[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6283180,"mediaKeyId","2590369-359618156781385995a7ce92f547c4dd","parentId",2590369,"title","State nonprofit outlines loan, grant and employer‑partner programs to reduce dropouts and strengthen workforce pipelines","audioSeconds",981,"startMs",2276000,"endMs",3257000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2590369-359618156781385995a7ce92f547c4dd&start=2276&end=3257","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2590369-359618156781385995a7ce92f547c4dd/thumbnail_2276000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6283180/South-Carolina/State-nonprofit-outlines-loan-grant-and-employerpartner-programs-to-reduce-dropouts-and-strengthen-workforce-pipelines","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6283180-048c7be2879d2799abe8da32d219f3b2/orig.mp4?Expires=1771164857&Signature=kYNJadIjDoGw2OHYTViQ2cOi0Z49ZY2aRc95NQAS5oRQhMKxdLwS7SF37QWH-oHvJvsuaM3dArmNB6KpMunTktalaIlGszhDVNKeouYXrh5wicYXHI2pZAbSjcxhKAVB7zA2~Gyhh9aEtAQ8ztHj5ROJiN-QqYB9KUUQ2JKzri4QkTj9K5~7hWO6GK-ZSWfh587b-KjaRsIrerO3nyOxN-rChGfIWJ16XbipTO3s78Zs4UtaaWl3K1sfkkYorzNW8rPvV083aBfpde-WqboJTIAFz-gPnTgZL4iGhH7S1oKjdNybKpPT8019Gdtu3erCPCI024fHguV9M4Pf06-Cyw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","South Carolina Legislature","date","2025-02-27T00:00:00Z","article","Ray Jones, vice president of loan programs at South Carolina Student Loan Corporation, told the House Education and Public Works Committee that the Columbia‑based nonprofit has broadened its work to include grants, persistence funding and employer‑partnered programs designed to keep students enrolled and connect graduates to jobs.

Jones described the nonprofit’s history, its current programs and its shift after 2010 away from administering federal student loans. “We preach borrowing responsibly,” Jones told the committee, summarizing the organization’s counseling emphasis while describing private loan products and targeted grant programs intended to reduce stop‑outs and default risk.

The details matter because many student defaults are driven by students who do not complete credentials but still incur debt; Jones told the committee that the organization’s persistence fund and employer partnerships aim to close small gaps — for example, $500 in emergency costs — that can cause a student to leave school.

Jones said South Carolina Student Loan Corporation was founded in 1973 and administered the federal student loan program in the state until 2010, when federal direct lending replaced state servicers. While the nonprofit now offers private education loans, Jones said it also returns surplus funds to the state through grants and philanthropy. He said the organization has provided roughly $5,000,000 in grants over four years and has helped about 500,000 students statewide via its programs, amounting to roughly $9,000,000,000 in total student aid managed over time.

Jones described a recently launched persistence fund that will provide $5,000 awards (institution‑level grants) that colleges and universities can apply for to help students cover small non‑tuition costs that impede completion. He said the program will be available to all 57 public and private nonprofit colleges and universities in the state upon application.

The nonprofit also described the BOLD Career Pathway program (Better Outcomes Less Debt), which contracts with employers — including hospital systems — to fund training. Jones said employers under contract pay off loans when participants complete training and remain employed, creating an employer‑sponsored pipeline for nursing and other in‑demand roles. He estimated the organization will put roughly $4 million to $5 million annually into such programs.

On default rates, Jones said that while the organization administered federal loans its default rate was about 1 percent; he noted that program structures changed after 2010 and during COVID, complicating straightforward comparisons. He told the committee that many defaults arise from students with modest unpaid balances who did not complete a credential: “The problem with student loan repayment is an $8,000 to $10,000 balance, and that means they attended for 2 years, didn't finish,” he said.

Committee members asked technical questions about interest rates and repayment options. Jones said borrowers can choose fixed or variable rates when available, decide whether to pay interest while enrolled, and select repayment terms (for example, 10 or 15 years). He compared private lender averages to federal options and told the committee that private competitor rates such as those from some large private lenders can be substantially higher; he said their private product rates tend to be lower than the highest private competitors.

Jones also noted a teacher loan refinance proviso drafted by Representative Collins and described an ongoing partnership with the Commission on Higher Education to administer teacher loan and nursing faculty pathways. He closed by urging responsible borrowing and offering the nonprofit’s assistance with FAFSA nights, persistence grants and employer partnerships as tools to improve completion and workforce supply.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Education and Public Works Committee -- E.P.W. Higher Education Subcommittee Thursday, February 27, 2025 9:00 am ","oneSentenceSummary","Ray Jones of South Carolina Student Loan Corporation described the nonprofit’s shift from federal loan servicing to a mix of private loans, grants and employer‑funded pathways, including a $5,000 persistence fund and a BOLD career pipeline to address nursing and teacher shortages.","taxTitle","Education and Public Works, Standing, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Committees, Legislative, South Carolina","taxId",17503,"location","South Carolina","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6283185,"South Carolina State reports 35% enrollment growth, presses for $100 million-plus in campus projects",1080,117000,1197000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2590369-359618156781385995a7ce92f547c4dd&start=117&end=1197","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2590369-359618156781385995a7ce92f547c4dd/thumbnail_117000.jpg","/articles/6283185/South-Carolina/South-Carolina-State-reports-35-enrollment-growth-presses-for-100-million-plus-in-campus-projects","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6283185-ed6e9fda89fc6d345df731a5959eced2/orig.mp4?Expires=1771164857&Signature=WWZaLiz2xi6nOPjCMTuquHKbD5alYe9QTCrrj4gCjg2avD-wGAjuKImdkjhY1Pnbvd~2MeU4KW5HYX916Shcl0-JhHJhsXZ3gTSHad7u8bATmw47v8zIxGdINJLOKus9XZtURBeEq3u9A6X-Yqhvu1u12pe5NEcnZQTmx8hXh5yYds8fcE0E9t~u8NomOnBwkBjE6q97TKyNU4HjeYFhbu-NokY7MansgX8tTKBe4UemFeR3TbinzRIGASWuCp6lDyngL73lLyMQ4a1E~aWX9DKX5INz8yfBHHyW10qB8QGhftgYCXHMTpiFJRnIT2iAMAwkE7Ny65btCc8NX4DXbA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","President Alex Conyers of South Carolina State University told the South Carolina House Education and Public Works Committee that the university’s enrollment has risen 35% since 2019 and the school was recently designated a Carnegie R2 research institution, but aging buildings and limited student housing are constraining further growth.

Conyers, who introduced himself as president of South Carolina State University, said “the university is in great shape” and highlighted gains in fundraising, research funding and freshman class size while asking lawmakers to support several capital projects. He told the committee the R2 designation “will significantly enhance our opportunities to compete for grants and research opportunities.”

The recognition and enrollment gains matter because they increase the university’s ability to win competitive research grants and expand programs, Conyers said. But the university’s physical condition and housing shortage limit how many students it can admit and retain, a constraint that also affects faculty recruitment and student affordability.

Conyers said that since 2019 South Carolina State’s enrollment has grown 35 percent and that for the last three freshman classes the university had to cap incoming students because housing capacity was insufficient. “For the past 3 years, we've topped over a thousand students in all of those 3 freshman classes,” he said.

He listed capital and renovation requests the university has included in its appropriation ask: a $54,000,000 replacement for Turner Hall, $30,000,000 for library replacement, a $15,000,000 Truth Hall dorm renovation, and a $20,000,000 student center expansion. Separately Conyers said the university is seeking $65,000,000 to replace its convocation center and $40,000,000 for a health and wellness facility; he also described a $15,000,000 renovation of Nance Hall as an alternative to an earlier $30,000,000 new building proposal for the College of Agriculture.

Conyers said the General Assembly recently provided $4,000,000 for scholarships that have helped retention and that alumni giving and research funding have risen: alumni giving increased during reunion events and research grant funding climbed roughly 35 percent from the previous year. He noted private investment is beginning to add off-campus housing adjacent to campus and said the university has a loan pending to build a 500-bed dorm; he estimated the university could return to about 5,000 students by 2028 if housing and program growth continue.

Conyers described programmatic strengths, including being the only South Carolina school with a nuclear engineering program and the university’s history producing military officers and NFL players. He listed partnerships with Clemson University, Savannah River National Laboratory partnerships, Duke Energy, Dominion Energy and the South Carolina Department of Commerce’s Nexus effort.

On federal and state grants, Conyers told the committee that some programs affecting students have recently been paused or altered. He said a USDA scholars program that covers full tuition for a small number of students was briefly paused and then reopened; he also said a separate NextGen agriculture-related grant that provided $5,000 annually to 40 students has been discontinued. “We have 40 students on that scholarship, and that grant has been paused. That grant actually has been pulled, discontinued,” he said.

Committee members who are alumni and former students praised the presentation and urged colleagues to visit the Orangeburg campus. Representative Grant, identifying himself as a 2011 graduate, said the presentation illustrated what the university could do “if we had more” resources. Representative Gillum asked whether the state’s tuition mitigation funds make a meaningful difference; Conyers replied, “It does. It makes an impact for us,” and said the mitigation prevents the university from having to raise tuition that students could not afford.

Conyers and committee members discussed retention as the central challenge: he said South Carolina State “has never had a recruiting issue. Our issue has always been retention,” and that economic pressures — not academics — often drive students to stop out. He described a capital campaign to raise private funds for athletics and other projects the state does not fund.

The committee’s chair closed the university presentation by thanking the delegation from Orangeburg and moved to the next scheduled presenters.

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State nonprofit outlines loan, grant and employer‑partner programs to reduce dropouts and strengthen workforce pipelines

South Carolina State reports 35% enrollment growth, presses for $100 million-plus in campus projects