Mercer alumnus and actor Mark McCollough has been selected to speak at this year’s Founders Day event on Feb. 6. The speaker was announced in a Student Government Association meeting streamed live on their Facebook page Jan. 7.
Clark Myers, senior senator-at-large and chair of the Heritage Life committee, told SGA that McCollough had been chosen.
“Mark McCollough is important to the Mercer community because his life shows that you never know where you will end up or what career you may pursue,” Clark Myers wrote in an email Jan. 17 to The Cluster.
A native of Savannah, McCollough graduated from Mercer University in 1995 with degrees in theater and political theory, according to a Mercer News feature from 2018. He then went on to earn a Juris Doctor from American University.
He started his career as a prosecutor working in Washington, D.C., but after a “serious car accident” in Nicaragua, McCollough changed his career from law to acting, according to his IMDB profile.
Since then, McCollough has acted in films including “American Made” and “Logan Lucky.”
McCollough’s roles often place him alongside some well-known actors.
In “American Made,” McCollough played Pete, “the gun and drug smuggling co-pilot to Tom Cruise’s character,” according to IMDB.
McCollough was also cast as a “redneck coworker to Channing Tatum’s character” in “Logan Lucky.”
McCollough’s acting career is not just on screen. In 2011, he partnered with Emmy-nominated Executive Producer Alexis Nelson to start Fort Argyle Films, a company focusing on television development and production, according to their website.
McCollough also founded The Savannah Actors Studio as a way to assist other actors. He teaches classes such as “On-Camera Audition Technique,” “Scene Study” and “Branding and Marketing for Actors,” according to the studio’s website.
McCollough was selected to speak at Founder’s Day 2019 because Myers thought he would be “interesting to hear.”
“We will never have a speaker that everybody loves, is excited about, or interested in. So, I asked the person from whom I thought people would widely enjoy and benefit [from],” Myers said.
Jay Sekulow spoke at last years Founder’s Day, prompting protests from some members of the student body.
Cefari Langford, a junior, participated in last year’s protest. They said they think this year’s speaker selection is a better choice.
“I have no real opinion about [McCollough], but I think this Founders Day will be vastly better than the last one,” Langford said.
Alumnus Mark McCollough selected to be Founders Day speaker
Mercer's 2019 Founder's Day is to be held in Willingham, where speaker Mark McCullough will give his speech.
