Denmark Technical College Earns Impact Business of the Year From Southern Palmetto Chamber

Denmark Technical College has earned the Impact Business of the Year award from the Southern Palmetto Chamber of Commerce, a recognition that marks a significant milestone for an institution navigating both a storied legacy and a period of active renewal.

The Denmark-based college serves approximately 646 students, 348 full-time and 298 part-time undergraduates, and maintains a 100% acceptance rate. It holds a distinction no other institution in South Carolina can claim: the only historically Black technical college in the state, and the only two-year HBCU in South Carolina with residential dormitories.

The honor arrives as DTC moves forward under Dr. Eric Brown, the college's 10th president and CEO. Brown began his tenure in October 2025 and was formally invested on January 30, 2026, bringing more than two decades of higher education experience to the role. He previously served as Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at the SC Technical College System from 2014 to 2024. "I am honored to join Denmark Technical College at such a pivotal moment in its history," Brown said at the time of his appointment.

The college's economic reach extends well beyond its Bamberg County campus. UNCF's 2024 HBCU Economic Impact Report identifies DTC as "a catalyst for economic growth locally and regionally through the production and consumption of goods and services by its faculty, employees, and students." The report, commissioned by UNCF's Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute, documents HBCUs' broader national footprint: more than 136,000 jobs created and $16.5 billion in annual economic impact across the sector.

That local civic weight is reflected in the Bamberg County Council's longstanding engagement with the institution. Spencer Donaldson, Chairman of the Bamberg County Council, has stated that "HBCUs are essential to our place in Black History." Council members attended DTC's February 2024 President's Legacy Scholarship Gala, where the college inducted its inaugural Alumni Hall of Fame class, honoring Bamberg County natives among the first recipients.

The Impact Business of the Year recognition comes despite real adversity. In July 2025, the South Carolina Legislature denied funding for a proposed STEM facility at DTC, a setback for a college still rebuilding from the enrollment and financial declines that led the state to place it under direct oversight of the SC Technical College System in 2017.

Authorized by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1947 and opened March 1, 1948, as a branch of the South Carolina Trade School System, DTC was originally established to educate Black citizens in the trades. It earned SACSCOC accreditation and its current name in 1979. After more than 75 years of sustained presence in Bamberg County, the Southern Palmetto Chamber of Commerce's recognition puts a name to what the region has long relied upon.