Center for Creative Partnerships
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
William C. Hine
Chairperson
Bill is an author and educator. Now retired, he taught history for over 40 years at South Carolina State University. He has published essays in Phylon, the Journal of Southern History, Labor History, and Agricultural History.
He is the co-author, with Darlene Clark Hine and Stanley Harrold, of the widely adopted college textbook, The African American Odyssey, now in its seventh edition. He is also the author of South Carolina State University: A Black Land-Grant College in Jim Crow America. (University of South Carolina Press, 2018). (B.A. Bowling Green State University; M.A. University of Wyoming; Ph.D., U.S. History, Kent State University)
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ADVISORY COUNCIL
Peter Chapman
Vice-Chairperson
Peter Chapman, CEO of Urban Policy Innovations LLC, is a seasoned economic development strategist with over 20 years of executive leadership. He advises public and private clients across the Midwest and Eastern Caribbean on strategies to diversify regional economies and revitalize under-invested communities . Previously, he founded and directed a U.S. Treasury-certified Community Development Financial Institution, was a senior strategist at Abt Associates—leading a national HUD HOPE VI case study—and led economic development efforts for Denver and Detroit, generating 4,600 new jobs and driving downtown Detroit’s resurgence.
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Chapman holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University, an M.P.P. from Tufts University, and completed graduate real estate finance studies at MIT. He’s also vice chair of the Center for Creative Partnerships (SC), advises Renaissance Equity Partners, and recently guided a U.S. Virgin Islands economic agency to national recognition—underscoring his impact in affordable housing, mixed-income revitalization, and equitable community growth.
Col. Alexander Conyers
Col. Alexander Conyers, U.S. Army (Ret.), is the 13th President of South Carolina State University. A 1989 alumnus with a B.A. in Criminal Justice, he brings over 28 years of military leadership experience—rising from private to colonel—across global assignments including the Pentagon, South Korea, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay .
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After serving as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (a two-star general equivalent) and leading the Army Review Boards Agency, he retired in 2016. He then returned to SC State as VP for Strategic Alliances & Initiatives (March 2021), acting/interim president (July–August 2021), and was formally appointed president in April 2022 .
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During his tenure, he used $9.8 million in COVID relief to clear balances for 2,500 students and has overseen dramatic growth—enrollment rose from under 2,000 to over 3,000—with substantial state investments and new construction totaling over $150 million .
An active alumnus, he’s chaired SC State’s Board of Visitors and Alumni committees and was inducted into the ROTC Hall of Fame. He holds master’s degrees from the University of South Carolina and Troy University
BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ADVISORY COUNCIL
Emory Shaw Campbell
President, Gullah Heritage Consulting Service, Conducting Gullah Heritage Tours on Hilton Head; Director, Penn Center, Retired, Organized Heritage Days Celebration; Inaugural Chairman, Federal Gullah Geechie Corridor Heritage Commission; Appeared on 60 Minutes, The Today Show, a PBS Special: Family Across the Sea and C-Span's Washington Journal; Awards include: Governor's Award for Historic Preservation, Carter G. Woodson Award for Civil Rights, Lifetime Achievement Award, Association of African American Museums.
His essay, A Sense of Self and Place: Unmasking my Gullah
Heritage was published in African American Life in Georgia and the Low Country and he authored the guidebook - Gullah Cultural Legacies and translated the Bible into Gullah. (B.S. in Biology, Savannah State University; M.S. in Engineering, Tufts University; Honorary Doctorates-Bank Street College, NYC and University of South Carolina/Beaufort)
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James (Jim) Evans
Jim is a Minister, activist, legislator, and NFL athlete; President of the Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance and is proactively involved with the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) as the National Community Engagement Coordinator. He was a Member of the Mississippi House of Representatives for 24 years where he was a member of the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus.
He was formerly Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Jackson Advocate Newspaper and President of the Jackson, Mississippi Chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
While an athlete at South Carolina State University, he earned first-team honors for All-SEAC and All-MEAC. He was drafted by the New York Giants into the National Football League and inducted into the South Carolina State Athletic Hall of Fame. For 28 years, Jim was a radio talk co-host for Straight Talk. (B.A., South Carolina State University; Doctor of Theology, Clay Theological Seminary)
Walt A. Tobin
Dr. Walt A. Tobin has led Orangeburg‑Calhoun Technical College as President since 2011, building strategic partnerships with K–12 schools, industry, and community organizations. Under his leadership, OCtech has expanded dual enrollment, improved retention/graduation rates for students of color, integrated advanced technologies, and secured foundation funding. He also spearheaded new initiatives like mobile advanced‑manufacturing labs and a satellite campus in Holly Hill to broaden access .
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With over 20 years in education, Tobin served previously as Interim President at Denmark Technical College, VP for Academic Affairs at OCtech, and worked in K–12 education as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and middle school director. He holds a B.A. in Math Teaching (Clemson), M.Ed. and Ph.D. in Education Administration (University of South Carolina), and completed post‑doctoral training at Harvard's Institute for Educational Management. He is an Aspen Job Quality Fellow and active on numerous local boards
Davion Petty
Davion Petty serves as Director of Admissions and Recruitment in the Division of Enrollment Management at South Carolina State University. He is responsible for student recruitment efforts. This includes reaching out to and following up with students who demonstrate an interest in a particular school.
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With over a decade at SCSU since 2013, his professional journey has included pivotal roles such as Educational Outreach Manager, Public Programs & Development Manager, Director of Alumni Relations and Annual Funds, and most recently, leading recruitment efforts for the university .
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Ora Smith
Ora Smith is an American historical‑fiction author, genealogist, artist, and storyteller deeply rooted in her Christian faith. Growing up in Lake Tahoe, California, she discovered her passion for storytelling at a young age, later living in Arizona since 1986. With more than thirty years of genealogical research under her belt, Ora has created a unique “Heritage Fiction” niche, crafting meticulously researched novels based on her ancestors’ lives.
Her major works include White Oak River: A Story of Slavery’s Secrets, The Pulse of His Soul, and The Peace of Pocahontas, alongside children’s picture books like A Christmas Story of Light—which she both authored and illustrated. Ora holds an MA in Creative Writing and is an ESFJ personality type: empathetic, generous, and detail-oriented, with a strong creative instinct.
Skyler Hutto
Skyler B. Hutto is a dedicated Orangeburg‑born attorney whose legal roots trace back to a stellar academic journey: he graduated with honors from Vanderbilt University and earned his Juris Doctor from Indiana University Maurer School of Law. During law school, he distinguished himself in oral advocacy and served on the Indiana Journal of Law and Social Equality.
He began his legal career clerking for Judge Perry M. Buckner in South Carolina’s 14th Judicial Circuit, honing his skills in scheduling, legal research, and assisting in trials. Since joining Williams & Williams Attorneys at Law, Skyler has carved out a robust civil and criminal practice—handling cases that range from automobile and trucking collisions to DUI defense, constitutional claims, false arrest, and general litigation
Sasha H. Levites
Sasha H. Levites is a Partner in Frankfurt Kurnit’s Entertainment Group, where she advises talent, production companies, and IP owners in film, TV, and digital media. Her expertise spans development, talent, financing, rights acquisition, distribution, foreign sales, and production legal releases .
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Before joining Frankfurt Kurnit, she was Manager of Business & Legal Affairs at FilmNation Entertainment—handling sales for Nebraska and The Imitation Game—and worked at MTV on international distribution and format licensing
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She’s been widely recognized: Variety’s 2022 Legal Impact Report and 2025 Women’s Impact Report; The Hollywood Reporter’s 2025 Power Lawyers; Best Lawyers’ “Ones to Watch” (2021–25); Chambers USA “Up and Coming” (2024–25); The Legal 500 (2022–24); Variety’s “40 Under 40” (2019); and Super Lawyers Rising Star (2016–22)
Craig Morrison
Craig Morrison is a celebrated historic preservationist with over 20 years of experience restoring high-profile landmarks like Union Station, Grand Central Terminal, and the Pennsylvania Capitol.
He’s also renowned for theater restorations—including the 1885 Academy of Music and Oscar Hammerstein’s opera houses—and curated major exhibits such as Direct from Broadway. Author of the seminal pictorial study Theaters, Craig has taught at Wayne State, University of Michigan–Dearborn, and Eastern Michigan, delivering lectures at Yale and the Library of Congress.
He’s held leadership roles in the AIA, heritage boards, Theater Heritage, Ltd., and the Theatre Historical Society, and received the League of Historic American Theatres’ Lifetime Achievement Award.
Cleveland Sellers
Clevland Sellers is an educator and civil rights activist, leading the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and serving as during the Civil Rights Movement, where he coordinated voting registration for the Mississippi Democratic Party.
Although not involved in the protests and wounded by the police in the shooting, he was the only person convicted and jailed in the Orangeburg Massacre. His conviction and the acquittal of the nine policemen who shot into the group of unarmed students, killing 3 and wounding at least 28, were believed to be racially motivated.
He was pardoned 25 years later. After serving as Director of the African American Studies Program at the University of South Carolina, he became President of Voorhees College, a Historically Black College in South Carolina, serving from 2008 to 2015. (B.A., Shaw University; Ed.M., Education, Harvard University; Ed.D., History, University of North Carolina, Greensboro)
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Anna T. Zacherl
Anna has been the Director of the Orangeburg County Public Library system for the last 7 years and was instrumental in the development of the new downtown library on Russell Street.
She is a member of the South Carolina Association of Public Library Administrators and served as its chair for two years. She currently serves on the Board for Ace Basin Growers, a non-profit organization that assists local farmers and works to improve access to fresh fruits and vegetables in rural communities like Orangeburg. (B.A., History, George Mason University; Masters in Library Science, University of South Carolina)
Ronnie Hopkins
Dr. Ronnie Hopkins was appointed the 10th President of Voorhees College on July 9, 2021 . With nearly 30 years in higher education, he previously served as interim president, Provost & VP for Academic Affairs, and tenured Professor of English at Voorhees. His earlier leadership roles include founding dean positions at Benedict College, Chair of English at Claflin University, and VP for Student Affairs at Allen University. He is also an on‑site evaluator for SACSCOC and a member of the 2020 Executive Leadership Academy.
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A prolific grant-maker, Dr. Hopkins has secured over $30 million for higher education initiatives. Under his leadership, Voorhees transitioned to university status, added a doctoral program, forged key transfer partnerships, and earned recognition as one of the “Ten Most Dominant HBCU Leaders of 2025”.