Since retiring, Thomasenia Benson has worked with high school principals as an educational consultant in the area of leadership, specializing in working with principals at low-performing schools. Previously, Mrs. Benson was the principal of Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School in Orangeburg, 70 percent of whose students qualified for free or reduced-lunch programs. Undaunted, she instilled in her staff and students the motto, "Performance without Excuse," demanding punctuality, good grooming and neat attire. Through corporate grants and partnerships with a local university, Mrs. Benson established a comprehensive technology program at Orangeburg-Wilkinson that included 600 computers in 47 classrooms and training for over 60 percent of her staff. As a result, student test scores rose dramatically and the dropout rate became negligible, with Orangeburg-Wilkinson students receiving millions of dollars in college scholarships.
1968 Benedict College, B.A.
