Check Out the Latest Education Updates in Western South Carolina

Courtesy of Piedmont Technical College

Educational institutions in the region prioritize relevancy and growth in all aspects, from curriculum to spaces. In fact, several schools are in the process of upgrading or adding to their facilities. Take a look at the most recent education updates in Western South Carolina.

Piedmont Technical College

College students in Edgefield, McCormick and Saluda counties who are interested in health care careers will soon have access to the new $16 million Self Regional Healthcare Center for Health Sciences. The two-story building is expected to open in mid-2026 at the Piedmont Technical College Lex Walters Campus-Greenwood in nearby Greenwood County, which is approximately 30 minutes from Edgefield, McCormick and Saluda counties.

Piedmont Technical College serves a seven-county area, and officials say the Center for Health Sciences will allow students to receive training in real-world conditions. The center will include 10 simulation rooms, multiple labs, hospital beds, digitized human cadavers, collaborative pod workspaces and classrooms.

Additionally, the college recently broke ground on the $14.3 million Saluda County Center for Manufacturing Excellence. The center will offer high-quality programs like mechatronics and machine tool technology, as well as allow area high school students to earn college credit through dual-enrollment courses. Construction is expected to be completed by early 2027.

Aiken County Public Schools

Officials of Aiken County Public Schools gave the go-ahead in mid-2025 for large construction projects at five schools within the district. These include Belvedere Elementary School in Belvedere, J.D. Lever Elementary School in Aiken, North Augusta Middle School in North Augusta, North Augusta High School in North Augusta, and Wagener-Salley High School in Wagener.

Construction initiatives include a new cafeteria and additional classrooms at Belvedere Elementary, a multipurpose building at J.D. Lever Elementary, and a complete rebuild of the 75-year-old North Augusta Middle School. Plus, a 450-seat auditorium is under construction at North Augusta High School, and Wagener-Salley High School is getting a new $15 million athletic complex.

Edgefield County School District

Board members with the Edgefield County School District have approved plans to replace the district’s four existing playgrounds to make them ADA accessible. The upgrades will cost about $1.5 million, and officials say the plan is needed because Edgefield County has seen steady enrollment increases in recent years.

The district is working with contractors to develop plans for the new playgrounds, with equipment options like wheelchair ramps, wide paths with rails, safety-harness swings, ground-level play panels and easy-access slides.

USC Aiken

The University of South Carolina Aiken (USCA) is making a name for itself as South Carolina’s newest hub for cybersecurity and cyber defense innovation.

The $30 million Readiness Center is set to open in 2026, while the $13 million Cyber Integration Center (CIC) is expected to open in 2027. The two buildings will be located on the USCA campus near the existing Savannah River National Laboratory’s Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative. The Readiness Center will house and train soldiers with the 125th Cyber Protection Battalion of the South Carolina Army National Guard.

“The Readiness Center is ideal because of its close proximity to Fort Gordon (formerly Fort Eisenhower) in Augusta, only 25 miles from Aiken,” says Todd Shealy, director of strategic initiatives for the South Carolina Military Department. “Fort Gordon is already known as a top cyber center, and the Readiness Center in Aiken provides another base of operations for our National Guard’s training in cyber defense.”

Meanwhile, the Cyber Integration Center will teach USCA students about cyber science and AI.

“The CIC is largely a workforce development initiative, because there is a huge need for cyber professionals across the U.S.,” says Scott McKay, dean of sciences and engineering at USC Aiken. “We currently have about 400 computer science students and 200 cybersecurity students on our Aiken campus, and those numbers should climb with the opening of the CIC.”

The Cyber Integration Center will feature classrooms, training areas, and operational and administrative spaces, and McKay says the cybersecurity initiative will bring together people from academia, government and the private sector.

“The Readiness Center and the CIC are two exciting projects,” he says. “USC Aiken is already recognized as a Center of Excellence, and these cyber efforts will greatly add to our campus.”