David Emory Shi, undated photograph

Link to Published Texts

Collection of David E. Shi Newspaper Columns, 1996-2003 

David E. Shi served as the 10th president of Furman University from 1994 to 2010. During his presidential tenure, Furman solidified its stature as one of the nation's finest liberal arts colleges. Applications to the university increased 75 percent, faculty salaries improved dramatically, the endowment quadrupled, the academic profile of the student body rose, and the campus benefited from more than $210 million in new construction and renovation.

An Atlanta native and a 1973 Furman graduate, he joined the university administration in 1993 as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty. David was also a champion of the university's emphasis on engaged learning, energy conservation and environmental stewardship. Under his direction, Furman became a national leader in promoting sustainability.

David was a charter signatory of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment in 2006. During his presidency, Furman built the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental) certified building in South Carolina (there are now 7 LEED-certified buildings on campus). In March 2010, Furman's Board of Trustees named the university's new Center for Sustainability in honor of Shi.

A specialist in intellectual and cultural history, David is the author of several books, including Matthew Josephson (Yale University Press, 1980), The Simple Life: Plain Living and High Thinking in American Culture (Oxford University Press, 1985), which was a History Book Club selection, and Facing Facts: Realism in American Thought and Culture, 1850-1920 (Oxford University Press, 1994). He is also co-author, with the late George B. Tindall, of the best-selling textbook America: a Narrative History (W. W. Norton), now in its tenth edition.

David is a prolific newspaper essayist. He has published several hundred of columns in newspapers such as The Greenville News, The Christian Science Monitor, The Charlotte Observer, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Philadelphia Inquirer, among others. His columns and essays are also heard on the South Carolina network of National Public Radio. A collection of his speeches, essays and columns has been published under the title The Bell Tower and Beyond: Reflections on Learning and Life.

Source: David Shi website https://www.usahistorian.com

Cliffs Cottage, the award-winning sustainable showcase home built on Furman's campus in collaboration with Southern Living Magazine, became the home of the Dr. David E. Shi Center for Sustainability in 2010. The Susan Shi Garden, named for the Furman First Lady, is adjacent to Cliffs Cottage.

In the fall of 2020, the Shi Center became the Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities, with a broader scope and vision as an education, applied research and leadership resource truly unique in the Southeast.