Page 16 - March 2014 Catalyst

Dr. Augustus Rodgers
Pastor, Professor of Social Work, USC
Dr. Augustus Rodgers is a preacher, teacher and professional speaker. Over the past forty years he has served as keynote speaker for many organizations and special occasions. is narrative will highlight mile- stones of his developmental years and various benchmarks of his professional career.
Born in Columbia, South Carolina at the Waverly Good Samaritan Hospital, Dr. Rod- gers is the son of Susanne Gaymon Rodgers and the late William Augustus Rodgers. He is the oldest of eight siblings. As an oldest child, he was naturally groomed and destined for leadership. Given the implications associ- ated with this birth order, he shared the glory, challenges, and the not too infrequent pain experienced by the oldest child.
Rodgers experienced the rst twelve years of his life as a resident of the Columbia Hous- ing Authority, Allen and Benedict Court Apartments. Later on he was privileged among others to be in the Housing Author- ity Wall of Fame. e honor was bestowed in recognition of adults who grew up as children in public housing and were blessed to make signi cant achievements in later life.
With Regard to his educational preparation, Dr. Rodgers, at the age of four, was entered into the kindergarten of the Bethlehem Community Center. When he was ve years old, the Dominion Sisters of Blessed Martin DePorres Catholic School allowed him to enroll in their rst grade class. As the sto- ry was told, tuition at the time was a steep
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twenty- ve to fty cents a week. is period was during the early nineteen fties. In ad- dition to Blessed Martin DePorres, Rodg- ers also matriculated in the public school of Richland County School District One. He attended Carver and also Waverly Elementa- ry Schools. He was also a student of William Augustus Perry Junior High School. In 1962, he was a member of the graduating class of Hopkins High School.
It was in the Spring of 1962 that Daniel Provi- dence made the way for him to gain admission to the historic Benedict College of Columbia, South Carolina during the presidency of the late Dr. J. A. Bacoats. It was this institution that served as a pivotal force in launching Rodger’s academic career. He entered Bene- dict College in May of 1962 and marched across the stage of Artisdale Chapel for gradu- ation in June 1965. Little did he know at the time, Benedict College would serve as the springboard that would catapult him beyond any opportunity of which he ever imagined.
It was in 1965 that the South Carolina De- partment of Mental Health employed Dr. Rodgers, at the age of twenty. He was a case- worker. He had prior experience as a nursing aide while a student at Benedict. is was his rst job with the Mental Health Department in 1963. He later discovered that his very rst job with the state of South Carolina ac- tually occurred at the age of sixteen when he was a school bus driver while in high school, beginning in the eleventh grade. Using these two years, he had acquired thirty years of
march 2014