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Recent News
Recent news below. Read All The News here.
2026 Kauffman Luncheon and Award
Posted: 2:24 PM 5/14/2026
The 2026 Kauffman luncheon was held May 4 at the Etherredge Center. This year's award was presented to Harriet Haynes.
Semester Completed
Posted: 4:15 PM 4/30/2026
We have just completed a successful spring semester, both in number of students served and number of courses presented. If you took some of our courses, we thank you. Even before the spring semester was completed, CLL volunteers were hard at work on the fall semester that will begin in August. Come back to this website in mid-July to learn what new and exciting learning opportunities we have for you. See you then.
Thank You
Posted: 4:00 PM 4/30/2026
We recently sent our mailing list a survey asking if we needed to update our website design. If you were one of the 103 who responded to the survey, thank you. As a group, you overwhelmingly said we should redesign to improve readability and usability. We will post the survey results on the website in the next week or so. We will be redesigning the website over the next two months. We expect the new website to be ready in July when we post the fall semester schedule.
2026 Kauffman Remembrance Day and Award
In a tradition going back to 1992, a luncheon is held each year to honor the memory of Dr. Earl Kauffman, the driving force behind the creation of the Center for Lifelong Learning's predecessor organization in 1989, and the beginning of senior education in Aiken. The 2026 Kauffman Remembrance Day luncheon was held May 4 in the lobby the Etherredge Center at USCA.
The luncheon is funded in part by an endowment from the family of late USCA Professor James Kauffman to perpetuate the memory of his father. The event is open to all current registered members of the Center for Lifelong Learning and invitees.
Center for Lifelong Learning Advisory Board President Jim Tisarrani's opening remarks highlighted the Center's successful 2025-26 academic year. He reported the offering of a record number of quality courses that were attended by nearly 1000 combined students over the two semesters, saying "It's like a good wine, we're getting better, and better, and better".
The keynote speaker was USC Aiken Chancellor Daniel Heimmermann. His talk gave an update on the current state of the University and its place in the community. He provided a look into developments at the USCA campus like the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative partnership with the US Department of Energy and the upcoming South Carolina National Guard DreamPort Cybersecurity Center.
This year CLL again sponsored two scholarships to USCA LIFE, a post-secondary program that teaches employment and independent living skills to college students with intellectual and development disabilities. Program Director Melissa Martin introduced this year's recipients, Audrey Latham Blessing and James Hutchinson, who attended the luncheon along with their families.
Kauffman Award Presentation
Part of the Kauffman Remembrance Day memorial is the presentation of the Kauffman Award to an group or individual who has made significant contributions to the Center for Lifelong Learning. This annual award was begun in 1992, three years after the Academy for Lifelong Learning was organized.
Center Vice President Debbi Brooks presented the award at this year's luncheon to Harriet Haynes.
Note: This article (and the related details) is taken with permission from the manuscript for the Center's newsletter The Spiral by Doug Wilson. Thanks, Doug.