Category Archives: Local News
SDPC approves budget with no tax increase
COUNTY — The School District of Pickens County has approved a $195.3 million budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year that includes pay raises for all employees, new educational programs and no increase in the district’s operating tax rate.
The district’s Board of Trustees approved the budget on third reading May 26.
According to superintendent Danny Merck, the balanced $195,283,145 budget
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Upcountry Fiber celebrates 5 years
UPSTATE — Five years ago, Upstate S.C. utility cooperatives Blue Ridge Electric Co-op and West Carolina announced their partnership to create Upcountry Fiber, a broadband internet service provider that brings high-speed fiber internet access to 
households and businesses within Blue Ridge Electric’s service area to help bridge the “digital divide” where little to no access existed. Five years later, the promise to bring the digital age to those in unserved and underserved areas is
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Santana Jackson to headline AWL Memorial show, Saturday
PICKENS — Wrestling fans are in for a high-energy night of entertainment this Saturday, June 6, as the American Wrestling League brings its topflight production with all the elements of the major wresting promotions back to the Market at the Mill Event Center for its fourth annual Norton Lewis Memorial Show.
The event will feature a full lineup of top independent wrestling talent, a special Las Vegas-style performance on the stage, and the return of one of the Southeast’s most
GAL hosts annual luncheon June 18
EASLEY — Friends of Pickens County Guardian ad Litem (Friends of PCGAL) will host its Annual Luncheon on Thursday, June 18 at 12 p.m. at Occasions at Wedgefield in 
Easley, South Carolina. The event will bring together approximately 150 community members united in support of children in the Pickens County Department of Social Services (DSS) care system. This year’s
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Setting the record straight.
Editor’s Note
In last week’s graduation edition of the Pickens County Courier, the following Liberty High School graduates were printed with incorrect photos in place of their actual pictures. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused.
Courier Community Calendar 6-3-26
• Children’s garden plots still available
All but two of the children’s garden plots at Bryson Children’s Nature Walk in Six Mile have been filled for the summer vegetable gardening season. The site contains 24 plots, 12 in-ground and 12 above-ground, with two of the above-ground handicap accessible. There is water at the site, and the plots are free and ready for planting by children for
Clemson Paw Partners plans new Central facility
CENTRAL — Clemson Paw Partners has announced plans for a significant new facility in Central, South Carolina, designed to expand access to affordable veterinary care and give Upstate pet owners more options for their pets’ care.
The new facility, located off Greenville Highway in Central, will allow the nonprofit to expand its low-cost services while working toward its long-term vision of a full-service,
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Project School Pantry aims to feed kids, families
EASLEY — A nonprofit is seeking additional sponsors to help feed children and families in the area.
Flipped Out Investments owner Brandy Hancock spoke with the Courier on Friday. She is one of Project School Pantry’s board members.
The project grew out of a food pantry outside the Flipped Out Investments office in Easley.
“The idea kind of formed back in November of 2025,” through herself,
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Daniel student earns prestigous awards at Phoenix science fair
PHOENIX, Ariz. — Arjun Vir Jain, a student at D.W. Daniel High School in Clemson, South Carolina, earned two awards at the Regeneron International Science and 
Engineering Fair (ISEF) 2026, held May 11–15 in Phoenix, Ariz.
ISEF is the world’s largest pre-college science and engineering competition, bringing together approximately 1,700 finalists from over 70 countries, regions, and territories.
Arjun’s project, “Sentinel AI: An LLM-Driven Framework for Real-Time Automated Outbreak Detection Using Doctor-Patient Conversations,” received a Category Award — Fourth Place in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics and the Non-Trivial Fellowship Scholarship, which provides a place in Non-Trivial’s selective summer research fellowship along with a project grant to support future research. Non-Trivial is a non-profit research You must be logged in to view this content.
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SWU’s Eller earns SCICU Excellence in Teaching award
CENTRAL —Southern Wesleyan University Associate Professor of Biology and coordinator for the university’s pre-dental, pre-med, pre-nursing, and pre-pharmacy 
programs, Dr. Michele Eller, has been recognized as the recipient of the 2026 South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (SCICU) Excellence in Teaching Award.
Dr. Eller, a Southern Wesleyan alumna, earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from SWU before completing her Ph.D. in genetics at Clemson University. She returned to her alma mater as a full-time faculty member in 2017 and has since become a highly respected educator, mentor, and advocate for student research and academic excellence.
An expert in cell biology, genomics, and science pedagogies, Dr. Eller teaches a wide
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