Kristen Drum
Contributing Writer

Marcus Brown has plenty of education. He graduated with an associate degree from Spartanburg Methodist College in 1990. He then attended mortuary school in Atlanta, as well as Greenville Tech. He always knew he wanted to get his bachelor’s degree too, but the years rolled by, always with the promise that “maybe I’ll go back next year.”

For the past three decades, life just didn’t provide the opportunity to pursue that dream. Owning and operating his own business took up most of his time. When Brown heard that his long-ago alma mater, SMC, now offers four-year degrees, he knew his time had come.

“When SMC got the bachelor’s program, I said, ‘Wow, it’d be nice to go back to MY college and get a bachelor’s where I got my associate degree from,’” he said.

Brown’s final convincer was that he could get his degree from SMC online. Without SMC Online, he wouldn’t be enrolled in a BA program. It would still be a dream for another year.

“When SMC started their BA program, because of the great experience I had there 36 years ago, I knew there was no other school I wanted to attend. That was the handwriting on the wall, asking, ‘What is your excuse for not obtaining that BA?'”

Being a working professional and a college student isn’t always easy. Brown has owned and operated Marcus D. Brown Funeral Home in Anderson for 21 years and is in the process of opening a second location, all while taking online classes. The flexibility of SMC’s online degree program allows him to work toward the degree he’s always wanted while still being able to care for his business. Still, online classes are no cakewalk.

“I find myself spending five to six hours a day on schoolwork and working full time,” Brown says modestly. “What I don’t think people realize is that regular classes are 16 weeks. We do the same amount of work in eight weeks.”

This type of dedication to furthering his education wouldn’t be possible without being able to take classes and complete schoolwork on his own schedule.  “We still have deadlines,” he laughs.  “It’s go at your own pace, but we still have deadlines.”

Brown credits his professional development classes with helping both his business and helping him excel in his studies.

” has been very challenging. When I first started, I had to learn to organize. I found myself working until midnight on Saturday evening and then submitting schoolwork on Sunday at 11:30 p.m.,” he said. “I had to regroup and get myself together. The professional development classes have really, really helped me, especially in my business and in my studies, regarding organization.”

Brown has stayed on the Dean’s List since he returned to college and uses his superb grades to playfully compete with his daughter, a college student at Lander University.

He is working toward his BA with concentrations in Psychology, Business, and Professional Development. He hopes to semi-retire from the funeral homes and focus on providing therapy to children in the foster system, as well as working with at-risk youth. As a former foster father to several children, he knows firsthand the existing need. He plans to graduate in the summer of 2025.

Brown smiles as he sits in the business he has built and grown for two decades and thinks about his future.

“My true calling is to assist in the community, schools, and other areas.”