The University of South Carolina Board of Trustees met Thursday (Sept. 24), and trustees met two new deans, appointed the first Floyd School of Medicine Columbia Kay and C. Edward Floyd, M.D. distinguished professorships and amended the campuswide Open AI contract.
USC introduces new McCausland, Floyd deans
USC trustees met two new deans who started working on campus during the fall semester.
Dr. Jamie Dwyer is the new dean of the Kay and C. Edward Floyd, M.D. School of Medicine. He arrived from the University of Utah, where he was executive associate vice president for research and chief innovation and a professor of medicine in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension and director of the Utah Data Coordinating Center.
An internationally recognized leader in kidney disease, cardiovascular outcomes research and large-scale clinical trials, Dwyer brings extensive experience in academic medicine, healthcare innovation and translational research. Dwyer is recognized for his innovative approach to securing venture capital funds to develop public-private partnerships in health care and research.
Dwyer earned mathematics and medical degrees from Brown University and completed his residency at the Mayo Clinic and fellowship training at Vanderbilt University. In 2015, he was appointed to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s CardioRenal Advisory Committee, and he also has served as a consultant to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Innovation Center.
Christopher Culbertson joined USC as dean of the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences. He was dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Kansas State University, where he led major academic initiatives including development of a new general education curriculum, the launch of interdisciplinary research programs, creation of enhanced advising and student success models, and expansion of the college’s research enterprise.
Under his leadership at Kansas State, first-time freshman enrollment increased by 45 percent, and four-year graduation rates improved by more than 13 percent.
An accomplished researcher in chemistry, Culbertson’s work focuses on microfluidics, biosensing and biomedical applications. He was among the top 2 percent of cited researchers in his field in a Stanford University study from 2021 through 2025. He earned bachelor’s degrees from the University of West Florida and Harvard College and a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
First Floyd distinguished professor appointed
The Floyd School of Medicine Columbia appointed Liwu Li — a new professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology — as an inaugural chairholder to one of two newly established Kay and C. Edward Floyd, M.D. Distinguished Professorships.
Li has established a national and international reputation as a leading expert in innate immune memory and inflammation — areas that are central to understanding a range of clinically significant conditions, including cancer, infectious diseases and cardiovascular disorders. His research is credited with guiding the development of major therapeutic strategies.
Li, who received a Ph.D. in biology from the University of Michigan, comes to USC from Virginia Tech, where he is an endowed College of Science Faculty fellow. He also was part of the faculty at Wake Forest. He has received more than $20 million in National Institutes of Health research grants.
Open AI contract amended
Trustees approved an amendment to its contract with Open AI that will accommodate heavy faculty research workloads using ChatGPT. The amendment will provide access to more AI credits to other users, including students, faculty and staff. USC was the first university in South Carolina to offer ChatGPT access free campuswide.
Contract approvals
- Division of Information Technology: Software license and services agreement with Salesforce Inc.
- Division of Development: Software solutions agreement with Blackbaud
- Department of Athletics: Administrative amendment to employment agreement for head
men’s basketball coach Lamont Paris
Faculty approvals
New hire with tenure
- Columbia: one (Floyd School of Medicine)
Honorary academic titles
- Columbia: three (Floyd School of Medicine)
- School of Medicine Greenville: one (endocrinology)
- Aiken: one (School of Education)
- Upstate: two (College of Education, Human Performance, and Health and College of Nursing)
- Sumter: one (English)
Academic approvals
Program Modifications/Certificate
- Columbia: M.B.A., international business, curriculum change; and J.D., law, add constitutional law concentration
- Beaufort: Undergraduate certificate in nutrition