Designed to equip high school students with college course credits, a new scholarship for Legacy Early College students will honor the legacy of a life-long South Carolina educator.
North Greenville University’s (NGU) Dual Credit Program with Greenville’s Legacy Early College High School will be bolstered by the Dr. Herbert Tyler/Chick-fil-A Legacy Early College Scholarship. The funds will assist LEC junior and senior students who seek to complete dual-credit courses on the charter school’s campus in northwest Greenville.
William “Bill” Tyler, the operator of the Greer Chick-fil-A, funded the scholarship, honoring his late father, Dr. Herbert Tyler. The long-time education leader died in March 2020 at the age of 86.
“Dr. Tyler was a legendary educator, whose influence and passion for young people influenced not only our region but the entire state,” said NGU President Dr. Gene C. Fant., Jr. “This new scholarship program connects his long-standing vision with the unique opportunities afforded by Legacy Early College, which serves students and families in a historic part of Greenville. We are grateful to Chick-fil-A of Greer for their support and their encouragement to our entire community.”
NGU officials see the scholarship support for the expanded dual credit program as a step in expanding opportunities for first-generation college students. While the university has partnered with LEC to offer dual-credit classes on NGU’s Tigerville campus, the move this fall to offer accredited courses at the LEC campus allows more high school students to benefit from the opportunity. The Dr. Herbert Tyler/Chick-fil-A scholarship is designated to undergird expenses for the courses.
NGU and LEC offer six college-credit courses for the students each semester, with up to 10 students participating in each course.
Tyler sees the fund as strengthening LEC’s stated mission to “offer a quality, rigorous, and relevant educational program leading to college graduation and empowering underserved urban students to become productive, healthy, principled citizens in a changing society.”
“Over my 33 years as a Chick-fil-A operator, we have partnered with schools on character education and leadership development,” Tyler said. “I have always believed that teaching students at a young age how important the strength of a person’s character affects a lifetime of decisions that one will make.”
A native of Dillon, S.C., the elder Tyler began a career in public education after serving as a captain in the U.S. Army. He was the band director and assistant principal at Chester high School before working with school districts through Lancaster’s Region V Educational Services Center. He later was associate superintendent and superintendent of Schools for Richland School District Two in Columbia.
After retiring from public schools, Tyler served at Furman University for 12 years, as chair of the department of education and professor of school administration. He was named professor emeritus at Furman. He served as a deacon, director of the music ministry, and taught Sunday School at both First Baptist Church, Chester, and North Trenholm Baptist Church in Columbia. He was a current member of Edwards Road Baptist in Greenville, where he was a deacon, Sunday school teacher, choir member, and a member of the Personnel Committee.
Bill Tyler said the scholarship commitment fits with his family’s dedication to education.
“My dad was a career educator,” he said. “My sister also followed in his footsteps and is a recently retired public school administrator. I have had opportunities to be involved in education locally, and these partnerships help me fulfill my mission of “People are my purpose. Chicken is my platform.”
Tyler currently is serving in his second term as a trustee of the South Carolina Baptist university and is the worship pastor at Riverside Baptist in Greer.
Founded in 1892, NGU offers bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, with campuses in Tigerville and Greer. Learn more about NGU’s nationally recognized at www.ngu.edu/academics.