Carolinas Design and Construction Professionals Inducted into Clemson Hall of Fame

Clemson University’s College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities (CAAH) inducted 11 new members into its Hall of Fame on Friday, March 8, 2019. Six of this year’s 11 inductees come from the Carolinas’ world of design and construction. Dean Richard E. Goodstein created the CAAH Hall of Fame in 2017 to honor alumni, members of the faculty and staff, and friends of the College who are recognized as leaders in their professions or have made a significant impact on the educational, research and service goals of the College.

The following AEC industry professionals were formally recognized during a dinner held at Clemson’s Madren Conference Center.

William A. Caldwell – Bill Caldwell’s 45-year construction industry career includes 20 years in the mechanical specialty contracting field and 25 years with a general contractor. Caldwell’s upward career trajectory in project management, sales, operations and executive leadership culminated in his current role as Chairman and CEO for Waldrop Mechanical Services. Waldrop is based in Greer, S.C.

Since Caldwell’s arrival at Waldrop, the firm has enjoyed substantial revenue and equity growth as it has become a recognized leading full service mechanical contracting firm in the regional industrial, commercial, institutional, and healthcare markets while increasing its market share in its residential and maintenance businesses. The company has been the recipient of multiple regional and national accolades for its work on technically difficult, schedule-driven, award-winning projects.

Waldrop is a longtime corporate partner of the Clemson University Construction Science and Management (CSM) department, a relationship that Caldwell forged. Caldwell has served on the CSM Industry Advisory Board (IAB) since 2012 and its Executive Committee since 2015. He received the prestigious CSM Construction Hall of Fame Award in 2017.

Caldwell has served multiple terms on the Board of Directors of the Associated Builders and Contractors- Carolinas Chapter and was the Board Chairman in 2011. He has also served on the various boards including the Mechanical Contractors Association of South Carolina, the Boys & Girls Club of the Upstate, the Easley Hospital Foundation.

C. Douglass Harper – Doug Harper graduated from Clemson University with honors in 1974, earning a Bachelor of Science in Building Construction. Upon graduation, he joined the family firm and embarked on a nearly 50-year career in the construction industry. His role at the company now is Chairman.

After becoming President in 1985, he led the Harper General Contractors into becoming one of the largest construction firms in the Southeast. The firm now has five offices and employs more than 45 Clemson CSM and Engineering graduates. Harper is based in Greenville, S.C.

Harper has stayed active with Clemson, serving on the Board of Visitors, as Chair of the CSM Building Advisory Committee, President of the Clemson Advancement and Foundation for Design + Build, and led the task force on what was to become the CU-ICAR campus in Greenville.

In 1999, he was named among the first Alumni Fellows for the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities and in 2011 he received a Distinguished Alumni Award from the Clemson CSM Department. The Harper Corporation donated the lead gift that established the first endowed Chair in the Department of Construction Science and Management. The company provides an annual scholarship for minority students in the CSM program, among its other support.

Harper believes staying involved in the community and industry is important. He has served as a past chair of the Upstate SC Alliance and the Building Division of the Carolinas AGC and is the current Chairman of the South Carolina Conservation Bank. He recently received the Conservationist of the Year Award from Upstate Forever.

Peter R. Lee – Peter R. Lee, Alumni Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Architecture, died on January 24, 2019 in Clemson. Lee earned a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Minnesota in 1958 and his Master of Architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1968.  He was an early innovator in sustainable design, winning the 1957 International Solar House Architectural Competition sponsored by the Association for Applied Solar Energy. His winning design from this “Living with the Sun” competition was constructed near Phoenix the following year.

Lee joined the architecture faculty of Clemson University as an associate professor in 1968. He taught undergraduate and graduate student design and theory, achieving the rank of full professor in 1973.  Lee retired from Clemson University in 1993 after 25 years of service.

Frank Lucas, FAIA – Frank E. Lucas founded the architecture and interiors firm LS3P in 1963. Frank laid the foundations for a thriving firm, which has grown to more than 330 employees in eight cities, with more than 470 awards for design excellence. In 2014, LS3P was named Southeast Design Firm of the Year by Engineering News-Record.

Elevated to the College of Fellows in The American Institute of Architects in 1983, and serving as the Chancellor of the College of Fellows in 2007, Lucas has been a passionate advocate for the profession for over 55 years. He received the Alumni Distinguished Service Award from Clemson University in 1992, and served on the Clemson Board of Visitors, President’s Advisory Council and Architectural Council.

A former President of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, Lucas received its honored Joseph P. Riley Leadership Award in 1996. In 2016, Lucas was awarded the Order of the Palmetto, the highest civilian honor bestowed by the State of South Carolina. Although retired, Lucas continues to be involved in the community and industry – and a large part of the LS3P family.

Barry Nocks, FAICP – Dr. Barry Nocks has served the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities and the planning profession nationally, regionally and locally for more than 40 years as a teacher, administrator, leader, consultant, practicing planner and citizen planner. He continues to provide insight and humor teaching as professor emeritus. He has taught about 80 percent of the graduates of the Clemson MCRP program.

In Greenville, S.C., he directed and coordinated the Reedy River Master Plan that led to the creation of the Swamp Rabbit Trail and significant redevelopment along the river from Travelers Rest to Conestee. Between 2000 and 2017, Dr. Nocks also served on and chaired the Greenville City Planning Commission and the City’s Design Review Board. He has been active in regional planning efforts in the Upstate since 2006 as a founding board member of Ten at the Top.

Dr. Nocks was recognized as a Fellow in the American Institute of Certified Planners in 2014 and received the Distinguished Planner Award of the South Carolina Chapter of American Planning Association in 2012. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering/Operations Research from Cornell University and Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Thompson E. Penney, FAIA – Thompson E. Penney graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelor of Pre-Architecture with honors in 1972 and a Master of Architecture with honors in 1974. After graduation, he returned to his native Charleston to join LS3P, the architecture, interiors and planning firm where he had worked as a high school student. Today, Penney is LS3P’s Chairman/President/CEO.

Penney was elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects for Design in 1990 and served as the 79th National President of The American Institute of Architects in 2003.

Penney’s remarkable career has created significant positive impacts for both the architectural profession and the broad community it serves. Under his leadership, LS3P has grown into a firm consistently recognized by Engineering News-Record and Architectural Record as one of the Top 20 architecture firms in the United States.

His honors at Clemson University include the Architecture Alumni Achievement Award’s Inaugural Class in 2013, the Distinguished Service Award in 1998, the College of Architecture Dean’s Award in 1997, the AIA National School Medal for Design Excellence in 1974, Phi Kappa Phi in 1972, the Tau Sigma Delta Bronze Medal in 1972, the Rudolph E. Lee Award in 1971, the Tau Sigma Delta Award for Design and Academic Excellence in 1970, and Tau Sigma Delta in 1969.

Event photos: Chase Todd. Biographical material courtesy of Clemson University.