Coastal Carolina University (CCU or Coastal) is a public university in Conway, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College, and later joining the University of South Carolina System as USC Coastal Carolina, it became an independent university in 1993.
The university is a national sea-grant institution and owns part of Waties Island, an Atlantic barrier island that serves as a natural laboratory for CCU's instruction and research. The campus is also the home of the Horry County Schools Scholars Academy, a high school for gifted students.
History
Coastal Carolina University was founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College, a two-year community college, by the Coastal Educational Foundation, a group of citizens who wanted to establish a post-secondary institution in the region. The college originally operated under contract as an extension of the College of Charleston. Classes met at night at Conway High School and were taught by part-time faculty. After the College of Charleston contract expired in 1958, Coastal became an independent community college supported by Horry County.
The Horry County Educational Commission was created in 1959 to oversee the college's county tax money. This body was responsible for contracting operations to the University of South Carolina a year later under the name Coastal Carolina Regional Campus. The deal was finalized at the Chat 'n' Chew restaurant in Turbeville, South Carolina, a town halfway between Conway and Columbia. The site of the present-day campus, by now known as USC Coastal Carolina College, was chosen in 1960, on a plot of land between U.S. 501 and S.C. 544, on land owned by Burroughs Timber Company and International Paper. The campus' first building, later named the Edward M. Singleton Building, opened in 1963.
A decade of growth saw the school add a third year in 1973 and a fourth in 1974. The first residence halls (currently "The Woods" residence halls) opened in 1987. By 1991, enrollment had grown to over 4,000 students, leading the Coastal Educational Foundation and Horry County Educational Commission to seek independent status for the school. A year later, the USC system's board of trustees lent its support to independent status for Coastal. On July 1, 1993, the school officially became an autonomous state institution under the name Coastal Carolina University, in a bill signed into law by South Carolina Governor Carroll Campbell on the steps of the Singleton Building. Ronald R. Ingle, the last chancellor of Coastal Carolina College, became the newly minted university's first president. The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football team opened its inaugural game vs. Newberry College on Sept. 6, 2003, in front of a crowd of more than 8,000 at the newly opened Brooks Stadium. In 2004, Coastal Carolina University celebrated its 50th anniversary; the same year, enrollment reached 7,000 students, and CCU opened the first phase of the University Place housing complex across S.C. 544.
Throughout the 2010s, the university experienced a building boom achieved as a result of a local 1-cent sales tax for education-related construction (the present Brittain Hall was originally dubbed "Penny Hall" in honor of the penny tax that helped fund its construction). In 2014, the university established its first doctoral degree program, in coastal and marine science systems science. In 2016, the Chanticleers baseball team won the College World Series, the first national title for the university. On July 1, 2016, the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers athletic programs officially joined the Sun Belt Conference. The following year, enrollment reached 10,600 students.
Leadership
In October 2020, Coastal Carolina University announced the appointment of Michael T. Benson as its third president and ninth leader. Benson began his tenure on January 1, 2021. He replaced David A. DeCenzo, who retired after serving for nearly 14 years as the university's president. On July 7, 2025, Benson was replaced by James J. Winebrake as the fourth president of the university.
Rankings and recognitions U.S. News & World Report (South) 2025 rankings:
No. 7 in Best Undergraduate Teaching No. 14 in Best Colleges for Veterans No. 15 Top Public Schools
Coastal Carolina University has also been recognized for its outstanding research, mental health services, military support, and more.
CCU earned a Research College and Universities designation in the 2025 report by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. This classification recognizes institutions that invest at least $2.5 million annually in research and development. Based on the latest data, CCU surpassed this threshold with $4.7 million in research expenditures in fiscal year 2023. The university is recognized as a Top Producing Institution of Fulbright U.S. Students, according to the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. CCU is one of 84 institutions in the nation on this list and the only school in South Carolina with this distinction. The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government's flagship international academic exchange program. In 2024, CCU was one of 16 schools nationwide named to the Princeton Review's inaugural Mental Health Honor Roll list. For the honor roll initiative, the Princeton Review emphasized students' quality of life and its impact on well-being, how schools equip students to manage mental health through education programs and peer-to-peer support, and the role of administrative efforts in fostering campus mental health. The university earned a spot on the 2024 Military Times Best for Vets: Colleges list. The survey seeks details about a school's costs, programs, policies, and services that impact military-connected students. Data from the U.S. Departments of Education and Veterans Affairs were also evaluated. CCU is a designated Gold Status Military Friendly School for 2024–2025. Military Friendly uses a comprehensive methodology to evaluate an institution's policies, programs, and resources that support the military community. The university was recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge (ALL IN) as a 2024 ALL IN Most Engaged Campus for College Student Voting. The ALL IN Most Engaged Campuses for College Student Voting recognizes colleges and universities' outstanding efforts to increase nonpartisan student voter participation.
Academic organization Conway Medical Center College of Health and Human Performance
The Conway Medical Center College of Health and Human Performance is home to the following academic units: public health, nursing, health administration, exercise and sport science, recreation and sport management, and sport management (master's degree). The university's newest college began operating on July 1, 2022, and is supported by a university-record $10 million donation from Conway Medical Center.
E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration
The business college, named for businessman E. Craig Wall Sr., offers six undergraduate majors: accounting, economics, finance, management, marketing and hospitality and resort tourism management. The PGA Golf Management program is one of only 18 programs in the nation accredited by the PGA of America. Business students can also minor in business, economics, international business, or marketing. The business college also offers two graduate programs, the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program and the Master of Accountancy (MAcc) program, and a graduate certificate in fraud examination. For those who wish to earn a degree in a shorter amount of time, there is a Degree in Three program where students can earn a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) degree in three years; and the Get More in Four program, which is a combined four-year undergraduate and Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. The Wall College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International).
Spadoni College of Education and Social Sciences The Spadoni College of Education and Social Sciences grants the degrees Bachelor of Arts in the areas of early childhood education, elementary education, middle-level education, and special education learning disabilities; Bachelor of Science in physical education; Master of Education in the areas of educational leadership, Instructional Technology, Special Education, and in Language, Literacy and Culture. A Master of Arts in Teaching program is offered in six specialization areas, and certificate and licensure programs are offered in online teaching, literacy, and special education. The college also awards an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. in education. The College of Education is accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), and each of its constituent programs is recognized by the South Carolina Department of Education and its corresponding specialized professional association (SPA). The Spadoni College of Education is home to several research and outreach endeavors, including the Biddle Center for Teaching, Learning, and Community Engagement; the Chanticleer Center for Literacy Education; The Early Childhood Development and Literacy Center; and The Georgetown Education Residence program.
On Oct. 1, 2020, the university announced that it would be restructuring the Spadoni College of Education by combining it with programs from the Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts, as well as the Gupta College of Science. On July 1, 2021, the name of the college was changed to the Spadoni College of Education and Social Sciences. Dr. Holley Tankersley was named the first dean of the newly combined college.
Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts
The Edwards College houses several university initiatives, institutes, and centers including the Dyer Institute for Leadership and Public Policy, the Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values, the Joyner Institute for Gullah and African Diaspora Studies, and the Athenaeum Press. The press is a student-driven publishing lab that offers students professional-level hands-on experience in authoring, designing and producing innovative stories.
Gupta College of Science The Gupta College of Science offers 13 areas of study ranging from applied statistics to psychology as well as 18 minors and one certificate program. The college also offers a Master of Science degree in coastal marine and wetland studies, a Master of Science degree in information systems technology, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in coastal and marine systems science.
The college houses the departments of biology, chemistry, coastal and marine systems science, computing sciences, marine science, mathematics and statistics, physics and engineering science, and psychology. Its marine systems department houses four sea vessels for both teaching and research. The flagship of the fleet is the R/V Coastal Explorer, a 54 ft. coastal region research vessel. The Burroughs & Chapin Center for Marine and Wetland Studies is the research and community outreach arm of the college.
In 2019, the College of Science was renamed the Gupta College of Science in recognition of a major donation by Sunny Gupta, a software entrepreneur and 1992 graduate of the university.
College of Graduate and Continuing Studies
There are programs offered from each of Coastal Carolina University's six colleges, including Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.), Master of Science in coastal marine and wetland studies (M.S.), and a Doctor of Philosophy in education sciences (Ph.D.).
Kimbel Library and Bryan Information Commons