Volume 11 | Issue 5 - May 2019
May 2019 News and Notes
May 2019 news highlights include:
  • "Inspiration" - Message from SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez
  • SCICU congratulates the Class of 2019 - graduation news from our 20 member schools
  • SCICU announces selection and funding of research projects for the 2019 SCICU Undergraduate Student/Faculty Research Program
  • SC General Assembly update
  • Federal update
  • Save the date - SCICU Board of Trustees Fall Meeting - October 3 at Coker University
  • 2019 upcoming events
  • Member college news
  • Business partners
SCICU News and Notes will be on hiatus for June and July. For more SC higher education news over the summer months, please follow SCICU on social media:

"Inspiration"

Message from SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez
Jeff Perez, Ph.D.
SCICU President and CEO
From my years on college campuses, I know how bittersweet graduation is. We’re happy that our students are opening the next chapters of their lives, confident they are equipped to take on the world. But we’ve spent much time with these extraordinary young people and it’s tough to say goodbye.

I think that special relationship is captured in the word “inspiration.”

Interestingly, the Latin origin of the word “inspiration” means both “blow into” and “breathe in.” Those two meanings capture our experience with our students.

SCICU congratulates the Class of 2019
SCICU congratulates the thousands of students at South Carolina’s independent colleges and universities whose many accomplishments culminated in earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in 2019.

Please click on your favorite college or university to read about their 2019 commencement events:

SCICU announces project selection and funding for 2019 Undergraduate Student/Faculty Research Program
Undergraduate student researchers at South Carolina’s leading private colleges and universities are receiving invaluable experience in their fields of study thanks to SCICU’s 2019 Student /Faculty Research program. SCICU, the advocacy and support group for independent higher education in S.C., is pleased to announce nearly $75,000 in funding for 28 undergraduate research projects in 2019.

SC General Assembly Update
Those of us associated with independent higher education in South Carolina should be very pleased with the results of the 2019 session of the SC General Assembly.

The final version of the budget delivered to the governor includes the full $1.6 million increase requested by the Tuition Grants Commission – the full request has not been funded in recent memory. This increase raises the individual tuition grant to a maximum of $3,450 from $3,300. And that is “recurring” money, meaning it is now automatically built into all future state budgets.

Federal Update
On the federal front, as so often happens, there’s good news and bad news.

The good news is support in the House of Representative for student financial aid…

The bad news is the House passed the so-named “Equality Act,” which, while it may have laudable intent, would have very negative consequences for numerous SCICU institutions.

Save the date!
SCICU Fall Board Meeting
Coker University
October 3, 2019

Please watch your email for more details...

Member College 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 member college / university news:

Allen University

Anderson University

Benedict College

Charleston Southern University

Claflin University

Coker College

Columbia International University

Furman University

Newberry College

North Greenville University

Presbyterian College

Southern Wesleyan University


Click below to access important information from each of the SCICU member colleges and universities:

2019 Upcoming Events

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  |  Acumen IT, LLC  |  Affinity LTC, LLC (Genworth Financial)  |  Aramark Higher Education  |  Argent Financial Group | Blackboard   |  Cantey Tech Consulting  |  CapinCrouse LLP  | Cherry Bekaert, LLC Church Mutual Insurance Company  |  Coleman Lew Canny Brown  |  Collegiate Financial Services (IOA)  |  Craig Gaulden Davis  |  CSI Leasing, Inc.  |  Dominion Energy Elliott Davis  |  Find Great People, LLC  |  First American Education Finance  | Gillis Specialty Adverstising  |  Giraffe Web Design  |  Harper Corporation General Contractors  |  Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, PA  |  HillSouth iT Solutions  |  Howard Technology Solutions  |  HRP Associates, Inc.  |  Hypersign, LLC  | Immedion LLC  |   The LearningHouse, Inc.  |  MB Kahn Construction Company, Inc.  |  McAllister & Quinn  |   McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture  | Met@data IT LLC  |  Metz Culinary Management  |  Myers McRae Executive Search and Consulting  |  National Management Resources Corporation  | P2Ops, LLC  |  Paymerang (fka AP Advantage)  |  Pioneer College Caterers Pollock Company  |  Purple Briefcase  |  PVC Fittings Online | Regions Bank | S2K Group, Inc.  |  SC Student Loan Corporation  |  ScholarBuys  |  SEGRA (formerly Spirit Communications | Sodexo  |  STEM Premier Stroz Friedberg  |  Thompson & Little  |  Total Comfort Solutions  | UnitedHealthcare Student Resources  |  USI Insurance Services, LLC | VEMO Education | Vulcan Materials Company  |  Walsh Consulting Group LLC  |   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.
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