University of Southern California

Office of the President

C. L. Max Nikias

USC’s 11th president, C. L. Max Nikias is an accomplished scholar and innovator whose 21 years at USC have been characterized by vision and a talent for seeing and seizing opportunities. From his creation of a multimedia research center and his energetic tenure as dean of engineering, to the pacesetting initiatives he set in motion as USC’s provost, he has helped propel USC toward its goal of becoming one of the most productive and influential research universities in the world.
Read more about President Nikias

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Mrs. Niki C. Nikias, center, accompanied by USC Alumni Association President Ramona Capello, center left.
USC Trustee Edward P. Roski, Jr.; Gayle Garner Roski; Julie Mork; USC Trustee John Mork (chairman); Niki C. Nikias; USC President C. L. Max Nikias.
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From the Office of the President

USC awards $100,000 annual grant to LAPD Cadet Leadership Program

Topics: News

USC President C.L. Max Nikias greets the Los Angeles Police Department cadets prior to the LAPD Cadet Press Conference, Wednesday, November 19, 2014, in Los Angeles, California. (USC Photo/ Gus Ruelas)

USC President C.L. Max Nikias greets the Los Angeles Police Department cadets prior to the LAPD Cadet Press Conference, Wednesday, November 19, 2014, in Los Angeles, California. (USC Photo/ Gus Ruelas)

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.

The annual award will help the LAPD expand its signature community youth program, which has 6,000 active members age 13 to 20 from every part of the Los Angeles area. With USC’s support, the LAPD Cadet Leadership Program can continue to help students from all walks of life achieve academic excellence, develop character and leadership skills, and lead productive lives.

“This support speaks to USC’s confidence in these young women and men, and our shared commitment — along with LAPD — to our community and its youth,” USC President C. L. Max Nikias said Wednesday morning before presenting the award.

“These cadets are our future. Look at them. It’s America’s future,” Nikias said. “The USC community stands with them, not only today, but every day for the many, many years to come.”

Read the full article on USC News.

USC Pacific Asia Museum Gala honors USC Trustee Dominic Ng

Topics: News

USC President C. L. Max Nikias and USC Trustee Dominic Ng

USC President C. L. Max Nikias and USC Trustee Dominic Ng

For the first time since the alliance formed between USC and Pacific Asia Museum one year ago, more than 550 supporters and friends of the museum gathered for the annual Festival of the Autumn Moon Gala.

The event, in its 37th year, honored Dominic Ng, chairman and CEO of East West Bank, for his business and civic leadership as well as his passion and support of Asian art and culture.

USC President C. L. Max Nikias cited Ng’s stellar leadership in business and his passion for the arts, in addition to praising the partnership between USC and Pacific Asia Museum.

USC Pacific Asia Museum Director Christina Yu Yu thanked sponsors, volunteers and friends whose steadfast support made the evening possible and allows for the museum’s continued commitment to the arts.

Read more at USC News.

Widney Society sets course for USC’s future

Topics: News

Widney Society Gala 2014

USC Trustee John Mork, Julie Mork, Niki C. Nikias, USC President C. L. Max Nikias, Lynn Booth, Gail Garner Roski, USC Trustee Edward P. Roski, Jr., USC Trustee William J. Schoen

Following in the pioneering vision of USC founder Judge Robert Maclay Widney, USC honored its philanthropic leaders at the 3rd annual Widney Society Gala. Benefactors who have donated $1 million or more in gifts or pledges to the university are inducted at this annual event, recognizing their extraordinary generosity and foresight in creating an enduring legacy for the future at USC. The gala evening event is set right outside Widney Alumni House, the university’s oldest buildings, now enhanced with a newly commissioned bronze statue of the university’s founding father.

The historic $6 billion Campaign for USC, launched in 2011, has raised $3.74 billion to date, with the generous support of more than 250,000 donors.

Presidential priorities

  • Transforming USC into a major hub of the emerging Age of the Pacific—by creating trans-Pacific alliances, by fully utilizing Los Angeles as a laboratory for trans-Pacific research, education and culture, and by building the foremost network of Pacific leaders.

  • Ensuring that the USC academic community serves as a key engine of intellectual, economic and cultural progress for the nation, and allowing its vast array of disciplines to be combined creatively in order to catalyze new knowledge and innovation.

  • Ensuring that USC promotes imagination and invention by creating a living and learning environment in which the university’s undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty are fluent in a wide variety of intellectual areas, ranging from classical literary works to the latest digital technologies.

  • Serving the neighborhoods around our two campuses through job creation and quality k-12 education. Further strengthening the legendary traditions of the Trojan Family.

  • Leading USC during the most ambitious fundraising campaign ever announced by an American university. This historic endeavor will raise $6 billion to support USC's faculty and students, as well as its academic priorities, capital projects, and essential infrastructure.