2022 Core 4 Nominees

Aiken, SC (02/07/2022) — Each year, four University of South Carolina Aiken (USC Aiken) alumni are selected to be a part of the elite Core 4. This group demonstrates USC Aiken's core values of character, citizenship, curiosity, and collegiality.

Nominations for the 2022 Core 4 were recently announced. Winners will be announced at USC Aiken's Homecoming Alumni Reception on Saturday, February 12, 2022, at the Convocation Center.

The 2022 nominees are Kristin Allen (communication, 2003), Brandon Baskett (secondary education English, 2012), Tammy Davis-Ruth (communication, 2004), Preston Maroney (Banksia, business, 1971), Brooke Usry (biology, 2007), and Erin Vincent (associate's in nursing, 1997; bachelor's in psychology, 1998).

Allen is employed at the University of South Carolina as the assistant director of CRM Administration in the Office of Admissions. While a student at USC Aiken, she was on the dance team, served as Student Government Association vice president, and was a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, INC. Currently, Kristin is the president of the Aiken Alumnae chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, secondary advisor to the Rho Lambda chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, assistant director/choreographer/coach to the USC Aiken Spirit Squad (combined dance team and cheerleading squad), hip hop teacher at Burns Dance Studio and a board member at Rural Health Services. Originally from Waldorf, MD she currently resides in Aiken.

Baskett has worked in education for ten years and expects to graduate with his doctorate in educational leadership from Liberty University in May 2022. He has worked as a high school English teacher, basketball coach, and assistant principal. Since February 2020, he has served as the dean for higher education services and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) for Lexington County School District One. He oversees dual enrollment programming, AVID programming, and works to ease the transition to college for first-generation students through the district's early college program. He serves his community through the nonprofit organization he founded in 2017, Seeds of Wisdom. Originally from Aiken, he currently resides in Columbia, SC, and is married to Christina (Pressley) Baskett, also a USC Aiken alum. They have a three-year-old daughter, Chloe, and will be a family of four this April.

Davis-Ruth is community investment director for the United Way of Aiken County (UW). She has been working in public service for more than 17 years. Her primary role is managing and coordinating UW's community impact initiative, Project VISION. She has a master's degree in public administration, nonprofit management from Pace University in New York, NY, and is a 2004 communication graduate of USC Aiken. She credits USC Aiken for introducing her to the Aiken community, where she developed a love for nonprofits and the service they provide to those in need. Originally from Hampton, SC, she currently resides in Augusta, GA, and is married to Minister Sederick Ruth

Maroney attended USC Aiken during the Banksia transfer era. He was a Public Safety Cadet Program scholarship recipient, student body treasurer, student body vice president, and a member of the basketball team. He coached the basketball team from 1964 -1969. Maroney transferred to USC Columbia and received a bachelor's degree in business administration with a management minor in 1971. He retired as a Department of the Army civilian where he worked with various Army Reserve commands in the southeast. As a member of the Reserve, he completed two mobilizations to the middle east: Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. He retired as a Chief Warrant Office Five and is a current member of the VFW, American Legion, and Military Officer's Association of America. Since retirement, he's been volunteering with Walton Foundation for Independence in Augusta and helped establish the Doctor William Carr Basketball Scholarship at USC Aiken. Maroney supports the scholarship each year and has provided additional support to the Veteran and Military Student Success program and the newly constructed Strength and Conditioning Center.

Dr. Usry has been practicing general dentistry in the CSRA for ten years. She earned her bachelor's of science in biology from USC Aiken. She graduated from the Medical College of Georgia and completed a residency in general practice dentistry following her graduation. Dr. Usry is a member of the American Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, the International Congress of Oral Implantologists, and the South Carolina Dental Association. She has been awarded a fellowship in the International Congress of Oral Implantologists and earned her Fellowship in the Academy of General Dentistry in 2020. She holds an adjunct faculty position at the Dental College of Georgia and is married to a local chef and owner of Fatman's Cafe, The Sno Cap, and The Southern Salad. They have two daughters ages three and six and a Maltese.

Vincent earned three degrees in her academic pursuits, two of them at USC Aiken. After earning her associate's degree in nursing from USC Aiken, she returned to complete her bachelor's degree in psychology. She attended Augusta State University, where she earned a master's in industrial-organizational psychology. She was then hired by the Social Security Administration under their Outstanding Scholars program in 2001. She is currently a lead content developer. She has been married to her husband, Kevin, for 21 years. They were two of the first four original USC Aiken Peer Educators (1997-1998). They have two children, Bryce (18), a senior at Fox Creek High School, and Hailey (16), a sophomore at Fox Creek High School.