Rep. Mark S. Kelley of Myrtle Beach will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Public Service from Coastal Carolina University at the spring commencement ceremony to be held at Coastal Federal Field in Myrtle Beach on Saturday, May 11.

Kelley has served in the South Carolina House of Representatives since 1993. As a legislator, he has been a strong supporter of Coastal and has played an important role in securing state funding for many capital projects, including the university's track and field facility, the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts Building, the proposed science building, and the proposed athletic facility. Kelley was also instrumental in bringing President George W. Bush to the Coastal campus when he was campaigning for the Republican nomination in 2000. He has served as chairman of the House Rules Committee and as a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.

A native of Buffalo, N.Y., Kelley graduated from Myrtle Beach High School and attended Coastal Carolina University. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1972 to 1976.

Other honorary degree recipients include CNN anchor Judy Woodruff, the commencement speaker, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist W. Horace Carter of Tabor City, N.C.