Otis Pickett

EPU’s First Eminent Scholar

South Carolina native and Historian at Clemson University, Dr. Otis Pickett was selected to serve as EPU’s first Eminent Scholar. In this role, Otis assisted EPU in reaching Southern Christian audiences to help them understand race, systemic racism and the role of the Lost Cause in creating a uniquely southern civil religion. This work culminated in the production of his podcast, “Purpose that Prevails,” which you can learn more about and listen to below!

As University Historian at Clemson University, Otis serves as a campus resource on issues of historic interpretation, representation and commemoration for the Clemson community and is responsible for compiling and disseminating new scholarship relating to Clemson’s past.

Pickett most recently served as an associate professor of history at Mississippi College in Clinton, Mississippi. He earned his doctorate in U.S. History from the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., and holds Master of Arts degrees in American History from the University of Charleston and the Citadel. Pickett earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Clemson.