The Office of the Vice President for Research is pleased to announce the 2026 RISE funding recipients.
The Research Initiative for Summer Engagement (RISE) Program is an internal grant program that supports faculty members at USC’s system campuses as they conduct research and scholarly projects during the summer months. This year, the Office of the Vice President for Research, with generous support from the chancellors at USC Aiken, USC Beaufort and USC Upstate, is proud to fund 27 scholarly projects by faculty working on USC’s system campuses. Congratulations to the 2026 RISE grant recipients!
2026 Palmetto College Campus RISE Recipients
| Recipient Name | College |
|---|---|
| Sahar Aghasafari | Lancaster |
| Mary Ellen Bellanca | Sumter |
| Patrick Lawrence | Lancaster |
| Christopher Nesmith | Salkehatchie |
| Mohammad Rahman | Sumter |
| Sami Varjosaari | Sumter |
2026 Comprehensive Institution RISE Recipients
| Recipient Name | College |
|---|---|
| Della Arjomandaskari Sirizi | Aiken |
| Kenneth Barideaux | Upstate |
| Kimberly Cavanagh | Beaufort |
| Bridget Cho | Aiken |
| Brianne Coulombe | Aiken |
| Kara Davis | Upstate |
| Ona Egbue | Upstate |
| Ryan Hanscom | Beaufort |
| Araceli Hernandez-Laroche | Upstate |
| Tina Herzberg | Upstate |
| Merri Johnson | Upstate |
| Benjamin McCraw | Upstate |
| Courtlyn Pippert | Aiken |
| Nicole Richardson | Upstate |
| Patrick Saracino | Upstate |
| John Strandholm | Upstate |
| Julie Wade | Upstate |
| Lizabeth Zack | Upstate |
| Qingli Zeng | Upstate |
| Xudong Zhang | Upstate |
| Wei Zhong | Upstate |