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Patterson promoted to executive director of strategic initiatives at Presbyterian College

A Laurens County native and long-serving leader at Presbyterian College has been promoted to serve as the school’s executive director of strategic initiatives.

Leni Neal Patterson, a 1983 graduate of PC, will help facilitate strategic planning processes and serve as project manager for specific initiatives critical to meeting the College’s strategic plans. In addition to assisting and advising PC president Dr. Matthew vandenBerg, she also will work with colleagues across the campus and external constituents to ensure institutional alignment with strategic plans.

In his announcement to campus on Sept 13, vandenBerg said Patterson’s “supreme project management capabilities, her deep experience in multiple offices, and her strong relationships make her an ideal choice for this role.”

Patterson joined the staff at her alma mater in 2000 and has served in a variety of leadership roles, including dean of enrollment and dean of community life. Since 2014, she has served as executive director of alumni relations and most recently has served as interim vice president of enrollment and interim director of marketing and communications.

In her work in alumni relations, Patterson established eight alumni chapters and re-established the African-American Alumni Council and the Young Alumni Council. She engaged more than 300 alumni in PC’s Compass Program to conduct informational interviews with college sophomores related to their career interests.

She has also been a dedicated community leader. Patterson is the former chair of the Laurens County School District 55 Board of Trustees, former president of the S.C. School Boards Association, and a director on the National School Boards Association. She is a member and elder at First Presbyterian Church in Clinton, where she currently serves as a member of the Session and as chair of the administrative committee.

She has three sons and daughters-in-law and four grandchildren.

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