A Message From the Dean
Making a difference
As we have said in these pages many times, USC College is on a
roll. We are upward bound and we have momentum. We are
doing well because we have an innovative plan and we are determined to
succeed. We are also fortunate to have many alumni, friends, and
faculty who can support our efforts to transform the College.
Our faculty hiring initiative is bringing star professors and “rising
star” associate professors. We are also now competing for
outstanding junior faculty—and we are succeeding because of the unique
opportunities available at USC and in southern California. Our
program to attract ever-better graduate students is having an
impact. And our bedrock undergraduate education program is
bringing us the best freshmen in the land. They are performing
well and garnering more honors.
Our drive to be the best has taken on added importance in light of the
California state budget retrenchment and cutbacks in public
education. Our flourishing teaching and research go forward full
steam. USC’s initiatives mean that for Southern California at
least, higher education can continue to be vibrant and entrepreneurial.
This is true because what’s good for USC is good for Southern
California. Our drive to excel is bringing us scholars who are
contributing richly to the economic, intellectual and cultural milieu
in our region. As our stock continues to soar, people throughout
the world will increasingly recognize Southern California for what it
is—a global paradigm of culture, commerce, and learning.
Our increasing recognition is evident by the enormous success of our
research centers, both those homegrown at USC and those developed in
partnership with nearby institutions. In the previous issue of
this magazine, we highlighted our new Genomics Center, federally funded
with $18.7 million from the National Institutes of Health. Its
fundamental research will pilot the way to revolutionary advances in
future medical care and may fertilize the regional biotechnology
economy. Our Loker Institute’s research on fuel cell technology
will advance the development of more efficient energy resources, which
are vital to sustainable life on this planet. And being firmly
grounded here in Los Angeles (we hope), we are most appreciative of the
important work of the prestigious Southern California Earthquake Center
headquartered at USC College.
And our contributions are not just in the scientific arena. Our
Center for Religion and Civic Culture, the Casden Institute for the
Study of the Jewish Role in American Life, and the Center for American
Studies and Ethnicity all provide deeper understandings of the cultural
and religious ties that can both divide and unite us. One of
southern California’s greatest assets is the diversity resulting from
being a global gateway. Los Angeles is a laboratory for
understanding the great pluralistic cities of the future—and our
faculty are at the forefront in furthering that understanding.
With our added strength comes added responsibility. Increasingly,
leaders are turning to USC not just for traditional scholarship, but
also for innovative ideas and applications that will improve the lives
of individuals and enrich society as a whole. To cite another
example, Todd Sandler, the Robert R. and Katheryn A. Dockson Chair in
Economics and International Relations, is acknowledged as one of the
leading authorities on political fundamentalism and terrorism.
These are topics that unfortunately have preoccupied much of our recent
history, and his work is having an impact.
Our drive to greatness has taken us out of the ivory tower
forever. I firmly believe that the creative intellectual
resources of USC College will play an increasingly important role in
the region, the nation, and the world—one that will benefit generations
to come. And that will make a difference.
Sincerely,
Joseph Aoun
Dean of USC College
Anna H. Bing Professor
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