For alumni contractor, GU building projects have special meaning

Published: June 30, 2022

As an accounting major at Greenville University in the early 1980s, Charles McPherson (pictured left) learned the building blocks of the profession– assets, liabilities, and cash flow.

During more than a quarter century in the construction business, he’s also developed other bedrock business practices – hiring great employees, exceeding customer expectations, and giving back to institutions and people that have helped him along the way.

He will put all those concepts to work as his Maryland-based company, CMI General Contractors, Inc., undertakes several major construction projects on the Greenville University campus in the coming months.

GU projects will be satisfying to McPherson

“It’s business, but it’s also personal,” the 1985 GU graduate said of the opportunity to work for his alma mater. “On a personal level, it will be very satisfying to do these projects because they will make a real difference for the school.”

McPherson’s company will oversee three projects:

• A 246-bed residence hall on College Avenue just west of the current campus. That 40,000-square-foot building also will include a student center, a food venue, and a campus store. Additionally, the building will provide classroom space for the University’s new nursing program, a cooperative venture with St. John’s College of Nursing, and other STEM classes. Site work began in late June.
• A pair of buildings at the school’s athletic complex south of campus that will honor the legacy of two GU giants – the late Robert “Ish” Smith (former GU president and baseball coach) and W. Richard Stephens (GU president emeritus, who was instrumental in starting the Panther football program in 1987). The Smith building will include additional stadium seating, an event space, and a museum showcasing his baseball memorabilia. The Stephens clubhouse building will add restroom facilities and locker rooms for multiple teams.
• A gymnastics facility on U.S. Route 40 that will house the new GU gymnastics programs. Built on the site of the former Greenville Ford dealership, the building will provide workout space for the men’s and women’s gymnastics teams being launched this fall. It also will be home to a youth gymnastics program that will be offered to the community.

Doing things to benefit the University is nothing new for McPherson. He served for several years on the Greenville University Board of Trustees before stepping down in 2017.

He wants projects to help GU flourish

“These projects give me the opportunity to help the University by delivering the right product at the right price in the right way,” McPherson said. “I want these projects to help GU flourish. At CMI, we always do everything to the best of our ability, but because this involves the University, it puts our motivation on steroids.”

Representing the company on the Greenville University projects will be Tony Catanzaro (project executive) and Nonyameko Waddell (senior project manager).

“GU President Suzanne Davis and her team have big plans to expand the impact and the reach of the University,” McPherson said. “We want to do whatever we can to help the school grow by providing great new facilities.”

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For more information about Greenville University building projects, visit greenville.edu/projects .