Basic HTML Version
Campus Review
June 25, 2012
Page 10
Army does not give out Bronze Stars
without a good reason, nor do they give
out Purple Hearts for fun. Stephens earned
all those decorations (in the case of the
Purple Heart, earned in Vietnam, he also
ended up earning an artificial hip), and his
role in history is secure. Anyone who has
read his autobiography, “When in Charge,
Take Charge,” (available at The Loch
Shop) knows the places (Vietnam, the
Panama Canal Zone, Thailand, Bolivia,
the Pentagon) and the names, the notable
people that Stephens has served with…
Governor Gaston Caperton of West
Virginia, Jay Rockefeller, Ron Brown, the
King of Thailand, and maybe most signif-
icantly, Lieutenant General Stormin’
Norman Schwarzkopf.
Stephens came to Clayton State in fall
2002 as director of Academic Advisement
for the College of Business, where he also
served as a visiting assistant professor.
Stephens was appointed executive assis-
tant to the president in April 2005. In
2006, Stephens continued his position as
executive assistant and added the role of
interim vice president of External
Relations. He was named vice president
of External Relations on Oct. 30, 2008 by
President Dr. Thomas K. Harden; and, as
such, has been responsible for Clayton
State’s Development, Alumni Relations,
Image and Communications, and
University Relations functions.
After earning his degree from WVSC in
1962, Stephens earned Master of Science
degree in Education from New York’s
Alfred University. His other postgraduate
studies include attendance at the John F.
Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University and the Terry Stanford Institute
of Public Policy at Duke University. He is
also a graduate of the prestigious Center
for Creative Leadership in Colorado
Springs. His other civilian accomplish-
ments include; Who’s Who in American
Colleges and Universities, Who’s Who in
America, The African American Hall of
Fame, the Council of State Governments’
Toll Fellowship Program and twice being
named a Distinguished West Virginian.
Rounding out his 10-year career in higher
education, Stephens was recently awarded
an honorary Doctorate of Humanities
from West Virginia’s Bluefield State
College, and honor applauded by all those
he has served with at Clayton State.
Still, the definitive word on Stephens'
time at Clayton State comes from one of
Schwarzkopf’s famous sayings, one that
was equally applicable to "The General."
"The truth of the matter is that you always
know the right thing to do. The hard part
is doing it."
Steve Stephens knew the right thing to do,
and he did it.
Stephens, cont’d. from p. 1