Stories for Alumni

A photo of Aaron Gaga standing outside and looking away from the camera.

Rwandan native makes sacrifices to build his career -- and his country

April 02, 2024, Allen Wallace

Aaron Gaga was born in 1987 as an unwelcome refugee in Uganda, his parents having fled his native Rwanda because of conflict. Thirty years after the Rwandan genocide, he is now a graduate student in the University of South Carolina’s highly ranked Master of Sport and Entertainment Management program, pursuing his master's degree in an effort to advance his career and help his country continue to rebuild.

Topics: Students, Diversity, Careers, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

Students perform during summer conservatory

USC youth summer camps 2024

March 01, 2024, Communications and Marketing

With only a few short months until summer, it’s time for parents to find summer activities for their children. USC offers a wide variety of summer camps for all ages and all interests from music to soccer, dance and engineering.

Topics: Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Diversity, Partnerships, Health Sciences, Campus Construction, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Engineering and Computing, Medicine (Columbia), School of Music, College of Pharmacy

Maxcy building

New initiatives expand USC's first-gen support

January 22, 2024, Hannah Cambre

The University of South Carolina is committing to providing more comprehensive support to its first-generation student population, including a First-Generation Center launching in August 2024, a living and learning community for first-gen students, and an expanding partnership with the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.

Topics: Students, University Leadership, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Diversity, Student Voices

ASPH award winner, Huda Falous

Public health student recognized for community engagement, research

December 21, 2023, Lauryn Jiles

Committed to advocacy, community engagement and research, public health senior Huda Falous is the recipient of the Arnold School’s 2023 Undergraduate Student Award in Excellence in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Topics: Students, University Leadership, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Diversity, Recognition, Health Sciences, Leadership, Student Voices, Arnold School of Public Health, South Carolina Honors College

Wendy Lower, author of “The Ravine: A Family, a Photograph, a Holocaust Massacre Revealed”

Henry and Sylvia Yaschik Foundation supports conversation about Jewish history

November 07, 2023, Rebekah Friedman

In the spring, audiences at USC had the chance to learn more about Jewish history from award-winning author and Holocaust expert Wendy Lower. Her weeklong fellowship with the university’s Jewish studies program was made possible by a generous gift from the Henry and Sylvia Yaschik Foundation.

Topics: Faculty, speakers, Diversity, History, Philanthropy, Service, Leadership, College of Arts and Sciences, Carolinian

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

Brynn Lynagh and classmate on Lake Titicaca

Transformative Peru winter session shapes student passions, career plans

August 31, 2023, Hannah Cambre

In 2021, a group of 20 students from across majors and class standings journeyed to Peru to explore the modern day capital city of Lima as well as the ancient Incan capital in Cusco and the sacred site of Machu Picchu. This year, another cohort will return for a winter session to explore the rich history and culture of Peru.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Diversity, History, Student Voices

Students wear protective glasses while learning at camp

Carolina Master Scholars camps spark curiosity, forge connections

August 03, 2023, Alexis Watts

Summer camp memories don’t often include crime scene blood spatter analysis or creating culinary masterpieces, but the Carolina Master Scholars Adventure Series is not your typical summer camp.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Experiential Learning, Undergraduate Admissions, Initiatives, Diversity, Economic Engagement, Student Voices, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Education, Arnold School of Public Health, South Carolina Honors College

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

Honoree Amber Guyton kneels over her brick and smiles

Meet the Black alumnae whose contributions are commemorated on the Horseshoe

March 14, 2023, Rebekah Friedman

As a tribute to the Black alumnae featured in the student-produced documentary The Backbone, USC’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion installed 18 personalized bricks on the Horseshoe. The honorees' stories span seven decades of university history.

Topics: Students, Alumni, University Leadership, Diversity, History, Recognition, College of Arts and Sciences, Darla Moore School of Business, College of Education, The Graduate School, College of Information and Communications, Joseph F. Rice School of Law, Medicine (Columbia), South Carolina Honors College

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

Bobby Donalds leans on a large stack of document boxes.

Bringing civil rights history to life

February 22, 2023, Carol J.G. Ward

As a respected scholar of Southern history and African American culture, Bobby Donaldson has served as a consultant for museum exhibitions, archival collections, oral history initiatives, documentary films and historic preservation projects. He also has been recognized for his teaching and community outreach. He credits his parents and educators — from his elementary school librarian to a “drill sergeant” professor at Wesleyan University to his mentors and colleagues at USC — for inspiring his career.

Topics: Faculty, Research, Diversity, History, Collections, College of Arts and Sciences

Doctoral Candidate, Constance Caddell goes through SC NAACP records.

New age treasure hunters reveal lost stories of Black life in South Carolina

February 14, 2023, Alexis Watts

New age treasure hunters, part of the South Carolina Digital Newspaper Program, are saving crucial historical information buried in old publications that are being preserved and presented online. The newspapers reveal stories from the state’s Black residents and rural communities, often overlooked by larger news outlets. 

Topics: Students, Faculty, Academics, Research, Experiential Learning, Graduate Studies, Diversity, History, Collections, Service, Leadership, University Libraries

Dr. Gayenell Magwood wears a floral garnet and black scarf and red glasses frames.

Finding joy at USC

February 09, 2023, Nicole Meares

Gayenell Magwood focuses on community research and engagement, cardiometabolic risk and prevention, and cancer control and prevention. She is an endowed professor of nursing and is also passionate about her involvement with the American Heart Association and raising awareness for heart disease and stroke.

Topics: Faculty, University Leadership, Academics, Experiential Learning, Initiatives, Diversity, Recognition, Health Sciences, Service, Leadership, 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

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

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

head and shoulders photo of gail bush diggs

Students honor past Homecoming queen

October 27, 2022, Téa Smith

In 1974, Gail Bush Diggs became just the second Black woman to be named Homecoming Queen at the University of South Carolina. The announcement of her selection on the football field 48 years ago was greeted with racial abuse and she never received the traditional scepter that went with title. Students, looking to rectify that slight, will honor Diggs with the scepter at this year's Homecoming.

Topics: Students, Alumni, Diversity, History

James Clyburn speaks to the media against a backdrop that says

University establishes Clyburn endowed chair through $1.5 million gift from Boeing

October 20, 2022, Abe Danaher

The Boeing Co. has provided the University of South Carolina with a $1.5 million gift to establish the James E. and Emily E. Clyburn Endowed Chair of Public Service and Civic Engagement Fund. This endowed chair, awarded to associate professor Bobby Donaldson, will allow the university’s Center for Civil Rights History and Research to further its programming and outreach initiatives within the university community and across the state.

Topics: Faculty, University Leadership, Research, Diversity, History, Collections, College of Arts and Sciences

Booker T. Washington alumni look at display

New agreement with National Park Service advances UofSC's role in telling civil rights history

September 28, 2022, Alexis Watts

Under a five-year agreement with the National Park Service, the center will receive $3.4 million to expand the center’s existing work in civil rights education and scholarly research, including support for exhibits and programming at South Carolina sites in the African American Civil Rights Network. The center will help to grow the network in South Carolina by serving as a resource to property owners, community leaders and organizations interested in joining the network.

Topics: Faculty, University Leadership, University President, Research, Diversity, History, Collections, Partnerships, College of Arts and Sciences, University Libraries

Author Octavia E. Butler in a multicolor jacket with poses with chin on hand in a Seattle bookstore.

Octavia E. Butler mined her curiosity to forge a new vision for humanity

June 22, 2022, Alyssa Collins

In an interview for The Conversation, Alyssa Collins, assistant professor of English Language and Literature, explains how science fiction author Octavia Butler’s boundless curiosity inspired her work and how Butler’s experiences as a Black woman drew her to “humans who must deal with the edges or ends of humanity.”

Topics: Faculty, Research, Diversity, College of Arts and Sciences, The Conversation

brick exterior of Booker T. Washington High School in Columbia, South Carolina

Grant advances UofSC's efforts to create destination for preserving, teaching civil rights history

June 20, 2022, Carol J.G. Ward

The University of South Carolina’s Center for Civil Rights History and Research will receive $500,000 in federal funding to further its mission to preserve civil rights history and tell critical stories of the movement. The African American Civil Rights grant administered by the National Park Service will be used to continue rehabilitation and preservation of the historic Booker T. Washington Auditorium Building.

Topics: Faculty, University President, Research, Diversity, History

Letters in air mail envelopes from Otto Frank to Cara Wilson-Granat spread on a table.

Letters from Anne Frank's father, Otto Frank, donated to UofSC Anne Frank Center

June 08, 2022, Alexis Watts

The Anne Frank Center located at the University of South Carolina is now home to 100 letters and cards written by Otto Frank, the father of Holocaust victim and world-renowned diarist Anne Frank. The donation comes as the world honors her life and legacy on the 75th anniversary of the publication of her diary and her birthday on June 12.

Topics: Faculty, University President, Research, Diversity, History, Collections, College of Education, University Libraries

Lorri Unumb

After son's diagnosis, alumna becomes leading advocate for families affected by autism

April 25, 2022, Carol J.G. Ward

Alumna Lorri Unumb's journey to becoming an advocate for families affected by autism began when she and her husband Dan noticed their son Ryan wasn’t behaving and developing like other children. Ryan was diagnosed with autism shortly before his second birthday. Today, Unumb is internationally known for her advocacy.

Topics: Alumni, Faculty, Diversity, Health Sciences, Service, Leadership, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Information and Communications, Joseph F. Rice School of Law

School of Music senior Madie Willard stands in front of the Koger Center wearing a gray jacket and pink top

Student organizes event to share joy of music with Deaf community

April 18, 2022, Carol J.G. Ward

An interactive, multisensory Music Field Day organized by School of Music senior Madie Willard will offer children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families an opportunity to experience music through the senses. Headlining the event will be DEAFinitely Dope, an internationally recognized deaf hip hop (dip hop) artist based in the Atlanta area.

Topics: Students, Faculty, Experiential Learning, Diversity, Service, Student Voices, School of Music, Arnold School of Public Health

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