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Government and Community Relations

Legislative & Budgetary Priorities

Our partnership with the governor and legislature helps us provide an affordable, world-class education that educates current and future workforce leaders in key areas from healthcare and education to engineering and science and tech.

Shared Focus

USC’s partnership with, and support from, the governor and legislature is vital to ensuring a trained and educated workforce, and thus a more prosperous South Carolina for generations to come. Our shared focus areas include:

  • Foster access and affordability for in-state students
  • Augment research capacities
  • Advance health outcomes for the citizens of South Carolina
  • Achieve regulatory reform in a fast-changing marketplace
  • Empower the state’s workforce through educational initiatives aimed at growing the South Carolina economy.


  
Fiscal Year 2026–27 Budgetary Requests

Strong fiscal management, conservative budgeting and a solid financial position continue to make USC a sound investment for the governor and General Assembly. USC’s FY2026-27 priorities will:

  • Keep tuition affordable which has saved South Carolina families thousands over the past seven years in Columbia and eight across the system.
  • Expand internships that connect students with South Carolina businesses while investing in STEM fields, including engineering, battery technology and other energy solutions.
  • Increase the number of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other professionals trained to meet South Carolina’s growing health care needs, supported by the new Health Sciences Campus at BullStreet.
  • Support a first-of-its-kind neurological hospital and rehabilitation center while expanding USC’s statewide Brain Health Network to bring advanced care closer to home.
  • Grow the new USC Center for American Civic Leadership and Public Discourse to promote civic education, respectful dialogue and leadership development across South Carolina.

Government and Community Relations


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