FLORENCE — Francis Marion University will establish a think tank named in honor of the late Robert E. McNair, who has described creation of the state university in Florence as one of his proudest achievements during his years as governor. The Robert E. McNair Center for Government and History initially will be funded by a $500,000 grant from the Columbia-based PSARAS Foundation. It will conduct policy research focused on the Pee Dee and the state and propose solutions, said FMU president Fred Carter. The gift will help institutionalize McNair’s legacy of providing better education to more people in South Carolina, said PSARAS Foundation board chairman Jim Konduros, who was McNair’s law partner. The foundation plans to provide additional annual gifts to the McNair Center, perhaps $100,000 for the first such gift, Konduros said. And he plans to help raise an additional $1.5 million from other sources to support the center. The McNair Center’s advisory board will be chaired by former Gov. Jim Hodges, who Carter said often has helped the university. ...
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