Recent Stories

USC Alumna, Carson Light on being a social media coordinator

From USC to full-time Instagram, TikTok content creator

November 29, 2023, Lauryn Jiles

When taking a look at Carson Light’s Instagram profile, you’ll come across an array of fashion, beauty and lifestyle content. Her social media is a reflection of her personal interests and what she does for a living. The 2020 College of Information and Communications graduate has built her own personal brand through social media, accumulating over 31,000 followers on Instagram and over 4 million views on TikTok.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Academics, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management, College of Information and Communications

Seth Rose and his family photographed on the Horseshoe.

Alumnus and tennis standout Seth Rose gives back -- and not just for racket sports.

November 08, 2023, Craig Brandhorst

Seth Rose, ’03, was a first team All-American in men’s tennis, and he paid his alma mater back by helping finance two courts on campus But Rose’s love for the Gamecocks extends beyond tennis. The 2014 Gamecock Athletics Hall of Fame inductee is also a huge Gamecock football fan, and his philanthropy reflects it.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, Recognition, Service, Leadership, Careers, Joseph F. Rice School of Law, Carolinian

Physician and medical student look at computer screen

Pediatric subspecialists move beyond urban hubs to visit rural patients

November 03, 2023, Megan Sexton

The South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare at the USC School of Medicine Columbia. works to improve health care delivery for rural communities by operating and facilitating a range of programs. Through one, the Department of Pediatrics sends subspecialists into areas outside the state’s urban hubs.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Health Sciences, Careers, Medicine (Columbia)

Photo of student walking on the Horseshoe

First-generation college students bring resilience, perspectives to USC campus

November 03, 2023, Megan Sexton

First-generation college students come from all sorts of backgrounds and bring a variety of perspectives to campus. At USC, about one-fifth of the student population identifies as first-generation college students, meaning their parents did not earn a four-year college degree.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Faculty, Academics, Experiential Learning, Scholarships, Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate Studies, Initiatives, Diversity, Leadership, Careers, Student Voices, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Education, College of Engineering and Computing, Arnold School of Public Health, South Carolina Honors College

Head and shoulders photo of Danny Morrison

HRSM professor Danny Morrison passes on wisdom gleaned from decades in sports industry

October 16, 2023, Megan Sexton

Danny Morrison, former president of the Carolina Panthers and a sport management professor at USC, draws on his long career in athletics to inspire and educate the next generation of sport professionals

Topics: Students, Alumni, Faculty, Academics, Experiential Learning, Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate Studies, Leadership, Careers, Student Voices, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

a jockey on horseback waves as two men walk beside the horse

History professor documents Latino excellence in horseracing

October 12, 2023, Page Ivey

The next time you watch a horse race, note the accents in the voices, read the names — not just the jockeys and grooms, but the trainers and owners. Chances are most of the people you see excelling in horseracing are Latino. “Over 80% of the people on the track throughout the second half of the 20th and into the 21st century are Latino,” says University of South Carolina history professor Gabrielle Kuenzli.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Research, Diversity, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

Kate Levey headshot

Digital certificate program offers in-demand career skills

September 14, 2023, Hannah Cambre

This fall, the university launched its digital studies certificate program, which helps undergraduate students gain in-demand digital skills. The certificate is the first in a series of anticipated interdisciplinary programs that are set to roll out in the spring of 2024.

Topics: Students, University Leadership, University President, Academics, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Careers, Student Voices, College of Arts and Sciences, Darla Moore School of Business, College of Engineering and Computing, College of Information and Communications

A portrait of Sara Barber with SC Statehouse in the background.

Sara Barber pushes long-term change in handling domestic violence cases

August 14, 2023, Rebekah Friedman

In South Carolina, 42 percent of women have experienced intimate partner physical violence, sexual violence or stalking. Sara Barber knows the statistics. Since 2014, the University of South Carolina alumna has served as executive director of the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, a coalition of 22 organizations that connect survivors with emergency shelter, counseling and other services.

Topics: Alumni, Carolinian, Service, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

A portrait of Audrey Ware.

Curiosity drives consulting career

August 10, 2023, Dan Cook

Curiosity has always been a driving force for Audrey Ware — and it has paid off. She earned three undergraduate degrees at USC: international business, marketing and French. Now, armed with a master’s degree in market research and consumer behavior, Ware continues to explore as a senior business analyst for the global firm McKinsey & Company in Charlotte.

Topics: Alumni, Experiential Learning, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences, Darla Moore School of Business, South Carolina Honors College

head and shoulders shot of Alysja Carlisle

USC Law alumna keeps learning, giving back

August 10, 2023, Megan Sexton

As vice president and legal counsel at Belk in Charlotte, School of Law alumna Alysja Carlisle reviews and drafts commercial contracts, manages projects and addresses a wide range of general corporate, privacy and intellectual property issues. She also gives her time and talents to organizations around the region and her alma mater.

Topics: Alumni, Experiential Learning, Recognition, Service, Leadership, Careers, Joseph F. Rice School of Law

a radar image of hurricane hugo making landfall in SC in 1989

USC geography graduates help guide state, nation through hurricane season

July 13, 2023, Page Ivey

Every summer, the South Carolina coast and the southeastern U.S. faces the threat of hurricanes that range in size from sustained winds of 74 mph to the state’s most catastrophic hurricane, Hugo in 1989 that resulted in $10 billion in damages. Helping minimize the damage from these storms is the job of several graduates of the University of South Carolina’s geography master’s program.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, Research, Experiential Learning, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

Panoramic view of Segra Park baseball stadium.

USC students gain wide exposure to sports industry through summer baseball internships

July 07, 2023, Allen Wallace

Students from the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management are learning all about minor league baseball this summer at teams throughout the Southeast and beyond. Providing these hands-on opportunities is a priority for USC’s Department of Sport and Entertainment Management, which emphasizes real-world experience and career development alongside classroom instruction.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Experiential Learning, Leadership, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

A close up of grass on the USC Horseshoe with Maxcy monument in the background.

USC landscapers work to keep campus pretty, environment healthy, outdoor workspace as happy as can be

June 29, 2023, Craig Brandhorst and Téa Smith

Our campus lawns provide a lush backdrop for making memories, taking photos or contemplating life. But keeping all that gorgeous turf green involves more than just feeding and watering the grass. Landscapers and their managers at USC’s Facility Services do everything they can to keep our campus pretty, our environment healthy and our outdoor workspace as happy as it can be.

Topics: Recognition, Healthy Carolina, Service, Careers

Jennifer Asouzu, assistant director for special populations and communication with New Student Orientation, talks partnerships and first impressions.

The Happiest Lunch on Earth

June 26, 2023, Craig Brandhorst

On the last Friday before the end of classes, USC TIMES invited three staff members to lunch at McCutchen House’s Garden Grill to discuss how our work lives change — or don’t change — over the summer. George Hendry, director of the McCutchen House and senior lecturer in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, shared his thoughts on troubleshooting through teamwork. Jennifer Asouzu, assistant director for special populations and communication with New Student Orientation, talked up partnerships and first impressions. Leroy Sims, a custodial zone manager with Facilities and a member of Staff Senate, discussed employee satisfaction and how to make the USC campus the happiest place on Earth.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, Recognition, Service, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

a woman leans down and points to bricks on a walkway

Alumna Tjuan Dogan helps people around the world access online education

June 21, 2023, Page Ivey

When Tjuan Dogan came to USC to study advertising and public relations, her career goal was to carry a briefcase to work. From that beginning, Dogan, who has a bachelor’s in advertising and a master’s and a Ph.D. in education all from USC, crafted a career path that now has her helping nontraditional students find their careers and new lives through education.

Topics: Alumni, Diversity, Careers, College of Education, College of Information and Communications

An illustration/engraving of pulmonary vessels in a lung.

Grant supports innovative teaching methods across different disciplines

June 15, 2023, Téa Smith

The Center for Teaching Excellence’s Innovative Pedagogy Grant supports innovative teaching methods across different disciplines. The goal is to invest in the improvement of courses taught by faculty members who provide students with exemplary, highly engaging learning experiences, offered in an online, blended or traditional format.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Breakthrough Research, Leadership, Careers, Medicine (Greenville)

An image of the QR code for this story with a bright green background.

COVID gave QR codes new life

June 14, 2023, Page Ivey

After the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the hospitality and tourism industries in March 2020, businesses, particularly restaurants, encouraged customers to return, in part, by offering contactless menus. One key piece of that was the QR code — a technology created by a subsidiary of Toyota as a means of tracking its manufacturing processes.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Research, Breakthrough Research, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

A photo of a border collie with its tongue out, panting.

Research looks at pet-based marketing strategies

May 25, 2023, Megan Sexton

Darla Moore School of Business marketing associate professor Xiaojing Yang along with researchers from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Hong Kong Polytechnic University, examined the effects of pet exposure on consumers’ subsequent judgments and decisions, even in ads that are not focused on pet products. 

Topics: Faculty, Research, Breakthrough Research, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Careers, Darla Moore School of Business

A linear grey geometric pattern with a linear hexagon as the focal point.

Saskia Coenen Snyder explores the role of Jews in the late 19th century diamond trade.

May 22, 2023, Q&A by Craig Brandhorst

In “A Brilliant Commodity” (Oxford University Press), USC history and Jewish studies professor Saskia Coenen Snyder explores the diamond trade of the late 19th century and the critical role played by Jews at every level of an emerging international commodity market.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Breakthrough Research, Entrepreneurship, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

Two women look at a laptop screen

Boeing offers engineering scholarships, career opportunities

May 18, 2023, Lauryn Jiles

The University of South Carolina is one of only six institutions in the country selected to partner with Boeing on its Accelerated Leadership Program, in which a select group of students will gain hands-on learning experience working with engineering projects and innovative technologies

Topics: Students, Faculty, Experiential Learning, Scholarships, Partnerships, Leadership, Careers, College of Engineering and Computing

Smokestacks by Thomas Cooper Library

Graduation with Leadership Distinction alumni look back on pathways to success

April 21, 2023, Hannah Cambre

The Center for Integrative and Experiential Learning is celebrating the Graduation with Leadership Distinction Program's tenth anniversary. Take a look at some of the earliest graduates with leadership distinction.

Topics: Alumni, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Recognition, Service, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences, Darla Moore School of Business, College of Engineering and Computing, The Graduate School, South Carolina Honors College

A very close shot of a USC nursing student with her hand on her stethescope.

Prisma Health makes key investment in SC nurses

April 20, 2023, Page Ivey

To combat South Carolina’s nursing shortage in the next few years will take a team effort, involving health care companies as well as universities who train the essential health care workers. Prisma Health is providing $5 million to five South Carolina schools, including USC Columbia and USC Upstate, which will receive $1.3 million each. The program also helps the next generation of South Carolina nurses understand their roles within a larger health care system.

Topics: Initiatives, Entrepreneurship, Careers, College of Nursing

Blue Sky posed in profile with paint sticks standing in front of his mural, Tunnelvision.

Columbia artist Blue Sky paints through challenges, brings beauty to blank spaces

March 31, 2023, Megan Sexton / Photos by Kim Truett

Blue Sky begins a conversation about his six-decade career as an artist this way: “I should have been an engineer.” He swears he’s not joking. But think what Columbia would have lost if Blue Sky had not filled the public arena with color and whimsy and bold­ness and giant pieces of art that have become Capital City landmarks.

Topics: Alumni, Recognition, Carolinian, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

A portrait of Sheila Johnson standing on the Horseshoe.

Renowned entrepreneur Sheila Johnson returns for second semester as executive-in-residence

February 24, 2023, Allen Wallace

As a partner and vice chairman of Monumental Sports and Entertainment, Sheila Johnson is the only African American woman with ownership in three professional sports teams. Students in the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management are gaining unique insights from Johnson as she returns for a second semester to co-teach a class on leadership.

Topics: Faculty, Academics, Experiential Learning, Diversity, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

red and white striped lighthouse at sea pines plantation

Fueling SC's top industry

February 17, 2023, Page Ivey

Tourism is the main driver of South Carolina’s economy, accounting for about 10 percent of jobs in the state and an estimated annual impact of $29 billion. The University of South Carolina helps keep this economic engine humming by preparing graduates of the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management to take on key roles in a variety of businesses and by helping those businesses adapt and grow.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, Academics, Research, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

The library named after Peden McLeod, at the USC Salkehatchie campus in Walterboro.

Family and community support fuels building renovation at USC Salkehatchie

February 09, 2023, Chris Horn

Peden McLeod, a 1967 graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law believed in public service. Founder, chairman and CEO of the Bank of Walterboro as well as a state legislator, McLeod worked tirelessly to establish and support the USC Salkehatchie campus. It’s fitting, then, that the only building named for an individual on the campus in Walterboro honors McLeod: the Peden McLeod Library, which was dedicated in 1998.

Topics: Alumni, Recognition, Leadership, Careers, Joseph F. Rice School of Law

An environmental portrait of Lorie Donelle standing in front of the College of Nursing.

New nursing research chair has big aspirations for health care technology

February 07, 2023, Communications and Marketing

Virtual care is playing a bigger and bigger role in health care. Lorie Donelle, Emily Myrtle Smith Endowed Professor of Nursing, wants to make sure it’s not just efficient but also effective and ethical. The goal? To help people avoid misinformation and disinformation that can have negative impacts on their health care decisions.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Initiatives, Leadership, Careers, College of Nursing

Morgan Romano poses in her Miss North Carolina crown.

Engineering alumna uses beauty pageants, philanthropy to inspire STEM interest in young girls

January 26, 2023, Kyndel Lee

Miss USA Morgan Romano knows all too well that only 28% of the STEM workforce is made up of women, and she's using her platform to spark interests in young girls and help create a pipeline for more women to purse careers in the STEM fields.

Topics: Alumni, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Diversity, Recognition, Philanthropy, Health Sciences, Service, Leadership, Careers, College of Engineering and Computing

USC student nurses at bedside of a patient

U.S. News rankings: USC keeps top spot in online graduate nursing programs

January 20, 2023, Megan Sexton

For the third straight year, the University of South Carolina’s College of Nursing is ranked No. 1 nationally for its online graduate nursing program, according to U.S. News & World Report’s annual online programs rankings released Jan. 24.

Topics: Students, University Leadership, University President, Academics, Graduate Studies, Recognition, Health Sciences, Careers, College of Education, College of Nursing, University System

An illustration of hand holding a lightning rod.

USC researchers advancing transition to a new energy landscape

January 12, 2023, Megan Sexton

From policy-making surrounding cleaner energy technologies to researching better ways to make and store electricity to studying advanced nuclear materials for interplanetary space travel, University of South Carolina researchers are advancing the transition to a changing energy landscape.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Partnerships, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Engineering and Computing, Joseph F. Rice School of Law

A studio portrait of Dawn Staley with net around her neck.

USC's women's basketball coach Dawn Staley wins championships, builds champions

January 05, 2023, Page Ivey

Basketball-wise, Dawn Staley has done it all. As a player, she won MVP trophies and gold medals. As a coach, she has won national titles, coach of the year honors and more gold medals. As a mentor, she has watched Gamecock power forward turned WNBA superstar A’ja Wilson win season MVP and a WNBA championship. But Staley also transcends the sport, raising awareness for issues she cares about and money for causes she believes in. At her core, she is an advocate — for her players, first, but also for people whose voices might not be heard.

Topics: Carolinian, Leadership, Careers

The outline of a teacher in chalk on a blackboard.

Education professor's new book examines the chronic shortage of public school teachers

January 04, 2023, Craig Brandhorst

It’s no secret: public school teachers are leaving the profession at an alarming rate. “How Did We Get Here? The Decay of the Teaching Profession” (Information Age Publishing, 2022), edited by University of South Carolina associate professor of education Henry Tran and Iowa State University associate professor Douglas A. Smith, explores the causes and consequences of teacher attrition in South Carolina as a way to shed light on the larger crisis affecting America’s schools.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Leadership, Careers, College of Education

President Amiridis cheers on the Gamecocks as they play against SC State.

Year in review '22: In with the old, in with the new

December 14, 2022, Communications and Marketing

Did campus feel just a little bit livelier this year? A touch more spirited? A tad more optimistic? We thought so, too — and not only because we named a new president back in January. Yeah, that was one heck of a way to ring in the new year, and it set the tone for the months ahead, but in the end, 2022 was about all of us, from the President’s House to Russell House, from Colonial Life to Williams-Brice. It was about respecting tradition, rediscovering our identity, remembering our past and reimagining our future. In 2022, the University of South Carolina reminded us all what it means to be USC.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Faculty, University Leadership, University President, Academics, Research, Diversity, History, Recognition, Economic Engagement, Signature Events, Campus Construction, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Information and Communications

Alyssa Lang speaks into SEC Network microphone

USC alumna living her dream at SEC Network

November 16, 2022, Alexis Watts

2015 Broadcast Journalism graduate, Alyssa Lang gives fans an all-access pass to the most storied conference in sports. Lang is a host, anchor and reporter for SEC Network. She is now holding down studio shows, breaking major stories and doing the hard work of bringing fans essential reports about their beloved teams.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Faculty, Academics, Experiential Learning, Recognition, Careers, College of Information and Communications

portrait of Kirstin Dow

Geography professor maps heat islands as we adapt to climate change

November 16, 2022, Craig Brandhorst

Longtime University of South Carolina geography professor Kirstin Dow has devoted much of her career to understanding climate impact, vulnerability and adaptation. In other words, she recognizes the problems posed by our warming planet and is determined to help mitigate them, most recently by mapping heat islands so that urban planners can make better decisions about where to plant trees, generate more shade or support investment in affordable renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

portrait of Nicole Maskiell

History professor's new book looks at cross-cultural ties created by slavery in the U.S. Colonies

November 14, 2022, Laura Erskine

Nicole Maskiell is an associate professor of history and affiliate faculty in African American studies at the University of South Carolina. Her book, “Bound by Bondage: Slavery and the Creation of a Northern Gentry” (2022 Cornell University Press), examines the institution of slavery in the early American Colonies and how it created lasting ties between families of the elite classes, even across cultural lines, as well as ties among the enslaved people.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Diversity, Service, Leadership, Careers, College of Arts and Sciences

Photo of Jazmine Lara Guerrero, a first-gen student

First-generation college students add energy, resilience to USC campus

November 04, 2022, Megan Sexton

There is no typical first-generation college student. Some come from immigrant families, some from households where family members didn’t graduate from high school. But all add energy and variety to the University of South Carolina campus.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Faculty, Academics, Experiential Learning, Scholarships, Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate Studies, Initiatives, Diversity, Leadership, Careers, Student Voices, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Education, College of Engineering and Computing, Arnold School of Public Health, South Carolina Honors College

Eugenia Broude smiles while meeting with other faculty members.

Pharmacy researcher driven to find weapons in the fight against cancer

October 12, 2022, Margaret Gregory

College of Pharmacy professor Eugenia Broude had personal inspiration to pursue a career in science, and a newly awarded $3 million R01 grant from the National Cancer Institute will allow Broude and her co-investigators to continue their work in a groundbreaking area of breast cancer research.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, University Leadership, Research, Health Sciences, Leadership, Careers, College of Pharmacy

VPR Julius Fridriksson

New vice president for research aims to mentor junior faculty

October 03, 2022, Craig Brandhorst

Julius Fridriksson loves a challenge. After climbing to the top of his field — and building out a research team of more than 40 faculty, post docs and graduate students at the Arnold School of Public Health — the onetime first-generation college student from a small village in Iceland agreed to become USC’s interim vice president for research in 2021.

Topics: University Leadership, Research, Recognition, Health Sciences, Leadership, Careers, Arnold School of Public Health

A nursing student practices on a mannekin while a professor observes.

Columbia, Upstate campuses to receive Prisma Health funding for nursing programs

October 03, 2022, Kyndel Lee

The University of South Carolina’s Columbia and Upstate campuses are recipients of an investment in scholarships by Prisma Health to help counter the state’s critical nursing shortage.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Scholarships, Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate Studies, Initiatives, Economic Engagement, Partnerships, Health Sciences, Leadership, Careers, College of Nursing

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