Nearly Four Dozen Graduate from South Carolina Bankers School at Lander

GREENWOOD, S.C. – Forty-seven students graduated from the South Carolina Bankers School on July 14, 2016, at Lander University in Greenwood, bringing the institution’s total number of alumni to nearly 2,900 since its inception 55 years ago.

In all, 134 first-, second- and third-year students attended the school this session, with banks, thrifts, farm credit institutions, an associate member and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond being represented. They were taught by 26 instructors, including many individuals who are themselves graduates of SCBS.

“We saw an increase in first-year students this year, which bodes well for the future of banking in South Carolina,” said Carolyn Laffitte, SCBA senior vice president and Bankers School director. “The South Carolina Bankers School is critical to ensuring the strength of our industry through the training of future leaders. And it’s because of the support of our banks and banking leaders that the school remains among the very best.”

The BankExec competition, in which teams compete against one another in the running of a simulated bank, featured two winners: In “Community A” top honors went to Team 2, made up of Cam Freeman, First Citizens Bank; Ashley Rogers, CresCom Bank; Nikki Barnett, Bank of York; and Amber Bobo, First Community Bank. In “Community B” first place was captured by Team 4, which featured Shawn, Phillips South State Bank; Blaine Patterson, Bank of Travelers Rest; Joe Hunter Hyman, The Conway National Bank; and Blake Timanus, GrandSouth Bank.

Ryan Griffin of BNC Bank was recognized with the Lillie H. Magalis Award, given to the third-year student with the highest cumulative average. The award includes a stipend to cover the cost for the first year’s tuition at the Graduate School of Banking at LSU.

Finally, the third-year class raised more than $10,300 for scholarships, money that will be awarded to children of employees of SCBA-member banks.

The South Carolina Bankers Association is the trade and professional association representing 75 financial institutions across the state. The SCBA is organized to effectively represent the common interest and welfare of South Carolina’s banking industry and to promote the professional development of its members and individual practitioners. The SCBA’s mission is to provide legislative, regulatory, educational and product leadership on behalf of its members.

For more information about the SCBA please visit https://scbankers.org/