USCA senior named Student of the Month

The Rotary Club of Aiken named Preston Gillespie its Student of the Month for April. 

Gillespie is set to graduate from USCA on May 6 with a double major in political science and Spanish translation and interpretation. He intends to attend law school and hopes to work for the attorney general or solicitor’s office. 

His academic, leadership and professional experiences at the university have prepared him to do just that. He’s interned with Congressman Joe Wilson’s Aiken District office, where he worked closely with the lawmaker’s constituents. This semester, he interned with the City of Aiken, shadowing the city manager and researching potential policies and their impacts.

In addition to lawmaking and civil service, he enjoys honing his language skills and volunteered as a medical interpreter at the Clinica Latina in Augusta. 

“I continue to be motivated by the many opportunities that I have been afforded while attending USCA as well as the many challenges I have had to overcome in my life,” Gillespie said. 

He holds a 3.67 GPA and has earned his spot on the Dean’s List each semester. Gillespie has served in the Foreign Language Honor Society and as a Chancellor Ambassador, representing the university at highly visible events, including those in the South Carolina State House. He has been an engaged leader throughout his time on campus. 

“Leadership is the ability to unite people in a common cause and relies on both independence and the ability to work with others to really understand their perspective,” Gillespie said.

“Furthermore, I believe that a leader must be able to take those perspectives into account when coming to a decision.” 

Gillespie says his most memorable leadership experience was his work on his Eagle Scout project because it allowed him to make a “meaningful impact” in the community. He identified a need and built benches for patrons of Generations Park in Aiken. 

“The park had limited structures when the benches were installed,” he said. I wanted people enjoying the park to have additional places to sit and rest along the walking path there.” 

The future attorney says he chose to attend USCA because of affordable tuition and smaller student-to-faculty ratio. Approximately 30 percent of currently enrolled undergraduate students have full tuition covered by scholarships and grants. About 40 percent of students in the last fiscal year graduating class who started at USCA as freshmen graduated with no student loans.  

The current student-to-faculty ratio is 17:1. 

Go Back More News