Word from Widney


Dear Fellow Trojans,

As we prepare to celebrate the holidays, let's take a moment to reflect on what has been another extraordinary year in the life of USC and the Trojan Family. The university broke ground on several new state-of-the-art facilities, including USC Village, the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience and the USC Glorya Kaufman International Dance Center. The USC Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy for Arts, Technology and the Business of Innovation welcomed its first class. And the $6 billion Campaign for the University of Southern California passed the $3.7 billion mark, thanks in large part to the contributions of you, our dedicated alumni. More...





Alumni Headlines
Join the SCuppers Tradition!
Sign up today to host one of our Student Alumni Society Trojan SCuppers—special dinners that will bring current USC students, alumni, parents and friends together the weekend of February 20 - 22, 2015. Register here by December 18 to host a SCupper. For more information, email Charlene Fravien or call her at 213-821-5255.



7th Annual USC Women's Conference: Be Bold and Thrive!
Early bird registration is now open for the 2015 USC Women's Conference on March 5. Register before December 31 and save up to $25 per ticket for this day of empowerment, inspiration and professional networking.



USC Price Alums Win Big in California Midterm Elections
Congratulations to newly elected Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell MPA '89 (pictured left), one of several USC Price School of Public Policy alumni who won their races in California's midterm elections on November 4.



Presidential Honors
Award-winning actress/activist Marlo Thomas '59 added another honor to her crowded mantle on November 24, when President Barack Obama presented her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Congressman Edward R. Roybal, the namesake of the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging, was posthumously awarded the nation's highest civilian honor.



Reunion Weekend 2015
Calling all undergraduates from the classes of 1965, 1975, 1985, 1990, 1995 and 2005—are you interested in volunteering for your 50th, 40th, 30th, 25th, 20th or 10th class reunion committee? If so please contact Laura Capo, Director of Reunions, at (213) 821-6257 or via email. Reunion Weekend 2015 is November 6-7.



Woman of Steel
Coming from a family of Trojans, Dornsife alumna Debbie Leilani Shon '74 is the new vice president of international trade and global public policy at United States Steel Corporation.



Alumni Authors: New Titles
Feel like curling up with a good book over the holidays? Then check out the new titles by our alumni authors—you'll find everything from a biography of the legendary acting teacher Stella Adler to the acclaimed young adult novel Half A World Away (pictured left) by National Book Award-winning author Cynthia Kadohata '79.







Trojan Alum-inaries


Gillian Bohrer  
Sam Jammal
Laura Skandera Trombley

Gillian Bohrer MFA '03 has been named one of "Hollywood's New Leaders in Film" by Variety.

Sam Jammal '04 has been named one of The Huffington Post's "40 Under 40: Latinos in American Politics."

Laura Skandera Trombley PhD '89 has been named the president of the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens.






Young Alumni Spotlight
Kudos to Thornton alumna Caitlin Notey '14, who recently won first prize in the BMI Foundation's 17th Annual John Lennon Scholarship Awards. The award, which includes an $8,000 scholarship, recognizes the nation's best young songwriters between the ages of 17 and 24.








Alma Matters

USC awards $100,000 annual grant to LAPD Cadet Leadership Program
In an ongoing commitment to fostering community partnerships throughout the city, USC has awarded the Los Angeles Police Department a $100,000 annual grant to support its burgeoning Cadet Leadership Program.

Resource Center is latest sign of USC's ongoing commitment to veterans
Now in its centennial year, USC's proud relationship with the armed services passed a much-anticipated milestone when the Division of Student Affairs officially opened the USC Veterans Resource Center on Nov. 5.

Bill Clinton speaks in Bovard Auditorium
USC was honored to host Bill Clinton, founder of the Clinton Foundation and 42nd president of the United States. The former chief executive addressed a capacity crowd of USC students, faculty and guests on Nov. 7 in Bovard Auditorium.

USC steps into 10th straight NCAA Tournament seeking seventh straight crown
No. 3 seed men's water polo team heads to La Jolla this weekend to fight for yet another national championship.