Five students have been selected to represent Clemson University at the 2024 ACC Leadership Symposium, scheduled for Feb. 16-18 in Charlottesville, Virginia. The annual event is scheduled for the University of Virginia and brings together students from each Atlantic Coast Conference institution for leadership training, professional development and networking opportunities.
Saylor Koon
• Sophomore
• Financial management
• Lexington, South Carolina
• Serves as president of National Alzheimer’s Buddies chapter
• Member of Alpha Phi sorority and Fellowship of Christian Athletes
• Intern for the Arthur M. Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership
• On track to graduate in December 2025 or May 2026
“With my experience leading a club and operating my own small business, I thought this symposium would be beneficial. I’m looking forward to meeting well-established students and gaining feedback on some of the things I’m pursuing at Clemson. I want to be able to build up the people around me and become a better leader.”
Gracie McDaniel
• Junior
• Agribusiness
• York, South Carolina
• Serves as a residential community mentor in the Honors College at DesChamps Hall
• Serves as vice chair of the student funding board
• Serves on agricultural affairs committee and academic grievances council within Clemson Undergraduate Student Government
• Serves as a student ambassador for the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences
• On track to graduate in May 2025
“The theme ‘Pivot with Purpose’ was enticing to me. Being an adaptive leader is important, especially when we live in an ever-changing world. In my position with the funding board, we received about $4 million worth of requests from student organizations and had only $2 million to allocate, so leaders within the board as well as organization leaders had to be adaptive.”
Caroline O’Neal
• Senior
• Political science and economics
• Beaufort, South Carolina
• Lyceum Scholar, Dixon Global Policy Scholar and Duckenfield Scholar
• Serves as senate president within Clemson Undergraduate Student Government
• Serves as editor and web designer for The Aurantiaco undergraduate humanities journal
• On track to graduate in May 2024
“I thought this year’s theme, ‘Pivot with Purpose,’ spoke to having a flexible mindset and developing meaningful goals that really fit with what I’m doing right now in student government. Additionally, I want to learn more about peer institutions and see what is working for them that we can bring back to Clemson.”
Patrick Sullivan
• Senior
• Management
• Groton, Massachusetts
• Serves as recruitment president for the student advisory board within the Department of Management
• Serves as a member of the Clemson Sailing Club and Clemson Surf Club
• On track to graduate in May 2024
“The opportunity to learn from brilliant students all over the east coast wasn’t something I could pass up. One of my biggest goals is networking and building connections I can take into the professional world. I want to build ties into a lot of different communities and take leadership skills I’ve learned and translate them into life after Clemson.”
Bailee Tayles
• Sophomore
• English
• Scottsdale, Arizona
• Lyceum Scholar
• Serves as vice president of Zeta Tau Alpha sorority
• Member of Kappa Alpha Pi pre-law fraternity
• Member of the certified student leader cohort
• Intern for the Pearce Center for Professional Communication
• On track to graduate in May 2026
“This symposium seems like a perfect challenge; I’m grateful to be representing Clemson. I’ve tried to be involved in any leadership opportunity, and through that I believe I’ve tapped into my purpose at Clemson. I was meant to be a voice for people and help influence others.”