I look forward to working at SCICU every day, but the first week in April was tremendous.

On Tuesday, April 5, we held the Excellence In Teaching Awards dinner at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. Each of the 21 member institutions nominates a faculty member for the SCICU award, which includes a $3,000 professional development grant and a framed awards certificate.

This was our first awards dinner in two years, and we were all excited to get together – Mother Nature wasn’t so sure. She made it a bit more interesting by strewing tornados and strong thunderstorms across the Midlands. A couple of campuses weren’t able to make it, and we had to “shelter-in-place” for about 20 minutes at the convention center – not a big deal as we just moved the reception away from the gallery windows into the dining area.

I deeply appreciate that nearly 150 people were able to make it. Many thanks to the presidents and campus leaders who joined in celebrating their faculty members’ achievements.

Faculty members are typically acknowledged in professional environments like academic conferences and don’t often get the chance to be recognized in front of family and friends. We at SCICU are very proud to provide that opportunity.

On Wednesday, April 6, we held the first Higher Education Day at the State House. You may remember in previous years we’ve celebrated Independent Higher Education Day, but this year we joined with our colleagues from the Commission on Higher Education and the Technical College System to highlight the depth and breadth of college opportunities in South Carolina.

About 65 students from colleges and universities all over the state met with legislators to express their thanks for the state’s financial support of students, in particular the Tuition Grants Program for private college and university students and the Needs-Based Grant Program for students at public colleges and universities. Speaking of Tuition Grants, the day also marked the culmination of our annual letter-writing campaign – fully 9,000 hand-written messages were sent to legislators by Tuition Grant recipients thanking them for the support that makes real for more than 11,000 students the dream of a college education.

Holding a joint Higher Education Day symbolizes our mutual support for each sector’s financial aid program, and highlights the collective contributions of our campuses and students to the future of South Carolina.

Nowhere was that clearer than in the balcony of the S.C. House of Representatives where the students were acknowledged by the legislators with a resolution proclaiming April 6, 2022 as Higher Education Day in South Carolina.

The students then moved outside onto the steps of the Statehouse where they were joined by none other than Gov. Henry McMaster who issued an executive proclamation honoring the students.

I capped off the week by flying to Chicago to attend the meeting of the board of directors of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. I sit on the board in my capacity as national chair of the association of individuals like myself who run state organizations.

Spending time with campus leaders from across the country afforded me the opportunity to benefit from their perspectives on the challenges facing independent higher education. And there were familiar faces there: Allen University President Ernest McNealey and Coker University President Natalie Harder were also in attendance.

That week tested my endurance, but I’ve never been happier to be so tired.

Last week SCICU held its first in-person board meeting in two years, and it was a great success. Numerous board members shared with me how excited they were to see each other again. While virtual meetings may be convenient, I believe being physically together makes for a more productive and rewarding meeting. Let me give you three reasons why.

Number 1. There’s more interaction among the meeting participants. You may have heard that “Seventy percent of communication is non-verbal.” We rely on body language to reinforce our verbal communication and to better understand the meaning of others.

Body language is hard to pick up during a virtual meeting. And scanning the group for non-verbal feedback is all but impossible. When we’re sitting around a table we can express enthusiasm by leaning forward or sense concern of the others who lean back and look down.

Number 2. Participants are better focused on the agenda. How do you feel when you’re speaking during a virtual meeting and you see others glancing sideways, clearly working on something else on another screen, or looking down at their cell phones? And just what are people doing when their screens are turned off?

When everyone is sitting together, let’s call it “group accountability.” You’re more likely to be more considerate of those around you. And I’m just as guilty as the next person.

Number 3. There is a greater sense of shared purpose. When we’re isolated behind our computers we don’t have the same awareness of a connection to others and the organization as a whole. When you must make the effort to attend a meeting you’re demonstrating commitment to the larger cause and its shared values.

We’ve all found that maintaining an organizational culture is very difficult if people are not brought together. Being together creates an excitement, and part of that excitement is the unscripted moments. We’ve all experienced that some of the most valuable, and unexpected, parts of a meeting are the discussions during breaks. These spontaneous conversations often result in the best ideas.

Of course, there will always be a role for virtual meetings at SCICU and your own business or organization, but because it’s important to keep participants fully engaged, they should be balanced by in-person meetings.

Now, I’ve got to go. I’ve got a Zoom meeting in five minutes.

A friend of mine is fond of saying, “I can predict everything but the future,” but that is just what our campus leaders are called upon to do. Colleges and universities are in the business of preparing students for the challenges they will face. But what will those challenges be?

That is surely on the minds of students. Whereas previous generations had a pretty good idea of what to expect of their lives after college, today’s students look down a road that’s foggy with unexpected twists and turns.

For example, in 2019 the Dell Corporation forecasted in a report on technology that 85% of the jobs that will exist in 2030 haven’t been invented yet.

At the time of the report Dell was trying to look 10 years down the road. Let’s try to do the same but with a broader perspective. What will the world look like? I don’t claim to have the answers, but I’ve got a few questions:

• Will robots do our jobs? If they are, what will we be doing?
• Will we live in some sort of virtual reality?
• Will cars fly?
• Will the U.S. remain the dominant superpower?
• Will the waters be higher?
• Will we be as divided and divisive as now?
• What will a loaf of bread cost?

The scope of these questions explains why students are so anxious about the future. They simply don’t know what to expect.

On the other hand, people have not changed all that much, nor are we likely to do so. We bear the same hopes, fears, loves, and jealousies with which people wrestled 3,000 years ago, and will continue to do so. The one constant is the human experience, which is why the focus on humanities and liberal arts at our colleges and universities is so important. It is through the exploration of humanity as expressed by great thinkers and artists that SCICU member institutions produce academically and emotionally grounded graduates who are equipped to manage change in their lives by drawing strength from the enduring qualities and values that have always inspired humanity.

You might even say the more things change the more they stay the same.

Exercise. Eat less. Read more. These are popular New Year’s resolutions people make as that ball is falling in Times Square. Organizations can have resolutions too.

In the last two years SCICU member colleges and universities have done an amazing job adapting to the many challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. As I’ve noted before, thanks to the precautions they took, there have been no major outbreaks on the campuses.

Higher education in general was already facing major changes due to technology, demographics, and changing workforce demands. The pandemic has accelerated the transformation in higher education. How campuses recruit students, educate them and provide a supportive environment are all being reassessed and reconfigured. Though I hate to employ an overused term, it fits: Campuses are adapting to the New Normal, and so must SCICU.

In the coming months we will explore how SCICU can best serve its member institutions in this volatile environment. We will encourage discussions with the campuses, our Board of Trustees and other stakeholders to identify how SCICU can help our member institutions as they navigate these uncharted waters.

Through our scholarship and grant programs SCICU in our last fiscal year provided $640,000 in support to students at SCICU member institutions. SCICU helped more than 400 students pay for college, overcome unexpected family financial emergencies, and conduct high-level academic research.

We are committed to help even more students this year. The students at our colleges and universities have had to endure so many disruptions and uncertainties. We want to help ensure they’re not distracted by financial needs. In this effort we complement the tremendous scholarship and grant support provided by the member institutions, which totaled nearly $350 million last year.

One of SCICU’s top responsibilities is promoting independent higher education in South Carolina. We work with state legislators, public officials, and the media to highlight the many successes realized on our member campuses.

Our efforts serve to promote campus fundraising and underscore the importance of SCICU member institutions, and their students, to the future of South Carolina. We see the results, for example, in the support demonstrated by the governor and General Assembly for the Tuition Grants Program, which last year provided financial support to more than 12,000 South Carolina residents.

This year we will extend our communications “footprint” through the use of digital and social media and expand our partnerships with campus relations professionals at the SCICU member institutions.

I once heard that March is where New Year’s resolutions go to die. That won’t happen with SCICU’s resolutions – they will be kept.

Message from SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez –

During this Thanksgiving season, here at SCICU there are three things for which I’m deeply thankful.

They are, in alphabetical order: Brenda, Eddie, and Shay.

The SCICU staff members were already doing as much, and more, on behalf of our member institutions than organizations in bigger states with larger staffs. But in the last 20 or so months of the pandemic I have asked even more of them. They have fulfilled their normal roles under very trying circumstances while also taking on new duties in order to ensure SCICU colleges and universities were equipped to meet the needs of their students and campus communities during these unprecedented circumstances.

Brenda Torrence has worked at SCICU for 34 years. She knows everyone and possesses more institutional knowledge than the Library of Congress. She keeps the office humming, and, as our financial administrator, treats every SCICU penny as if it were her own. Brenda provides support for everyone in the office. We can perform our work confident in the knowledge that Brenda is our safety net.

Throughout the pandemic Eddie Shannon has been challenged to maintain the level of fundraising for SCICU programs on which the member institutions depend. The Scholars Program, Student Lifeline Grants, and the Student/Faculty Research Program were all fully funded. In fact, in the last year, thanks to Eddie’s efforts, SCICU fundraising surpassed its goals.

Shay Shealy West handles communications, publications, and SCICU’s technology needs. Throughout the pandemic Shay has made sure the myriad Zoom meetings have gone off without a hitch, while overseeing our newsletters, website, College Guide, and Annual Report. She’s also expanded our social media footprint – she coordinated with campuses SCICU’s “DoublePell” campaign, which resulted in more than 35,000 impressions and generated national attention for SCICU.

That’s right. For all that SCICU does, there are just four staffers, including me. Advocacy. Promotion. Fundraising. Institutional support. Pound for pound we are as encompassing and effective as any state organization in the country.

Because of Brenda, Eddie and Shay I have a lot to be thankful for.

Message from SCICU President and CEO Jeff Perez –

The “free” community, or two-year, college initiative has gotten a lot of attention since it was included in the $3.5 trillion Build Back Better Act.

But are “free” tuition and fees at two-year colleges really free for South Carolinians?

It’s certainly not free for the American taxpayers who foot the $45.5 billion projected cost of the program. Moreover, it’s not free for the taxpayers attending other types of colleges and universities. They end up paying for two tuitions. And do we want to provide free two-year college tuition and fees to students regardless of how wealthy they are?

Offering “free” two-year college tuition and fees also deprives students of the freedom to choose the college or university that best fits their needs. Congress has rightly focused on student-based financial aid programs, like the Pell Grant. By picking one sector – two-year colleges – for special treatment, Congress would be compelling economically disadvantaged students to attend a college that doesn’t necessarily suit their needs nor match their aspirations.

“Free” two-year college is certainly not free for state governments who must provide 20 percent of the costs by the end of the five-year program. But that’s not all: A study by the State Higher Education Executives and Officers Association (SHEEO) reports that in the first year of the program South Carolina, where the cost of two-year colleges is greater than the national median, would have to increase funding by about 17 percent.

And, as I mentioned, “free” two-year college is a five-year program. States that commit to it may find that federal funding has dried up at the end of the program, leaving them having to foot the entire cost.

Rather than create a new, unproven program with all sorts of strings attached, why not just double the Pell Grants and permit qualifying students to select the college or university of their choice?

Doubling Pell would free students of debt. According to a report from the Gender Equity Policy Institute, students receiving the maximum grant would realize a whopping 78 percent reduction in student loan debt!

Now, let me stress the technical colleges in South Carolina do a commendable job preparing their students, and those students deserve some help. Doubling the Pell Grant program would have the beneficial effect of rendering those colleges tuition-free for qualifying students.

Let’s suppose that the Build Back Better Act manages to get passed. The legislation does give states the chance to opt out of its “free” community college component. That’s one freedom South Carolina should exercise.