Tuition Grants Commission reports steady enrollment, $5,000 maximum award, and steps to expand outreach amid Limestone uncertainty

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Tuition Grants Commission told a state legislative subcommittee on Tuesday that enrollment at the 22 private colleges that participate in the tuition grants program has remained broadly steady while the commission moved to increase the maximum tuition grant for next year.

The commission’s executive director, Katie Harrison, told lawmakers that “the 22 colleges that participate in the tuition grants program, stays pretty steady in the undergraduate enrollment that we have throughout the state.” Harrison said the program served between roughly 11,000 and 13,000 tuition-grant recipients in recent years and disbursed just under 13,000 grants this fall, up from about 12,400 the prior year.

The briefing laid out why the commission settled on a $5,000 maximum tuition grant for the upcoming award year and described how the program is funded and administered. Commissioners also described outreach efforts to reach traditional and nontraditional students, the agency’s limited operating staff and recent one-time technology investments. Staff said they are preparing communications for students at Limestone University as that institution’s board was considering closing or moving to virtual operations.

Why it matters: The tuition grants program is a long-standing state financial-aid program directed at South Carolina residents who enroll full time at participating independent colleges. The program affects thousands of residents across all 46 counties, supplements students’ direct tuition and fees, and is funded from multiple state-controlled sources that have shown mixed trends.

Commission overview and enrollment trends Katie Harrison, executive director of the Tuition Grants Commission, and Deputy Director Zachary Christian presented county-level and five-year enrollment data showing that participating institutions continue to enroll a substantial share of South Carolina undergraduates. Harrison said the total undergraduate headcount across participating colleges ranges near 61,000 students, with roughly 39,000 South Carolina resident undergraduates. Of full-time South Carolina resident students at participating colleges, Harrison said about 60–68 percent receive tuition grants.

Harrison and Christian noted the national “enrollment cliff” discussion but said many participating private and public institutions in South Carolina continue to report large incoming freshman classes. Harrison added that about 7–9 percent of grant recipients are nontraditional students enrolled in evening or online programs.

Commission action on award level Harrison told the subcommittee that the Tuition Grants Commission voted unanimously to raise the program’s maximum award for the next academic year to $5,000. Christian explained the statutory constraint that tuition grants cannot exceed the average state subsidy for a full-time student at a public institution; commissioners weigh that subsidy each year when setting the maximum. Harrison said the commission aims to avoid large, year-to-year swings tied to state-subsidy calculations that could leave students with reduced awards mid-course.

Funding sources and agency finances The commission described four primary revenue sources for tuition grants: the state general appropriation for tuition grants, the lottery expenditure account allocation for scholarships and grants, a pass-through from the Commission on Higher Education tied to a children’s education endowment, and interest earned on unspent recurring funds. Harrison provided multi-year appropriation and expenditure figures and said the agency operates with a small staff and mostly state-controlled funding.

On lottery funding, lawmakers and staff said they are monitoring a downward trend in lottery receipts. Harrison said scholarship and grant line items funded by the lottery are relatively well protected compared with other lottery-funded items, but she acknowledged the commission is watching revenue trends and would seek recurring general-fund support if needed.

Operations, staffing and technology Harrison emphasized the agency’s small operating footprint: the commission has four full-time employees and one authorized but currently unfunded FTE. The commission spent a one-time capital reserve appropriation to implement a new student information system (SIS) that went live in fall 2023 and reduced prior manual processes. Staff described time previously spent answering enrollment and eligibility questions that the new system now automates and said the agency hopes to redirect staff time toward outreach.

Outreach and eligibility Staff described outreach conducted through institutional financial-aid and admissions offices, guidance-counselor workshops organized by the Carolina Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (CACRAO), the South Carolina Independent Schools Association, high-school visits, and social media campaigns. Harrison said there is no separate application for the tuition grant; South Carolina residents who list a participating college on the FAFSA are automatically screened for eligibility and receive individual communications from the commission.

Limestone University and contingency planning Commission staff said they are preparing to contact current and prospective Limestone University students depending on the board’s decision about operations. Harrison noted Limestone has been a participating member of the program since the early 1970s and that the commission will communicate options for students if the institution closes or shifts to online-only delivery.

Quotes from presenters “We stayed pretty steady in the undergraduate enrollment that we have throughout the state,” Katie Harrison, executive director of the Tuition Grants Commission, said during the briefing.

“Our program has been around since 1970,” Zachary Christian, deputy director, said while summarizing program history and trends.

Votes at a glance - Committee action: Approval of the meeting minutes. Representatives answered “aye” (Representative Bowers and Representative McGinnis recorded as “Aye”); the transcript records the motion and recorded ayes. - Tuition Grants Commission: Commissioners voted unanimously to increase the maximum tuition grant to $5,000 for the upcoming award year; the vote was described in the commission’s presentation as unanimous.

What’s next Staff said they will continue targeted outreach using the new student information system, work with college partners to reach nontraditional students, and monitor lottery revenue trends. The committee scheduled further follow-up and will resume the remainder of the commission’s presentation at a later date.

Reporting note: This article is based on the commission’s presentation to a legislative subcommittee on the date in the record and on questions posed by multiple representatives. Quotes and factual details are drawn from the subcommittee transcript and the presenters’ slide commentary.