Volume 12 | Issue 10
December 23, 2020
December 2020 News and Notes
News highlights include:
SCICU COVID-19 resources - updated December 23

Click here for a curated list of COVID-19 advisories for colleges and universities, including updates and resources for South Carolina and the United States.
Federal update
$900 billion COVID-19 relief package sent to President Trump
So close… We received some good news from Congress that will provide our campuses and students with much needed financial support. But we’re not over the goal line. At the time of this writing, President Trump has declared Congress should amend the bill.
Federal student aid update
Huge changes in federal student aid
The $1.4 trillion FY 2021 consolidated appropriations package sent to President Trump includes major changes for Pell Grants and other federal financial aid programs, a simplification of the FAFSA, and a substantial revision in how federal student aid is distributed.

These changes will not go into effect until 2023.
Let's find the good in 2020
Message from SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez
Jeff Perez, Ph.D.
SCICU President and CEO
I’ve never been through a year that so many people are looking forward to putting in the rear view mirror. 2020 will be remembered for the friends and family lost to COVID-19, for the disruptions we endured, the difficult decisions we had to make, and the almost endless adaptations we accepted.

But as we look back we can take pride that these many challenges brought out the best in us. Let me share a few examples.
SCICU campus legislative coordinators kick off student letter-writing campaign for 2021 General Assembly session

COLUMBIA, S.C. – SCICU campus legislative coordinators from across the state gathered for their first-ever virtual kickoff for the annual student letter-writing campaign on Dec. 9.

“Our previous years’ in-person kickoff meetings were high-energy gatherings of legislative contacts from SCICU member campuses,” said Jeff Perez, SCICU president and CEO. “COVID-19 may have changed the venue for our kickoff, but it did not steal our group’s enthusiasm for student-led grassroots advocacy.”


Four SCICU HBCUs selected to join Reconstruction Era National Historic Network
Allen University, Benedict College, Claflin University, and Voorhees College have been selected for the Reconstruction Era National Historic Network.

Launched in March 2020, this national network connects sites across the country that provide education, interpretation, and research related to the Reconstruction Era – the period following the American Civil War in which the United States grappled with the challenges of reuniting the country and how to integrate millions of newly-freed African Americans into social, economic, political, and labor systems.
Campus operations and response to COVID-19 pandemic at SCICU colleges and universities

SCICU College/University Campus News 

SCICU curates news from its twenty member colleges and universities. Click here to read college news in the Newsroom on the SCICU website.

The following is a sampling of recent news from SCICU campuses:

Allen University

Anderson University

Benedict College

Charleston Southern University

Claflin University

Coker University

Columbia College

Columbia International University

Converse College

Erskine College

Furman University

Limestone University

Morris College

Newberry College

North Greenville University

Presbyterian College

Southern Wesleyan University

Spartanburg Methodist College

Voorhees College

Wofford College

Click below to access important information from each of the SCICU member colleges and universities:
2020-2021 Upcoming Events
December 2020

24 - SCICU offices closed for Christmas and New Year holidays. Reopening January 4, 2021

January 2021


February 2021



The SCICU Business Partners program provides a convenient marketplace in which SCICU member colleges and universities can preview offerings tailored to the needs of the higher education community in South Carolina.

SCICU thanks the following business partners for their renewals:


Directory - Click  here  for a complete list of Business Partners, or access information on individual Business Partners via the links shown below.

ABM Building Solutions, LLC | Affinity LTC, LLC (Genworth Financial) | Aramark Higher Education | Blue Cross Blue Shield of SC | Brown Edwards CPA | Brown & Brown South Carolina | CampusLogic | Cantey Tech Consulting | CapinCrouse LLP | Cherry Bekaert, LLC | Coleman Lew Canny Brown | Colonial Life | Craig Gaulden Davis | Diligence, LLC | Dominion Energy | Duke Energy | Elliott Davis | Enterprise Holdings | Find Great People, LLC | First American Education Finance | Gillis Specialty Advertising | Giraffe Web Design | GMK Associates | Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, PA | Hallmark Management Service | HRP Associates, Inc. | Hypersign, LLC | Immedion LLC | Jenzabar | Lower Cost Models Consortium | Lockstep Technology Group | MB Kahn Construction Company, Inc. | McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture | Metz Culinary Management | Nephron Pharmaceuticals | P2Ops, LLC | Paymerang (fka AP Advantage) | Pharos Resources, LLC Pioneer College Caterers | Pollock Company | Purple Briefcase | PVC Fittings Online | Regions Bank | Resource Financial Services | S2K Group, Inc. | SC Student Loan Corporation | ScholarBuys | SEGRA (formerly Spirit Communications | Sodexo | Spinx Company | Tallo (formerly STEM Premier) | Timely MD | Total Comfort Solutions | UnitedHealthcare Student Resources | VEMO Education | Victor Shoreline | Vulcan Materials Company | Walsh Consulting Group LLC | Williams & Fudge | Wyche, PA | 


SCICU is a member of the Coalition for College Cost Savings (CCCS). This organization, comprised of 33 member organizations in 32 states, serves close to 900 higher education institutions and 3 million students across the United States. The organization and staff are dedicated to helping private higher education institutions improve processes and reduce costs through collaboration.

All SCICU member colleges and universities have access to CCCS's national contracts and services. More information on this important benefit may be found here.
News & Notes is published by the South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, Inc. Please send all comments or questions to SCICU President & CEO Jeff Perez at jeff@scicu.org or 803-799-7122. Mailing address: PO Box 12007, Columbia, SC 29211.