FMU Board of Trustees names facilities in new School of Education/School of Business Building for longtime faculty members

On Thursday, Francis Marion University held its quarterly Board of Trustees meeting at the FMU Freshwater Ecology Conference Center. During the meeting, the naming of five facilities was approved.

Four classrooms and an auditorium within the new School of Education/School of Business building will be named for longtime FMU faculty who have had a profound impact on thousands of students in the Schools of Education and Business.  

The Dr. Ben L. Kyer Classroom is named after Benjamin Wall Ingram III Professor of Economics, Ben Kyer. Kyer has been a member of FMU’s faculty since 1989. During his time at the university, Kyer served as director of the MBA Program for thirteen years, was named a 2015-2016 FMU Trustee Research Scholar, and was the 1993 FMU Distinguished Professor.

The Dr. Kay Lawrimore-Belanger Classroom is named in honor of FMU alum and N.B. Baroody Professor of Marketing, Kay Lawrimore-Belanger. Lawrimore-Belanger joined the faculty of FMU in 1987. She is currently the director of the MBA Program as well as the coordinator of the Marketing Program. In 1988, she was named the Distinguished Alumni by the FMU Alumni Association and in 2009, received the Outstanding Alumnus award from the FMU School of Business. In 2013, she was recognized as the FMU Distinguished Professor.

The Dr. Dorothy M. Harris Auditorium is named in honor of Faculty Emeriti Dorothy Harris who served as a professor of Education from 1985 until her retirement in 2011. During her time at FMU, she was coordinator of the Early Childhood Education program where she provided instruction, field placement supervision, and preparation for future teachers. The Dorothy Harris Graduate Student Scholarship sponsored by the FMU African American Faculty-Staff Coalition is also named in her honor. 

Shirley Carr Bausmith, who served as professor of Education from 2003 until her retirement in 2017, will have the Dr. Shirley Carr Bausmith Classroom named in her honor. Bausmith, also an FMU alum, served as Director of Graduate Studies for the College of Education and later, became the Dean of the School of Education. Under her leadership, the Project Create program benefited hundreds of students to further their training as teachers and was recognized as one of the most successful in the state. Upon her retirement, she was recognized as Faculty Emerita.

The Dr. Stephen E. Taylor Classroom is named in honor of Stephen Taylor who served as professor of Education from 1991 until 2022. Taylor, who earned his M.Ed. from FMU, joined the faculty of the university after serving as a practitioner and administrator. During his time at the university, he served as Director of Graduate Studies for the School of Education and was Program Head for Divergent Learning and Learning Disabilities.

“Our fine faculty is the foundation upon which this university is built. I am delighted that the Board of Trustees has honored five legendary scholars from the business and education disciplines,” said FMU President Fred Carter. “How very fitting that they will receive permanent recognition in this new building which will serve students from those two schools.”