Graduate School Grad Helps Preserve Kiawah Island

As the College prepares to send the Class of 2019 across the Cistern Yard May 10-11, The College Today will highlight how some of our graduating seniors spent their time at CofC, and what the future holds.

When Lee Bundrick graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Horticulture, he knew that he wanted to further his education in order to land the perfect job.

So, he started looking around for graduate schools and discovered something interesting at the Graduate School of the University of Charleston, South Carolina. What caught Bundrick’s eye was the College’s concurrent Master of Science in Environmental and Sustainability Studies (M.E.S.) and Master in Public Administration (M.PA.) program.

“I discovered the two degrees combined many different aspects that I wanted to study,” he says.

Bundrick says the blend of subjects in the concurrent program helped him learn more about environmental issues and the public policy process. That combination payed off. Earlier this year, Bundrick accepted the position of land preservation coordinator for the Kiawah Conservancy, a land trust aimed at protecting Kiawah Island, a barrier island along the coast of Charleston. As the coordinator, he is in charge of preserving over 2,200 acres of pristine habitat on Kiawah Island and helping to further the mission of the conservancy through research and education.

Bundrick says he likes the variety of work that his new job offers. He says one moment he may be at the Conservancy’s Naturally Kiawah Demonstration Garden, the next he may be walking on a remote hummock island, meeting with residents or in the office working with GIS to create a new map.

“I’ve never had the same day twice,” Bundrick says.

Bundrick credits CofC in helping him obtain the practical skills and experience needed to do the job.

“I value what I learned at the College,” says Bundrick, who will walk across Cistern Yard on Friday, May 10, 2019, to officially accept his dual master’s degrees. “The projects we were involved in while at the College were helpful to the community.”

During his time in the M.E.S. and M.P.A. graduate programs, Bundrick and his fellow classmates conducted a lot of field work to assist nonprofit organizations, help coastal communities identify solutions to environmental issues and help coordinate projects related to flood mitigation in the Charleston area.

“Being at the College and being included in these projects has been very valuable to me personally and professionally,” he says.

Other notable Class of 2019 graduates from the Graduate School of the University of Charleston, South Carolina include: Nick Weber, Graham Wagner, Emily Welling, Marla Robertson and Melanie Seidel.