SC’s flagship university finally has a full governing board. Who are USC’s new trustees?
The University of South Carolina’s board of trustees is once again whole.
The General Assembly last week elected new members to serve on the flagship university’s governing board, which had been down two trustees since 2022.
The new board members, Richard Bonnoitt, of Florence, and Frederick “Schipp” Johnston, of Murrells Inlet, will represent the 4th and 15th Judicial Circuits, respectively.
Both Bonnoitt and Johnston, who overcame multiple qualified candidates to win election Wednesday, will hold seats that had been vacant since 2022, following the resignations of Eugene Warr (4th Circuit) and J. Egerton Burroughs (15th Circuit) that year.
The new trustees are expected to attend USC’s next board meeting Friday, but won’t serve as voting members until they’ve gone through orientation, university spokesman Jeff Stensland said.
In addition to the new members, state lawmakers also formally elected Coleman Floyd Buckhouse (12th Circuit) and J. Strom Thurmond Jr. (2nd Circuit), who have been serving as governor’s appointees since October 2024 and September 2025, respectively.
Buckhouse, a physician, is the daughter of longtime USC trustee Eddie Floyd; and Thurmond Jr., an attorney, is the son of late U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond.
How are USC board members chosen?
USC’s 20-member board is composed of three ex-offico members — the governor (or his designee), the state superintendent of education and the alumni association president; one member from each of the state’s 16 judicial circuits elected by the General Assembly; and one at-large member appointed by the governor.
Prospective university trustees must apply for their desired roles and are put through a legislative screening process that includes a public hearing before the College and University Trustee Screening Commission.
The candidates found qualified and nominated for the seats to which they applied are then voted on by the General Assembly.
Who are the new trustees?
Bonnoitt, a 1979 USC graduate, is the former owner of Pee Dee Environmental, a construction and demolition waste landfill in Florence that he sold to Capital Waste Services in 2022.
More recently, he has played a crucial role with Garnet Trust, the university’s official NIL collective, which helps student-athletes leverage their name, image and likeness rights to build their personal brands and secure partnerships with businesses.
During a legislative hearing last month, Bonnoitt credited the university with laying the groundwork for his successful business career.
“I took the skills and education gained at USC to start my own business with my wife in the waste industry, creating jobs and opportunities for my surrounding community,” he said in his opening statement to the College and University Trustee Screening Committee on March 5. “I sold my company in 2022, and now I have the time to take my talents and common sense learned from over 40 years in business to help guide the University for South Carolina into the future.”
Bonnoitt, whose children are also USC graduates, told the committee his primary focus as trustee would be to keep tuition affordable and ensure the university was preparing graduates to meet South Carolina’s workforce needs.
Johnston, a 1986 graduate and 34-year member of the Gamecock Club, is also a businessman who has been involved with Garnet Trust.
The Florence native is the president of Southern Crown Partners, a beverage distributor headquartered in Charleston that employs about 1,000 people in South Carolina and Georgia.
Southern Crown, which expanded its footprint into the Midlands and Upstate last year when it acquired Columbia-based KW Beverage, is one of the oldest continuous Anheuser-Busch distributors in the country.
The company distributes beverages sold at USC venues, but does not sell directly to the university, Johnston told lawmakers during his March candidate screening.
While screening committee members asked the would-be trustee several questions about his company’s business with the university, they appeared satisfied that Johnston’s role at Southern Crown would not interfere with his service on the board.
The Murrells Inlet resident told the committee that his top focus, if elected, would be enrolling more in-state students at the university.
“You need to have a plan to be able to attract more students because I do believe our 5.5 million residents will continue to grow,” he told the screening committee. “And the university, the flagship, should be the No. 1 choice of anyone in this state.”