Latest news with #USCAiken
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
USC Aiken breaks ground on new Cyber Integration Center
AIKEN, S.C. (WJBF) — Big changes are coming to USC Aiken. The school's getting a major cyber training hub. USC Aiken is breaking ground on a new Cyber Integration Center cost $44 million — the Guard's biggest project since World War II. It's part of a $145 million cybersecurity upgrade in the region. It's been more than 10 years in the making. 'So after almost two years, it was actually 22 months of work that our delegation put into this, we were able to secure over $169 million for investments from the (plutonium) settlement that our colleagues in the General Assembly approved in June of 2022. And the lieutenant Governor and Governor McMaster supported us.' Sen. Tom Young shared. The Cyber Integration Center will support defense, training, research, and workforce be built next to the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative on the school's former ball fields. 'This project promises to be a platform for human and technological advancement focused on education, workforce development, prototyping, and education,' South Carolina National Guard Adj. Gen. Maj. Gen. Robin B. Stilwell said. More than 400 cybersecurity students will get hands-on training in the center's student-run Regional Security Operations Center—one of only a few in the nation. 'RSOC provides cybersecurity protection services not only for the university, but to underserved partners such as school districts, nonprofits, and rural infrastructure,' USC Aiken Chancellor Dr. Daniel Heimmermann revealed. Leaders want to train the next generation of cyber pros—and keep them in South Carolina. 'My commitment to you is that we'll continue to guide that, continue to send that message so that here in the US we can cultivate and really here in South Carolina the best and brightest to go into AI and cybersecurity right here in our amazing institutions,' Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette said. 'This energy of what's happening in cyber operations and cybersecurity, in partnership with academia, with industry, with the active guard and reserve is something unique and something that is significantly contributing to our national security,' Commanding Officer of the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence Maj. Gen. Ryan M. Janovic added. Construction is expected to wrap up in 2026. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
USC Aiken announces hire of new women's basketball head coach
Apr. 10—USC Aiken, in conjunction with Director of Athletics Todd Wilkinson, announced Thursday the hiring of Brittany Batts as the head women's basketball coach. "We are excited to welcome Brittany Batts to USCA as the next head coach of women's basketball," Wilkinson said in a press release. "Coach Batts brings a dynamic blend of leadership, experience, and a relentless commitment to excellence. Her passion for developing student-athletes and her competitive spirit are exactly what this program needs to be a force in the PBC and the Southeast Region. We believe she will build a culture of toughness, unity, and pride that our university and community will rally behind." Advertisement "I am honored and excited to be the head women's basketball coach at USC Aiken. I am grateful to Director of Athletics Todd Wilkinson and Chancellor Heimmermann for believing in my vision and providing me with the responsibility to lead the Pacer women's basketball program," Batts stated. "It is something I will cherish and put my best effort forward with every day. "I look forward to joining the USCA community and developing relationships with everyone involved in the women's basketball program. We will be relentless in our pursuit to put a product in the classroom, in the community and on the court that our alumni and fans will be proud of. Go Pacers!" Batts, the 2023-24 WBCA Division II Assistant Coach of the Year at Gannon, comes to USCA with impressive credentials. While working in the PSAC at Gannon and Shepherd, she coached 11 all-league performers. Additionally, she coached the 2023-24 National Player of the Year, Sam Pirosko. While with the Golden Knights, the program sported a record of 116-22. During the last four seasons, Batts led the program to a pair of Elite Eight appearances (2024-25) and four NCAA Tournaments. During the four years, the program captured two PSAC Tournament Championships (2022, 2024) and two regular-season PSAC-West Championships (2023-24). Advertisement The 2024-25 campaign saw Gannon become the lone program to reach the Elite Eight in back-to-back seasons. The Golden Knights finished No. 11 nationally with a 28-7 record while Batts worked with the post players after primarily coaching the guards during her first three seasons. In the 2023-24 season, Batts helped guide the team to an impressive 35-3 record, winning both the PSAC and Atlantic Regional Championships, and advancing to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight as the No. 1 seed. Gannon was ranked as high as No. 2 in the WBCA Division II Top 25. As an assistant coach, Batts focused on the development of the team's guards, contributing to their success both on and off the court. She also played a key role in supporting student-athletes' academic progress and community engagement. Batts attended the 2025 Next Generation Institute for aspiring head coaches. The program focuses on the CEO attributes needed to lead a program and be a problem solver in the ever-changing landscape of higher education and the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics. Advertisement Batts began her coaching career after completing her playing career in 2015 and has experience at the Division I, Division II and Division III levels. She spent time as an assistant coach at Division I Chicago State for the 2020-21 campaign. There, Batts assisted with the development of perimeter players. In addition to her recruiting efforts, she assembled scouting reports and enhanced team and player performance through film breakdown. Prior to that, she was a member of the Shepherd coaching staff from 2018-20. Batts helped Shepherd rebound from an 11-18 record in 2018-19 in the Mountain east to post a 21-9 mark in 2019-20 in its first season of competition in the PSAC. While finishing with a 14-8 record in the PSAC East in 2019-20, three Rams earned all-PSAC East honors while Abby Beeman was also named PSAC East Freshman of the Year. Advertisement Batts joined the Shepherd program after serving as an assistant coach at Bridgewater College (Va.). She helped lead the Eagles to a 13-13 mark while one student-athlete garnered all-ODAC second team honors for the Eagles. Before coaching at Bridgewater, Batts served as a graduate assistant at Castleton University (Vt.) from 2015-17. The Spartans posted a 38-21 mark over two seasons. She was a four-year student-athlete and three-year starter for the Golden Knights from 2011-15, appearing in 125 career games with 92 starts. Batts averaged 9.2 points over her career and finished with 1,152 points, currently good for 20th in career scoring. Known for her 3-point shooting, she holds the top two season figures for 3-pointers made with 102 in 2012-13 and 93 in 2013-14. She ranks second in career 3-pointers made (286) and attempts (688) and is fifth in 3-point field goal percentage (.416). Advertisement Batts helped lead the Golden Knights to a 102-24 record and four NCAA postseason appearances, including winning the Atlantic Regional in 2013 to earn a berth in the Elite Eight. The 2012-13 Gannon squad finished with a 31-5 record. She was a three-time PSAC scholar-athlete, a second team all-PSAC West Division choice in 2013, and a first-team CoSIDA academic all-district selection at Gannon. A native of Loudoun County, Va., Batts is Loudoun County High School's all-time leading scorer with 2,039 points. A three-time All-Region and two-time All-State selection for the Raiders, Batts guided the program to a state championship in 2009. In 2022, she was inducted into the Loudon County H.S. Hall of Fame. Batts graduated from Gannon University with a degree in Sports Management with a minor in Advertising Communication. She earned her Masters in Athletic Leadership from Castleton University in 2017. USCA will host an introductory press conference for Batts in the Convocation Center Lobby on at 11:30 a.m. on April 17. Fans are welcome to attend.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Astronomy Club of Augusta gives dozens of stargazers opportunity to see the 'Parade of Planets'
AIKEN, S.C. (WJBF) – A local astronomy group gathered Friday evening to see the 'Parade of the Planets'. The Astronomy Club of Augusta gave dozens of stargazers the opportunity to see the rare celestial event. Many brought their own telescopes and had chairs set up for the beautiful view of the night sky. Seven planets will be visible in the sky. Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Mars can be seen by the naked eye but you will need a telescope to be able to see Uranus and Neptune. Saturn is more difficult to see because of how low it is on the horizon. Richard Cofer, Vice president of Programs for the Astronomy Club of Augusta, says, 'It's fairly rare that all of them are visible at the same time at night so we hope to enjoy some of those while they are up as well as whatever else people are interested in taking a look at.' Along with viewing the Parade of the Planets, members were testing out new equipment and had some amazing sights. President of the Astronomy Club of Augusta, Neil Miller, says it's important to have a clear view of the sky when viewing planets or stars. 'It gives you some perspective, the darker it is the objects that are fairly faint are going to show up easier, it's going to be easier to find them. It also gives our newest members a chance to practice with learning the constellations, how do you go from a star to a planet, how do you tell if its a planet or not, so there's a lot of things that we can help teach them and that's what we hope to do,' Miller says. Miller also teaches courses in in physics and astronomy and USC Aiken and says it never gets old to see and learn about our galaxy. Miller says, 'I think looking at any planet is fun, certain ones are easier to see and have more detail, more things going on, like Jupiter have 4 moons that you can see with just binoculars and it's the same ones that Galileo saw back in the early 1600's with his first telescope, so that's always fun to kind of put it into the historical perspective.' This planetary alignment will not be visible again until 2040. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- General
- Yahoo
USC Aiken and Aiken Technical College hosting their annual Martin Luther King Junior Memorial Celebration and Service Fair
AIKEN, SC. (WJBF) – This afternoon, USC Aiken and Aiken Technical College came together to host their annual Martin Luther King Junior Memorial Celebration and Service Fair. 'Commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King in a way that is unique for us,' said Jamel Hodges, USCA Dean of Students. 'We aren't a large city we don't get together as a county a lot. But this is one of our opportunities to do so and do so in a very intentional and meaningful way.' Christale Spain, the first African American woman to chair the South Carolina Democratic Party, and an alumnus at USC Aiken was the keynote speaker. She told her story of her journey to success. 'I chose to tell my story because I want folks to know that you know there's nothing special about me,' said Christale Spain. Keynote Speaker. 'You know, I kind of fell into this work, and I just worked really hard and kept my eye on the ball. And that anybody can do it. We limit ourselves by thinking that we can't do something. If you can dream it, you can be it.' People at the event were inspired by her story. 'Christale's story was everything, you know; she showed how it used to be for her.' Said Gail Diggs, MLK Jr. Committee Chair. 'The changes that have taken place, but she also encouraged everybody to still focus on being the best that they can be, and that's what Dr. King did.' Deviya Wright, a volunteer, knew she wanted to attend because it was a great opportunity to hear from the speaker and network with organizations. She says Martin Luther King wanted communities to keep coming together. 'Freedom, you know. It just means I get to go into places, and I don't have to feel uncomfortable or unwanted,' said Deviya Wright, a volunteer. 'I can love my neighbors as my brothers and sisters. I thought it was a really great event the speakers were amazing.' Our very own Shawn Cabbagestalk served as the emcee for the event. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
