News from campus and beyond

Lt. Gen. John Mulholland and Dr. David Shi inducted into ROTC Hall of Fame

|Inductees were honored with a certificate and medallion.|Dr. David Shi receives medallion.|Dr. David Shi receives medallion.

Last updated June 16, 2016

By Tina Underwood

Furman alumni Lieutenant General John F. Mulholland, Jr., and Dr. David E. Shi were inducted into the United States Army ROTC Hall of Fame June 10 in a ceremony which took place in Fort Knox, Ky.

Of the 326 former Cadets inducted, more than 100 were in attendance for the inaugural Hall of Fame ceremony recognizing them for their service to the country.

The event was held in conjunction with the Army ROTC’s 100th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony.

Inductees were honored with a certificate and medallion.

Inductees were honored with a certificate and medallion.

Lt. Gen. Mulholland is a senior officer in the United States Army, and since 2014, has served as Associate Director for Military Affairs, Central Intelligence Agency.  From 2012-2014, Mulholland served as Deputy Commander of the United States Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., and previously, as Commanding General of the United States Army Special Operations Command in Fort Bragg 2008-2012.

Mulholland was born in Clovis, N.M., but grew up in Bethesda, Md.  He graduated with a BA in history from Furman in 1978, where he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry. His first post was with the 193rd Infantry Brigade in the former Panama Canal Zone where he served as a rifle platoon leader, weapons platoon leader and company executive officer in both C Company, 4th Battalion (Mechanized), 20th Infantry and A Company (Airborne), 3rd Battalion, 5th Infantry. He then moved to Fort Bragg to attend the Special Forces Qualification Course. Upon graduation in 1983, then-Captain Mulholland joined the 5th Special Forces Group (ABN), Project B-500.

Mulholland has commanded at the ODA, Company, Battalion/Squadron and Group levels within Special Forces. Additionally, he served in other special operations assignments including Special Operations Command South (Panama) as well as the operations officer at 1st SFOD-D (ABN).  As Commander, 5th Special Forces Group (ABN), then-Colonel Mulholland commanded Joint Special Operations Task Force-North (TF Dagger) in the opening days of Operation Enduring Freedom and Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-West (TF Dagger) in the initial campaign of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He subsequently served as the Chief, Office of Military Cooperation-Kuwait, as Commanding General, United States Special Forces Command (ABN) and as Deputy Commanding General, Joint Special Operations Command.

Mulholland earned a Masters of Military Art and Science (History) while attending the United States Army Command and General Staff College and a Master of Science in National Security Strategy from the National War College.

Among his military awards and decorations are the Army Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, and Legion of Merit. In recognition of his distinguished service to his country, Mulholland received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2011, and is a Furman Distinguished Alumni. He is married to the former Miriam Mitchell (Furman University Class of 1978) of Clemson, S.C. Together they have four children and five grandchildren.

 

Dr. David Shi receives medallion.

Dr. David Shi receives medallion.

Dr. David E. Shi served as the 10th president of Furman University from 1994-2010. During his tenure, Furman solidified its stature as one of the nation’s finest liberal arts colleges in terms of applications, faculty salaries, endowment, academic profile, and construction projects.

An Atlanta native and a 1973 Furman graduate, Shi was part of the Furman football team (All-Southern Conference) and was Cadet Commander of the Paladin ROTC Battalion. He says heading up over 500 Furman cadets was “instrumental in nurturing leadership development.” Says Shi, “By working with a team of cadet officers to organize and manage weekly activities, we were given incredible opportunities to exercise our evolving abilities to lead a large organization and to deal with complex challenges and unexpected situations.”

Shi was named top cadet during ROTC summer camp at Fort Bragg, N.C. At Furman graduation he was recognized as a Distinguished Military Graduate and received the Superior Cadet Award. After being commissioned as a lieutenant, Shi finished at the top of his class at the Engineer Officer Basic Course at Ft. Belvoir, Va. Shi later served in the 108th Training Division (Army Reserve) while a professor at Davidson College. He retired with the rank of captain.

Shi joined the university administration in 1993 as vice president for academic affairs and dean. He was a champion of the university’s emphasis on engaged learning, energy conservation and environmental stewardship. Under his direction, Furman became a national leader in promoting sustainability.

Shi was a charter signatory of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment in 2006. During his presidency, Furman built the first LEED- (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified building in South Carolina, the first of six other LEED-certified buildings on campus. In March 2010, Furman’s Board of Trustees named the university’s Center for Sustainability in honor of Shi.

Other accomplishments include serving as past chair of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities; and as member of the Chronicle of Higher Education/New York Times Higher Education Cabinet. He has served on the Boards of the Association of American Colleges and Universities; Brevard College, N.C.; South Carolina Historical Society; and Second Nature, the non-profit responsible for administering the Presidents’ Climate Commitment.

In 2010, Shi received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Upstate Forever. In 2003, he received the Presidential Leadership Award from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; and in the same year, was named Greenville Magazine Business Person of the Year, and received the Whitney M. Young, Jr., Humanitarian Award, the highest honor given by the Urban League of the Upstate. Since retiring as Furman’s president, Shi has received writing fellowships from the National Humanities Center and the Winter Park Institute.

A specialist in intellectual and cultural history, Shi is the author of several books including Matthew Josephson, Bourgeois Bohemian (Yale University Press, 1980), The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture (Oxford University Press, 1985), and Facing Facts: Realism in American Thought and Culture, 1850-1920 (Oxford University Press, 1994). He is also co-author, with the late George B. Tindall, of the best-selling textbook America: a Narrative History (W. W. Norton), which, in its 10th edition, has sold over two million copies.

For more information, contact Furman’s News and Media Relations office at (864) 294-3107.

 

Contact Us
Clinton Colmenares
Director of News and Media Strategy