2021 Archive

Photo of a blister pack of medicine being held an adult man.

Use of HIV prevention treatments is very low among Southern Black gay men

December 09, 2021, Oluwafemi Adeago and Xiaoming Li

Barriers such as stigma, homophobia, poverty, access, distrust of the medical system and misinformation make Southern Black gay men less likely to use antiretroviral treatments to prevent HIV infection use, Oluwafemi Adeago and Xiaoming Li, Arnold School of Public Health, write for The Conversation.

Family nurse practitioner Tamieka Alston-Gibson

USC graduates help fill the gaps in rural health care

November 16, 2021, Megan Sexton

As the country marks Rural Health Day this week, the University of South Carolina works — through its School of Medicine, College of Nursing, Arnold School of Public Health and other areas — to understand and improve the delivery of health care in rural and underserved communities.

Ebony Toussaint

New faculty spotlight: Ebony Toussaint

November 02, 2021, Page Ivey

University of South Carolina alumna Ebony Toussaint joined the university as a faculty member this fall, working with the Rural and Minority Health Research Center in the Arnold School of Public Health. One of her first research projects will be a study of how evictions impact mental health, on which she will work with her husband, Etienne Toussaint, who is a new law professor.

graphic depicting eyeball

SmartSight project unleashes power of AI to assist blind, visually impaired

June 18, 2021, Chris Horn

Pooyan Jamshidi, an assistant professor of computer science and engineering, is a principal investigator on a three-year $500,000 NSF collaborative grant to develop the intelligence and computing capabilities for a smart device dubbed SmartSight. The platform will enable on-device artificial intelligence to improve real-time perception for blind and visually-impaired users.

A woman and a man make the Wakanda gesture. Man holds a photo of actor Chadwick Boseman.

Colorectal cancer screening recommended at age 45 instead of 50 - it's no fun, but it's worth it

May 25, 2021, Franklin G. Berger

Colorectal cancer remains a major source of cancer incidence and mortality worldwide. The American Cancer Society recently estimated that in 2021, there will be 149,500 new cases of colorectal cancer and 52,980 deaths in the U.S. alone. In The Conversation, Franklin G. Berger, professor emeritus in biological sciences, writes about two significant developments that could save lives.

Jaeseung Kim in a suit and tie

COVID-19 Impact: Gender disparities in pandemic's effect

April 14, 2021, Page Ivey

Jaeseung Kim, assistant professor in the College of Social Work since 2018, studies work and caregiving challenges for low-income parents and how work-family policies, both private and public, can help address such challenges. We asked Kim about how the pandemic has affected men and women differently and how to help those suffering the effects.

Adarsh Shidhaye holding his framed Sullivan Award.

Sullivan award winner's college career exemplifies service

April 14, 2021, Office of Communications and Public Affairs

Adarsh Shidhaye says he “hit the ground running” thanks to a pre-medical summer camp offered by the Office of Pre-Professional Advising. The program was so valuable to him that he started working as an ambassador during his freshman year, providing that same help to incoming students. Shidhaye’s service to his fellow students while earning a degree in public health as well as minors in business administration and medical humanities and culture has also earned him the university's highest undergraduate honor, the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award.

Payton Ramsey holding her framed Swanger Award.

Swanger award winner uses her drive for hard work to help others

April 14, 2021, Office of Communications and Public Affairs

Payton Ramsey of Hammond, Louisiana, has overcome a visual disability from childhood to become the first member of her family to attend college. The biological sciences major is also a member of the South Carolina Honors College who has spent her time at UofSC perfecting her leadership skills and expanding her mind through research. For her efforts over her four years at South Carolina, Ramsey received the 2021 Steven N. Swanger Award, the university’s second-highest undergraduate honor.

Brianna Lewis, 2021 graduating senior

Class of 2021: Brianna Lewis

April 13, 2021, Chris Horn

Brianna Lewis was voted “most likely to become a brain surgeon” in the first grade, and the Simpsonville, S.C.-native will soon begin earning the “Dr.” portion of that prediction. She’s headed to medical school this fall after wrapping up four years in the Honors College and two bachelor’s degrees — one in biology and another in experimental psychology.

students walk in building on campus

VIDEO: Team effort allowed students to return to campus in fall

March 18, 2021, Joshua Burrack

From the classroom to the research lab to the front lines of testing and tracing, the University of South Carolina community has taken extraordinary steps over the past year to safeguard its students, faculty and staff in the face of COVID-19. As we mark the one-year point of the pandemic, here’s the third in a three-part video series documenting the resilience, ingenuity and commitment that have guided us through this period.

researchers sample wastewater

COVID video series: Tracking wastewater

March 15, 2021, Joshua Burrack

From the classroom to the research lab to the front lines of testing and tracing, the University of South Carolina community has taken extraordinary steps over the past year to safeguard its students, faculty and staff in the face of COVID-19. As we mark the one-year point of the pandemic, here’s the second in a three-part video series documenting the resilience, ingenuity and commitment that have guided us through this period.

researchers work with test tubes

Resilience, ingenuity define UofSC's COVID response

March 11, 2021, Joshua Burrack

From the classroom to the research lab to the front lines of testing and tracing, the University of South Carolina community has taken extraordinary steps over the past year to safeguard its students, faculty and staff in the face of COVID-19. As we mark the one-year point of the pandemic, here’s the first in a three-part video series documenting the resilience, ingenuity and commitment that have guided us through this period.

Woman with gray hair, gray shirt and black mask standing at a table, displaying health items. Man and woman at table with back to viewer.

Researchers to help LGBTQIA+ populations navigate barriers to health information

March 09, 2021, Rebekah Buffington Friedman

Health disparities are common in LGBTQIA+ populations, in part because discrimination makes health information harder to come by. Over the next two years, a team of researchers from the University of South Carolina’s School of Information Science and Arnold School of Public Health will collaborate to recruit, learn from and develop specialized training for LGBTQIA+ community health workers.

Technicians in a lab wearing gloves and safety goggles.

University of South Carolina to help lead Savannah River National Laboratory research innovation and workforce development

February 10, 2021

The University of South Carolina and the Battelle Savannah River Alliance are partnering to conduct critical research at one of the country’s premier national laboratories – the Savannah River National Laboratory. The partnership will contribute to workforce development and provide cutting-edge advancements in national security, energy and environmental research.