University of South Carolina trustees approved a 2026-27 fiscal year budget Friday (June 19) and advanced key projects tied to the Columbia campus’s USC Next master plan.
2026-27 budget approved
Tuition for South Carolina residents will remain the same for the eighth year in a row (the ninth year for USC's comprehensive institutions). Nonresident student tuition will increase by 3 percent. A $150 per-semester student union expansion fee will start this fall.
Columbia approvals
Project, land and personnel approvals
- Russell House: Overhauling and expanding the 71-year-old student union to fully modernize the building. Russell House will remain open, but USC plans to establish an auxiliary student union on Main Street during construction.
- Civil Rights Center: Constructing a Civil Rights Center just east of the historic Booker T. Washington building between Blossom and Wheat streets.
- New board secretary: Electing Joe Sobieralski, senior associate vice president for administration and business affairs, to serve as the new secretary to the Board of Trustees. He will remain university treasuer.
- Vice presidents: Approving Anne Peters as vice president of marketing and Stacey Bradley as vice president for human resources and organizational excellence.
- Other projects: Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center roof and column replacement; Close-Hipp seventh-floor renovation for College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management; West Energy plant cooling tower cell and infrastructure replacement; North Energy plant chiller and infrastructure replacement; Maxcy College envelope repairs; Engineering District planning study; Athletics Village parking lot development; property acquisition at Blossom and Williams streets (Founders Park); Health Sciences Campus land acquisition; and naming Sumter Street residential development (McBryde) as “The Commons At Carolina.”
Academic approvals
- New programs: B.S., Industrial Design; M.S., Earth and Environmental Science; and Ph.D., Earth and Environmental Science.
- New certificate: Post-master’s certificate, School Library Studies.
- Program modifications: B.A., Liberal Studies; B.A., Organizational Leadership; B.A., Early Childhood Education; B.A., Elementary Education; B.A., Special Education; B.S., Middle Level Education; B.S.P.E., Physical Education; Ph.D., Library and Information Science; and D.M.A., Music (merge D.M.A., Music Composition and D.M.A., Music Performance).
- Combination degrees: Professional M.B.A. and D.N.P., Executive Healthcare Leadership; and Professional M.B.A. and D.N.P., Clinical Expert.
- 100 percent online delivery: Post-baccalaureate certificate, Drug and Addiction Studies; Post-baccalaureate certificate, Social and Behavioral Health with Military Members, Veterans, and Military Families; Post-baccalaureate certificate, Trauma-Informed Practice; M.E., Aerospace Engineering; M.S., Aerospace Engineering; M.E., Civil Engineering; M.S., Civil Engineering; Ph.D., Civil Engineering; M.S., Mechanical Engineering; M.E., Mechanical Engineering; Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering; M.S., Nuclear Engineering; M.E, Nuclear Engineering; and Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering.
- Program terminations: Certificate, Applied Statistics; and M.A.S., Applied Statistics.
- Revision: USC Columbia faculty manual.
Faculty approvals
- Tenure and promotion to associate professor: McCausland College of Arts and Sciences — 12; Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing — 6; School of Music — 5; Floyd School of Medicine — 3; Darla Moore School of Business — 3; Arnold School of Public Health — 3; College of Nursing — 2; College of Information and Communications — 2; College of Social Work — 1; and College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management — 1.
- Promotion to professor: College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management — 1.
- Tenure at associate professor: Floyd School of Medicine — 1.
- Tenure as librarian — 1.
- New hires with tenure: McCausland College of Arts and Sciences — 3; Arnold School of Public Health — 1; Darla Moore School of Business — 1; Floyd School of Medicine — 1; College of Information and Communications — 1; Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing — 1; and School of Nursing — 1.
- Honorary academic titles: McCausland College of Arts and Sciences — 4; College of Nursing — 1; Darla Moore School of Business — 1; Joseph F. Rice School of Law — 1; and College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management — 1.
Contract approvals
- ChatGPT: Extending the agreement with OpenAI to offer secure AI tools campuswide for another year.
- USC Facilities Department: Plumbing contracting services – McCarter Mechanical Inc.; MSI Construction Co. Inc.; IPW Construction Group LLC; and Walker White Inc.; and Roadway repair contracting services — C.R. Jackson Inc.; L-J, Inc.; Williams Infrastructure LLC; and AOS Specialty Contractors Inc.
- USC School of Medicine Columbia: Clinical Training Affiliation Agreement with McLeod Health.
- USC Athletics Department: Employment agreements with Steven Smith, assistant men’s basketball coach, and assistant baseball coaches William Thomas Cilento and Timothy Matthews Williams; 2026 football charter flight agreement with Delta Air Lines Inc.; and Software Services Agreement with TeamWorks Innovations Inc.
- USC Department of Information Technology: Servicers Agreement with Gartner Inc. and ChatGPT Agreement with OpenAI OpCo LLC.
System approvals
Capital projects
- USC Aiken: Expanding and renovating the science building.
- USC Upstate: Renovating the track and field facility.
- USC Sumter: Constructing a facilities management building and renovating the entrance to the administration building.
- USC Union: Renovating the Bell Street School building and the Jonesville Baseball Stadium.
Faculty approvals
- USC Aiken: Six promotions to professor (Department of Computer Science, Engineering, and Mathematics; Department of Sociology; Department of English and Writing; School of Nursing; Department of Chemistry and Physics; and Department of Biological, Environmental and Earth Sciences) and three tenure and promotions to associate professor (Department of Psychology and School of Education).
- USC Beaufort: Four promotions to professor (Department of Public Health, Department of English, Department of Human Services and Department of Mathematics); two tenure appointments at associate professor (School of Nursing).
- USC Upstate: 10 promotions to professor (Department of Natural Science and Engineering; Department of Fine Arts and Communication Studies; Department of Education; Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Women’s Studies; Department of Management, Entrepreneurship, and Marketing; and Department of Economics, Finance, and Accounting) and promotion to associate professor (Department of Economics, Finance, and Accounting).
- Palmetto College: Two promotions to professor (USC Lancaster and USC Union).
Academic program approvals
- USC Aiken: New program: M.A., Emerging Media; two new undergraduate certificates, in Digital
and AI Marketing and Paralegal Studies; and name change from M.Ed., Educator Leadership,
to M.Ed., Teacher Leadership.
• USC Upstate: New program: B.S., Environmental Engineering; and two program modifications in M.S., Exercise and Sport Science, and M.S., Informatics to M.S., Information Technology.
Contract approvals
- USC Beaufort: Employment agreement with Tim Daniels, associate vice chancellor for intercollegiate athletics and athletics director.
- USC Upstate: College team product supply and sales contract with Nike.