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Greenville Business Magazine

Konduros Receives Order of the Palmetto

Oct 26, 2017 08:27AM ● By Emily Stevenson

By John McCurry

Photo by Greenville Headshots

Gov. Henry McMaster bestowed the Order of the Palmetto, the state's highest civilian honor, to SCBIO CEO Sam Konduros on Wednesday during SCBIO's annual conference at the Gaillard Center in Charleston. McMaster addressed the gathering and extolled the state's virtues as a life sciences cluster. After he finished, he surprised the crowd of about 270, including Konduros, by presenting the honor. McMaster noted the Greenville resident's long service to the state.

Konduros, who became CEO at SCBIO about six months ago, says he was humbled by the honor.

"I have had a love affair with South Carolina for as long as I can remember, so to receive the state's highest civilian honor directly from the governor -- in the midst of the SCBIO Annual Conference -- was one of the most humbling and overwhelming experiences of my life," he said. "I was beyond surprised, and am extraordinarily grateful."

Konduros’ long resume includes two years as executive director of Greenville Health System’s Research Development Corp. He also served as a multi-year consultant to help forge the Clemson University’s International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR).  Founding president and CEO of The Upstate SC Alliance, he is a former Cancer Society chairman, Greenville Chamber chairman, and S.C, Chamber of Commerce executive committee member. He has a law degree from the University of South Carolina and undergraduate degree from Clemson.