Parent and Family News- October 2021

Volume 4 - Issue 3, October 2021 Fall Semester

In This Issue:

Parent to Parent Facebook Page

Do you want the ability to ask questions to other families?

Are you a new parent joining the Pacer family and

want to speak to upperclassmen parents?

Would you like to help incoming parents with questions they might have?

Join our private Facebook page just for parents to communicate with each other.

Join here.

Important Academic Dates

Monday, October 18 Advisement for spring term begins

Monday, October 25 Priority registration for spring term opens

Sunday, October 31 Last day to withdraw without receiving a “WF” grade

Sunday, October 31 Last day to select the pass/fail option

Please check out the Academic calendar here.

National Transfer Student Week

The University of South Carolina Aiken's Office of Transfer Students and Services will celebrate National Transfer Student Week October 18 -22 with a series of social, educational, and enrollment events.

Current and prospective transfer students are encouraged to take advantage of the many opportunities.

Check out the full schedule here.

Diversity Initiatives

Dr. Jamel Hodges (he/him/his) is our new Director of Diversity Initiatives. Dr. Hodges is here to ensure that your student has a strong sense of belonging and has an inclusive educational experience at USCA.

Dr. Hodges, or Dr. J, as the students call him, is a 2011 graduate of USCA from the College of Education. He has earned his Master of Public Administration (2015) and his Doctor of Education (2019) degrees.

He has worked at various universities of various sizes and hopes to build on those experiences to be a part of the evolution of USCA.

The Department of Diversity Initiatives focuses on the development of each of our students. Learning about the perspectives and experiences of those from various backgrounds helps us understand where each other is coming from.

The Department of Diversity Initiatives thrives on creating opportunities to make this happen. Whether it's Holiday Fest, the Inter-Faith Showcase, or faculty speaker/panel opportunities, students will find that Diversity Initiatives is here to ensure they hear from a diverse pool of speakers/facilitators.

Please visit their website here.

Weather and Emergency Alerts

If you are interested in receiving emergency alerts sent out on the UofSC Aiken campus, please click here for more information.

COVID 19 Update: Masks Required Indoors

Dear Pacer Community,

As promised, the University of South Carolina Aiken has maintained the closest vigilance on the increasing rate of COVID-19 infection and hospitalizations resulting from the virus. We have vowed to take all reasonable steps necessary to ensure the safest possible learning and working environment.

Accordingly, based upon local, state, and national conditions starting Wednesday, August 18, 2021, the University will require all persons to wear face coverings indoors at all campus facilities except when eating or in personal spaces where adequate social distancing can be maintained.

Mask wearing will be a key part of our Pacer strategy, and we will adjust our COVID-19 strategies as necessary throughout the semester. Please refer to the fall COVID-19 plan at usca.edu/pacer-ready to keep our campus safe and to allow our students, faculty, and staff to remain on campus--in class and at work--in order to promote the most effective teaching, learning, and working experiences.

We were a safe campus before the advent of effective vaccination, and we are a safer one today with the availability of a scientifically proven vaccine as well as your support for wearing facial coverings indoors on campus. Please know that our COVID-19 Team will continue to monitor the campus health situation, and its findings and recommendation will continue to inform our policies and protocols.

We must continue to work together to mitigate the incident rate of COVID-19 during the upcoming 2021-22 academic year. This means not only wearing a mask but, above all, getting vaccinated. As previously communicated, vaccination clinics and vaccination incentives have been made available.

Thank you for your support in keeping our campus safe and operating “normally.” Above all, I remain overwhelmingly confident that we will have a fulfilling academic year!

Dan Heimmermann

Chancellor

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Vaccine Incentives

Beginning in mid-September, anyone who was already vaccinated became eligible to win vaccine incentives prizes.

For more information, click here.

UofSC Aiken and DHEC Provide

Free COVID-19 Testing Site

Free drive-up COVID-19 testing continues for all UofSC Aiken students, faculty, staff, and the greater Aiken community.

Testing site and guidelines:

Testing is conducted six days a week - Monday through Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm.
The Convocation Center parking lot located at 2049 Champion Way, Graniteville, provides two drive-through testing lanes.
Access https://web.getgov2go.com/ to set up your pre-registration and appointment time.
No insurance card is needed, but you will need to present a driver’s license or UofSC Aiken ID.
SC DHEC (SC Department of Health and Environmental Control) will provide trained staff to administer the test. They will follow all HIPAA guidelines and regulations.
SC DHEC will analyze and provide results of testing within 24-48 hours of testing.
A pre-registration link is available for your convenience. It is rrtesting.com/uscaiken.
For more information, please contact Mr. Deri Wills at Deriw@usca.edu or 803-641-3787.

Please continue to revisit Ready, Set, Return, our comprehensive, campus-wide mitigation plan. The revision date appears on the front cover when new information is added.

Updates on the campus’s condition will be reflected on the dashboard each Friday and cover weekly updates on Thursday evening each week.