USC Aiken Parent and Family Newsletter-April, 2019

Volume I |April 2019

In This Issue:

University Parkway Detour Continues

The South Carolina Department of Transportation recently announced that work on University Parkway – from near the Market Place Shopping Center (where Groucho’s Deli is located) to the entrance to the Aiken Regional Medical Center on Physician’s Drive – will continue through May.

It is very likely that this portion of University Parkway will be closed during commencement exercises on May 8. Please plan accordingly if you will attend commencement or be on campus, and give yourself extra time to accommodate additional traffic.

All entrances to the university will be accessible; however, the one across from the hospital (on Medical Park Drive, across from Scholar Loop on campus) will only be available for those coming from the Trolley Line Road direction.

For future updates, click here .

They're Coming Home - Setting House Rules

Many residential students will complete this term's coursework and return home soon (and so will their dirty laundry)!

You may still consider them as barely graduating from high school, but in their minds they have been living independently, making their own meal and sleep schedule, and cleaning up after themselves (or not).

If your student will be living under your roof for the summer, it's best to establish some modified house rules --- rules that everyone can live with.

This article relates to a parent's game plan for setting house rules, and this article comes from a student's perspective. Both articles have great advice to consider.

Be Informed About Move-Out

Policies and Procedures

It's hard to believe that the year is almost over, and students will soon be moving out of housing!

If your student lives in Pacer Crossings, Pacer Commons, or Pacer Downs, you may want to read this and then have a conversation with your resident student. Thank you for your support!

Commencement and Senior Celebration Brunch

The above decal will be available to parents and families at the May 8 commencement ceremony. If you cannot attend but would like one, please email [email protected] with student's full name and their USC Aiken email address.

We will notify students when they can pick up your decal for you. Sorry, we cannot mail decals.

Congratulations!

Senior Celebration Brunch

Celebrate this special time by attending the Senior Celebration Brunch with your student! Photo opportunities with family and faculty will be available.

Graduating seniors receive a free brunch ticket; guests are charged a nominal fee. The deadline for students to purchase guest brunch tickets is April 30.

Commencement Ceremony

Detailed information for guest arrival, seating, tickets, etc., can be found here. Please note that main floor doors leading into the arena will close at 5:50 p.m. for the student processional.

All guests should be seated by 5:45 p.m.

Please read details about the University Parkway detour (first newsletter article) and allow extra time to navigate the USC Aiken area.

If you cannot be with us in person, please watch the live-stream of the ceremony. The link will not be available until 15 minutes before the ceremony begins.

Stay Calm and Know that a Liberal Arts Education is Valued!

According to a recent LinkedIn blog, employers consider soft skills (such as those learned in liberal arts) as being more important than hard skills. The current Goldman-Sachs CEO agrees and stresses the importance of strong written communication skills.

To assist all students, USC Aiken's Writing Room provides tutoring and workshops throughout the semester.

DegreeWorks

Did you know that USC Aiken students have the ability to track their degree progress through Self Service Carolina?

DegreeWorks is an easy‐to‐use, web‐based, degree audit and academic advising software designed to enhance the advisement and academic planning process (e.g., track degree progress, prepare for registration, and plan for graduation). DegreeWorks has powerful tools that allow students to view their academic progress at any time and confirm how course choices fulfill degree/certificate requirements. Note that DegreeWorks is designed to aid and facilitate academic advising but is not intended to replace face‐to‐face advising sessions with academic advisors.

USC Aiken Students Present Research

USC Aiken's College of Sciences and Engineering was well represented at the 92 ^nd Annual Meeting of the South Carolina Academy of Science on March 30, at Francis Marion University.

Several USC Aiken STEM students gave poster or oral presentations. These students were mentored by eight different faculty from the Department of Biology and Geology and the Department of Chemistry and Physics.

This year’s USC Aiken award recipients were:

Kali Wiggins and Dr. April DeLaurier (2^nd place Molecular Biology oral)
Shalyn Najjar and Dr. Andy Dyer (1^st place: Environmental Science poster)
Amanda Askins and Dr. Nathan Hancock (1^st place Biology: Cell and Molecular oral AND Best overall undergraduate presentation)
McKenzie Spires and Dr. William Jackson (1^st place Biology: Molecular oral)
Rachel Moment and Dr. April DeLaurier (2^nd place: Biology: Molecular poster)
Reese King and Dr. Nathan Hancock (1^st place: Biology: Molecular poster)
Wesley Brison and Dr. Michele Harmon (1^st place Biology: Field and Zoology; Environmental Science)

Congratulations to these students and their families!

Endowed Scholarships

USC Aiken's Advancement team works with generous donors who provide opportunities for students to afford college. We appreciate our donors and know that students and families do as well. If your student would like to investigate these scholarship opportunities, please share this link with them.

Parent and Family Relations Office Hours

We are happy to reply to your messages during regular office hours, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. -

4:30 p.m. As always, you can email us at [email protected] or call 803-641-2825.

If your Pacer is graduating this spring or summer, congratulations! It has been my pleasure to send you these newsletters. I hope they have been helpful. If you would like to continue receiving them, feel free. However, if you would like to unsubscribe please click the corresponding link at the bottom of this page.

Sincerely,

Sandy Talbott

Parent and Family Relations Coordinator

[email protected]