GCS Superintendent Among Greenville Business Magazine's 50 Most Influential

Greenville County Schools Superintendent Dr. W. Burke Royster was selected as one of Greenville Business Magazine’s 50 Most Influential leaders, an honor he has received four previous times. Read the full Greenville Business Magazine article.

For two decades, Greenville Business Magazine has honored the region’s most influential people, who are selected based on staff research and community nominations. Honorees include company CEOs, presidents, founders, city managers, and elected officials from across the county.

Dr. Royster became superintendent of Greenville County Schools, the 46th largest district in the United States with more than 76,000 students, in 2012. During his tenure, Royster established the district’s Graduation Plus framework which works to ensure that students are college- or career-ready when they graduate from high school.

Over the past decade, the graduation rate for GCS students has risen by 11.7 points and currently stands at 84.1 percent. During the 2020-2021 school year, students earned more than $163 million in scholarships. Royster attributes much of the success of GCS students to the 11,000 employees who work with students on a daily basis.

Royster was previously recognized as the 2018 Superintendent of the Year by the South Carolina Association of School Administrators and the 2017 Superintendent of the Year by the South Carolina Association of Athletic Administrators.