Dive Brief:
- A bill that would have made the College of Charleston the third full-fledged research university in South Carolina failed to make it through the state's legislature.
- In spite of the setback, the college will work with the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education on a mission statement change that would allow the school to offer doctoral degrees, The State reported.
- The dead bill also would have provided state regulatory relief for public colleges — particularly for Clemson University — on construction projects and land purchases.
Dive Insight:
State lawmakers in the Charleston, SC, area claimed the failure of the bill would cost jobs, with $28 million in donations tied to the proposed legislation passing, along with programs that could aid Boeing aircraft’s North Charleston plant and other employers. The College of Charleston has pledged that it will not offer doctoral degrees that duplicate those of Clemson and the University of South Carolina, which are the state's two major research universities.
