SEC ALDP was established in 2008 and its mission is to identify, prepare and advance future leaders.
- The program includes two on-campus workshops hosted by different SEC universities that bring together fellows from each SEC institution.
- In addition, USC fellows participate in a series of conversations with leaders across the USC Columbia campus and other development activities.
The SEC ALDP is one of several SEC activities that focuses on programs and activities designed to highlight the teaching, research and service accomplishments of SEC students, faculty and staff, including related successes within the Conference’s intercollegiate athletics programs.
For more information, visit the SEC ALDP website or download the mission, vision and goals document [pdf].
SEC ALDP is offered through the Office of the Provost, please visit their website for more information.
ELP (Emerging Leaders Program) prepares early-career, high potential faculty and staff leaders for mid-level leadership positions at USC. This program develops the leader through skill building focused on influence, collaboration and leading self, others, teams, projects, and change management.
New: ELP’s tenth cohort will consist of a balance of faculty and staff (vs. 100% staff) and participation eligibility will be aligned to leader job levels. (See below for eligibility.) These changes will align program education, exposure and experiences to the competency mastery by leader level and foster relationships, mutual respect, and a culture of collaboration across the university. ELP graduates may be nominated to attend PAL in the future as their job level changes.
Executives are encouraged to use their succession plans to guide their endorsement decisions.
ELP is offered through the Division of Human Resources' Organizational and Professional Development Office (HR-OPD) in partnership with the Office of the Provost's Faculty Development.
ELP provides a framework for leadership development that starts at the personal level, increasing self-awareness to better communicate, influence and work with others; and then develops skills for leading teams, projects and change.
Participants gain valuable insights into their own preferences, tendencies and behaviors as leaders by engaging in a series of assessments, including a 360-degree feedback process. Cohort groups learn about the university’s academic and administrative culture and work processes through interaction with the institution’s leadership. Participants create a development plan and review their progress to ensure they are closing skill and behavior gaps necessary for their career advancement.
To participate in this program, the qualified employee must be:
- In good standing and working in a full-time staff position as a University of South Carolina-Columbia employee for a minimum of 6 months.
- Staff job levels Professional (P3-P4) and Manager (M0, M1, M2).
- Faculty job levels will be evaluated by the Provost’s Office for placement in ELP or PAL.
- Available to participate in 85% of the program’s sessions.
- Required: LEAD Supervisory Essentials Certificate of Completion for faculty and staff supervisors.
- Preferred for all participants: Managing High Performing Teams and Effective Communications Certificates of Completion.
Speak with your college or division leadership if you would like to be considered for this program.
Program sessions build on content knowledge.
- Program participants are required to attend at least 85% or more of the leadership sessions that run from September to April to receive a certificate of completion.
- Participants are also required to participate in peer group coaching sessions and a project that may involve additional time outside of the scheduled leadership sessions.
- Participants will also participate in a 360° feedback process that includes an individual coaching session to create a personal SWOT and an Individual Development Plan based upon the 360° feedback process, other program assessment results and ongoing coaching conversations.
A non‐refundable fee of $650 is charged to the department if the applicant is selected to participate. This fee is used solely to cover ELP expenses including speaker fees, training materials, assessments and other costs.
Attendance Requirement: at least 85% session attendance is required for successful ELP completion. Please apply another year if you cannot commit to the dates below.
All sessions will be held in-person at 1600 Hampton Street, Suite 101 unless otherwise noted. Sessions will not be streamed nor recorded for off-site/remote viewing.
View the ELP Program Brochure for more information.
| Session | Date | Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Session 1 |
Friday, September 26, 2025 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 2 |
Friday, October 24 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 3 |
Friday, November 14 |
9:00 am – 3:30 pm |
|
Session 4 |
Friday, December 5 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 5 |
Friday, January 23, 2026 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 6 |
Friday, February 27 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 7 |
Friday, March 27 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
|
Session 8 |
Friday April 24 |
9:00 am – 1:00 pm |
Contact Kim Pruitt, Director of Organizational and Professional Development within the Division of Human Resources, at 803-777-3529 or kpruitt2@mailbox.sc.edu for additional information regarding ELP.
LEAD Supervisory Essentials will undergo a major redesign launching in August 2025 to better support USC supervisors.
Why it matters: This change aims to enhance learning and accelerate support for new supervisors, ensuring they are well-prepared for their roles.
Options for those in-progress or have not yet started:
- Complete all LEAD courses and the quiz by August 1, 2025, OR
- Wait for the new program to launch in August 2025 (please cancel current registrations if you decide to wait for the updated program launch)
Support for new supervisors until August 2025: Monthly New Supervisor Orientation sessions are available to provide immediate assistance.
You can monitor your LEAD course completion and track your progress using the LEAD Checklist.
What to do if courses are full: If you can’t find an available course and need to graduate by August 1, 2025, contact OPD as soon as possible.
Communicate the LEAD changes to your supervisor and make the necessary edits to your planning stage to either complete the current LEAD program by August 1, 2025 or to reflect your decision to wait until the revised program launches.
For more information: email HRTrain@mailbox.sc.edu or review HR Policy 1.51.
The LEAD (Supervisory Essentials) program, is required for all supervisors of University staff hired into a supervisory position after January 1, 2010 (Policy HR 1.51 [pdf]) and must be completed within 18 months of being hired into a supervisory position.
- Participants will have two opportunities to pass a comprehensive, open-note final exam with a score of at least 80% to achieve their LEAD certificate.
- LEAD is for supervisors of staff and HR Contacts; non-supervisors may not attend LEAD.
HR-OPD will send out quizzes and certificates of completion on a monthly basis.
LEAD: Supervisory Essentials is offered through the Division of Human Resources' Organizational
and Professional Development Office (HR-OPD).
PAL prepares mid-level, high-talented, faculty and staff leaders for executive-level leadership positions in higher education. The program develops the participant with executive leadership education that includes opportunities for self-reflection and individual goal setting, critical skill building to lead and inspire others in achieving college/division goals, and strategies to solve executive-level challenges and transform organizations.
New: PAL’s eleventh cohort will consist of a balance of faculty and staff (vs. 80/20) and participation eligibility will be aligned to leader job levels. (See below for eligibility.) These changes will align program education, exposure and experiences to the competency mastery by leader level and foster relationships, mutual respect, and a culture of collaboration across the university. ELP graduates may be nominated to attend PAL in the future as their job level changes.
PAL is offered through the Division of Human Resources’ Office of Organizational and Professional Development in partnership with the Office of the Provost’s Faculty Development.
PAL provides a framework for leadership development that starts at the personal level, increasing self-awareness to better communicate, influence and work with others; and then develops skills for leading teams and organizations.
Participants gain valuable insights into their own preferences, tendencies and behaviors as leaders by engaging a series of assessments, including a 360-degree feedback process. Cohort groups learn about the university’s academic and administrative culture and work processes through interaction with the institution’s leadership.
To qualify for the PAL program, academic and administrative leaders must meet the eligibility requirements below and be nominated by their dean or vice president.
- In good standing and working in a full-time staff position as a University of South Carolina-Columbia employee for a minimum of 6 months.
- Staff job levels Manager (M3, M4) and Director and Executive (E0, E1).
- Faculty job levels will be evaluated by the Provost’s Office for placement in ELP or PAL.
- Available to participate in 85% of the program’s sessions.
- Required: LEAD Supervisory Essentials Certificate of Completion for faculty and staff supervisors.
- Preferred for all participants: Managing High Performing Teams and Effective Communications Certificates of Completion.
Speak with your college or division leadership if you would like to be considered for this program.
In order to receive a certificate of completion, program participants are required to attend 85% or more of the leadership sessions.
- Participants are also required to participate in peer group coaching sessions, and a project that may involve additional meeting time outside of the scheduled leadership sessions.
- A 360° feedback process is conducted which requires participants to meet with a coaching mentor from the Organizational and Professional Development Office to discuss the results. An Individual Development Plan [pdf] is created based upon the 360° feedback process and coaching conversations.
A non‐refundable fee of $750 is charged to the department if the applicant is selected to participate. This fee is used solely to cover Pipeline for Academy Leaders Program expenses including speaker fees, training materials, assessments and other costs.
Attendance Requirement: at least 85% session attendance is required for successful PAL completion. Please apply another year if you cannot commit to the dates below.
All sessions will be held in-person at 1600 Hampton Street, Suite 101 unless otherwise noted. Sessions will not be streamed nor recorded for off-site/remote viewing.
Sessions will start at 9:00 am and end at 4:00 pm except for session 3 which will run from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm.
View the PAL participant brochure for more information.
| Session | Date | Time |
|---|---|---|
|
Session 1 |
Friday, September 5, 2025 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 2 |
Friday, October 3 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 3 |
Friday, November 7 |
9:00 am – 3:30 pm |
|
Session 4 |
Friday, January 9, 2026 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 5 |
Friday, February 20 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 6 |
Friday, March 20 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 7 |
Friday, April 17 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
|
Session 8 |
Friday, May 8 |
9:00 am – 4:00 pm |
Contact Kim Pruitt, Director of Organizational and Professional Development within the Division of Human Resources, at 803-777-3529 or kpruitt2@mailbox.sc.edu for additional information regarding PAL.
Vice presidents, provosts, deans and chancellors are expected to create and maintain succession plans for all senior executive and pivotal positions in their areas of responsibility.
- Succession plans should be reviewed and updated biennially or 6-12 months after a significant change. The Division of Human Resources will send out an annual reminder. All plans are subject to periodic review and audit by the Office of Audit and Advisory Services.
Use these tools to help develop your senior executive and pivotal position succession plans.
Designed for University faculty and staff who supervise student employees on the Columbia campus. Courses available:
- Student Employee Recruitment - Finding and selecting student employees is vital to the success of an on-campus organization. This training covers the process of developing job descriptions/announcements, recruiting student employees, interviewing, and documentation of the selection process. Identify key terms and methods of creating an on-campus job description and gain skills on developing an ethical and intentional recruitment plan. Participants learn how to utilize Handshake, USC’s on-campus job platform.
- Student Hiring and Onboarding - Once a candidate accepts a position, supervisors transition to the hiring phase and begin onboarding and initial training with student employees. Learn best practices for student hiring and onboarding. Create a meaningful, timely, and impactful student hiring experience, identify new methods of organization for student hiring and develop a streamlined plan for onboarding them.
- The Balance of Care and Accountability - Understand the role of the Care Team on USC's campus and how to refer a student of concern and identify behaviors that indicate distress. Learn the resources available to support students in need and helping skills to support students who are in distress.
- Risk Management and Emergency Response - Does your unit have policies or training developed for risk management? If not, join us for a training surrounding risk management within student employment and how to best prepare your team for emergency response. Identify areas of need within individual units and learn how to develop emergency response plans and gain new methods of training student employees.
Courses are offered through the Division of Human Resources’ Organizational and Professional Development Office (HR-OPD) in collaboration with USC’s Student Career Center and the Office of Student Conduct. Browse the HR-OPD training calendar or class list by subject to register for a course.