achievement, strengthen engagement and
expand community service
ORANGEBURG, S.C. — South Carolina State University’s Dr. Emily England Clyburn Honors College has selected
Charles Butler Jr. and Jada Gittings as Mister and Miss Honors College for the 2026-27
academic year.
As ambassadors of one of the university’s most distinguished communities, Butler and
Gittings will serve as visible and active leaders in promoting the college’s values
of leadership, scholarship and service.
Both are Presidential Scholars who are proud of the full merit-based scholarships
that have helped them pursue personal development among like-minded peers.
“Jada and I are actually a couple. We ran together for Mister and Miss Honors College.
That’s one thing the Honors College does. It really provides us with a lot of like-minded
individuals that help us to reach our goals,” Butler said.
Dr. Windy Stephenson, interim dean of the Dr. Emily England Clyburn Honors College,
said she is proud of the students’ desire to create opportunities for others.
“They are thinking about how to highlight the accomplishments of fellow scholars,
strengthen student engagement, serve our community and create opportunities for others
to grow. That is what scholarship, leadership and service should look like in action,”
she said.
“I look forward to seeing how they use their voices, talents and platforms to serve
the Honors College, South Carolina State University and the broader community,” Stephenson
said.
Mister Honors College Charles Butler Jr.
Butler, a junior agribusiness major from Fresno, California, said he seeks academic
and personal success not only for himself but also for other students. His vision
for SC State is for the university to continue providing fertile ground on which all
students can succeed.
“There are other Honors College students that don’t really have the representation
to get their name out there. I was going to do an Honors College Spotlight, make a
platform where we could do either weekly videos or weekly posts about certain students
in the Honors College,” he said.
Butler also wants to start seminars through which students can receive training in
public speaking and public relations.
“As Honors College students, or just students in general, I feel like one important
skill that you should have by the time you leave college is how to walk into a room
and command it.
“So, it’s basically about bringing in speakers that can talk to the students about
how they can articulate themselves the best way possible or present a project to the
best of their ability,” he said.
Butler serves as executive assistant of the Student Government Association and vice
president of the 101 Black Men organization.
The student orientation leader also serves as parliamentarian and event chairman of
the Phi Alpha Delta honor society and is developing his own digital consulting agency.
Butler, who already does freelance photography and videography, also hopes to develop
his own photography studio in Orangeburg and give other photographers access to professional
backdrops, lighting and other equipment.
“I do plan on going into law school and going to study to become an intellectual property
attorney,” Butler said, noting that the connections he has made within SC State’s
close-knit community have been key to his success.
“Being able to connect with all the students here on campus, like past Honors College
people, as well as my advisers, has been very beneficial in helping me decide who
I want to be. I feel like I really did find my family here at South Carolina State,”
he said
Butler recalled how his SC State family rallied to help him when he tore his ACL last
year.
“It was outstanding just knowing I had people by my side to help me,” Butler said.
Miss Honors College Jada Gittings
Gittings, a senior elementary education major from Hampton, South Carolina, takes
her role as Miss Honors College seriously and wants to be an example for other students.
“I just want to become a better role model for everyone, as well as the community,
and hold up my standards. I hope that I inspire more people to become a member of
the Honors College and get into a role that they didn’t think they could,” she said
Gittings said she is working to develop a website called the Bulldog Scholar Network,
a broader communications platform to showcase the activities and accomplishments of
the Dr. Emily England Clyburn Honors College at SC State.
“It would be a bigger platform to put all of our important information in and be a
place for everyone to see what the Honors College does,” she said.
Gittings, who was named a Clyburn Scholar in Fall 2024, is also a strong proponent
of giving back to the community, an activity she said should go beyond a campus cleanup
or soup kitchen.
She said her involvement with the Alpha Xi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.
has included donating baby supplies, diapers and cleaning supplies to support children
and families in the Orangeburg community.
Gittings said she wants to organize efforts through which Honors College students
can also donate similar items to support women and children.
“Charles and I are also in an Honors College class in which we have to figure out
what can be better on campus and in our community. So, we are going to go to Felton
or another school in Orangeburg and a group of students to donate books to help with
literacy,” Gittings said.
Outside the classroom, Gittings is a member of the SC State women’s soccer team and
the National Council of Negro Women.
Gittings said SC State has prepared her for success.
“I am close to graduating, and I have two more tests to take to become a certified
teacher. The classes here have really prepared me in being able to graduate,” she
said, noting that her grandmother is a former teacher who also attended SC State.
“It’s rooted in me to continue her legacy, which is why I’m an elementary education
major. SC State is known for its education program. So that is one reason why I chose
SC State. I hope to get my master’s degree once I graduate in the fall of ’27,” Gittings
said.
In the meantime, she plans to promote and advocate for the university and its students
as Miss Honors College.
“We are a family, and we support each other. We are looking to not only better the
campus and be leaders, but to also help our community and eventually communities in
surrounding cities. We want to be able to network and get our name out there,” Gittings
said.
