THE MISSION OF THE GRAZIADIO BUSINESS SCHOOL

The mission of the George L. Graziadio Business School is to develop values-centered leaders and advance responsible business practice through education that is entrepreneurial in spirit, ethical in focus, and global in orientation.

As a professional school growing out of the tradition of a Christian University, we seek to positively impact both society at large and the organizations and communities in which our students and graduates are members. Therefore, we affirm a higher purpose for business practice than the exclusive pursuit of shareholder wealth. We believe that successful management seeks collective good along with individual profit and is anchored in core values such as integrity, stewardship, courage, and compassion.

GEORGE L. GRAZIADIO, JR.

1919 – 2002

George L. Graziadio, Jr., benefactor and namesake of the Graziadio Business School at Pepperdine University, enjoyed a long and storied career that continues to positively impact education and enterprise. With his business partner George M. Eltinge, Mr. Graziadio founded and opened in 1963 the first Imperial Bank in Los Angeles, which became a leading financial institution with $8 billion in assets. As a partner in the Eltinge and Graziadio Development Company and other real estate firms, Mr. Graziadio also developed more than 100 shopping centers and stores in 20 states.

During his abundant life, Mr. Graziadio devoted time, leadership, and resources to a host of civic and community causes. He served as international president of the 20-30 Clubs and the World Council of Young Men’s Service Clubs, chairman of the board of trustees of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation, a board member of the French Foundation of Alzheimer’s Research, and a member of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. He also served on the boards of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and was a charter member of the National Italian American Foundation, which awarded him its Lifetime Achievement Award for Humanitarian Service.

Mr. Graziadio was the deserving recipient of many honors, including the Horatio Alger Award, the Albert Schweitzer Leadership Award, the Newcomen Society Award, the Great American Traditions Award of the B’nai B’rith Foundation, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Pepperdine University. Other recognitions include the Marconi Award from the Sons of Italy of America, the EDDY Award from the Los Angeles Economic Development Agency, the President’s “E” Award from the US Department of Commerce, the Americanism Award and the Good Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America, the Humanitarian Award of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Grande Ufficiale Award in the Order of Merit of the Republic of Italy.

In 1996 Mr. Graziadio and his wife, Reva, whose involvement with Pepperdine spanned many years, made a monumental gift to the University’s business school, which gained a proud new identity bearing his name. Mr. Graziadio served with distinction as the founding chair of the Graziadio Board. Today, the beautiful Villa Graziadio Executive Center on Pepperdine’s Drescher Graduate Campus stands in testament to the steadfast commitment of the couple, whose legacy endures at the Graziadio School through the active involvement of their children, Mary Lou, Alida, and Louis, and their spouses.

MICHAEL P. MARDIROSSIAN

Michael Paul Mardirossian began his career in financial services as a teller at JPMorgan Chase and will return to the bank as a senior associate this summer. He has also worked as a wealth management intern at Morgan Stanley and a portfolio administrator for Western Asset Management Company.

A Los Angeles native, Mr. Mardirossian is committed to using his unique perspectives and his role in the business world to create greater equality in his community. During his time at the Graziadio Business School, he has been an active participant in many student organizations, including the Emerging Leader Collaborative and the Latinx MBA Conexion. He served as chair of the Graziadio Student Advisory Board and vice president of community service for the Pepperdine chapter of Net Impact, a global organization dedicated to generating positive societal change. Mr. Mardirossian is the first member of his family to receive a graduate degree, and he is proud to represent his and his family’s immigrant heritage as he takes the lessons he’s learned in the classroom and from fellow students into his future in business and nonprofit organizations.

Michael Mardirossian earned a BS in business administration from the University of San Francisco and is receiving an MBA from the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School.

MICHAEL A. CUSUMANO

Michael A. Cusumano is managing director of Cusumano Real Estate Group, a leading development and investment company in greater Los Angeles. The Cusumano Group has served some of the area’s most high-profile clients, including the Walt Disney Company and Warner Brothers. Bringing more than 40 years of experience to the industry, Dr. Cusumano is also a dedicated philanthropist who is deeply devoted to his local community.

Upon joining the Cusumano Group, which was founded in the late 1950s by his father and uncle, Dr. Cusumano learned the ropes of leasing, property management, and construction. He has since developed some of the most noteworthy building projects in the region and expanded the firm’s portfolio to include low-income and senior housing, as well as sustainable living options.

Dr. Cusumano is both an educator and former student of the Graziadio Business School, where he serves as an adjunct professor and recently received the Best Supporting Faculty Award. His dissertation, titled To LEED or Not to LEED, reviewed energy consumption data of multifamily housing units, determining whether factors such as resident income, building size, and time of year affect greenhouse gas emissions.

A current and former member of several boards of directors, Dr. Cusumano has been notably involved with the Providence Saint Joseph Foundation, where he previously served as chair of the board. He has funded many projects and areas of Providence’s medical campus, including its neuroscience center and radiation oncology department, and in 2017 the foundation presented him with the Mother Gamelin Leadership Award.

Michael Cusumano earned his bachelor of arts in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1984. He received his master’s and doctoral degrees, both in business administration, from the Graziadio Business School in 1994 and 2022, respectively.