This site uses cookies and tracks users anonymously for statistical purposes. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.
OKWe may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.
Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.
These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.
Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience.
If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here:
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Google Webfont Settings:
Google Map Settings:
Google reCaptcha Settings:
Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:
The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them:
You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.
Privacy Policy
USCOG April 2023 County-Specific Activities Report
/in NewsUpper Savannah Council of Governments provides a wide scope of services and performs many functions. This activities report highlights this information and offers us the chance to regularly communicate our general activities in your county with you. Download the April 2023 report here.
More Than 2,000 High School Seniors in Area Receiving “Your Next Step” Employer Directory
/in NewsUpper Savannah COG workforce development staff has updated its “Your Next Step After Graduation” directory of employers who hire recent high school graduates. Staff are distributing them to the more than 2,000 graduating seniors at public high schools in the Workforce Area.
The directory was created in 2021 and the latest now includes a web version https://upperscworks.com/wp-content/uploads/UpperSavannahEmployerDirectory2023.pdf with live links.
The Area includes Abbeville (108 seniors), Calhoun Falls (21), Dixie (87), Strom Thurmond (166), Emerald (170), Greenwood (324), Ninety Six (120), Ware Shoals (58), Laurens (300), Clinton (176), McCormick (36), Mid-Carolina (180), Newberry (161), Whitmire (40) and Saluda (143) high schools. There are 2,090 Area graduates in the Class of 2023.
The directory includes an alphabetical listing of nearly 90 companies in the Area which responded to a survey indicating they hire current high school students and recent graduates.
Also included are website addresses and whether employers offer flexible hours, tuition reimbursement, etc. Almost half offer tuition reimbursement and most work around school schedules.
This class is graduating at a time of low unemployment.
“Employers are struggling to fill positions. At the same time, we know each year more than 2,000 high school students are graduating,” USCOG Workforce Development Director Ann Skinner said.
“Our goal in publishing this directory is to connect the emerging workforce with local jobs. That may mean helping them find a part-time job while they are in school. For some it may mean starting a full-time job.”
Skinner said there are choices to be made and they differ with each individual.
“There are opportunities to work AND go to school. I think a lot of people believe you have to choose. ‘I will go to work or I will go to college.’ But you can do both,” she said.
“If we encourage more of our local graduates to work and go to school at the same time, we keep them in the area, we help them develop skills, and we can put them on a path to graduate (college) without debt.”
Skinner believes there are many benefits to working while going to college.
“Employers are looking for three things,” she said. “They are looking for credentials like your education, they are looking for a portfolio of things that you have done, and they are looking at your contacts because they want to know ‘can you work with other people, do you have references?’
“If you go to work, you are enhancing your credentials. You are building a portfolio of things you have done. So when you are being interviewed, you can say for example, ‘in my summer construction job, I learned how to measure, I learned how to read blueprints…’ When you have to put down three references, it’s good to say, ‘this is a person who has seen me work.’”
The directory provides information about training opportunities and assistance available for several health care programs to automotive technology, mechatronics, HVAC and welding, and several others.
The directory also includes encouraging tidbits for seniors making that next step, including a page devoted to “10 Steps of a Job Search.” The directory also highlights resume and cover letter development while sharing several interviewing tips.
USCOG Region Receiving Nearly $80 Million for 16 Water, Sewer, Stormwater Projects
/in NewsThe Upper Savannah region is receiving almost $80 million in grant funding to assist with improvements for clean drinking water, sanitary sewer and stormwater resilience.
Sixteen projects totaling $79,891,066 were awarded throughout the region, with projects in all six counties. The announcement was made Tuesday.
The grant awards are funded by the S.C. Infrastructure Investment Program (SCIIP) and the S.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA).
The Upper Savannah COG assisted with some of the applications and will help administer nine of the 16 projects.
USCOG Assistant Director Sam Leaman, Government Services Director Rick Green and Government Services Project Manager Cason Wright have been involved in the process.
Upper Savannah COG will be helping administer the projects for City of Abbeville, Town of Due West, Town of Edgefield, Ninety Six CPW, Town of Ware Shoals, City of Clinton, Laurens CPW, McCormick CPW and Town of Ridge Spring.
The S.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) had been awarded $1.369 billion in grant funding to communities across the state to assist with improvements for clean drinking water, sanitary sewer and stormwater resilience.
The funds, made via the award of 216 grants to local governments and public water and sewer utilities across South Carolina, will go a long way in protecting the quality of life, addressing long-term sustainability and providing new opportunities for growth and development.
The S.C. Infrastructure Investment Program (SCIIP) was created by RIA as a one-time initiative designed to have a transformative impact on water, wastewater and stormwater systems in small and disadvantaged communities as well as larger, growing communities using federal funds allocated by the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
The awarded projects include the following:
USCOG March 2023 County-Specific Activities Report
/in NewsThe USCOG provides a wide scope of services and performs many functions. We have developed this activities report as a way to highlight this information and to regularly communicate our general activities in your county with you. Download the March 2023 report here.
4 USCOG Region Counties, Municipalities Eligible for New Rural Grant Program
/in NewsAbbeville, Greenwood, Laurens and McCormick counties and their municipalities are eligible to apply for funding in the new Growing Rural Communities Grant Program.
Eligible recipients are units of local government in Tier III and Tier IV counties in South Carolina. Primary focus will be on counties that were not eligible for funding through the Rural Initiative Grant program.
These counties include Abbeville, Greenwood, Laurens and McCormick in the Upper Savannah Region as well as Cherokee, Chester, Chesterfield, Colleton, Darlington, Horry, Sumter and Union.
The grant funds can be used for a variety of purposes including but not limited to infrastructure improvements, workforce development initiatives, business development and retention programs, and quality of life enhancements.
Projects must lead to community development and can include industrial product development and community revitalization. Only non-business development projects are eligible.
“We have had several towns ask about sidewalks,” SCDOC Rural Development Manager Fearn Gupton said. “It (the funding) could be used to fund a study. It could be used for design work. It can also be used as a match for other funding outside of CDBG (Community Development Block Grant).”
The grant cannot be a match for CDBG, but CDBG can be a match for the grant. So if funding has already been secured from CDBG, and the applicant wants to expand on the project then the Rural Communities Grant funding could be used, according to Gupton.
A community project identification process must be completed prior to grant approval.
Grant values are determined by County designation. Abbeville, Greenwood, Laurens and McCormick all are Tier III.
Tier IV – $250,000 maximum with 10 percent match required.*
Tier III – $200,000 maximum with 10 percent match required.*
Maximum grant and match requirements may be adjusted for economically significant projects.
Grants will be approved by a four-member committee within SCDOC.
For more information regarding the Growing Rural Communities Grant Program, contact Peggy McLean at pmclean@SCcommerce.com or call 803-413-6774.
Upper Savannah AAA Hosting Basics of Long-Term Care Workshop April 18
/in NewsIs your family prepared to find long-term care for a loved one? Do you know your options? The Upper Savannah Area Agency on Aging will host the Basics of Long-Term Care workshop Tuesday, April 18.
The workshop is free and will take place from 10 a.m. to noon at the Greenwood Genetic Center J.C. Self Research Institute’s Curry Auditorium, 117 Gregor Mendel Circle in Greenwood.
The workshop will encourage planning for your future needs. What is long-term care? Who pays for it? How do I plan for it?
Speakers will include Vanessa Wideman, former Upper Savannah Area Agency on Aging Director; Rosalind Burke, Greenwood County Veterans Center; Jan Nabors, Department of Health and Human Services; Leigh Anne Workman, Hospice of the Piedmont; and Beth Des Jardins, S.C. Legal Services.
Registration is not required but is encouraged. To register or for more information, call Langley Richardson at 864-941-8069. Her email address is lrichardson@uppersavannah.com.
USCOG Hosts Clerks for Informal Lunch Meeting; Common Topics Discussed
/in NewsUpper Savannah COG hosted around a dozen town, city and county clerks this week, giving them an opportunity to discuss common topics which they face in their communities.
One topic was HEAL (healthy eating, active living) mini grants of up to $5,000 to help communities increase access to healthy choices and address health through technical assistance.
The Town of Ridge Spring successfully applied for a mini grant recently, acquiring new playground equipment for the Town Park and a bicycle rack.
The Promised Land community in Greenwood County also acquired a grant for picnic tables and benches at their walking trail.
The grant opportunities are offered by Wholespire, in collaboration with the S.C. Office of Rural Health. The grant application deadline is July 21, 2023.
“They have been very easy to work with,” Town of Ridge Spring clerk/treasurer Summer Brown said of Wholespire.
USCOG Government Services Director Rick Green led the group discussion during an informal lunch Tuesday. He told the clerks that money is available to fund environmental assessments of brownfields sites, enabling for the possible redevelopment of properties that might have contaminants such as asbestos, lead-based paint, oil or other chemicals.
A brownfields site is a former industrial or commercial site where future use is affected by real or perceived environmental contamination.
The site of environmental testing must be owned by a city, town or county, or be supported by a municipality for possible redevelopment.
Green also asked the clerks to support the state’s efforts to survey residents about their home internet access capabilities. The online survey can be accessed at cx.ravencsi.com/aK8qm via cell phone or computer.
The purpose of the survey is to locate underserved areas that lack reliable high-speed internet so the state can address the shortcomings with federal funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). But the state wants as many residents as possible to take the survey, whether their internet service is great, shaky or non-existent.
Other topics discussed by the clerks include reporting on the spending of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, law enforcement shortages, population growth in some areas of the region, and preparing for the FY 2023-24 budget and 2024 elections.
At the present time, USCOG is hosting clerk lunch meetings twice per year and also hosts public administrators and other officials at various times. Contact Rick Green at 864 941-8072 or rgreen@uppersavannah.com for more information.
COG Requesting Citizens of the Region Complete Important Broadband Survey
/in NewsThe Upper Savannah Council of Governments is continuing its push to get citizens of the Region to participate in the GetConnectedSC broadband survey to help South Carolina build better overall network access.
The internet ac
cess capabilities survey is located at https://cx.ravencsi.com/aK8qm or by pointing your phone camera at the QR Code to the right.
It only takes a few minutes to fill out and everyone in your home is eligible to complete the survey.
The purpose of the survey is to identify who has fast internet, slow internet or no internet access in their homes. The survey results can help determine which areas of the region are underserved with reliable high-speed internet access.
“Elected officials, administrators and other community leaders who are aware of citizens in their jurisdictions who do not have internet access in their homes can get them to call me to help them fill out the surveys over the phone,” USCOG Government Services Director Rick Green said. “We need to hear from citizens who lack adequate internet.”
Green can be reached at (864) 941-8072 or rgreen@uppersavannah.com.
The GetConnectedSC campaign is designed to identify the areas of greatest need in our state, invest in broadband infrastructure to those areas and provide support services to make that transformation possible for every home, business and community organization in South Carolina.
The initiative is part of a nationwide effort to improve broadband access. In 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) which included $65 billion for the deployment of broadband infrastructure development and digital inclusion efforts across the country.
USCOG February 2023 County-Specific Activities Report
/in NewsThe USCOG provides a wide scope of services and performs many functions. We have developed this new activities report as a way to highlight this information and to regularly communicate our general activities in your county with you. Download the February 2023 report here.
Funding to Become Available for Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in Communities
/in NewsThe Biden-Harris Administration has opened applications for a new multi-billion-dollar program to fund electric vehicle (EV) charging and alternative-fueling infrastructure in communities across the country and along designated highways, interstates, and major roadways.
This is a key step towards the President’s goals of building a national network of 500,000 public EV charging stations and reducing national greenhouse gas emissions by 50–52 percent by 2030.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s new Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Discretionary Grant Program, established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will provide $2.5 billion over five years to a wide range of applicants, including cities, counties, and local governments.
This round of funding makes up to $700 million from fiscal years 2022 and 2023 funding available to strategically deploy EV charging and other alternative vehicle-fueling infrastructure projects in publicly accessible locations in urban and rural communities, as well as along designated Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs).
“Extending EV charging infrastructure into traditionally underserved areas will ensure that equitable and widespread EV adoption takes hold,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Ensuring that charging stations are more visible and accessible in our communities addresses the concerns many American drivers have when considering making the switch to electric.”
A priority of the CFI Program is bringing EV charging into urban and rural communities, downtown areas and local neighborhoods, particularly in underserved and disadvantaged communities, as well as to designated alternative fuel corridors.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law divides the CFI Program into two distinct grant funding categories, and requires that 50 percent of the funding over five years is made available for each:
The Community Program will provide $1.25 billion to strategically deploy publicly accessible EV charging infrastructure, and hydrogen, propane, or natural gas fueling infrastructure in communities. Infrastructure may be located on any public road or in other publicly accessible locations such as parking facilities at public buildings, public schools, and public parks, or in publicly accessible parking facilities owned or managed by a private entity.
The Corridor Program will provide $1.25 billion to strategically deploy publicly accessible EV charging infrastructure and hydrogen, propane, and natural gas fueling infrastructure along designated alternative fuel corridors (AFCs).
Eligible applicants and projects for both categories are outlined in a Notice of Funding Opportunity. Applications are due by May 30, 2023.
FHWA and the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation plan to conduct outreach to potential grant applicants regarding the CFI Program via webinars throughout March and April and will provide direct technical assistance. Information on upcoming webinars can be viewed here. Visit DriveElectric.gov to access technical assistance from the Joint Office.