AU Noted in U.S. News and World Report Rankings

Observer Reports

Anderson University is ranked among the best regional universities in the South, according to "U.S. News and World Report's" annual rankings of best colleges and universities. 

AU, with a record-breaking enrollment of almost 4,000 students, ranks 44th among regional universities in the South, and was named to the publication’s “Best Undergraduate Teaching” (15th) and “Best Value” (29th) lists for 2022, along with being noted for excellence in a student’s “First Year Experience.” 

“Anderson University is enjoying the most prosperous, successful season in its 110-year history, and I’m proud of all that our faculty, staff and students have accomplished in helping get us where we are today,” said AU President Evans P. Whitaker. 

In addition to the latest rankings, Anderson University is ranked 26th in the country among all universities (public and private) for Student Engagement by the Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education. 

Anderson First Steps Gets Award for Parental Program

Observer Reports

Anderson County's First Steps has received $11,374 to implement the Ready Rosie Active Family Engagement System in partnership with four Anderson County school districts (Anderson School Districts One, Two, Three, and Four). Through this project, 300 Anderson County parents will be offered the opportunity to learn about the developmental phases and needs of their young children, as well as how they can support their child’s overall skills and abilities to ensure they are ready for kindergarten.

South Carolina First Steps has awarded competitive grants totaling $282,731 to seven local First Steps nonprofits as part of its Early Childhood Innovation Grants program. The funding will expand programs and services that help prepare children for kindergarten.

Established in 2018, Early Childhood Innovation Grants support local initiatives that have a demonstrated impact on the healthy development and school readiness of young children from birth through age five.

South Carolina First Steps is both a nonprofit and state agency and is the only statewide, dedicated comprehensive early childhood agency in South Carolina focused on getting children ages birth through five ready for school and life success. Last year, First Steps directly served 28,427 children across all 46 counties.

Established in 1999 by the South Carolina General Assembly to close the gap on students’ preparedness for success in school, South Carolina First Steps takes a holistic approach to accomplishing its mission of preparing all children for success in school, work and life, offering services that improve children’s health, strengthen families, expand access to quality child care, increase participation in four-year-old kindergarten programs and help transition rising kindergartners into school.

AnMed Joins Countywide EMS System for Faster Response Times

Observer Reports

Anderson County's united EMS system is working with AnMed to improve respose time countywide through the use of Quick Response Vehicles (QRV).

A multidisciplinary team of physicians from AnMed Health will collaborate with the county’s EMS workers to provide medical oversight for the program, which will include 14 vehicles strategically placed throughout the 780 square miles of Anderson County.

“Partnerships like these are central to AnMed Health’s long-standing promise of addressing community health ‘together,’” said William Kenley, AnMed Health CEO. “By collaborating with EMS we will ensure that life-saving care begins sooner for those in all parts of our county.”

In addition to improving the QRV program itself, closer collaboration between AnMed Health and Anderson County will ensure that EMS protocols are well-integrated with those at the hospital, leading to more coordinated care and better overall health outcomes.

“The partnership between the county and AnMed Health provides seamless health care from the time a 911 call is received all the way to the patient’s care at the hospital,” said Anderson County Administrator Rusty Burns.

The QRV program ensures that emergency medical personnel arrive quickly to begin life-saving treatment, particularly in outlying areas of the county. The vehicles are operated by Advance Life Support certified paramedics and carry the same equipment as an ambulance in all areas throughout the county.

Funding for Some Renters, Homeowners Critical as Eviction Moratorium Ends

Anderson County/AIM Partnership Has Been Distributing Funds Since March

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

A latent symptom of the COVID-19 pandemic is beginning to manifest itself as thousands in Anderson County are are finding themselves at risk of eviction from their place of residence, but there is some remedy available, at least for renters.

After more than a year of eviction moratoriums, many renters who are behind on monthly rent are now required to pay up or move out. Many are desparate to find help.

Currently in South Carolina, renters who are behind on their rent can be evicted. Landlords are now allowed to begin eviction proceedings against any tenant who is at least five days late paying rent, and visible evictions are under way in some apartment complexes and rental houses in the county. 

Some homeowners who are behind on mortgages will face a similar fate when the foreclosure moratorium ends Sept. 30. After that date foreclosures can begin for those more than 120 days behind on mortgage payments. 

Anderson County partnered with AIM earlier this year to get funds out to those in need as quickly as possible.

The county approved a federally funded $6.1 million emergency rental assistance program aimed at helping local citizens and landlords who have been put in difficult situations by the pandemic. The funds are from the United States Department of the Treasury's Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program, and in partnership with AIM began providing education and distributing the funds.

The rent relief website is here. AIM also offers in-person help for rent relief for those not comfortable with technology. 

Since March, more than $2 million has been provided so far to those who have fallen behind on rent due to the pandemic. AIM is continuing to work to educate many who are behind on rent that there is help available. 

“We have helped more than 400 families already and are seeing an increase in those wanting help in recent weeks,” said Jordan Evans, vice president of programs for AIM.

“We will continue to get the word out and hope others will continue to reach out as we still have funds to distribute.” 

Such education key. Some renters have operated under the mistaken notion that the moratorium meant the back rent would be forgiven. Others are left confused and are unaware of the availability of funds to help and/or where to find help. 

AIM also approached the the City of Anderson with an offer to help distribute their federal $251,000 in mortgage relief funds, since current funding available to AIM is only for renters.

AIM invested $16,000 with local developer CREDO to build the platform and develop a program that would best serve clients, according to AIM Founder and CEO Krist King-Brock, who said the system had been running smoothly and is not difficult to use.

The City of Anderson chose to develop their own online portal to receive applications and promote the availability of mortgage relief funds, said Beth Batson, director of public information for the city. Batson said the hope is the new project will be up and running in 30 days, with the goal of providing $5,000 assistance to 40 qualified homeowners in the city limits. 

The city also has plans to market the new website and offer in-person help when their project is ready. 

Anderson County Adminstrator Rusty Burns said the county will continue to look for federal funds or other sources of funding to provide mortage relife funds countywide.

AnMed Seeing High Demand for COVID-19 Testing

Observer Reports

AnMed Health's drive-through testing site at the North Campus is currently experiencing a very high volume of traffic and is encouraging those needing testing for COVID test and are not experiencing symptoms, please consider visiting an alternate testing site on this list: https://bit.ly/3lhwwNH

Appointments to visit AnMed Health's testing site. To schedule an appointment, please contact your primary care provider or complete an E-Visit. You may then receive an order to be tested at the drive-thru clinic at the AnMed Health North Campus. Please note that E-Visits are available for patients 18 years and older.

Please do not visit the emergency department or CareConnect urgent care locations for COVID testing.

Unvaccinated 11 Times More Likely to Die From COVID-19

Wire Reports

Unvaccinated people were 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 compared to those who were fully vaccinated, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in a new study Friday, providing more evidence of  the vaccines' effectiveness at preventing severe disease, even as protection from mild breakthrough cases appears to be waning in the face of the Delta variant.

"Looking at cases over the past two months when the Delta variant was the predominant variant circulating in this country, those who were unvaccinated were about four and a half times more likely to get COVID-19, over 10 times more likely to be hospitalized, and 11 times more likely to die from the disease,"  CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said at a briefing Friday.

The CDC's latest data, published as three studies Friday in the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, are also the latest sign that booster shots could become necessary in the coming months for many. 

Examining the incidence of COVID-19 across 13 jurisdictions in the United States, the CDC reported that the odds of fully vaccinated people becoming sick with the virus rose as the Delta variant surged across the country.

Scientists expected fully vaccinated people to make up some 10% of cases from late June through July, if the shots retained peak effectiveness at preventing any infection. Instead, vaccinated persons accounted for 18% of observed cases — a finding the study's authors said "were consistent with a potential decline in vaccine protection against confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection."

However, while protection against hospitalization and death remained relatively high in the study through mid-July, the CDC also published new data showing further evidence of waning protection against severe disease in the oldest Americans.

In data collected from the agency's "VISION Network" cohort of hundreds of hospitals and urgent care clinics, the agency reported that vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization in adults 75 and older "was significantly lower" than in younger patients through August. A handful of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers reached a similar conclusion in their data, estimating effectiveness against hospitalization for adults 65 and older at 80%.

Both studies reported that their findings of declining effectiveness against hospitalization had not been previously observed in their cohorts.

The CDC has previously reported vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization appearing to drop over time in other cohorts, though still remaining above 80% through July. 

The new results come as federal health officials say they are moving ahead with plans to roll out booster shots nationwide, pending approval from the Food and Drug Administration and formal recommendations from a panel of the CDC's expert vaccine advisers.

Pfizer is expected to be first to win approval from the FDA for a booster shot. The regulator plans to convene its panel of vaccine experts to deliberate over the company's booster shot data next week, ahead of the administration's planned rollout the week of September 20th.

Federal health officials say they also hope to allow for booster shots for recipients of Moderna and Johnson & Johnson's vaccines in the coming weeks, pending more data from the drugmakers.

High School Football Scores

Wren 55. Easley 28 

T.L. Hanna 43, BHP 10

Powdersville 41, Pendleton 0 

Woodmont 28, Palmetto 8

Westside 64, Byrnes 62

Friendship Court to Get Free Internet Service

Observer Reports

Friendship Court in Anderson has been selected to receive Rainbow Housing Assistance Corporation’s LINK internet service earlier this year, which includes free property-wide Wi-Fi at no cost to tenants. Rainbow’s Web-Based Resident Applied Programming (WRAP) airs live webinars while the national call center connects residents to timely community-specific information. On-site Resident Services Coordinators (RSC) leads the WRAP sessions as well as in-person workshops with all participants practicing social distancing, wearing masks and undergoing temperature checks. 

Rainbow Housing Assistance Corporation (Rainbow), a national nonprofit organization which provides services for low-income housing tenants throughout the country. 

“We are proud to once again partner with Rainbow to offer free, quality workshops and services to residents in South Carolina,” said Zack Simmons, Senior Vice President of Related Affordable. “Rainbow’s custom supportive services provide access to life enrichment programs for youth and adults, both virtually and in person, as well as resources to directly help residents and the community.”   

Through the Rainbow app, residents can view an online calendar of workshops and class schedules. The programs cover a range of topics such as obtaining a GED, home buying and learning English as a second language.   

“All residents living in low-income housing should have access to first-rate services that meet their needs and support their professional, financial and personal aspirations,” said Flynann Janisse, Executive Director of Rainbow. “Partnering with Related Affordable expands our service portfolio to an additional state and allows us to serve individuals and families in South Carolina.”  

After implementing Rainbow’s quality programs into communities, Rainbow’s partnering developers have seen improvement in occupancy, reduced turnover costs and lower concessions. Owners who partner with Rainbow can receive financial incentives such as low-income housing tax credits because the nonprofit is a Certified Organization for Resident Engagement & Services. Developed by Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future, the certification identifies quality resident services coordination in affordable rental housing.

Arts Center Accepting Submissions for AU Exhibit

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

The Anderson Arts Center will host exhibit featuring the artist alumni of Anderson University, featuring a variety of mediums, including 2-D and 3-D work. This multi-generational, multi-medium show will highlight the numerous talented artists that are graduates of AU.

All graduates of Anderson University are eligible. The application deadline is Nov. 8. Entry form here. For more information, visit www.AndersonArts.org

Anderson County Council Meeting Recap

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

Anderson County Council recap for Sept. 7. 2021.

"Hot Air Affair" 2021 Deemed a Big Success

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

The Cancer Assoication of Anderson filled the skies over Williamston, Pelzer and West Pelzer Labor Day Weekend with the annual "Hot Air Affair" fundraiser.

The Cancer Association of Anderson is the only local organization solely providing assitance to residents of Anderson County. All the money raised stays local to provide assistance to patients and families.

S.C. House to Hold Redistricting Meetings

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP) — A group of South Carolina House members will start their work on redistricting this week.

The House ad-hoc committee holds its first public meetings in Myrtle Beach on Wednesday and Florence on Thursday. The committee has five Republicans and three Democrats.

The House committee will hold 10 meetings across the state, with the last one on Oct. 4 at the Statehouse, when they hope their proposed new maps have been released.

Both the House committee and a similar Senate subcommittee which already held 10 hearings across the state will use the new 2020 U.S. Census data to draw maps for the 46 state Senate districts, 124 state House districts and seven U.S. House districts.

The new maps will use 2020 U.S. Census data released in August.

The two chambers usually don’t alter the other chamber’s map. Both chambers will work together on the U.S. House map.

Some people at the Senate meetings have asked for public input after the proposed new districts. Senators said they expect to do that before their maps are sent to full Senate for approval during a special session this fall.

This week’s House hearings are Wednesday at the Horry-Georgetown Technical College conference center and Thursday at Florence-Darlington Tech in Florence. All meetings start at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed at the South Carolina Statehouse website.

South Carolina added nearly 500,000 people from 2010 to 2020 to become the 23rd largest state in the U.S. with 5.1 million people, according to the Census.Much of that growth was along the coast and the suburbs of Charlotte, North Carolina. Twenty-four of South Carolina's 46 counties lost population, mostly in rural areas.

Mill Town Players "The Red Velvet Cake War" Starts Sept. 17

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

The Mill Town Players kick off their new season Sept. 17 with the Southern-fried comedy "The Red Velvet Cake War."

In the play, three Verdeen cousins—Gaynelle, Peaches, and Jimmie Wyvette throw a family reunion in the middle of a tornado that leads to a series of mishaps and gossip in the small town of Sweetgum (just down the road from Fayro) and the eyes of Texas are upon them, as their self-righteous Aunt LaMerle is quick to point out. 

Will Ragland, director of the play and founder of the Mill Town Players said he has been waiting for two years to put this production on stage and promises an all-star line up of local talent. For tickets or more information visit here.