On Tuesday, Dec. 19, the University of South Carolina Upstate will award 503 degrees at its Convocation Honoring December Graduates, which serves as a reminder that USC Upstate is a major regional partner for Spartanburg and the entire Upstate.

“These new alumni, of which seven are earning master’s degrees, will fulfill regional and state workforce needs further cementing USC Upstate’s role as a major engine of social and economic development,” said Chancellor Brendan B. Kelly. “Nearly 80 percent of our graduates remain in the Upstate region to build successful careers and lives, including a high level of civic engagement and community leadership. With nearly 30,000 alumni, the success and the continued growth of USC Upstate is vital not only to the region but to the entire state.”

An economic impact study conducted by University of South Carolina’s Darla School of Business and released this summer showed that USC Upstate contributed $506 million to the state’s economy, a 30 percent increase from $388.6 million in 2011. Among the eight campuses in the USC System, USC Upstate had the second-highest economic impact in the state behind Columbia ($4.16 billion). In 2017, the University’s contribution to wages and salaries stood at $161.9 million, and the total number of jobs (associated with the measured economic activities) was 4,996.

Tuesday’s graduation ceremony will have an especially patriotic element to it as the University, which was designated a Military Friendly Campus in 2016, recognizes 13 active-duty / military veterans and five military dependents among its graduates. In addition, three graduates who are receiving bachelor’s degrees will take the Oath of Office and be commissioned as officers in the U.S. Army. The new officers include Dylan James Bridgeman of Spartanburg, who will go active-duty infantry before becoming a military intelligence officer, and Rachel Elizabeth Clark of Ridgeway and William Daniel Gosnell of Duncan, who will be commissioned as active-duty nurses.

The Convocation Honoring December Graduates will be at 6:45 p.m. at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium.