Trojan Family Magazine Autumn 2024

Charting the Future of Health Care

Innovation and impact define USC’s Health Sciences 3.0 “moonshot.”

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The first-ever Trojan Family Graduate Celebration gave the Class of 2024, as well as their families and friends, a memorable send-off at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Fireworks, a drone show, and performances by the Trojan Marching Band, DJ duo Phantogram, and USC Song (pictured) created an unforgettable night for the crowd of 22,500 people last May.

PHOTO BY STEVE COHN

Through the alignment of the medical system and health science schools, USC will meet the challenges and opportunities of an ever-evolving health landscape. (More on p. 22.) Scan to learn more about the USC Health Sciences 3.0 “moonshot.”

USC brain researchers are finding novel ways to image, detect and treat diseases. By Katharine Gammon and Rachel B. Levin

By harnessing the

USC

It’s not the fountain of youth, but Trojan researchers are pointing the way to a

USC cares for and collaborates with local communities — often diverse and underserved — around its campuses. By Chinyere Cindy Amobi

USC’s health system and medical research schools are growing a movement to shrink health care’s carbon footprint. By USC Staff

Half-matched bone marrow transplants and next-generation CAR T-cell therapy highlight Keck Medicine of USC ’s position as a leader in cancer care. By Genevieve Edwards

“No other university has this constellation of resources and schools to create a healthier society for the future.”President Carol Folt

5 Five Things You Need to Know USC’s fountains are beautiful, calming — and full of history.

6 Seen and Heard

An exhibit commemorating the Hollywood Blacklist; playwrights from diverse backgrounds; and Wayne Brady’s improv class.

7 News

The high cost of living by the beach; earthquake forecasting that can change building policies; and more.

8 Does Music Unlock Memory?

USC faculty are getting closer to understanding what happens in your brain when you hear a familiar song.

11 ‘Pay-to-Stay’ Prisons

A USC Dornsife sociologist reveals the financial and societal implications of prison policies for incarcerated people.

12 Beyond Athletics

Ten ways being part of the Big Ten Athletic Conference elevates USC’s game.

15 Better Bot Banter

AI is learning more authentic human interaction thanks to ISI researchers.

19 Mental Health Matters

Trojans come together to advance well-being among college students.

20 Las Vegas Transplant Care Clinic Opens

The new location will increase access for those needing a heart or liver transplant in Nevada.

63 Alumni News

69 Class Notes

Who’s doing what and where?

80 Winning the ‘Hard’ Way

Trojans are still finding out about late staffer Darlene Hard’s previous life as an international tennis star and Hall of Famer.

Meet the new head of USCAA; volunteerism at the heart of Trojan life; and a documentary on WWII Nisei soldiers. PAGE 12 AND 13 PHOTO CREDITS:

Your Healthiest Life

When it comes to shaping USC’s approach to driving medical innovation, USC President Carol Folt knows that the whole can be much greater than the sum of its parts.

When putting together this special issue of USC Trojan Family Magazine in partnership with our colleagues at the Office of Health Affairs, our writers dove deep into many of those “parts”: the work of the visionary USC physicians, researchers, teachers and entrepreneurs redefining what it means to live a long and healthy life. Sunnu Rebecca Choi’s evocative cover illustration captures this spirit of discovery and impact.

As you will read in these pages, USC medical minds are leaders in discovery and innovation in brain research, the use of AI and advanced computing in health care, regenerative medicine and stem cell research, oncology, sustainability, healthy aging and longevity, and community outreach and access.

And while our researchers will continue to push the boundaries of possibility in their individual fields of expertise, Folt’s vision for a Health Sciences 3.0 “moonshot” involves those experts collaborating, amplifying one another’s work and teaching the next generation of interdisciplinary innovators.

Within the expanded feature section of this special issue, you will encounter examples of how Trojans are creating the future of health care. Not every researcher, faculty member and student at USC works directly in health sciences, but numerous Trojans are contributing to the health moonshot by building a holistic approach to health comprising not only healthy cells and organs, but healthy societies and spirits.

A life well-lived requires attention to the wholeness of your physical and mental being. Similarly, USC is making that healthy life possible by bringing together experts from neurology, music, advanced computing, regenerative medicine, biokinesiology, hematology, engineering, gerontology, social work and more — the whole of the university’s ever-growing body of knowledge and expertise.

Read on and learn how the Health Sciences 3.0 moonshot is accelerating the new era of medical discovery — and helping you lead your healthiest life.

Ted B. Kissell

Editor-in-Chief

USC Trojan Family Magazine

The magazine of the University of Southern California

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Ted B. Kissell

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Jane Frey

MANAGING EDITOR

Lilledeshan Bose

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Chinyere Cindy Amobi

COPY EDITOR

Cord Brooks

PRODUCTION MANAGER

Mary Modina

INTERACTIVE CONTENT MANAGER

Edward Sotelo

VISUALS EDITOR

Caleb Joel Griffin

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Gus Ruelas

STAFF WRITERS

Greg Hernandez

Rachel B. Levin

Grayson Schmidt

DESIGN AND PRODUCTION

Pentagram

CONTRIBUTORS

Alicia Di Rado

Laurie McLaughlin

Paul McQuiston

David Medzerian

Nina Raffio

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In the Flow

A guide to USC’s beautiful waterworks — from tidbits of trivia and lore to insights on their benefits and delights.

RACHEL B. LEVIN

Since ancient times, fountains have been symbols of the pursuit of knowledge. At USC, “each fountain has its own story,” says Jon Soffa, who has served as the university architect in Facilities Planning and Management for nearly three decades.

Featuring spouts of dancing water, geyser-like sprays, waterfall flows and more, USC’s iconic fountains help define the campus’ character and mirror its energies. The grandest sprays provide a lively backdrop to the hustle and bustle of campus activities and serve as community gathering points. Tucked-away gems offer respites for quiet contemplation and relaxation induced by the sound of rushing water.

STARRING ROLE

The university’s most famous fountain is the Youth Triumphant Fountain in Alumni Memorial Park near the main entrance to Doheny Memorial Library. Film buffs might remember that it appeared in the 1967 film The Graduate.

URBAN LEGEND

Allegedly, the donors of the Bing Theatre and the Eileen L. Norris Cinema Theatre were fiercely competitive: So much so that when the theaters were both built in the mid1970s, the donors’ desire to keep an eye on one another influenced the inverted design of the octagonal fountain at the center of Queens Courtyard.

SUSTAINABLE SHAPESHIFTING

The Fubon Fountain at USC Village’s central piazza is USC’s newest. Built in 2017, the fountain can morph from a symphony of arching waterspouts to a calm reflecting pool, thanks to programmable jets lining its perimeter. A sensor automates the control of the water flow in windy conditions.

LASTING LEGACY

The Generations Fountain, situated just west of Leavey Library, was gifted to USC in 2009 by Bettina and John Deininger and underwent a recent restoration. It represents the three generations of their family members who have attended USC and honors all Trojan families and their legacies.

BY THE NUMBERS

USC has 41 fountains — 38 on the University Park Campus and three on the Health Sciences Campus.

‘BLACKLIST’ ART INSTALLATION RECALLS DARK CHAPTER IN U.S. HISTORY

Outside the USC Fisher Museum of Art on USC’s University Park Campus, a bench is engraved with a 1947 quote from American novelist, journalist and screenwriter Alvah Bessie: “Either the First Amendment is binding upon Congress and all legislative bodies of our government, or it means nothing at all.”

Wayne Brady Makes It Up During Improv Masterclass

There was music. There was laughter. There were rival lemonade stands locked in a fierce battle to secure an investment from Mr. Smith, the wealthiest man in town. And it was all made up on the spot. The musical about lemonade titans was the culmination of a masterclass led by improv legend Wayne Brady hosted by the USC School of Dramatic Arts. For two hours, more than 100 USC students were entertained and instructed in musical theater improv by a teacher with a long background of merging those seemingly disparate theatrical traditions.

Brady, known for his long run as a cast member on the hit improv comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?, is also an award-winning TV host, actor and musician. His success in improv and musical theater made him an ideal figure to teach the comedy workshop, where he was joined by longtime collaborator and fellow Whose Line cast member

It is one of 10 benches displaying quotes at the heart of Blacklist, an outdoor museum installation by artist Jenny Holzer. It preserves the memory and the words of the Hollywood Ten — producers, directors and screenwriters who refused to answer questions about possible communist affiliations when called to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee in the 1940s. They spent time in prison for contempt of Congress and were blacklisted for years by Hollywood studios.

In the late 1990s, a USC School of Cinematic Arts faculty committee chose Holzer to create a work of art focused on the government’s blacklisting campaign. The secluded garden was completed in 1999. It was 75 years ago that the FBI released a report publicly naming well-known film stars as communist activists.

Stephanie Kowalick, USC Fisher Museum’s director of collections, compliance and exhibitions, hopes the anniversary will serve as motivation for people to visit the Blacklist garden. “History is cyclical, and we should be learning from it all the time,” she says.

GREG HERNANDEZ

Jonathan Mangum and musical accompanist Greg Nabours. Student Finn Rollings ’25 understood the value of the opportunity. “To interact with Wayne Brady, who’s on the Mount Rushmore of improv and is sort of the figurehead of musical improv, was amazing,” he says. “It was a blast.” GEOFFREY WARING

Playwrights Draw Inspiration From Diverse Backgrounds

On paper, Eliza Kuperschmid and Cynthia Ochoa don’t have much in common.

Kuperschmid, a 22-year-old New Jersey native, was a fresh graduate of a small college when she came to USC. Ochoa, a 55-year-old mother of three who emigrated from Mexico, received both her GED diploma and her undergraduate degree in her 40s before deciding to further her education.

Despite those different life journeys, both conquered their self-doubt to get into the Master of Fine Arts in Dramatic Writing program at the USC School of Dramatic Arts, one of the strongest writing programs in the country.

The program is among the university’s smallest and most selective, accepting only two students per year out of the roughly 100 who apply. It is so selective that both Kuperschmid and Ochoa did not think they’d make the cut.

“I actually had to email the admissions office to confirm that my acceptance was real,” Kuperschmid says with a laugh. “I didn’t think I’d even get into a school like USC, much less this specific program.”

Those feelings of doubt are a far cry from how the two Trojans feel now. The program has given them confidence not only in their writing abilities, but also in their lives’ journeys.

“After this experience, I believe that it doesn’t really matter what your age is, your condition, where you’re coming from or your background,” Ochoa says. “If you believe in something, you can make it happen.” GRAYSON

SCHMIDT

BY SEAN

TROJAN

THERE GOES THE SUN On April 8, hundreds of Trojans came out to view the total solar eclipse safely with a little help from the USC Department of Physics and Astronomy.

PHOTO

DUBE

Does Music Unlock Memory?

USC faculty are getting closer to understanding what happens in your brain when you hear a familiar song — findings that could help those struggling with dementia and Alzheimer’s.

Go put on one of your all-time favorite songs, one that you’ve been listening to your whole life. What thoughts go through your head? Memories of home? The first time you saw the love of your life?

Nostalgic music — music that we tie strongly to a point in our lives — can evoke deep emotions across the age span. The root of this phenomenon has remained a mystery, but studies have shown that music can generate strong emotional responses that can both calm and invigorate.

A team of USC scientists is getting closer to understanding what happens in your brain when you hear a favorite song, and the results might have profound effects on those struggling with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

“Listening to nostalgic music not only elicits the traditional memory networks of the brain, but it also involves the reward, narrative

BY PAUL MCQUISTON

and self-processing systems of the brain,” says USC researcher Assal Habibi, who directs the USC Dornsife Center for Music, Brain and Society that was founded in 2023. “These are the mechanisms in the brain by which we think you can listen to 10 seconds of nostalgic music, and it can take you back to something vivid, like your high school prom. We could then use that music as a way of really helping individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias.”

MUSIC, MOVEMENT AND LEARNING

An associate research professor of psychology at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Habibi uses various tools, including neuroimaging and psychometric testing, to measure what environmental factors such as music do to our brains.

To investigate how nostalgic music could assist people in recalling memories, Habibi and doctoral candidate Sarah Hennessy tapped

experts in machine learning, MRI and psychology to pinpoint what happens in the brain when music unveils a lost memory.

To grade how well a participant could recall a memory, the researchers assigned a value to its “vividness” — a formula psychologists use to measure how “detailed your perception and sensation of experience are in your description,” Habibi says.

“The ability of the music to retrieve autobiographical memories is personalized and relative to your story and narrative,” Habibi says. “If nostalgic music can help dementia patients access some memories that are typically not accessible to them, it can enhance the quality of life, even if it’s temporary.”

New Podcast Alert

Listen to “Music and the Mind with Assal Habibi” on Lightbulb Moments by USC. The new podcast features interviews with USC researchers, highlighting the experiences and personal “a-ha” moments that drive their quest for innovation and excellence.

Find it on Spotify and Amazon Music.

Costly Coastal Living

USC study predicts beach erosion will make Southern California coastal living five times more expensive by 2050. BY

NINA RAFFIO

Rising sea levels and urban development are accelerating coastal erosion at an alarming rate in Southern California with significant ripple effects on the region’s economy, a USC study suggested.

The study, published in Communications Earth & Environment in May, predicts that Southern California’s coastal living costs will surge fivefold by 2050 as a direct result of beach erosion. More frequent and costly beach nourishment projects will be needed to maintain the state’s treasured shorelines, consequently driving up the cost of living along the coast.

“Our study presents compelling evidence of the rapid deterioration of Southern California’s coastal landscapes,” says Essam

Heggy, a geoscientist in the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering/Electrophysics at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering and the study’s corresponding author.

“The challenges facing Southern California mirror a growing threat shared by coastal communities worldwide,” Heggy says. “The environmental and economic implications of coastal erosion reach far beyond California’s shores and demand interdisciplinary, global solutions.”

COST OF LIVING TO SURGE

To predict future changes along California’s sandy coastlines, the researchers focused on

the Gulf of Santa Catalina, which stretches more than 150 miles from the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Los Angeles County to the northern tip of Baja California in Mexico.

They used a combination of historical and recent satellite images as well as advanced algorithms to analyze coastline movement and predict future erosion based on different trends and environmental factors.

The study predicts a tripling of erosion rates by 2050, increasing from an average of 1.45 meters per year to 3.18 meters by 2100. Consequently, the annual sand requirement for beach nourishment could triple by 2050, with costs rising fivefold due to the global increase in sand prices. This will exacerbate economic and logistical pressures on coastal communities.

Beach nourishment is adding sand to an eroded beach to rebuild it and create a wider barrier against waves and storms.

“Our investigation suggests that coastal problems start inland due to the rapid growth of cities along the coast, which compromise inland sediment replenishment of sandy beaches,” says Heggy, whose research focuses on understanding water evolution in Earth’s arid environments.

“As our beaches shrink, the cost of maintaining them will rise,” he says. “Finding innovative solutions is key to securing a sustainable future for our shores and local economies.”

COASTAL EROSION: A GLOBAL PROBLEM

Coastal cities in Southern California and those in North Africa bordering the Mediterranean Sea face a common challenge: a semi-arid climate year-round coupled with the growing threats of rising sea levels and eroding shorelines.

A significant portion of Earth’s landmass, roughly 41%, falls under arid or semi-arid classifications; these areas support more than a third of the global population.

To understand this global challenge, the researchers focused on two specific locations: Corona del Mar in Orange County — an example of the typical Southern California coastline — and Hammamet North Beach in Tunisia. Both are densely populated and share similar climates: prone to increasing droughts, flash floods and unpredictable rainfall patterns. These characteristics mirror the challenges faced by countless coastal communities worldwide.

A USC study predicts that Southern California’s coastal living costs in places such as Newport Beach will surge fivefold by 2050 as a direct result of beach erosion.

Rattled by Earthquakes

How threatened by earthquakes are U.S. communities? USC Dornsife researchers contributed models that forecast earthquake ruptures for the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Seismic Hazard Model.

BY KATHARINE GAMMON

When it comes to earthquakes in the United States, California springs to mind as the nation’s hotspot. But the rest of the country is far from immune, as a magnitude 4.8 temblor centered in New Jersey in April proved.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Geological Survey updated a national resource that engineers, policymakers, government agencies and others use to assess risk of damage from earthquakes throughout the country. The Statewide California Earthquake Center (SCEC, formerly Southern California Earthquake Center) based at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, contributed crucial results to the update.

USC ALUMNUS HELPS SHAPE NEW EARTHQUAKE REPORT

The revised National Seismic Hazard Model, which includes a comprehensive approach for all 50 states, uses much of the methodology developed from California’s model to offer insights into the seismological underpinnings of the entire Western United States.

USC alumnus Kevin Milner helped build the new model, co-authored the USGS report and wrote a companion paper that offers technical details. He completed the work that went into the report while at USC.

Milner, who recently joined USGS, spent more than 17 years working at SCEC headquarters at USC Dornsife. “This is the first time that a comprehensive update has been done for all 50 states at the same time,” he says.

USC’S ADVANCED COMPUTER RESOURCES AID MODELING

There are two main components of the model: the kind of earthquake shaking that might happen at a particular location, known as the “ground motion model,” and the probability of earthquakes happening at different locations, called the “earthquake rupture forecast.”

Milner works on developing the earthquake rupture forecasts. He says the model represents the work of about 50 scientists, including geologists in the field who are mapping faults and finding the rate at which they

move each year, scientists who dig trenches to look for evidence of ancient earthquakes, and those who look at the rate of seismic activity across the United States.

Creating the earthquake rupture forecast requires immense computation, which USC’s Center for Advanced Research Computing handled. To generate the final model, 38 nodes (individual computers with 20 processors each that work together to tackle large calculations) took more than two days, but Milner says he was “spitting out models continuously over the course of more than a year — models and diagnostic hazard calculations using really big amounts of computation.”

The information from the update will eventually be incorporated into building codes and structural designs to help create safer dwellings. It’s also used by insurance companies to figure out rates for areas that may be at risk of earthquakes.

Researchers can forecast earthquakes with limited success, says Yehuda Ben-Zion, director of SCEC and professor of Earth sciences at USC Dornsife, but he adds that the precision is improving with machine learning and more data.

“We cannot predict exactly when big earthquakes will come, but they are going to happen,” Ben-Zion says. “We need to invest in making the communities — the buildings, infrastructure and population — more resilient.”

This U.S. Geological Survey map shows earthquake hazard levels throughout the United States.

Uncovering ‘Pay-To-Stay’ Prison Policies

A USC Dornsife sociologist reveals the financial and societal implications of such prison policies for millions of incarcerated individuals. BY

DANIEL P. SMITH

So-called “pay-to-stay” statutes administered by city, county and state governments across the United States leave millions of incarcerated individuals — both past and present — subject to the partial or total cost of their imprisonment.

Sociologist Brittany Friedman at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences is examining this often overlooked, long understudied issue. She says it’s a controversial practice that contributes to widening inequalities in American society.

“The average person in the U.S. could not afford a pay-to-stay bill, let alone an incarcerated person who is sued by a state attorney general,” says Friedman, assistant

professor of sociology at USC Dornsife, adding that the bill often approaches six-figure amounts. And because these are civil suits, defendants are not entitled to an attorney.

Earlier this year, Friedman and two of her longtime collaborators, April D. Fernandes of North Carolina State University and Gabriela Kirk-Werner of Syracuse University, received $1.5 million from the nonprofit Arnold Ventures to launch the Captive Money Lab. The five-year funding pledge supports the research lab’s mission to advance research, policy and advocacy around the political economy of punishment and the links between the prison system, politics and state finances.

UNDERSTANDING PAY-TO-STAY

Friedman first became interested in payto-stay policies in 2016 when she discovered a little-known Illinois statute allowing the state’s attorney general to sue incarcerated people for the cost of their prison stay. She submitted a Freedom of Information Act request asking for records on the practice and, intrigued by what she found, recruited two fellow graduate students — Fernandes and Kirk-Werner — to launch the first in-depth study of states’ pay-to-stay policies, specifically the use of civil lawsuits to recoup money.

“We found that states largely enforce pay-to-stay unevenly, often imposing these laws amid financial turmoil as a means to boost the state’s balance sheet,” KirkWerner says.

The researchers witnessed cash-strapped states using pay-to-stay laws, a practice first employed during the Great Depression, to seize stimulus checks amid the COVID19 pandemic.

“States increase their reliance on these laws at will, most likely when prompted by financial hardships and budget shortfalls,” Fernandes explains. “So, incarcerated people could be subject to the seizure and collection efforts of the state through pay-to-stay.”

And when using civil lawsuits to recoup money, states effectively limit protections for defendants by freezing assets, reducing their ability to find legal representation and to appeal.

A SOLVABLE PROBLEM

The Captive Money Lab researchers submitted written testimony summarizing their research to Connecticut lawmakers during a 2022 repeal debate and penned a related article published in the Washington Post. Their detailed work on monetary sanctions ultimately captured the attention and support of Arnold Ventures, a philanthropy that supports policy research projects addressing inequities and injustices in American society.

As Friedman and her colleagues studied the pay-to-stay issue, they began to see it as a solvable problem centered on access to justice. Now, fueled by Arnold Ventures’ support, the newly formed Captive Money Lab will expand their national study of state pay-tostay practices and recoupment strategies.

Big Ways Joining the Big Ten Will Elevate USC’s Game

BY RACHEL B. LEVIN, GRAYSON SCHMIDT AND DAVID MEDZERIAN

USC’s entry into the Big Ten Conference on Aug. 2 — along with the Trojans’ former Pac-12 rivals UCLA, Oregon and Washington — heralded a sea change in the college sports landscape, creating the first truly national athletic conference.

The fierce rivalry now includes 18 member universities competing across 28 official sports. But more than athletic opponents, these recognized research leaders are academic partners, thanks to the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA), which facilitates the sharing of resources, infrastructure and expertise among members. Here are some of the ways Trojans will benefit from Big Ten membership, on and off the playing field.

1 2

NATIONWIDE EXPOSURE

Moving to the Big Ten means USC sports teams will have the opportunity to play conference games all over the country, not just in the western states. “[It will] provide so much more visibility to our athletes,” says Gordon Stables, director of the USC Annenberg School of Journalism.

A RECRUITING BOON

Nationwide visibility will help USC coaches in their recruiting efforts: Players who might not have been familiar with the Trojans now will see them regularly. And USC parents who don’t live in California can watch their athletes play on TV.

3

GIVE IT A SHOT

The conference change dovetails with USC President Carol Folt’s athletics “moonshot,” which seeks to provide USC’s student-athletes with every possible resource for success on and off the field. Components include construction of Rawlinson Stadium for USC women’s soccer and lacrosse; rebuilding Dedeaux Field for USC baseball; promoting gender equity in support of Title IX; and expanding and improving football training facilities.

4

BIG SCHEDULE, TOO

The conference’s television network — the Big Ten Network, a joint venture with Fox Broadcasting

— nationally televises more than 550 events and streams approximately 1,700 more events online each year. It is the oldest network among the leading sports conferences.

5

SPORTS JOURNALISM OPPORTUNITIES

The Big Ten Network’s StudentU program provides jobs and hands-on TV production experience to students at member institutions interested in a career in sports journalism. Every year, the program offers a summer intensive training called BTN NOW, which brings students to network headquarters in Chicago to learn and work with industry professionals. The network has hired many

of its current staff directly through the BTN NOW program. The StudentU program will be available to students of all majors and provide opportunities in directing, producing, announcing, graphics, replay, camera operation and more.

6

TURN UP THE VOLUME(S)

Reciprocal borrowing privileges allow students to access the library holdings of any university in the Big Ten (as well as the University of Chicago, a Big Ten Academic Alliance affiliate). Staff across the alliance are working to build the infrastructure necessary to manage these distinct collections as one single library called the BIG Collection. Taken

together, these volumes will comprise the third largest library collection in the world, just behind the Library of Congress and the British Library.

7

HIVE MIND

The heart of the academic alliance is its peer groups, which provide academic leaders and support staff across institutions a forum to swap knowledge, work on shared initiatives, and gather both virtually and in person. Nearly any academic (and non-academic) role you can think of on the USC campuses — from provosts and deans to librarians and writing center directors — has its own peer group.

8

LEVELING UP RESEARCH

Scholars across the academic alliance unite to establish joint research endeavors. Notable examples include the Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium and the Big Ten Neurosurgery Consortium. “The ability to form alliances coast to coast allows us to demonstrate broader impact [in our research],” says Ishwar K. Puri, USC’s senior vice president of research and innovation and professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering.

9

PASSPORT

TO GRADUATE STUDY

Through the Traveling Scholar Program, USC doctoral students can spend up to a full academic year at any other Big Ten institution to pursue specialized courses of study or work in advanced laboratories. Undergrads interested in future doctoral study can participate in the Big Ten Academic Alliance’s Summer Research Opportunities Program, which provides mentorship and enrichment to help prepare diverse students for graduate work.

10

NURTURING EMERGING LEADERS

Several alliance initiatives are targeted at expanding participation by underrepresented groups in the career pipeline from college student to college professor, and the Academic Leadership Program helps prepare faculty interested in leadership roles for the challenges of academic administration by leveraging expertise from across the Big Ten.

Sea Change

New technology from USC and Caltech could significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the global shipping industry. BY

The ocean has a hidden talent, honed over millennia: the ability to capture and store vast quantities of carbon dioxide, a key driver of climate change. However, the ocean’s natural carbon capture cycles, which take hundreds of thousands of years, cannot keep pace with human-generated carbon emissions. The global shipping industry alone contributes roughly 3% of global CO2 emissions.

Now, a new technology inspired by the ocean itself offers a potential solution. Researchers at USC and Caltech, in collaboration with startup company Calcarea, have developed a device to capture carbon emissions directly from cargo ships and other diesel-powered vessels that support the global shipping industry.

“Our technology mimics the ocean’s natural carbon capture process but at an exponentially faster rate,” says William Berelson, the Paxson H. Offield Professor in Coastal and Marine Systems at

NINA RAFFIO

the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and one of the project’s lead researchers. “What takes nature years, our reactors achieve in mere minutes.”

CARBON CAPTURE:

TUMS FOR THE OCEAN

The natural reaction in the ocean resembles a common household remedy: antacid tablets such as Tums.

Limestone, a type of calcium carbonate and the main ingredient in antacids, is abundant on the seafloor. Just like taking a tablet to neutralize acid in an upset stomach, the ocean uses limestone to neutralize the excess CO2 it absorbs from the atmosphere. The byproduct of this reaction is bicarbonate, a natural component of seawater.

“Our technology mimics the ocean’s natural carbon capture process but at an exponentially faster rate.”

William Berelson

The researchers’ technology, a pair of reactors aptly named Ripple 1 and Ripple 2, works similarly. The reactors route CO2 directly from engine

exhaust and convert it into a solution slightly enriched with bicarbonate. This solution is then safely released back into the ocean with minimal impact on the water’s overall chemistry. Essentially, the reactors return water at a slightly saltier version of its natural state, with negligible impact on marine life.

FROM LAB TO SEA

The reactor technology underwent rigorous development. The researchers developed the Ripple 1 prototype at USC’s University Park Campus to test carbon capture in ocean water under carefully controlled conditions.

Promising results from these initial tests paved the way for the Ripple 2 reactor. This iteration is currently undergoing testing at AltaSea, the public-private ocean institute headquartered at the Port of Los Angeles. All along, USC scientists have been checking to see that Ripple effluent does not harm ocean life.

“The beauty of this technology lies in its scalability,” says Berelson, who recently won the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability Faculty Innovation Award in recognition of this carbon capture research. “Our goal is to develop this technology into a commercially viable solution that can be easily integrated into existing shipping operations. By implementing it on a commercial scale across the shipping sector, we hope to make a massive dent in global CO2 emissions.”

BY ISTOCK

PHOTO

Better Bot Banter

ISI researchers explore how to advance AI toward more authentic interaction.

From the printing press to smartphones to artificial intelligence, humans have continually created machines for convenience and connection. One of the latest innovations, large language models (LLMs), are a class of artificial intelligence systems that process and generate natural language.

Throughout 2023, the USC Viterbi School of Engineering’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI) explored the possibilities of creating chatbots that are more conversational and humanlike.

“I think the most distinguishing feature of our species is our creative ability to use tools,” says Jonathan May, principal scientist at ISI. “We’re not the strongest species, the fastest species nor the only species that uses tools, but we’re very good at using and developing tools. It’s our superpower.”

Here is a look at the tools USC researchers are creating so AI can engage more naturally with humans:

Personalized tutor: Emmanuel Dorley, a former postdoctoral scholar at ISI, built lifelike characters for K-12 school tutoring systems. Seeing the lack of representation of underserved communities in STEM education in the United States, Dorley and his colleagues at the INVITE Institute (INclusive and innoVative Intelligent Technologies for Education) are creating a customization

toolkit for learners to tailor their virtual agent’s physical appearance and augment the computerized tutor to be more conversational and observant.

“We want agents that can engage more naturally with the student,” Dorley says. “If a student feels frustrated or tired, we want the agent to motivate them to keep going.”

Mimicking a user: Chatbots are often designed to speak to you, but what if they could speak for you in your writing style and tone? May, who is also a research associate professor at the Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science, investigated whether chatbots can mimic a user’s persona based on what they have previously written to adopt their personality. “It won’t completely proxy users, but it’s convenient to have an auto-response that’s in your voice,”May says.

Automated Dungeon Master: Telling an interactive, narrative story, as in the popular tabletop roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons, is usually thought of as a creative domain where humans excel and technology fails. But by constructing AI to understand and anticipate how people act based on their motivations, beliefs and desires, a compelling automated Dungeon Master (essentially the referee and lead storyteller for such games) may be possible, says Jay Pujara, a research assistant professor at the Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science and ISI principal scientist.“To make AI more human, it needs to think about us — what we want, what we’re going to do and the world we live in,” Pujara says.

LEILA OKAHATA

Money Machines

USC and Capital One establish a center that aims to advance responsible AI for financial services.

USC and Capital One announced the USCCapital One Center for Responsible AI and Decision Making in Finance (CREDIF) in April. Supported by a $3 million gift from Capital One, the joint research center will focus on advancing foundations for algorithmic, data and software innovations for artificial intelligence and its applications to finance.

Combining USC’s world-class research with Capital One’s domain expertise, this is the first center launched under the auspices of the USC School of Advanced Computing (SAC), a unit of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. A cornerstone of USC President Carol Folt’s Frontiers of Computing “moonshot,” the SAC serves as a nexus for advanced computing research and education across the university.

The center will explore how emerging technologies in AI and analytics can be applied to financial systems and services at scale, advancing cross-disciplinary knowledge between finance and technology.

Each year, USC faculty members will be invited to submit proposals for faculty-led research efforts. An annual fellowship for doctoral students, named Capital One Fellows, will equip students with the skills and knowledge needed to excel in the field of AI in finance. In addition, USC and Capital One will also host annual joint research symposiums and workshops to share insights with the wider community.

Petros Ioannou will serve as the center’s inaugural director. He holds the A.V. “Bal” Balakrishnan Chair in Engineering and was recently appointed as a University Professor, USC’s highest academic honor.

CAITLIN

DAWSON

New Trustees Named

Mark Stevens, Alia Tutor, Joseph Ucuzoglu and Nadine Watt are elected to the university’s governing board.

BY CHINYERE CINDY AMOBI, GREG HERNANDEZ AND RACHEL B. LEVIN

In June, four business and community leaders were elected to the USC Board of Trustees. Learn more about them:

MARK STEVENS

Venture capitalist Mark Stevens began his second tenure as a member of the USC Board of Trustees this fall. Stevens — who received an honorary doctorate from USC in 2016 — first became a board member more than two decades ago.

He and his wife, Mary Stevens, have donated more than $100 million to USC programs and entities across the University Park and Health Sciences campuses. He served as a bridge for the university to tap into the burgeoning technological revolution in Silicon Valley.

“USC over the last 30 years has made tremendous strides in terms of academic research, in addition to its outstanding athletic programs,” Stevens says. “I’m looking forward to coming back now with a fresh perspective on how USC can continue to be one of the top academic institutions in the world.”

ALIA TUTOR

Philanthropist Alia Tutor is the president of the Alia Tutor Family Foundation Inc., which supports an array of initiatives and programs in health care, education, and service to women and children.

Tutor has held various leadership roles at USC for nearly a decade; most recently, she served as an advisor to USC President Carol Folt on the President’s Leadership Council.

As a trustee, Tutor will expand her family’s long legacy of support for USC. Her husband, Ronald N. Tutor, is a USC life trustee and has been a benefactor of the university since graduating from the USC Marshall School of Business in 1963.

“Our shared commitment to the university allows us to collaborate on ways to further its mission and engage with the USC community,” Alia Tutor says.

JOSEPH UCUZOGLU

Deloitte Global CEO Joseph Ucuzoglu ’97 graduated from USC with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He serves as chair of the USC Marshall Board of Councilors and is a member of the USC Leventhal School of Accounting’s Securities and Exchange Commission and Financial Reporting Institute Advisory Council.

“I try to immerse myself in organizations that I believe in, and I think nothing could rise higher on the list than USC,” Ucuzoglu says. “I have a very deep affection and deep love for the institution.”

One of his biggest priorities as trustee will be the university’s long-term health. “I just want to play a role in making sure we’re doing all the right things to continue on an excellent trajectory,” Ucuzoglu says.

NADINE WATT

Los Angeles business leader Nadine Watt brings decades of leadership experience from the real estate field to the USC Board of Trustees. For Watt, becoming a member of the board feels like the culmination of something she has been preparing for all her life.

“My grandfather Ray Watt had been on the board almost since before I was born, so I had been around campus growing up,” says the chief executive officer of Watt Capital Partners. “I come from three generations of Trojans and have a fourth generation at USC now. I bring to the board a sense of tradition.”

Watt has held various leadership roles at USC since receiving her master’s degree in filmmaking in 1994. Most recently, she was elected board president of the USC Alumni Association’s Board of Governors in 2022.

From top: Mark Stevens, Alia Tutor, Joseph Ucuzoglu and Nadine Watt

Trojan Family Invests in Health

From new Alzheimer’s drugs to malaria vaccines, progress in health is dramatically improving people’s lives — and USC is committed to accelerating that progress.

USC supporters are so passionate about the Health Sciences 3.0 “moonshot” that their giving exceeded $233 million in 2023-24, achieving USC’s highest fundraising total for health since 2014-15.

Excellence in Nursing

The USC Nursing Institute offers education and career development for nurses across the health system.

Keck Medicine of USC has launched the USC Nursing Institute to promote education, leadership development, clinical expertise and research among nurses.

The institute will support nurses across the health system’s four hospitals and more than 100 clinic locations to ensure nurses have access to the tools, education and training to provide exceptional patient care, facilitate collaboration, and encourage career growth and leadership opportunities.

“Nurses are the backbone of our health system. The USC Nursing Institute supports a culture of excellence where nurses feel empowered to expand their skill set, collaborate with colleagues from different specialties and leverage their impressive talents,” says Deborah “Debbie” McCoy, MS, RN, NEA-BC, executive director of the USC Nursing Institute.

Keck Medicine employs approximately 4,000 nurses, which include registered and licensed vocational nurses; nurse scientists; and advanced practice nurses, including clinical nurse specialists, nurse practitioners,

“The breadth of our schools and academic medical system enables us to advance health care through a unique combination of education, research and clinical care that few other universities can match,” President Carol Folt says. “These are critical, complex issues facing our world, and we’re grateful that our Trojan Family supporters have shown such excitement about partnering with us to transform health and health care in our communities and beyond.”

For example, in February, USC announced Leonard D. and Pamela Schaeffer’s $59 million gift to establish the USC Leonard D. Schaeffer Institute for Public Policy & Government at the new USC Capital Campus in Washington, D.C.

Jerre and Mary Joy Stead recently committed $12.5 million for neurosurgical

innovation at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, enabling the school to recruit prominent neurosurgeon Aaron CohenGadol ’97.

A $10 million gift from USC Trustee Mark Stevens and Mary Stevens, his wife, brings to life the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Center for Orthobiologics in the Keck School of Medicine, which will accelerate research into high-tech treatments for arthritis and joint injuries.

USC also received gifts of $5 million to advance surgical excellence and AI in urology, cancer prevention and early detection in underserved communities, and our leading program in student mental health.

All of these gifts and others will help people live longer, healthier lives.

ALICIA DI RADO

certified nurse anesthetists, certified nurse midwives and registered nurse first assists.

In the first year, the USC Nursing Institute will focus on supporting nursedriven clinical and scientific research. The institute created a research council that hosted the first-ever nursing symposium this summer to showcase Keck Medicine nurses’ work in the areas of performance improvement, evidence-based practice and research.

The institute will also provide nurses with opportunities to advance their academic degrees, certifications and specialty training.

The institute will supplement already prestigious Keck Medicine nursing services. In 2023, Keck Hospital of USC achieved redesignation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Magnet Recognition program, which recognizes nursing excellence and the highest standards of patient care.

Keck Medicine’s Council of Chief Nursing Officers, which includes chief nursing officers for Keck Hospital, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital and USC Arcadia Hospital, will oversee the institute. USC STAFF

The USC Nursing Institute will promote career development across the Keck Medicine of USC health system.

Boosting Biologics

Mark and Mary Stevens’ gift advances new healing technologies in orthopedics. BY USC STAFF

Orthopedic surgeons work near-miracles in the operating room to fix broken bones and torn tendons. Yet even in the modern age of medicine, repairing torn cartilage, healing bone trauma and regenerating muscle remain difficult.

That’s why USC Trustee Mark Stevens and Mary Stevens, his wife, have provided a $10 million gift to the Keck School of Medicine of USC to establish the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Center for Orthobiologics in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

The center will pioneer new therapies using stem cells, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and other methods to address the treatment of osteoarthritis, cartilage and ligament injuries; stimulate muscle regeneration; and heal bone trauma.

“Millions of people suffer from arthritis and degenerating joints, so it’s crucial to accelerate the development of proven therapies,” Mark Stevens says. “Mary and I are enthusiastic about supporting the next generation of cell-based therapies and biologics through the center.”

The Stevenses have backed several USC efforts to change the future of health. They include the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, which transforms diagnosis and treatment in neurological disease through brain imaging. Their support also helped establish the USC Stevens Center for Innovation and the Stevens Academic Center, which helps student-athletes thrive in the classroom.

“I am truly grateful for the interest and trust that Mark and Mary Stevens have shown in our work,” Chair of Orthopaedic Surgery Jay R. Lieberman says. “Without the support of philanthropists like the Stevenses, this type of translational research simply does not get done. With their help, we can accelerate the pace these transformational solutions proceed

from the lab to the patients who need them.”

Stem cell injections and PRP are already used as therapies across the country in the treatment of various orthopedic conditions, particularly osteoarthritis of the knee. Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t. Doctors don’t really know why — but the USC Stevens Center for Orthobiologics aims to find out.

“We want to enhance our understanding of the biological factors that influence cartilage and bone repair, muscle regeneration, and more,” Lieberman says.

The center will also create a biorepository as the investigators conduct their research, taking tissue samples prior to treatment to determine the elements associated with clinical success. These samples may also be useful in testing new biologics as the team develops them.

Support for this center will fund pilot studies and research efforts intended to improve clinical care and outcomes. “We are interested in doing translational research to develop new therapies to enhance the lives of patients,” Lieberman says.

PHOTOS BY CHRIS SHINN

Denis Evseenko (top left), Thomas Lozito (top center) and Hyunwoo P. Kang (bottom right) work with Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Chair Jay R. Lieberman (top right, bottom left) in the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Center for Orthobiologics on pioneering therapies using stem cells and plasma.

Mental Health Matters

Trojans come together to advance mental well-being among college students. BY USC STAFF

Mental health looms as one of the most urgent issues on college campuses nationwide, and the lives and futures of young adults are at stake. But USC mental health experts are taking action. Through their My Mental Health program, they’ve become leaders in identifying students’ needs and intervening before a crisis.

Directed by psychiatry professors Steven Siegel and Bradley S. Peterson of the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the My Mental Health platform quickly and accurately assesses students’ health and then provides them the level of care they need, when they need it. Siegel, the Franz Alexander Chair in Psychiatry, notes that other universities have implemented similar screening programs, but mostly for research. USC is

the first to deploy universal screening at a college or university.

“This is not a problem that is unique to USC students,” Peterson says. “It’s a worldwide epidemic in mental health problems for adolescents and young adults.”

As a USC parent, USC Trustee Stephanie Argyros and her family felt compelled to support My Mental Health. A recent $5 million gift from the Argyros Family Foundation will enable USC to roll out the program to all 50,000 students by fall 2025.

“Dr. Siegel has shared with me that this program is saving lives. We are so impressed with this program and USC’s commitment to student mental health that we’re excited to participate and encourage others,” says Argyros, a USC alumna.

Janet and Michael Scarpelli also recognize the pressures facing today’s college students. The Bay Area couple recently made a $5 million gift that will be vital to the

program’s success. Their Janet and Michael Scarpelli My Mental Health Endowment Fund bolsters services into the future.

“Young adulthood is a critical time to ensure that people are on the path to good mental health,” Janet Scarpelli says. “We’re enthusiastic about helping USC turn this intervention into a proven standard nationally.”

A third donor, who gave anonymously, recently committed $5 million to the project. The donor is excited both about the program’s benefits to USC students and how its findings can be spread to college students far beyond USC’s campuses.

All three gifts build on previous generous support provided by the donors.

Expanding My Mental Health to other universities nationally will firmly establish USC as the nation’s premier hub for research, innovation and clinical excellence in student mental health — and potentially save lives.

Las Vegas Transplant Care Clinic Opens

New location will increase access to expert, specialized care for those needing a heart or liver transplant. BY USC STAFF

According to organ procurement organization Nevada Donor Network, more than 660 Nevadans need an organ transplant, but many currently struggle to access care because of limited transplant services available in the state.

To fill that growing need, Keck Medicine of USC has opened a new location in Las Vegas that will provide specialized care for patients in Las Vegas and surrounding communities who need a liver or heart transplant.

The clinic is the first in Nevada to offer in-state heart transplant services.

“Organ transplantation offers patients new hope and may extend lives,” says Marty Sargeant, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. “We are proud to bring our lifesaving care and clinical expertise to Nevada and look forward to working with local physicians, patients, families and the community to promote optimal health for patients in need.”

Patients who undergo transplantation through Keck Medicine have access to a multidisciplinary team of specialists, including USC Transplant Institute surgeons, physicians, nurses, social workers and counselors, specially trained dietitians and pharmacists, and a dedicated transplant coordinator to manage care throughout all phases of transplantation.

When patients visit the Las Vegas location, they will first undergo a transplant evaluation, which may include medical imaging and diagnostic tests conducted by other local medical providers, to determine if they are candidates for transplantation.

Upon completing evaluation and if matched with an appropriate organ donor, patients may undergo transplantation at Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles and return for post-surgical follow-up care at the Las Vegas location.

ADVANCED HEART AND LIVER TRANSPLANT CARE

The USC Heart Transplant Program provides expert care for heart failure and other serious conditions that may require a heart transplant. The program’s one-year survival post-transplant outcomes exceed the national average, and Keck Medicine is often able to successfully treat patients who traditionally might not have been considered candidates for transplant.

The USC Liver Transplant Program has been a leader in liver transplantation for more than 25 years. The transplant team, which treats all types of liver disease and conditions, specializes in several types of liver transplantation, including deceased-donor, transfusion-free and living-donor liver transplants — when a portion of the liver from a healthy person is removed and transplanted into the patient.

In addition to the new transplant care clinic, Keck Medicine has provided health care to the members and families of the Culinary Workers Union in Las Vegas since 2019. Keck Medicine provides primary care, including internal medicine and pediatric care, and physical therapy at two Culinary Health Center locations in the Las Vegas Valley.

Keck Medicine of USC’s Las Vegas location is the first clinic in Nevada to offer in-state heart transplant services.

PHOTO

WE GO BEYOND YOUR VITALS

WE GO BEYOND YOUR VITALS

TO LEARN WHAT’S VITAL TO YOU.

At Keck Medicine of USC, our experts partner with you. Listen to you. And provide personalized care to help you live a limitless life. Because while we work to treat your body, we love to help your spirit soar. Together we are limitless.

Health Care with Compassion and Innovation

Through the alignment of the medical system and health science schools in President Carol Folt’s Health Sciences 3.0 ‘moonshot,’ USC will meet the challenges and opportunities of an

By Chinyere Cindy Amobi

•

ever-evolving health landscape.

Illustration by Sunnu Rebecca Choi

In april 2022, USC President Carol Folt gave her first in-person State of the University address at Bovard Auditorium. After two years of pandemic uncertainty, the USC community was ready to come together and hear Folt’s agenda for what lay ahead.

“With our unrivaled size, scale, breadth and excellence, we can become national leaders in access and belonging, in sustainability and in partnering with communities for health, safety, freedom and prosperity,” Folt said.

She went on to articulate her vision for establishing USC as the international standard-bearer for collaborative learning and discovery through what she dubbed “moonshots” — one of which was a major expansion of the university’s health sciences efforts.

“No other university has this constellation of resources and schools to create a healthier society for the future,” she added.

It was a clarion call. Folt, who declares USC to be the “school of schools,” added that with Trojans working across disciplines to drive innovation in health care, “the potential is limitless.”

Her ambitious plan has resonated throughout the faculty: “USC is exactly the place for an initiative like President Folt’s health care moonshot,” says Mark S. Humayun, University Professor of ophthalmology and biomedical engineering at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “We can leverage the expertise of USC’s unique cross-disciplinary minds to really tackle the health care issues of today and into the future.”

Collaborate and create

Folt’s announcement marked an important first step in supercharging collaboration within USC’s five health schools and its academic

medical system, Keck Medicine of USC. The initiative, dubbed the Health Sciences 3.0 moonshot, aims to catalyze team-based research and education to develop new models of care for the communities surrounding USC’s campuses. The moonshot will take advantage of the AI revolution and collaborative care to overcome the greatest challenge of health care — providing improved outcomes at an affordable price.

Even before the initiative’s announcement, Folt was already in motion, creating the Office of Health Affairs to facilitate crossdisciplinary and cross-school collaboration. In May 2021, she hired physician-scientist Steven Shapiro to lead that office as the first senior vice president for health affairs.

Shapiro previously served as president of University of Pittsburgh Medical Center health services, the largest academic health system in the United States. His mission at USC: to create an infrastructure to help the university’s health entities — which represent 65% of the university’s total research, 70% of total full-time faculty and 54% of full-time staff — work with each other and the university as a whole to develop these new models of care.

“We are also on the verge of understanding the molecular basis of disease with the opportunity to cure diseases that have plagued

School of Dentistry of USC, the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, the USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, the USC Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, the Keck School of Medicine of USC, and the USC health system — Keck Medicine of USC. Faculty from other schools, including the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, USC Price School of Public Policy, and the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, are intrinsically involved in research, education and programs that address the pressing health needs of our time.

The ‘school of schools’

While Trojans across schools have long collaborated, there was a limit to what researchers, scientists and clinicians could achieve within individual disciplines to spur discoveries that help patients live longer, healthier lives.

“The United States has been criticized for both the high cost of care and outcomes such as life expectancy, which have lagged behind our peer nations,” Shapiro says. In reality, he adds, only a small fraction of this cost is directly related to health care.

“No other university has this constellation of resources and schools to create a healthier society for the future.” USC President Carol Folt

the world for centuries,” Shapiro says. “Indeed, we are about to enter another golden age of medicine.”

In addition to building interdepartmental partnerships around artificial intelligence, digital health and health technology, the office also creates incentives for this work, such as the Nemirovsky Engineering and Medicine Opportunity Prize, which supports early-stage research at the intersection of health sciences and engineering.

The university’s health enterprise includes four hospitals — Keck Hospital of USC, USC Norris Cancer Hospital, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital and USC Arcadia Hospital — more than 900 faculty physicians, and more than 100 unique clinics in Southern and Central California and Las Vegas.

“We are realizing the future of medicine with research-based inputs combined with AI, brilliant minds and compassionate caregivers to deliver tomorrow’s medicine today,” Shapiro says.

A pioneer from the beginning

Ever since USC founded the region’s first medical school in 1885, the university has been a critical part of providing health care to the Los Angeles community, particularly its most vulnerable patients. Beyond training physicians in the newest, most advanced clinical interventions available, USC has pioneered new treatments for some of the most complex diseases.

Today, the USC Health Affairs office comprises the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, the Herman Ostrow

He points out that despite health issues such as homicide, suicide, drug addiction, and behaviors such as diet, exercise, sleep, smoking and significant health inequity, “There is no better place than the United States to care for the most complex acute health problems.”

Every school at USC, he says, is playing a role to improve health for all. “Never before have our physicians and scientists worked so closely together,” Shapiro says. “At USC, we are tackling the many factors to lead a life well-lived.”

In June 2023, for the first time, USC’s annual research expenditures surpassed $1 billion, including USC in an exclusive group of just 13 private universities in the country that can boast the same. A nationally recognized measure of a university’s innovation potential, the $1 billion included significant investments in Folt’s moonshots in computing, sustainability and health.

That huge number represents the breadth of research that Trojans are engaged in — from oncology to the onset of aging, to cardiac care, to AI in health care — all to tackle humanity’s biggest problems.

Ishwar K. Puri, senior vice president of the USC Office of Research and Innovation, calls USC’s interdisciplinary work in the health space the “backbone” of the entire university. “It allows us to leverage the strength of the university both within the health sciences schools and outside the health sciences schools,” Puri says.

For example, at the USC Institute for Addiction Science, faculty members across disciplines produce innovative and adaptable scientific evidence and educational programming to increase

awareness, correct misperceptions, counteract stigma and inform policy on addiction. The institute is a partnership between the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, Keck School of Medicine of USC, and USC Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Another exciting example of an interdisciplinary feat involves the USC Information Sciences Institute — led by University Professor Shri Narayanan of USC Viterbi and involving other researchers from USC Viterbi, USC Dornsife, the Keck School of Medicine and the University of California, Los Angeles — where researchers are attempting to predict psychological health risk factors to support clinical screenings for issues such as depression and suicidal ideation.

In line with Folt’s vision of the university as an international standard-bearer for collaborative learning and discovery, USC researchers such as Arthur Toga and Paul M. Thompson at the Keck School of Medicine and the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute are discovering new ways to use neuroscience, mathematics, computer science and software engineering for brain research.

Likewise, University Professor Peter Kuhn of USC Dornsife works with experts in machine learning and artificial intelligence from USC Viterbi to analyze thousands of blood sample images from “liquid biopsies” to work toward better outcomes in cancer therapies. The minimally invasive alternative to tissue biopsies aids physicians in detecting and managing early- and late-stage cancers.

Diversity spurs new models of care

At almost 10 million people, Los Angeles County’s population is larger than that of 40 states and extremely diverse. Residents include people from more than 140 countries who speak a combined total of more than 200 languages. There is no ethnic majority, and more than one-third of residents are born outside the United States.

It’s a microcosm of the world — and what ails it.

Serving the communities around USC drives innovation, says Rodney B. Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine of USC and president and CEO of the USC Health System.

“L.A.’s diverse population provides a rich foundation for science and research in tailoring leading-edge treatment and care to individual needs, whether it’s based on race, gender or other demographics,” Hanners says.

For example, roughly 60% of cancer patients in clinical trials at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center are from historically underrepresented populations. The center works with community organizations to connect patients who want to participate in clinical trials, which contributes to a wealth of varied perspectives and to closing the gap on health equity.

Meeting patients where they are

The Office of Health Affairs is also working to transform health care by delivering exceptional team-based care, not just in a hospital setting, but increasingly in patients’ homes, in the community and in the streets.

One example is new research led by Keck Medicine of USC medical oncologist Jorge Nieva. In his work, Nieva is exploring the benefits patients experience when receiving cancer care at home combined with telemedicine appointments and remote monitoring. He is leading the first clinical trial to test at-home administration of immunotherapy in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer,

which could lay the foundation for the future of at-home cancer care.

Since the inception of the Keck School of Medicine of USC 140 years ago, USC has also collaborated with Los Angeles General Medical Center to provide the equitable and leading-edge care of its academic health center to surrounding communities.

USC patients have the highest case mix index (CMI) nationwide for acute care hospitals, partly because many other hospitals transfer their patients to Keck Hospital to care for cases too complex for them to handle. CMI is a metric that reflects the heterogeneity of the patients treated at the hospital and the complexity and severity of their cases.

In other examples, for the past 50 years, the Ostrow School has combined dental care with social services to address the oral health needs of L.A. communities holistically through mobile dental clinics, health fairs, screenings and educational programs.

Outside the U.S. military, the school boasts the world’s largest fleet of mobile clinics, which provides treatment to school-age children across Southern California. The school also operates stationary clinics where Angelenos need it the most, such as the Union Rescue Mission in downtown L.A.’s Skid Row.

Likewise, each year, students from the USC Suzanne DworakPeck School of Social Work contribute nearly 1 million hours of service to communities through internships. Students from USC Leonard Davis and USC’s occupational and physical therapy programs, among other programs from the health sciences schools, have also devoted their internship practicums to serving the needs of L.A.’s diverse communities for decades.

The university also boasts the largest street medicine program in the country. In addition to medical clinicians, the program’s interdisciplinary team brings together professionals from many of the health sciences schools, including dentists, occupational therapists, social workers and other experts dedicated to meeting unhoused Angelenos where they are.

And USC continues its long-standing relationship with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), through which USC physicians care for some of the most medically complex pediatric patients.

Building a culture of innovation

These programs illustrate one of USC’s biggest strengths: its approach to innovation. Puri says, “We move from discovery to life-saving therapy for patients.”

USC entities such as the Alfred E. Mann Institute for Biomedical Engineering and the Stevens Center for Innovation encourage entrepreneurship among researchers and practitioners by providing an avenue to commercialize discoveries such as at-home testing kits for lithium toxicity or stretchable microneedles.

The Keck School of Medicine of USC also has one of the nation’s highest rates of funding per investigator from the National Institutes of Health, highlighting the school’s prowess in advancing medical knowledge and funding novel discoveries. According to Shapiro, this means USC researchers are able to bring in more resources and have the wherewithal to form larger, multidimensional collaborative groups. This gives USC the agility to translate research into clinical therapies that benefit local and global communities.

“Our moonshots take advantage of this special time of computational AI-driven scientific progress,” Shapiro says. “We have an opportunity to understand and cure disease while delivering continuous, often digital, care to our patients wherever they are. This is how we will improve human health.”

CELL BY CELL

REBUILDING THE BODY

USC RESEARCHERS ARE REVOLUTIONIZING HOW WE TREAT DISEASE BY HARNESSING STEM CELLS AS “LIVING MEDICINE.”

STORY

BY RACHEL B. LEVIN ILLUSTRATIONS BY DOUG CHAYKA

Ahealed from a cut or a scrape has witnessed the incredible regenerative power of stem cells. These cells can create identical copies of themselves, creating new cells and tissues that replace damaged ones.

Stem cells are active in some areas of our body throughout our lives, like the skin and blood. But in many critical organs, including the heart and kidneys, stem cells are absent. When such tissues are damaged due to aging, injury or disease, they don’t regenerate, leading to devastating health consequences.

USC researchers are at the forefront of an emerging field called “clinical regenerative medicine,” which taps stem cells’ restorative powers to tackle some of the hardest-to-treat diseases, ranging from heart failure to blindness.

“We now have the ability through stem cells to generate replacement cells that we can use as therapeutics to rebuild the human body,” says Charles (Chuck) Murry, a renowned expert in regenerative heart medicine. In August, Murry joined Keck School of Medicine of USC as the new head of USC Stem Cell, chair of the department of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine, and director of The Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research.

Launched in 2013, USC Stem Cell is a universitywide initiative that connects over 100 research and clinical faculty in multiple disciplines across USC and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) with the common goal of translating basic stem cell science into clinical therapies. It has matured over the past decade with support from the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation as well as the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), a state organization created to accelerate stem cell research.

USC Stem Cell collaborators are employing stem cells to grow organ and tissue replacements, halt or reverse the progression of life-threatening diseases and create living models of human organs in the lab, providing novel platforms to screen for disease-fighting drugs.

“Clinical regenerative medicine is going to have an impact on par with antibiotics or vaccinations,” Murry says. “It’s going to be revolutionary.”

The stem cell projects currently underway across USC will transform treatments from our skull to our knee and many organs in between. As

with the classic board game Operation, we’ve broken down a selection of these projects by body part — funny bone not included.

SKULL

The bones of our skull protect one of the most important human organs: the brain. When those bones are compromised either because of a congenital condition, injury or surgery, the defect may affect not only the appearance of the skull but also brain function itself. Since skull bones do not regenerate after infancy, surgery is often needed to repair defects.

Yang Chai, University Professor, interim dean and associate dean of research at the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC, treats craniofacial birth defects. His work inspired him to develop an innovative treatment option for patients with significant defects — essentially holes — in the calvarial bones at the top of the skull.

Typically, these holes are surgically closed with a metal or plastic plate. For pediatric patients, neither option is ideal because a synthetic plate will not grow in concert with the child’s developing brain. Many of these implants fail within 20 years.

Collaborating with Yong Chen, professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering and industrial and systems engineering at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Chai designed a “living” implant for skull bone regeneration. It’s a 3D-printed scaffold made of a mineral found in teeth and bones called hydroxyapatite. The scaffold can be customized to fit a patient’s defect precisely and seeded with a patient’s own bone marrow-derived stem cells.

In animal models, as the stem cells mature, they grow and integrate with the surrounding skull to cover the defect within about six months. The new bone becomes as strong as the native bone. Chai and his collaborators — including Mark Urata, professor of clinical surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC — are poised to begin clinical trials in humans.

“Ours is going to be a biological solution for a biological problem, instead of a mechanical solution [i.e., a synthetic plate] for a biological problem,” Chai says.

BRAIN

Studying human brain development is important in understanding how neurodevelopmental issues such as autism spectrum disorder arise and progress. But traditional research methods have proved insufficient for observing the human brain as it develops. Current brain imaging techniques don’t offer a resolution that is high enough to understand brain functionality at the cellular level. Postmortem human brains don’t provide a window into early growth, and animal models don’t possess the complexity of the human brain.

“The best way to access human brain development is really to take advantage of human stem cells,” says Giorgia Quadrato, assistant professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

Quadrato has pioneered a way to grow masses of brain cells in the lab from stem cells. Within six months, these cells mature into tiny structures (“brain organoids”) about two millimeters in diameter that contain all the various cell types of specific brain regions. The organoids allow Quadrato’s team to study the cells’ development in real time, model neurodevelopmental diseases and screen for potential new treatments.

One of her lab’s most noteworthy innovations is an organoid model of the cerebellum, a brain region that plays a role in movement, cognition and emotion. In certain neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative

NYONE WHO’S

disorders like autism spectrum disorder and cerebellar ataxia, cells in the cerebellum called Purkinje neurons degenerate. Quadrato’s team is the first to succeed in growing Purkinje cells with all the features of functional neurons in a human system.

While the cerebellum models were grown from healthy cells, Quadrato has also grown organoid models of the cortex — a brain region involved in cognitive function — derived from the cells of a patient with a disease-causing variant of the SYNGAP1 gene. This variant is one of the top risk factors for autism spectrum disorder. The lab’s organoid models shed new light on how the variant disrupts early development of the cortex.

EARS

Inside your cochlea — the spiral structure inside your inner ear — a few thousand tiny sensory receptors with bundles of hairlike protrusions (so-called “hair cells”) perform a function essential for hearing. They convert the mechanical vibration evoked by sound waves into electrical signals that your brain interprets. When they’re damaged either from wear and tear or disease, hair cells can’t be normally replenished.

That’s true in humans, mice and other mammals. But in nonmammalian vertebrates, such as songbirds, damaged hair cells regenerate in a matter of weeks. The difference comes down to the activity of stem cells called supporting cells.

“The first thing a supporting cell needs to do is sense that there is an injury and divide into progeny that will mature into hair cells,” says Ksenia Gnedeva, assistant professor of otolaryngology – head and neck surgery and stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “That doesn’t happen in mammals. The very first step is blocked.”

Gnedeva discovered that a molecular cascade called the Hippo signaling pathway acts like a brake on that first step in regeneration in mammals. Then, she identified a small molecule that blocks the main enzyme in the pathway called the LATS kinase that can switch the cascade from a brake to an accelerator.

“When we applied the kinase inhibitor to inner ear sensory organs from mice, we saw something that had never been published before,” Gnedeva says. “All of the supporting cells were now able to reenter the cell cycle,” meaning that they began actively dividing in the petri dish. Remarkably, some of them grew into hair cells.

Gnedeva’s lab is now investigating how to effectively deliver this compound into the inner ear to restore hair cells in living mice. The hope is that the therapy may one day work to regenerate hair cells in humans and restore hearing to those with severe hearing loss.

EYES

As we age, changes to the retina, the delicate tissue at the back of our eyes, can lead to vision loss. Photoreceptor cells that sense light and send signals to the brain can deteriorate due to inflammation, genetics and lifestyle habits such as smoking. At the center of the retina, the macula, which controls straight-ahead vision, is particularly vulnerable to damage.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe vision loss among people over 50 in Western countries. Because there’s no known way to regenerate photoreceptors, AMD has had no effective treatments — until now.

Mark Humayun, University Professor of ophthalmology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and co-director of the USC Roski

Eye Institute, and his collaborators are using stem cells as a gateway to restoring vision in people with dry AMD, the most common form. The disease affects not only photoreceptor cells but also a vital group of cells that protect them from damage called retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. Humayun and his team developed a tiny patch filled with RPE cells derived from stem cells that can be surgically implanted in the eye, where the young cells can shield patients’ photoreceptors from further degeneration. Clinical trials of the patch are run by Regenerative Patch Technologies, the company he co-founded with Dennis Clegg and the late David Hinton. In the first phase of the trial, 27% of patients experienced improved vision.“We found that these young RPE cells are very robust,” Humayun says. “They survive much better than adult-aged RPE. Patients who improved are still keeping the same level of vision three years later.”

This fall, during the trial’s second phase, the patch will be tested in a larger number of dry AMD patients. Among them will be patients with less severe disease than patients in the first phase. Humayun expects that in this phase the patch will improve vision in even more patients and to a greater extent.

MOTOR NEURONS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) — often called Lou Gehrig’s disease — is a devastating neurodegenerative disease with no known cure. It affects motor neurons, which are nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement and breathing. Over time, as motor neurons degenerate, the brain can no longer command muscle movements, and people with ALS may lose their ability to speak, eat, walk and breathe.

Finding universally effective treatments has been difficult because the disease’s root causes are not fully understood. While having a family member with ALS increases your risk of developing it, most cases occur with no family history or clearly associated risk factors. “In these cases, we believe that multiple gene mutations come together in one person,” says Justin Ichida, an associate professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC whose research is centered on fighting the disease.

“THE BEST WAY TO ACCESS HUMAN BRAIN DEVELOPMENT IS REALLY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HUMAN STEM CELLS.”

GIORGIA QUADRATO

“CLINICAL REGENERATIVE MEDICINE IS GOING TO HAVE AN IMPACT ON PAR WITH ANTIBIOTICS OR VACCINATIONS.”

CHARLES MURRY

Stem-cell technology has provided Ichida an avenue for new leaps in discovery. He and his team reprogram adult skin or blood cells from an ALS patient into stem cells. These cells are then coaxed into developing into motor neurons that are genetically identical to the patient’s own motor neurons. The process has allowed Ichida’s lab to test thousands of compounds to see how the neurons respond.

One of Ichida’s most exciting discoveries is that inhibiting a protein called the PIKFYVE kinase improves the survival of motor neurons derived from patients with varying types of ALS. His startup company, AcuraStem, developed a druglike molecule to suppress this kinase and licensed it to a pharmaceutical company, which is now developing it into a drug for clinical trials. “This could be applicable for essentially all ALS patients, rather than just a subset that have a certain type of mutation,” Ichida says.

KNEES

In your joints, a strong, flexible connective tissue called cartilage provides padding between bones and acts as a shock absorber and lubricant. Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage is compromised due to injury or aging, causing the bones to rub against each other, often painfully.

Very few stem cells are present in adult cartilage, meaning the tissue doesn’t naturally regenerate. Historically, treatments for osteoarthritis have been limited to painkillers and invasive surgery to replace damaged joints. But Denis Evseenko — professor of orthopedic surgery, stem cell biology and regenerative medicine, vice chair for research of orthopedic surgery and director of skeletal regeneration at the Keck School of Medicine of USC — and his collaborators have innovated new stem-cell-based treatments that promise to make osteoarthritis pain a thing of the past.

One is a “regenerative pouch” to replace cartilage that’s been damaged by a fall, sports injury or other trauma. The pouch, which is being developed by Evseenko’s startup company Plurocart, contains hundreds of thousands of young cartilage cells derived from stem cells. “It’s a little reparative structure that you can surgically deliver right into the cartilage defect,” Evseenko says.

In animal models, the pouches have shown phenomenal results: The juvenile cells grow into mature cartilage, preventing osteoarthritis. Evseenko is now planning the first clinical trial in humans with knee injuries.

Evseenko’s lab has also created a therapy for age-related osteoarthritis that is being developed by his startup company CarthroniX. As we age and cartilage is progressively lost, painful inflammation can set in. “Chronic inflammation is a signal for local stem cells that it’s a bad environment and they should not build new tissue,” Evseenko says.

He identified a compound that disrupts a key immune receptor’s over-activation due to inflammation. When this compound is injected into the knees of patients with mild to moderate osteoarthritis, inflammation is suppressed, stem cells are activated to slowly regrow tissue and pain is significantly reduced.

HEART

After a heart attack, many people go on to lead productive lives — but the heart muscle itself is forever changed. Since adult heart cells do not regenerate, the scar tissue formed in areas of the heart attack can compromise the heart’s ability to pump. Over time, reduced function can lead to heart failure, depending on the amount of scar tissue and the size of the heart attack.

Murry, the head of USC Stem Cell, has discovered a way to use heart cells derived from stem cells to strengthen hearts damaged by scar tissue. “By transplanting these heart muscle cells, we can rebuild the heart and restore its contractile function,” Murry says.

He likens the process to growing a garden: The injured heart becomes the soil where stem-cell-derived heart cells are planted. The “roots” are the connective tissue and blood vessels that the new cells call in to feed them. Murry anticipates that clinical trials of the transplanted cells will begin within the next couple of years.

Megan McCain, associate professor of biomedical engineering at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering and of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, has innovated complex living tissue models from human stem cells that allow her to visualize heart scar tissue formation in real time.

Her team seeds quarter-size silicone wafers with stem cellderived heart muscle cells. As the cells grow, they align and begin to beat together much as they would in an actual human heart. McCain can then induce what she calls a “heart attack on a chip” — by selectively depriving some of the cells of oxygen — and observe how the cells remodel themselves after the injury.

“The next step is to develop interventions to change how the heart heals itself,” McCain says, to reduce how much scar tissue forms in the first place.

Vaughn Starnes, chair and distinguished professor of surgery at the Keck School of Medicine and founding executive director of Keck Medicine’s USC Cardiac and Vascular Institute, is exploring stem cells as a treatment for children born with a congenital condition called hypoplastic left heart syndrome. In those affected, the left side of the heart is underdeveloped, leaving the baby with one, instead of two, functioning ventricles to pump blood. Over time, the single ventricle fails in 10% to 15% of patients.

Early evidence suggests that when stem cells from a baby’s own umbilical cord blood are differentiated into heart cells and injected into that ventricle, they strengthen the muscle and improve its function — potentially reducing the chances of failure down the line.

KIDNEY

Our kidneys are vital organs to sustain life. They filter waste products from our blood and produce urine we excrete. Because of the increasing prevalence of diseases that injure the kidneys, including hypertension and diabetes, chronic kidney disease is on the rise in the United States, affecting one in seven adults.

Kidney transplants can save lives — but the demand for donor kidneys far exceeds the supply. Each day, an estimated 13 Americans die waiting for a kidney transplant.

Zhongwei Li, assistant professor of medicine and stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, has pioneered a “synthetic kidney” using human stem cells that may soon provide an alternative to kidney transplants from a donor.

The architecture of a human kidney is complex. A million functional units called nephrons organize themselves into a treelike structure to drain the urine they produce. Once injured, nephrons can’t regenerate. Li developed a method for turning stem cells into kidney progenitor cells, the cell type necessary for kidney development in a human embryo.

“By using those building-block progenitor cells, we have successfully assembled a treelike structure with nephrons attached to the structure in a petri dish,” Li says.

His team has demonstrated that these “kidney organoids,” when transplanted into animal models, can grow into synthetic kidneys that produce urine just like natural kidneys. Li anticipates that within five to 10 years, the technology will be advanced enough for clinical trials in humans.

As he works with collaborators in fields including kidney development, 3D bioprinting and kidney physiology to perfect the synthetic kidney’s design, Li stresses that the power of his innovation comes from nature itself.

“Progenitor cells are hardwired to build a treelike structure,” Li says. “We direct the cells to do what they’re programmed to do.”

PANCREAS

For the more than 38 million Americans with diabetes, the disease significantly affects daily life and poses long-term health risks. While it can be managed with medication, diet and lifestyle, there’s currently no cure.

EACH DAY, AN ESTIMATED

13 AMERICANS DIE WAITING FOR A KIDNEY TRANSPLANT.

Diabetes occurs when your blood sugar is too high, either because your pancreas makes little or no insulin (Type 1 diabetes) or your cells don’t use insulin properly (Type 2 diabetes). In the latter condition, your pancreas may be producing insulin — just not enough to keep your blood sugar in the normal range.

“Whether it’s Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, fundamentally you need more functional insulin cells,” says Senta Georgia, associate professor of pediatrics and stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “For a number of years, my lab has been working on ways to make insulin cells from stem cells, trying to understand the barriers that exist and improve the processes that underlie how we make these cells.”

Georgia aims to support the development of clinical regenerative therapies for diabetes. These may one day include transplanting stem cell-derived insulin cells into the pancreas, coaxing a patient’s pancreas to make more of its own insulin cells or improving the function of existing insulin cells.

One of her lab’s current areas of focus is investigating why COVID19 infections sharply increase the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Her team is using stem cell models to understand the virus’ impact on insulin cell function and survival, with an eye toward identifying and blocking pathways to injury.

They’re also collaborating with clinicians at CHLA to study the cells of pediatric patients with genetic forms of diabetes. A recent project illuminated the critical importance of a gene called NEUROGENIN3 in enabling stem cells to mature into insulin cells. Children with a mutation in this gene develop a severe form of diabetes.

CELLS

While many USC researchers are employing stem cells to regenerate damaged tissues and organs, Ian Ehrenreich — divisional dean for life sciences and professor of biological sciences at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences — is pioneering new ways to modify stem cells themselves.

Genetically modified stem cells hold great promise for therapeutic purposes. Ehrenreich points to one recently developed example: the first FDA-approved gene therapy for patients with sickle cell anemia, a blood disorder caused by a genetic mutation. In this therapy, the blood stem cells of patients are modified by genome editing and transplanted back into patients’ bone marrow, where they produce a protein that prevents the “sickling” of red blood cells.

“The type of genetic engineering involved in this therapy is simple,” Ehrenreich says. “They’re breaking one genetic element. But a lot of things we’re going to need to do [to develop new stem-cell therapeutics] are going to require more sophisticated genetic engineering. That’s the realm where my lab works.”

He and his team have developed new techniques for building large pieces of DNA (synthetic chromosomes), involving less time and cost than ever before possible. “These big DNA constructs will be important for reprogramming stem cells to serve particular tasks,” Ehrenreich says. DNA synthesized using these techniques could also be added to a stem cell to compensate for genes that a patient is missing.

One of Ehrenreich’s intracampus collaborations is with Leonardo Morsut, assistant professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Morsut engineers stem cells to divide in particular ways to grow tissues of desired structure and function. Employing large synthetic chromosomes from Ehrenreich’s lab “might enable more complex programming of these cells, which could be beneficial in eventually making [synthetic] organs,” Ehrenreich says.

First AId

A custom heart or vascular stent for everyone who needs one. Your own stem cells providing the material for 3D-printed organs. Spray-on skin. A powerful diagnostic partner that enables more equitable health care. This is the promise of artificial intelligence (AI), now a full member of any health care team — and USC is leading the way.

AI excels at analyzing large amounts of datasets, and it has applications across every aspect of health care. At USC, researchers and clinicians are using AI to minimize risks and improve patient outcomes, create precision surgical techniques, hasten drug discovery and interpret medical images with impressive accuracy — all treatments thought out of reach just a few years ago.

“In 1980, medical knowledge doubled every seven years,” says Summer Decker, founding director of USC’s Center for Innovation in Medical Visualization. “Today, it more than doubles every 72 days. AI enables us to track patterns we couldn’t see before, because it would be almost impossible to analyze that volume of data. It will help us start seeing those patterns earlier so we can begin addressing problems earlier.”

Already, AI-powered wearables monitor patients’ health metrics 24/7, while 3D printing produces replicas of human organs for study in various applications such as transplantation, disease modeling and drug testing. “This isn’t science fiction,” says Inderbir Gill, executive director of Keck Medicine’s USC Urology, who himself regularly performs AI-assisted robotic surgery. “How can you not be impressed by the potential of AI? It’s coming at us at breakneck speed.” Gill is also Distinguished Professor and chair of the Catherine and Joseph Aresty Department of Urology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, which hosted the first AI West Med Symposium in February.

AI also helps solve a more mundane — and yet very real — health care challenge: physician burnout from administrative tasks. By using AI to update electronic health records, clinicians can free up time for patient care.

“The opportunity of AI is to take this massive amount of data and improve humanity,” says Steve Shapiro, USC’s senior vice president of health affairs. “By having all this incredible wealth of data and AI algorithms, we’re going to be able to ignite discovery.

“Once we have all this information, we can generate hypotheses, take that to the lab and make real discoveries,” Shapiro adds. “Our scientists, students, clinicians can ask the most important questions and challenge dogma.”

A strong partnership among Keck Medicine of USC, the university’s health schools and the USC Viterbi School

USC physicians are creating bytesize miracles through AI innovation. By Candace Pearson

Illustrations by Cristiana Couceiro

of Engineering, alongside national and global colleagues, provides the ingredients for medicine that ultimately may help millions worldwide.

But will AI replace our doctors? Not at all, says Carolyn Meltzer, dean of the Keck School of Medicine. For all of AI’s capabilities, algorithms can’t do everything: Compassion, ethics and creative, nonlinear thinking remain strictly human.

“It’s not that AI will replace the physician,” Meltzer says. “It’s that the physician who uses AI will replace the physician who does not use AI.”

Meet some of the physicians at USC who are deploying AI tools to transform healing.

From the Virtual to the Physical

Summer Decker, founding director of USC’s Center for Innovation in Medical Visualization and professor of Clinical Radiology, Surgery and Pathology, creates 3D-printed models of human anatomy — for surgical planning, teaching, medical device development and patient care. Leveraging AI, she says, can improve print quality, detect and correct errors before they happen and make 3D printing more accessible by simplifying the process.

“With 3D printing, we can reduce the time needed for surgery, minimize the risk to patients and know exactly what size surgical device or replacement part to use for each individual. It gives surgeons a road map inside the body with real-time 3D views of a patient’s anatomy. There’s so much we can do with 3D information, whether you’re a surgeon planning an operation or a student learning a procedure. Our patients are the ones who will benefit.

When I looked at where I wanted to be to push this technology, the answer was USC because it’s a world leader.

“Our lab holds several patents on a technology that will seed a 3D print with demineralized bone matrix, which can form a custom internal scaffold for facial injuries in kids. Unlike a metal plate, the print and tissue will grow with them. In bioprinting, which is already here, you take a person’s stem cells and reprint their anatomy. Of course, certain organs are easier than others to print. The brain is a long way away — if ever. AI will give us the tools to be better at what we do. We’ve just got to drive it.”

“It gives surgeons a road map to the body. There’s so much we can do with 3D information, whether you’re a surgeon planning an operation or a student learning a procedure. Our patients are the ones who will benefit.” –Summer Decker

Building Custom Stents

Sukgu Han is a vascular surgeon and biomedical engineer who designs and crafts custom stents for his patients. He is a professor of clinical and neurological surgery and chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy at Keck Medicine. He also serves as the codirector of the Comprehensive Aortic Center at Keck Hospital and program director of vascular surgery residency and fellowship at Keck School of Medicine.

“Everybody’s anatomy is a little different. An aneurysm — a bulging, weakened area in the aorta — can distort the anatomy as the blood vessel twists on itself. Having the ability to tailor each patient’s stent to fit their anatomy and protect the aorta can make surgery safer. I began making complex, custom aortic stent grafts for my patients 10 years ago. I’ve now done more than 500 — a lot of it I’ve done manually. The next phase will be automated AI analysis, which will speed the process of sizing the stents in three dimensions to fit each patient.

“We recently launched a project using an AI vessel-segmentation algorithm that will compare a patient’s CT scan with their previous scan to determine what is happening in their aorta in much greater detail than how we’re doing this currently — which is basically a radiologist or surgeon putting the images side by side and hoping to detect any changes that make a difference in the patient’s care, but can easily be missed due to human error.

“We haven’t even scratched the surface in tailoring each patient’s treatment to a deeper granularity. No one has the technology to 3D print some of these custom stents — yet. That may be coming our way sooner than expected. Next is printing cardiac structures like heart valves for implantation. Who knows what we’ll be talking about in five years?”

Preventing Avoidable Injuries

William Padula is an advocate for using AI to better predict pressure injuries, commonly known as bedsores. He is assistant professor of pharmaceutical and health economics at the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

“More people die from pressure injuries acquired in the hospital than from car accidents.The annual cost of hospital-acquired pressure injuries in the United States is $30 billion and 60,000 deaths. By my calculation, we could probably prevent most injuries in a smart hospital infrastructure using data science for $10 billion to $15 billion and eliminate $30 billion in waste and save many lives. This would give us a lot of financial bandwidth to do other things, such as gene therapy for sickle cell disease or for kids with cystic fibrosis.

“In the 1980s, nurses began using a paper-based tool to document pressure injury risk factors on a scoring sheet — an antiquated method by today’s capabilities. USC is collaborating with Johns Hopkins University and UH Cleveland Medical Center; we developed a risk-assessment model using machine learning, which increased the accuracy of risk prediction to 74% — a more than 20% jump over human methods.

“An unbiased machine-learning tool based on data consistent across all patients — whether sensory data or blood tests — will enable us to better predict the risk each patient faces of developing a pressure injury or other adverse health outcomes. Through AI, we can make health care more equitable and more focused on prevention and treatment. That’s the potential of AI.”

Offering

‘An Extra Set of Eyes’

Melinda Chang , assistant professor of clinical ophthalmology at USC Roski Eye Institute, part of Keck Medicine of USC, wants to improve diagnosis of swollen optic nerves in kids, a potentially serious neurologic problem. She believes AI can reduce the need for diagnostic procedures that require sedation of children.

“Swollen optic nerves, known as papilledema, can be a sign of a brain tumor, hydrocephalus or meningitis. It’s one of the most common reasons kids are referred to our pediatric neuro-ophthalmology clinic. Complicating the diagnosis is pseudopapilledema, in which the optic nerves also appear swollen but are essentially benign.

“No single imaging technique can accurately differentiate between the two conditions on its own. Even combining them all might not be accurate enough. A full workup requires an invasive lumbar puncture and sedation in kids, which we want to avoid. We recently initiated a multicenter study comparing human diagnoses and an AI model programmed to scrutinize minute details in photos of the back of the eye.

“The human experts did very well in distinguishing severe papilledema from pseudopapilledema, but AI did

much better. In cases of mild papilledema, which is harder to differentiate, AI achieved an accuracy of approximately 70% and sensitivity close to 90%, far surpassing the performance of human experts, whose accuracy ranged from 53% to 59% and sensitivity from 39% to 53%. For us, that means AI has promise in these difficult cases in potentially reducing the rate of kids undergoing unnecessary tests and missed neurological problems. AI won’t replace doctors but will serve as an extra set of eyes.”

Cancer Care at Home

Jorge Nieva is exploring at-home care for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, which is made possible by telemedicine and remote monitoring. A Keck Medicine of USC medical oncologist and lung cancer expert, he is associate professor of clinical medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC.

“These days, 30% to 40% of my lung cancer patients can be treated with a pill. Some cancers, like non-small cell lung cancer, still require injections. Our new clinical trial deploys nurses to patients’ homes to administer immunotherapy medication under the skin. During the pandemic, the use of telemedicine exploded, and patients appreciated the convenience, especially in Los Angeles, which can be hard and stressful to navigate. The trial also relies on telemedicine visits and remote monitoring. It’s like a modern house call. My excitement about digital tools like these is having access to real-time and self-reported data on the patient’s vital signs, movement data and symptom management. It leads to better decision-making.

“Some applications of AI in health care will be very important, such as assistance with the analysis of medical images and pathology slides, and chatbots for triaging patient communications. When seeking to improve the health of a population through better care coordination and patient engagement, AI can help ensure patients get timely cancer screenings and follow-up. But we’re not at the day yet when someone will type their symptoms into a box, receive a diagnosis and a prescription in the mail.

“With something as critical as a diagnosis, you’re always going to want a human who has thought about the problem enough that they’re willing to say, ‘No, I’m responsible. The buck stops with me.’”

From Skin-Like Wearables to Gut Clues

Yasser Khan invents AI-powered wearable, implantable and ingestible medical devices. He is an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering and the USC Institute for Technology and Medical Systems Innovation, a joint Keck School of Medicine of USC-USC Viterbi initiative.

“Imagine using AI-enabled devices to track your physical and mental health. By printing electronics on plastic and rubber, wearables become so thin, flexible and stretchable,

“AI won’t replace doctors but will serve as an extra set of eyes.”

–Melinda Chang

they behave like a second skin. One study I was involved in developed a ‘bandage’ that can measure tumor growth within the width of one human hair. Now we’re designing a wearable sensor in patch form with physiological and biochemical sensing capability to help classify mental states. And the skin-like electronics revolution is just starting.

“In addition, my lab is focused on implantables and ingestibles — the latter is brand-new work out of USC. We are now designing a combination wearable/ingestible system that could someday serve as a ‘Fitbit for the gut’ for early disease detection. It combines a smart pill that can measure gases, chemical markers and neurotransmitters, plus a wearable system (essentially a coil over your shirt) with high resolution to follow the capsule. There’s no way now to measure these things noninvasively. The hope is this capsule someday can carry a chemotherapy drug and be released in the exact location to target the cancer.”

Hope for Diabetics

David G. Armstrong is a professor of surgery and neurological surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, a podiatric surgeon and limb preservation specialist with Keck Medicine of USC. A diabetic wound care expert, he works within a coordinated program to treat diabetic foot ulcers and other chronic wounds. Their work is merged with technologies such as injectable sensors, gene-therapydirected wound healing and Bluetooth-enabled artificial blood vessels.

“Every second someone develops a diabetic foot ulcer. Half of these people get a foot infection, and 20% end up in the hospital. Every 20 seconds there’s an amputation. We believe virtually all of this is preventable.That’s why we developed the predictive Smart Boot, a wearable technology supported by AI-based algorithms that can help diabetic patients recover from dangerous foot wounds. It can identify not only whether people are wearing it but how fast they move, the steps they take, if they’re unsteady or about to fall.

“Right now, there’s a fundamental blurring of the lines between consumer electronics and medical devices. With our Caltech colleagues, we’re bringing smart bandages that sense and respond to inflammation or infection to clinical use. Having worked with augmented/virtual reality for two decades, I’m also excited about the Apple Vision Pro opening up possibilities for surgical procedures, medical training and care.

“These devices capture the imagination — and they’re getting better at helping us look after our patients better and drive medicine forward. By marrying our humanity with the technology, we can effect positive change on ourselves and the planet. We don’t have to predict the future. It’s all happening now.”

TURN BACK THE CLOCK ON AGING

TURN BACK THE CLOCK ON AGING

THERE’S NO WAY TO STOP THE MARCH OF TIME , BUT INNOVATIVE RESEARCH BY USC SCHOLARS

POINTS THE WAY TO A LONGER, HEALTHIER AND MORE VIBRANT LIFE.

By R achel B. l evin

A

bout 10 years ago, when George Salem was in his mid-50s, a friend invited him to play a round of golf. He accepted the invitation — even though the associate professor in the USC Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy had never taken golf seriously. A former college football player, he favored more vigorous sports like snowboarding, basketball and rugby. ¶ But when he joined his friend’s foursome, Salem found himself riveted by the action on the greens and fairways. The course was crowded with silver-haired players, many in their 80s and 90s. He struck up conversations with individuals who had survived cancer and strokes, undergone hip and knee replacements, and were grappling with Parkinson’s disease. And during play, these older golfers left Salem in the dust. ¶ “I was amazed at how much better at golf they were than I was,” he says. “But more importantly, I was amazed at how they could get in and out of a sand trap, climb hills, track a ball and mentally strategize which club to use and how to shoot.” ¶ An expert in exercise and aging, Salem wondered if golf itself was helping to keep these players physically robust and cognitively sharp despite their health challenges. Right there on the links, a new research direction was born. ¶ For millennia, humans have been searching for ways to extend life and remedy the ravages of aging, pursuing mythical springs, miracle elixirs and science-based biohacks. In recent decades, as life expectancies have increased, the desire to thrive as we age has only intensified. ¶ But quality-of-life challenges still loom for an older adult population growing at an unprecedented pace. This includes rising rates of age-related chronic diseases, social isolation and elder abuse. ¶ Now an avid golfer and director of the USC Institute for Therapeutic Golf Science, Salem is among the many USC scholars in wide-ranging fields whose innovative research is meeting these challenges head-on — and redefining the path to longevity in the process. Whether leveraging science and technology or harnessing the power of community, USC researchers are making leading-edge discoveries that can guide the choices we make today for a healthier and happier tomorrow. ¶ “USC is uniquely positioned to chart new territory in our understanding of longevity and healthy aging,” says Pinchas Cohen, dean of the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, which is the nation’s first and largest educational institute on aging. “We are unmatched in our constellation of resources to support patients, families and caregivers and develop visionary new ways to increase both lifespan and healthspan — years spent free of disease.”

Illustrations by Drue Wagner

You

Are What

You (Don’t) Eat

Teeing Up for Play Time

OUR PREHISTORIC predecessors’ survival depended upon physical fitness, as hunter-gatherers had to outrun predators and prey. Now, if we hope to outrun age-related diseases, staying active is vital.

“Exercise is the magic pill,” says George Salem, noting that regular physical activity improves sleep and immunity, bolsters brain health and mental health, and decreases the chances of dying from any cause.

THOUGH THE PASSAGE of time is a constant, the rate at which we age varies from one person to another.

Scientists make a distinction between your chronological age and your biological age, the latter being a measure of the functional state of your body’s systems and damage that’s occurred to your cells and tissues. If your biological age is greater than your chronological age, you’re more likely to develop age-related diseases including dementia, stroke and more. While genetics influence the pace of biological aging, making healthy lifestyle choices can slow it down — or possibly put it in reverse.

One of the most important choices is what you put on your plate. Exploring a century of research on long-lived populations around the world, Valter Longo, professor of gerontology and biological sciences at USC Leonard Davis, developed recommendations for a “longevity diet” that is rich in legumes, whole grains, vegetables, nuts, olive oil and some fish, and low in red and processed meats, sugar and refined grains.

But his research also demonstrates the benefits of taking breaks from eating abundantly. A recent study Longo

conducted with Sebastian Brandhorst, associate professor of gerontology, and other collaborators reveals that periodically adopting a “fasting-mimicking diet” (FMD) — which contains ingredients that simulate fasting and drastically limits calorie intake for five days — can shave years off your biological age. In the study, adults who completed three FMD cycles over several months slashed their biological age by an average of 2 1/2 years, and their insulin resistance and other pre-diabetic markers improved.

“Humans and many other organisms evolved during long periods when we didn’t have food,” Longo says. His lab’s animal studies suggest that when our hunter-gatherer ancestors feasted after a period of famine, a process called cellular reprogramming kicked in so that shrunken cells, organs and tissues could be rebuilt and restored.“The fasting-mimicking diet is tapping into this ability of the system to detect damage and then begin a process of self-repair and regeneration,”he says.

Longo has shown that in mice, periodic FMD cycles reduce harmful inflammation, kill cancer cells and improve markers of Alzheimer’s disease in the brain. Early research suggests they may do the same in people. Longo’s discoveries have been leveraged by his company L-Nutra to create FMD kits for general health and tailored to specific diseases including diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s.

Over the past decade, Salem has conducted a series of studies on older adults, including veterans and prostate cancer survivors, who learn to play golf. He’s shown that in as few as 10 weeks, participation in the sport — which gets players striding up and down inclines and squatting to place and recover balls — increases walking ability and balance, improves performance on cognitive and memory tests, and reduces blood markers of inflammation.

The mental and social aspects of golf contribute to these benefits. As golfers strategize shots and fraternize with their peers, they’re stimulating their brains and engaging in what keeps Salem himself committed to the sport: play. “It’s more fun to play than it is to exercise,” he says.

Many of the participants in Salem’s studies express a desire to continue golfing after the introductory lessons end. “Once you’re hooked, you’re hooked,” Salem says. “Golfers will go out in the pouring rain and out in the snow.They show up because they’re playing with friends who expect them to show up.”

That level of investment in a fitness-boosting activity may help explain why golfers live five years longer on average than nongolfers. But if teeing off isn’t your cup of tea, don’t despair. “Other recreational activities, including pickleball and ballroom dancing, are likely just as beneficial,”Salem notes.

Ready, Tech, Go!

NO MATTER HOW physically fit you are, sedentary behavior poses a significant threat to longevity. Sitting for long periods of time without breaks has been linked to a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and death — even among those who exercise. Older adults with mobility issues, chronic pain and other health conditions are especially vulnerable to sitting for hours upon end.

At the Healthy Aging Research and Technology Lab in the USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Stacey Schepens Niemiec, associate professor of research, is developing new tools to help older people reduce their amount of sedentary time.These tools incorporate both low-tech and hightech solutions.

One is a smartphone app called Moving Up that tracks the number of hours users spend immobile and offers customized suggestions for integrating more movement into their self-reported activities. For example, if the user

is watching television, the app may alert them to drink more water — not only for extra hydration, but to encourage more frequent walks to and from the bathroom.

Schepens Niemiec is also collaborating on the development of an active seating system that incorporates pedals — like a stationary bike, but without wheels — and sensors that track seated time.The system prompts users to pedal for a couple of minutes at regular intervals to counter the negative side effects of long periods of immobile sitting like stiffness and reduced blood flow. It may seem against the grain to develop technological solutions for an older population, given that younger consumers are more often the assumed end users of the latest tech. But Schepens Niemiec is aiming to fill a gap.“The older adult population tends to get overlooked when it comes to tech-driven innovations,” she says. “Right from the start, I get older adults’ input in the design of the technology to help make it more accessible to them.”

Now Hear This

ONE TECHNOLOGY for older adults that has greatly advanced in the past decade is hearing aids, which are smaller and have better sound quality than the devices of yesteryear. Yet only one in 10 of the approximately 40 million American adults who need hearing aids use them — likely due to a variety of factors, including cost and social stigma.

“A good number of patients tell me,‘I don’t want to look old by wearing hearing aids,’” says Janet Choi, an otolaryngologyist with Keck Medicine and assistant professor at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

That mindset can be self-defeating — because using hearing aids may help you live longer. Groundbreaking research by Choi and her collaborators revealed that among those with hearing loss, regular hearing aid users are almost 25% less likely to die from any cause than those who never wear them.

Though more research is needed to untangle why hearing aid use boosts lifespan, it’s possible that it confers protection against diseases linked to untreated hearing loss, including dementia and depression. “Some studies suggest that the sound input provided by hearing aids may have a positive impact on brain structures,” Choi says.

Choi is now researching ways to encourage hearing aid use among older people and counter social stigma associated with the devices, which she relates to from personal experience. The specialist in ear-related disorders was born with hearing loss in her left ear and now wears a hearing aid. But she didn’t do so as a child because her parents were worried she would be ridiculed at school.

It took Choi three tries before she found the right hearing aid for herself. Knowing that the time-intensive selection process can be a barrier to use, she’s developing an AI-driven database that helps match patients with hearing aids best suited to their unique needs.

Shore Up Support

WHEN OLDER ADULTS with hearing loss adopt hearing aids, they’re better able to participate in conversations and stay engaged socially, buffering themselves from isolation. That itself may boost longevity: Feeling isolated makes it more likely you’ll develop dementia, depression, heart disease and stroke, and die prematurely.

Interdependence with others is critical throughout our lives. But as we age and need help with the tasks of daily living, interpersonal dynamics shift. Our adult children or spouse may step in to take care of us.

Your Cells on Aging

“Mitochondria

are

the first part of our cells to experience dysfunction as we age.” — Pinchas Cohen

“That can be a wonderful new opportunity for a deepening love,”says Laura Mosqueda, professor of family medicine and geriatrics at Keck School of Medicine. “And it could also be an opportunity for abuse or neglect.”

One in 10 older adults is abused or neglected in their lifetime, and among those with Alzheimer’s or other dementias, the rate jumps to nearly one in two. Most commonly, the person carrying out the abuse is a close family member.

In her research on the causes of elder abuse, Mosqueda has found that abusive behavior is often rooted in caregivers’difficulty coping with their demanding roles. “Eighty percent of abuse and neglect is preventable,” she says. “We need to look for the early warning signs: caregivers who are stressed, resentful, burdened and unhappy.”

Along with her collaborator Bonnie Olsen, professor of clinical family medicine and vice chair for research at Keck School of Medicine, Mosqueda is investigating how best to detect these signs and intervene by equipping caregivers with tactics for elder care and self-care. They’re one of several teams at USC working to support caregivers’well-being and, by extension, the well-being of the older adults in their care.

At the USC Family Caregiver Support Center (FCSC) directed by Donna Benton, associate professor of gerontology, innovative research includes studies on how best to support dementia caregivers and how technology can

Inside your body’s cells, structures called mitochondria create the energy needed to carry out vital life processes. Cellular aging begins in these powerhouses. “Mitochondria are the first part of our cells to experience dysfunction as we age,” says Pinchas Cohen, dean of the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology and Distinguished Professor of gerontology, medicine and biological sciences.

Cohen and his collaborators have identified a series of microproteins produced by the mitochondria that naturally decrease with age and whose decline is linked to the onset of age­related diseases. His lab’s remarkable discoveries include mitochondrial microproteins that protect against Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and diabetes, and are associated with longer life spans.

improve caregiving.The FCSC also runs support groups and helplines for caregivers throughout the Los Angeles area, with groups such as the one at the First AME Church near the USC University Park Campus supporting diverse and low-income communities.

Tapping into the power of community to ease the challenges of modern aging is also a focus for María Aranda, professor in the USC Suzanne DworakPeck School of Social Work and director of the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging. Aranda conducts intervention research with Englishand Spanish-speaking caregivers in the communities surrounding USC and has found that family caregivers of loved ones with medical conditions feel less alone in their journeys when they join supportive groups and share resources. Older adults who nurture community connections fare better, too, given the increased sense of purpose and emotional attachments.

“Whether it’s leisure activities, social activities related to their house of worship, or relationships with family, friends or neighbors, people who have a sense of purpose and meaning are likely to have a longer and more enjoyable life,” Aranda says.

Her insights affirm what Salem observed that pivotal day on the fairway. Social connectedness is a driving force of human thriving — whether on the golf course or over the course of a life well-lived.

To sustain life, cells rely on a set of chemical reactions known as cell metabolism, which produces substances called metabolites. Peter Mullen, assistant professor of molecular microbiology and immunology at the Keck School of Medicine and USC Leonard Davis, along with his collaborators, have identified multiple metabolites in the organs of mice that decrease significantly with age and whose reduction is associated with organ dysfunction. Many of these metabolites can also predict biological age in humans.

Both mitochondrial microproteins and metabolites have the potential to become tools of “precision longevity.” They may one day form the basis of drugs tailored to the specific cellular deficiencies of each individual to treat disease and prolong life.

Rachel B. Levin

BRAIN RESEARCH AT USC IS TAKING SCIENCE INSIDE

BRAIN DISEASES, TO IMAGE, DETECT, AND TREAT THEM.

BY KATHARINE GAMMON AND RACHEL B.

LEVIN

ILLUSTRATION BY DAVID PLUNKERT

This spring, scientists from the Keck School of Medicine of USC opened a new window into understanding the brain — literally. Thirty-nine-year-old Jared Hager had injured his brain in a skateboarding accident. During emergency surgery, half of Hager’s skull was removed to relieve pressure on his brain, leaving part of the organ covered only with skin and connective tissue. A team at the Keck Medical Center of USC reconstructed his skull using a custom prosthesis that contained a transparent window.

The window, designed in collaboration with colleagues at California Institute of Technology, allowed the researchers to evaluate Hager’s brain function in a remarkable new way. While Hager played video games and strummed a guitar, the research team collected high-resolution brain data using functional ultrasound imaging. This type of imaging reveals brain changes that occur when a patient is performing a task — information that can be critical for assessing and treating traumatic brain injury.

“Functional ultrasound imaging can’t be done through the skull or a traditional prosthesis,” says Charles Liu, a professor of clinical neurological surgery, urology and surgery at the Keck School of

Medicine and director of the USC Neurorestoration Center, who led the research team. “This is the first time physicians have been able to do it noninvasively in an awake patient through a window. The window allows us to monitor brain function and guide treatment in ways that were not possible before,” he says.

Effective treatment options for brain injuries and diseases have long been elusive. That’s in part because the brain — the command center of thinking, sensing, movement and emotion — is so complex to understand. The brain is also challenging to observe and study, especially in living humans.

Liu’s team at the USC Neurorestoration Center, which specializes in developing novel strategies to restore neurological function in those with injured or diseased nervous systems, is one of the many research groups at USC working to address the formidable challenges presented by brain diseases, from traumatic brain injuries and epilepsy to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Using advanced technologies and methodologies, they’re finding revolutionary ways to bring new clarity to the mysteries of our gray matter.

MAPPING THE BRAIN

Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most enigmatic brain afflictions and among the greatest health care challenges facing the nation. It affects nearly 7 million Americans — a number expected to double by 2060 — and there’s no known cure.

The disease is characterized by two hallmark changes in the brain: plaques made of a protein called beta-amyloid and tangles made of a protein called tau. Scientists have yet to discover what causes these proteins to accumulate. Some have speculated that dysfunction in the blood-brain barrier (a membrane that keeps harmful substances in the blood from reaching the brain) and inflammation of the brain’s blood vessels may set the stage for protein buildup.

Arthur Toga — Provost Professor of ophthalmology, neurology, psychiatry and the behavioral sciences, radiology and engineering and the Ghada Irani Chair in Neuroscience at the Keck School of Medicine — has developed cutting-edge imaging techniques that offer new insight into these parts of the brain.

At the Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI) in the USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Toga and his research team program the radio frequency pulses used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to observe the blood-brain barrier and the fluid-filled spaces around the brain’s blood vessels.

“These innovative techniques are really improving our ability to look at the most minute features of brain organization and brain function that may be affected by this disease process,” Toga says.

As Toga’s team works to create the most detailed neurological maps in existence, they’re also adding to LONI’s Image and Data Archive, a tool developed by Toga and his collaborators to facilitate real-time data sharing among thousands of researchers worldwide. Toga believes that such cross-institutional collaboration is essential for solving the riddle of Alzheimer’s.

He is one of the principal investigators on the Health and Aging Brain Study – Health Disparities (HABS-HD), a joint effort among five institutions to address the lack of diversity in Alzheimer’s disease research. Hispanic and African American populations experience a significantly greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than non-Hispanic whites, yet much of what is known about the disease is based on data gathered among the latter group. HABS-HD has enrolled thousands of participants from underrepresented groups and is generating the world’s largest repository of data describing these populations.

“The path to discovery is paved with data,” Toga says.

PREVENTION IN PILL FORM

Thanks in part to the Image and Data Archive, the first drug to slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease — lecanemab — came on the market last year.

Pharmaceutical companies used data from the archive to develop the drug and design clinical trials. Those trials have shown that lecanemab, which targets and removes abnormal beta-amyloid deposits in the brain, slows down declines in memory and thinking by about 30% in those with early-stage Alzheimer’s.

For Paul Aisen, professor of neurology at the Keck School of Medicine and the founding director of the Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Research Institute, 30% improvement is not enough. “We’re very focused on research to find the best drugs to do better,” says Aisen, who leads research into evaluating drugs to treat — and even prevent — the disease’s underlying pathology in the brain.

Lecanemab is approved for people who have a confirmed diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease in its mildest symptomatic stages. Aisen’s team is investigating the drug’s potential use in those whose brains are beginning to show Alzheimer’s changes but do not yet have any symptoms. “We believe if we remove the beta-amyloid as it’s starting to accumulate, while the brain is still functioning normally, we’re going to have an impact that is much better than a 30% slowing of disease progression,” Aisen says.

Another of the institute’s projects focuses on using lecanemab in conjunction with drugs that target brain tangles made of tau. By targeting both tau and beta-amyloid deposits at once, Aisen’s team aims to put the brakes on the disease even more effectively.

Aisen believes that within a decade, such pharmaceutical advances may make Alzheimer’s disease a thing of the past. He sees a future where clinicians will monitor everyone starting in middle age, identifying those who are at risk for the disease and prescribing drugs that can keep proteins from accumulating abnormally in the brain.

“It will be like checking your cholesterol and treating high levels in midlife so that you don’t get heart attacks and strokes in later life,” he says. “We think we can prevent Alzheimer’s disease the way statins [drugs that lower cholesterol] have dramatically lowered the occurrence of heart attacks.”

BESPOKE BRAIN FITNESS

While Aisen envisions routine Alzheimer’s prevention for all, researchers at the USC Center for Personalized Brain Health at the Keck School of Medicine are focusing their prevention efforts on a subset of people who are known to have a high risk of developing the disease: those who are carriers of a fairly common genetic variant called APOE ε4

Roughly one in four people carry one copy of the gene, elevating their risk of Alzheimer’s. Those who have two copies of the gene — 2% to 3% of the population — face eight to 12 times the risk for the disease.

“When people take a genetic test and find out they have the APOE ε4 gene, they are often scared and unsure of what to do — especially if they have a family member who already has dementia,” says Hussein Yassine, professor of neurology and gerontology at the Keck School of Medicine and director of the center. “We’re trying to fill this gap by providing resources to help patients do what they can to prevent the disease.”

The center has two components that inform one another: a clinic that develops personalized diet and exercise interventions for each patient to potentially slow cognitive decline, and a research wing focused on the development of new drugs. “This bridge between research and the clinic is quite novel,” Yassine says.

One example of the center’s translational approach is a multipronged investigation into the role of omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in foods like salmon and walnuts, in the brain health of APOE ε4 carriers. Imaging studies have shown that the brains of APOE ε4 carriers are deficient in omega-3s years before Alzheimer’s brain changes set in. Yassine launched a clinical trial to test whether early omega-3 supplementation in people with APOE ε4 can slow down disease progression. He also partnered with Kai Chen, professor of research radiology at the Keck School of Medicine, to invent a new imaging technique that traces omega-3s in the brain.

AI SEE YOU

High-resolution imaging techniques like those used by Liu, Toga and Yassine help researchers visualize the intricacies of brain tissue

in never-before-seen ways. Yet the human eye itself has limitations that affect how brain images are interpreted. Andrei Irimia, associate professor of gerontology at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, is using artificial intelligence to push past those limits.

Irimia and his colleagues use an AI technology called deep neural networks to analyze MRI brain scans. The AI model allows Irimia’s team to identify subtle patterns in the brain scans that the human eye might not be able to detect.

One application of the technology is assessing biological brain age, an important factor in the development of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. While the risk of developing these neurodegenerative diseases increases with age, not everyone’s brain ages at the same rate. “A person who is very fit and has a healthy lifestyle might experience low and relatively much slower rates of atrophy in the brain compared to more sedentary individuals,” Irimia explains.

He notes that traditional measures of brain aging, which include judging brain age by the thinning of the cerebral cortex, may not offer the fullest picture.

“By identifying patterns in a very large array of changes pertaining to brain anatomy, these deep neural networks can estimate brain age a lot better than we could based on measures that have been identified by humans,” Irimia says.

THE BRAIN ELECTRIC

At the Keck Medical Center of USC, where Liu and his colleagues implanted the transparent skull prosthetic, digital technologies are being integrated into the brain itself to help restore function in those with brain and spinal cord injuries.

In collaboration with colleagues at Caltech and the University of California, Irvine, Liu’s team is developing brain-computer interfaces to help paraplegic patients regain feeling in their legs and walk again. These interfaces offer a bidirectional communication link

BRAIN BACKERS

Jerre and Mary Joy Stead boost neurosurgery at USC

Philanthropic giving has been stitched into the lives of Jerre and Mary Joy Stead from the earliest days of their marriage. As newlyweds, they lived on only $2,900 a year, yet donated $250 of that. Since then, Jerre Stead has led 11 public companies as CEO, including Clarivate, IHS Markit and Ingram Micro — and the couple’s philanthropy has grown as well.

“Generosity lifts us outside of ourselves, bringing us joy,” Mary Joy Stead says.

For decades, the Steads have dedicated themselves to improving health and well-being globally. Through Stead Impact Ventures and Foundation, they have given more than

between the brain’s electrical signals and a bionic bodysuit (aka “robot exoskeleton”) worn by patients that can aid in movement.

Patients control the movement of the exoskeleton with their thoughts. Electrodes implanted in the brain record electrical impulses that orchestrate movement, which are then translated into commands that control the robotic suit. Not only do patients move, they can feel the motion. “When the robot exoskeleton moves, patients feel every step because key areas of the brain are stimulated,” Liu says.

Implantable brain devices are also being used for epilepsy treatment at the center. Responsive neurostimulation (RNS) implants monitor waves in parts of the brain where seizures begin, detect unusual electrical activity that can lead to a seizure and, within milliseconds, deliver small bursts of electrical stimulation to “stop the seizure in its tracks,” says Christianne Heck, professor of clinical neurology at the Keck School of Medicine, medical director of the USC Comprehensive Epilepsy Program and co-director of the USC Neurorestoration Center.

Keck Medical Center was the world’s first medical center to implant the FDA-approved RNS device in an epilepsy patient, setting an important precedent for the approval of all brain computer technologies worldwide. After nearly two decades of researching RNS, Heck believes these responsive brain devices hold promise for treating other neurological conditions such as stroke and for advancing neuroscience as a whole.

“RNS is a great window to what’s going on in the brain and has great potential for us to understand basic questions about how complex the interconnections are from one part of the brain to another,” Heck says.

Whether the windows that USC researchers are opening are literal or figurative, they’re not just illuminating the brain’s inner workings — they’re defining the next frontier of brain science.

$400 million to nonprofit organizations and invested in innovative startups.

The Keck School of Medicine of USC has benefited from that can-do spirit. The Steads have invested $12.5 million in the USC Department of Neurological Surgery to support transformative clinical and research innovation and entrepreneurship.Their gift establishes the Stead Family Neurological Surgery Innovation Fund, the Jerre and Mary Joy Stead Family Chair in Neurological Surgery and the Jerre and Mary Joy Stead Family Neurosurgical Innovation Lab.

“We share a vision with USC to create a neurological surgery center of excellence, led by the leaders in the field, to swiftly accelerate research and advance care,” the Steads said in a statement. “We believe USC will lead neurosurgical innovation and improve patient outcomes.”

The Steads’ gift enabled USC to recruit one of the nation’s most highly regarded

neurosurgeons, Aaron Cohen-Gadol ’97, who joined the Keck School of Medicine in July as vice chair of innovation and professor of neurological surgery.

The education and innovation platform he founded, the Neurosurgical Atlas, features new techniques and is used by more than 90% of practicing neurosurgeons.

A relentless innovator committed to technical excellence in neurosurgery, Cohen-Gadol has performed more than 7,000 complex brain surgeries. In 2022, he was awarded the Vilhelm Magnus Medal, the highest honor in neurosurgery granted by Scandinavian countries.

“I have had the honor of advancing the art of neurosurgery beyond what I imagined could be possible, influencing the training of thousands of neurosurgeons worldwide and the lives of countless patients across the globe,” Cohen-Gadol says. “I am excited to continue this mission in partnership with my colleagues at USC.”

Community -POWERED CARE

In january 2021, dodger stadium was one of California’s largest COVID-19 vaccination sites, dispensing vaccines to up to 12,000 people daily.

Cars lined up throughout the stadium parking lot as volunteers and staff from USC, the Los Angeles Fire Department and the nonprofit Community Organized Relief Effort prepped doses for L.A. residents.

Throughout the pandemic, the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences partnered with Keck Medicine of USC, the Keck School of Medicine of USC, other health-related USC entities and L.A. city and county officials to spearhead a massive, multidisciplinary COVID-19 response that went far beyond Dodger Stadium — establishing mobile clinics, making door-to-door visits, busing patients to vaccination centers and hiring community vaccine facilitators.

The collaborative effort highlighted the university’s role in building local connections and championing the health and well-being of its adjacent communities.

“Everyone stepped up,” says Vassilios Papadopoulos, dean of USC Mann. “Everyone shared the same mission of getting the vaccines out into the community.”

Richard Dang, an assistant professor of clinical pharmacy and assistant director of the residency programs at USC Mann, helped lead mass vaccination efforts throughout the city. “At the time, USC was recognized as the institution providing this moment of hope,” Dang says.

Despite the unprecedented scale of the pandemic, Dang adds that USC Mann is accustomed to being a good neighbor to local communities, frequently organizing free health education and screening programs. “We also provide free access to tests for diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure, and distribute Naloxone for opioid overdoses,” he says.

After all, the good health of its neighbors is an essential metric of success for USC’s health sciences schools and its medical

enterprise (which includes Keck Medicine of USC’s four hospitals and more than 100 clinics).

The university’s constellation of health sciences schools demonstrates just how far that health extends beyond the hospitals: They include the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences; the USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy; the USC Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy; the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC; the Keck School of Medicine of USC; the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology; and the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.

Trojans as good neighbors

USC’s community-based work includes a consortium of scientists, researchers and clinicians committed to tackling health disparities

and making a visible, positive impact on the neighborhoods surrounding the University Park and Health Sciences campuses by providing access to high-quality medical and social services.

“We’re always thinking about how we can bring all our expertise and work with the community to improve the health of our neighbors,” says Rodney B. Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine of USC, the university’s health system.

At Ostrow School, oral health initiatives combine dental care with social services. At the Keck School of Medicine, a street medicine program seeks to reach the county’s unhoused population. USC Leonard Davis faculty and graduate students use advocacy and research to illuminate the gaping holes in our social safety net for elder care.

This ongoing relationship with local communities is mutually beneficial: Patients receive highly specialized care from the academic

USC researchers and clinicians are caring for and collaborating with local communities to develop innovative treatments for complex diseases. BY Chinyere Cindy Amobi

USC mobile dentist clinic, circa 1965

“one

pharmacy is not going to change the world, but we have TO start somewhere.”

health system and have the opportunity to engage with health science practitioners through research, clinical trials and more.

Community members that choose to participate in USC studies contribute to more comprehensive and applicable insights that researchers and clinicians can use to inform patient care and drive innovation. Varied in their ethnicity, housing status, complexity of disease and other metrics, their participation leads to a better understanding of all communities. This kind of translational research has the power to transform basic discoveries into treatment directly beneficial to patients suffering from complex diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease or cancer.

Prioritizing access to care

While innovation and evidence-based care form two pillars of USC’s community-oriented health care philosophy, accessibility is an important third pillar.

“The most significant driver of health disparities is access to health care,” says Raffi Svadjian, PharmD/MBA ’03, assistant professor of clinical pharmacy at USC Mann.

Since 2017, Svadjian has served as USC’s executive director of community pharmacies, supervising the three pharmacies operated by USC Mann: one on the University Park Campus, one on the Health Sciences Campus and one next to USC Verdugo Hills Hospital.

The school-operated pharmacies are an essential resource for both the USC community and those living around the university’s campuses and health facilities who would otherwise have few points of access to health care. Svadjian and his colleagues at USC Mann emphasize the power that pharmacists have to address health care access issues in under-resourced populations as first-line health care providers who are essential fixtures in communities.

Bringing the pharmacy to the community

The issue of access also informs USC Mann’s decision-making and civic engagement. In 2017, Papadopoulos approached Svadjian about opening a new pharmacy in South Los Angeles after pharmacy alumni highlighted the significant need in the area. Svadjian and his team surveyed more than 10 potential sites, guided by research from colleague Dima M. Qato, assistant professor of clinical pharmacy and spatial sciences and a leading researcher in pharmacy access. Qato most recently developed an interactive tool to map “pharmacy deserts” and determined that 25% of neighborhoods lack reliable access to pharmacies.

The team settled on a location next to where a Rite Aid had recently closed. Svadjian says the South L.A. pharmacy — which aims to open next year — represents a long-term commitment to

Raffi Svadjian

the community, going beyond shorter engagements such as health fairs and workshops.

He hopes the new pharmacy’s impact will extend beyond dispensing prescriptions: His goal is to increase health education in the community while also providing an avenue for USC Mann students to learn from and interact with their neighbors.

“Obviously, one pharmacy is not going to change the world, but we have to start somewhere,” Svadjian says. He explains that by establishing a new pharmacy in a community that large corporations such as Rite Aid and CVS have avoided or left, the project furthers the university’s efforts to be a “good neighbor” to the communities surrounding its campuses and health facilities.

Letting the community fuel the research

Lourdes Baezconde-Garbanati, a Distinguished Professor of Population and Public Health Science at the Keck School of Medicine, also believes that addressing access to care is key when tackling health disparities.

Her collaborative approach to community health closely aligns with USC President Carol Folt’s Health Science 3.0 “moonshot”: She leads teams on community engagement within the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Southern California Center for Latino Health, the Center for Health Equity in the Americas, the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, and other health institutes in Southern California to efficiently translate academic research into health care treatments, public health practice and policy. She also works with more than 100 USC faculty and over 190 community partners to transform community research into solutions that address the entire spectrum of disease prevention.

“It typically takes eight to 10 years for scientific discoveries and advances in medicine to make it out into the community,” says Baezconde-Garbanati, “but we’re really trying to accelerate that so people can live longer and healthier lives.”

She also works with the All of Us research initiative via the National Alliance for Hispanic Health to encourage community participation in research and clinical trials. She argues that in the age of artificial intelligence in health care, it is “especially urgent” for the needs and data of traditionally underrepresented communities to be reflected in emerging databases.

“USC is an anchoring institution in community health care, and we’re developing various ways to further engage with our neighbors so we can develop great innovation and amazing discoveries together with our community partners,” Baezconde-Garbanati says. “I feel like it’s a renaissance moment at USC, and I’m very proud to be part of that.”

Inclusion as a strength

In an effort to build a more equitable, culturally competent and compassionate health care system, the Keck School of Medicine also partners with the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences for a master’s program in narrative medicine that brings health professionals into local communities to better understand the importance of storytelling for individuals, community wellness and the health care system.

One of only two such programs in the country, students in the program — often from the creative writing or medical fields — have workshop opportunities to teach and learn from community partners in topics such as strategies for challenging the hierarchy between patient and clinician.

This year, Keck Medicine of USC hospitals and USC Student Health earned an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader designation from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2024 Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) survey. The survey found that Keck Medicine of USC — which is earning the distinction for the seventh time in recent years and includes Keck Hospital of USC, the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, and community hospitals USC Verdugo Hills Hospital and USC Arcadia Hospital — deserved a top score due to its health care facility policies and practices that are dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees.

The USC Gender-Affirming Care Program embodies this commitment by featuring a centralized program with specialists and staff who tailor comprehensive health care to transgender, nonbinary and gender-diverse patients.

This includes individualizing patients’ health needs based on their personal goals, which could include hormone therapies and surgical interventions, but also routine care such as preventative medicine and mental health care.

Program leaders developed early partnerships with community organizations such as The TransLatin@ Coalition, one of the largest trans-led nonprofit organizations in the country, to ensure that community members have a say in solidifying the program’s vision. USC clinicians and staff also host regular bilingual focus groups both at USC facilities and at The TransLatin@ Coalition’s headquarters in Koreatown to continue to promote mutual listening between the health system and the community.

Meeting people where they’re at

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed that sometimes, health care workers have to serve their communities even when faceto-face interaction isn’t possible.

Prior to the pandemic, the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work’s telebehavioral health program was fairly small, with graduate students providing online mental health counseling to a mostly migrant worker population through a contract with Monterey County. Students also provided some pro bono services to local residents in L.A.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the school was able to pivot and rapidly expand its online services and provide

remote practicum opportunities for its graduate students who could no longer practice in person.

“There was this huge mental health need, with people dealing with the stresses related to COVID-19, such as grief and health issues,” says Professor Ruth Supranovich, associate dean of community and clinical programs at the school. “We were able to respond both to the need for the students, but also to the need in the community.”

Since that initial expansion, the program has partnered with CALHOPE, a crisis counseling assistance and training program that receives funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and is run by the California Department of Health Care Services to provide crisis support and counseling to the entire state. Through CALHOPE@USC, USC’s Telebehavioral Health Clinic — which opened in 2012 — provides inclusive individual and group counseling to anyone age 12 and older who lives in California. Services are free to the public and designed to be short term — the limit is six sessions per person.

Beyond short-term counseling, the clinic also connects community members to longer-range resources such as food assistance, mental health services, housing assistance and other forms of support.

The school also applied for and received funding from the California Victims Compensation Board to open a trauma recovery center for victims of violent crime. With the funding, USC therapists — including many graduate students and graduates of the master’s in social work program — provide evidence-based mental health treatment for trauma along with case management.

In addition to referrals from nonprofits, legal offices and word of mouth, the program receives client referrals from Keck Medicine of USC, USC’s occupational and physical therapy programs, the USC Department of Public Safety, and L.A. General Medical Center’s Hospital Violence Intervention and Prevention program.

With Trojans of all disciplines engaging in community-based initiatives and research, the university is well-poised to help Angelenos live longer, healthier lives.

“The stars are aligned — from the president’s office to our deans and faculty and to our students — in embracing our communities so its members can lead healthier lives,” Baezconde-Garbanati says. “There’s so much that we still need to do, and it really is going to take all of us coming together.”

CODE GREEN

By upcycling plastics, reducing environmentally harmful anesthesia gases and transforming medical supply chains, the USC health system and health sciences schools are working to shrink health care’s carbon footprint. By USC Staff Illustration by Ana Cuna

RESEARCH MINIMIZING RISK

Environmental health researcher Max Aung and fellow researcher Lida Chatzi are working on assessing community exposures to PFAS (short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances) via drinking water in Southern California. These chemicals pose a great risk to human health, and studying where they come from will better inform equitable solutions to protect these communities, Aung says.

FROM HAND TO FOOT

Sarah Hamm-Alvarez, a professor at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and at USC Mann, conducted research on recycling used nitrile gloves into flooring materials. It’s part of a USC effort to divert medical gloves from landfills.

GREENING THE OR

Last year, Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital continued efforts to reduce the use of environmentally harmful anesthesia gases in surgery by eliminating nitrous oxide and desflurane. USC is also planning on cutting the use of anesthetics sevoflurane and isoflurane and optimizing gas delivery to reduce waste; this reduction in greenhouse gas emissions represents the equivalent of driving around Earth’s circumference more than six times.

WASTE NO MORE

USC is working on customizing medical supply kits, reducing unused items and offering reusable supplies such as handles for laryngoscopes, a tool used to check a patient’s airway.

LOW-HANGING FRUIT

Inexpensive and small changes — such as retrofitting lighting to use LEDs — have made a tremendous impact at Keck Medical Center.

In transportation: EV chargers were installed at Keck Medical Center, and plans to make fleet vehicles electric are underway.

In food services: Sustainable products, such as organic and locally grown produce, are now part of the system serving patients and staff, and the main kitchen is composting all food waste. The removal of single-use plastic bottles and utensils has also significantly reduced waste.

In patient care: Keck Medical Center has joined a health care sustainability collaborative to increase the implementation of reusable clinical items, such as isolation gowns, so they can be safely used again.

PHARMACEUTICAL PLASTIC

Clay C.C. Wang of the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences is upcycling plastic bags and bottles plucked from the ocean by composting them with a special fungus to create molecules that can be used for the synthesis of pharmaceutical drugs.

TELEHEALTH FOOTPRINT

Howard Hu, professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, notes that “the 65-fold increase in telehealth [which started during the pandemic] has actually improved access and some aspects of primary care and mental health services while forgoing the carbon emissions associated with transporting patients to medical centers.”

WATER WISE

Keck Medical Center of USC saved more than 1.7 million gallons of water in a single year (2023) by installing 232 laminar flow devices throughout the medical center. These devices are advanced water-flow restrictors that produce a clear, efficient stream of water. In April, the 2024 Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Awards recognized Keck Medical Center’s successful large-scale sustainability initiative.

Bernadette nuñez was dating her future husband and making weekend plans when she got sick in May 2018. She had been pulling consecutive 12-hour shifts as a nurse at a small community hospital in the San Gabriel Valley.

“I thought I had gallstones,” Nuñez, 47, recalls of the fatigue and back pain she felt for a couple of days.

A trip to the emergency room proved otherwise.

Within 24 hours, USC doctors diagnosed her with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a type of blood cancer.

“I was in complete denial — I thought they were looking at the wrong medical chart,” recalls Nuñez, who chose to be treated

at USC because of her family’s ties to the university. Her mother worked at USC for years as an administrative assistant, and her brother is an alumnus.

ALL, which is most common in children, requires aggressive treatment in adults. Four out of five deaths from ALL occur in adults for a variety of reasons, including the fact that children’s bodies can often handle aggressive treatment better than adults, according to the American Cancer Society.

Because of Nuñez’s age and other factors, oncologists concluded that a bone marrow transplant — also called a stem cell transplant — would eventually be necessary to keep her alive.

Every transplant, of course, requires a donor. For decades, bone marrow transplants were only possible when a “full-match” donor had been found, which means the proteins on the blood-cell surface are completely matched with those of the recipient. Without a full match, the body’s immune system may attack new cells, causing the patient serious complications and hampering their chances for survival. Brothers or sisters have been the most likely match.

Being a Latina reduced the likelihood of Nuñez finding a donor: Because of a lack of Latino donors in the bone marrow registry, the chances of finding full-matched donors are, at best, one out of four.

Thanks to the doctors at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Nuñez was able to beat those odds — without needing a full-match donor.

One of the country’s true pioneers in cancer treatment, USC Norris boasts one of the highest transplant survival rates in the country and began offering bone marrow transplants a decade ago. The center is among the leading institutions for haploidentical — or “half-matched” — transplants. Crucially for Nuñez, children are always a half-match for their parents.

From Half-Match to a Full Life

Nuñez was put in the care of hematologist George Yaghmour, associate director of allogeneic transplant at USC Norris.

From the beginning of her treatment, he knew that Nuñez would need a stem cell transplant.

“At her age, ALL is more challenging because the relapse and mortality rates are high,” he explains.

Studies Yaghmour has conducted show that in the high-risk Latino population, using a half-matched donor is the best option for adult ALL patients like Nuñez.

Since joining Keck Medicine of USC in 2016, Yaghmour — who has aimed to push the boundaries of cancer treatment throughout his career — has performed more than 250 bone marrow transplants. He explains that donor availability varies significantly across different ethnic groups. This disparity can lead to delays or the inability to undergo potentially life-saving transplants.

“I’m a big advocate for health equity,” he says. “Everybody deserves the best care.”

Risk of Rejection

Nuñez’s son, Andrew Sunda, 26, began looking for a donor as soon as he learned of his mother’s cancer. He set up a campaign to find a full-match donor on an online platform, but none was found.

When the next best option turned out to be a half-match donor, Sunda didn’t hesitate in stepping up to be his mother’s donor.

Haploidentical transplants are a type of allogeneic transplant in which healthy, blood-forming cells from a half-matched donor replace the unhealthy ones; allogeneic transplants are ideal for leukemia patients. The family quickly discovered that the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center was the best possible place for this procedure: In January 2023, USC Norris became the first adult allogeneic transplant center in history to reach a 90% one-year survival rate calculated on a rolling three-year basis.

“That achievement is comparable to breaking the 4-minute-mile running barrier,” says Preet Chaudhary, director of the USC Norris Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cell Therapy Program and chief of the Nohl Division of Hematology and Center for Blood Diseases at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

Before the transplant, Nuñez underwent total body irradiation, a kind of system reboot that involves radiotherapy to suppress the immune system and reduce the chance of rejection of donor stem cells.

The transplant procedure was scheduled in April 2019; the day before, Sunda was in a patient room a few floors below his mother, preparing to donate his bone marrow.

The process of replacing Nuñez’s bone marrow with her son’s was a two-hour procedure.

Afterward, Sunda visited his mother.

“We made jokes about the transplant,” Sunda says. “I wanted to keep her spirits high.”

In the days and weeks following a transplant, there is always a chance that the person receiving the stem cell transplant will develop graft-versus-host disease, a severe complication that can occur when a donor’s immune system’s white blood cells recognize the recipient’s tissues as foreign.

Fortunately, Nuñez’s body accepted her son’s stem cells, and Sunda recovered quickly from the donation procedure and remains in excellent health.

Just over one year later, Nuñez was able to attend her son’s graduation from his undergraduate program at California State University, Los Angeles, in 2020, where he is now pursuing a master’s degree in geological sciences.

Keeping Positive

Yaghmour says he places a premium on a holistic approach to cancer care, where emotional support is delivered along with the latest, most advanced therapies.

Nuñez says keeping positive throughout her treatment was critical to her recovery. She refused to be seen as a patient, eschewing a hospital gown for street clothes.

“Probably the hardest part of this was seeing what my diagnosis did to my loved ones,” says Nuñez, who will remain on low-dose chemotherapy treatment for the next three years.

Today, Nuñez is back to living a full life. In addition to a job as a nurse case manager, Nuñez is working on getting a college degree and enjoying watching her son flourish in his career as a geologist.

She’s also busy making plans, mapping out a retirement filled with travel alongside her husband, Ryan. Last summer, the two were planning a vacation in the Big Island of Hawaii.

Healthy Outlooks

The lessons learned from cases like Nuñez’s will be part of Yaghmour’s upcoming book about the power of positivity in a clinical setting.

“It’s important for us to give our cancer patients boosts of good, positive hope and energy because this type of attitude can help them recover,” he says.

It’s a belief Yaghmour came to embrace while growing up in his native Syria and one that has yielded great outcomes for many of his patients mired in the relentless grip of leukemia.

Yaghmour recalls another patient who was on the brink of death; he performed a bone marrow transplant, and the patient healed in time for him to walk his daughter down the aisle on her wedding day.

Yaghmour, who has been honored by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for his fundraising efforts, now has performed close to 100 haploidentical bone marrow transplants.

“I always dreamed I would become a person who would make a difference in the world,” he says.

Nuñez and her family are among the many patients at USC Norris who know that he already has.

“I’m forever indebted to Dr. Yaghmour and his team and what they did for my mom,” Sunda says.

Homegrown Therapy

New therapy for stem cell patients could become the standard of care.

The USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center’s haploidentical transplant program is just one example of how Keck Medicine of USC is providing innovative cancer care to the diverse and multicultural Los Angeles community. Another example is a nascent, homegrown technology that USC physician-scientists say could soon become a revolutionary improvement on CAR T-cell therapy to treat not only blood cancers, but also solid-tumor cancers such as prostate, breast, brain, gastrointestinal, skin and lung. Solid tumors make up 95% of all cancers, but do not respond well to CAR T-cell therapy.

In CAR T-cell therapy, a patient’s T-cells, which are part of the body’s immune response, are extracted and genetically engineered to express the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR). The modified T-cells are then reinjected into the patient, where they selectively seek out, bind to and kill cancer cells.

Preet Chaudhary, director of the USC Bone Marrow Therapy and Cell Therapy Program and chief of the Nohl Division of Hematology and Center for Blood Diseases at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, has developed a new spin on this therapy.

Currently in the preclinical stages of development, it’s called synthetic immune receptor (SIR-T) therapy. It uses different receptors than CAR T-cell therapy that more closely resemble the body’s natural T-cells.

Chaudhary and his team have tested thousands of prototypes over an eight-year period to develop receptors that are effective and safe for solid tumors, including prostate cancer.

The team recently received a $5.8 million award from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to conduct preclinical studies of SIR-T therapy. Chaudhary says clinical trials in humans could happen in a few years.

“We still need to develop a manufacturing process,” he explains. “But we feel we have solved the problem with CAR T-cell therapy and that this new therapy will be very effective in solid tumors. And for blood cancers, we believe our technology may be safer and result in fewer side effects.”

SIR-T therapy technology also is being tested for noncancer disorders like lupus, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. The therapy could be just a few years away from being introduced in clinics.

“The goal in the long term is that these new therapies will replace the need for chemotherapy and potentially other modalities,” Chaudhary says. GENEVIEVE EDWARDS

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FAMILY

MEDALS GALORE

Anna Cockrell ’19, MPP ’21 of Team USA celebrates winning a silver medal in the women’s 400m hurdles at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, on Aug. 8.

Back Where She Belongs

Trojan Erika Jordan returns to her alma mater to head USC Alumni Relations.

BY GREG HERNANDEZ

Los Angeles native Erika Jordan ’18 was just getting used to the harsh Boston winters when the associate senior vice president position of USC Alumni Relations became vacant.

“I got chills and thought, ‘OK, this is something I have to do,’” says Jordan, who had been vice president of alumni engagement at Boston University since 2021.

Jordan immediately felt like she was being called home — and Trojans were the big draw. “Nobody in the world can deny that USC has the strongest alumni base in the country.”

After starting as head of the USC Alumni Association on Aug. 6, Jordan has been working to engage alumni and continue to build a culture of volunteerism and philanthropy among the Trojan Family.

“As we enter the second century of the USC Alumni Association, I am excited to have Erika leading this next chapter of alumni engagement,” USC President Carol Folt says.

“Under her direction, we will continue to foster vibrant alumni relations and celebrate the sense of connection and belonging that defines the most engaged and talented alumni group in the world: the Trojan Family.”

BRIDGING THE STUDENT-ALUMNI EXPERIENCE

Jordan, who was the director of alumni relations and annual giving at the USC Marshall School of Business from 2007 to 2015, spent six years at the University of California, Irvine, as assistant vice chancellor for alumni and constituent engagement before moving across the country to work at B.U.

At USC, Jordan is focused on creating a strong bridge from student experience to alumni experience. “Deepening engagement is something that I’ve just always been naturally pretty good at,” Jordan says. “I’ve had this sense of bringing community together — of building community.”

One of her biggest priorities will be to further grow a strong and dynamic volunteer network among USC alumni and to make sure people are aware of the depth of resources the Alumni Association provides.

“I want to make sure that USC is a place where alumni can always stay plugged in and we can continue to provide value,” she says. “Once you get people engaged, they often want to give back their time and talent to our students and support in other ways.”

For Jordan, returning to Southern California and USC’s University Park Campus means being close to family and friends again. Growing up in L.A.’s Baldwin Hills neighborhood, she often attended Trojan football games with her family.

“I spent a lot of time on campus in various college prep programs growing up,” she says. “So I’ve always been familiar with the USC campus.”

A TROJAN THROUGH AND THROUGH

Although she attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., Jordan returned to L.A. in 2007 to work at USC Marshall. She vividly remembers the moment the depth of her school spirit revealed itself, at an event six months into her time at USC Marshall.

“The Trojan Marching Band came out, and a wave of emotion came over me,” Jordan says. “That’s when I knew I bled Cardinal and Gold.”

After leaving USC Marshall as a staff member in 2015, Jordan enrolled as a graduate student at the USC Price School of Public Policy. In 2018, she earned an executive master’s degree in leadership.

“Getting a USC degree just made sense to me,” Jordan says. “I’ve always been a people person, so developing myself as a leader made the most sense.”

She and the 30 members of her cohort immediately connected, remaining close throughout the program. Although she previously worked with USC alumni, becoming one — and experiencing for herself the powerful lifelong bonds that form among Trojans — profoundly affected her.

Her cohort even created a challenge coin to stay connected when they graduated. “I carry it with me all the time,” Jordan says. “My challenge coin reminds me of what USC — the people and the place itself — has given to me.”

BY BY

"I want to make sure that USC is a place where alumni can always stay plugged in and we can continue to provide value,” says Erika Jordan ’18, the new head of the USCAA.

PHOTO

GUS RUELAS

Living History

A documentary on World War II Nisei soldiers includes surviving 98-year-old soldier Yoshio Nakamura, a proud double Trojan. BY GREG HERNANDEZ

When Defining Courage was performed at USC’s Bing Theatre in May, many of the 500-plus audience members couldn’t hold back tears.

The live docu-theater experience tells the tragic yet uplifting story of the heroic Nisei soldiers: Americans of Japanese descent who served in segregated military units overseas during World War II.

Through immersive storytelling, mixing documentary footage, old photos, eyewitness interviews and drone footage, the program told a tale that many Americans had never heard before — but one that 98-year-old World War II veteran Yoshio Nakamura ’52 MFA ’53, lived through.

Nakamura is one of the last surviving Nisei: soldiers who fought for the United States even as the U.S. government forced many of their family members to live in incarceration camps back home.

David Ono, a news anchor with Los Angeles’ KABC-TV, is Defining Courage’s producer along with Emmy-winning filmmaker Jeff MacIntyre ’96, who is also the program’s director. The pair visited sites in Italy, France and Germany, where harrowing battles involving the 442nd Infantry Regiment of the U.S. Army took place, to conduct interviews and shoot footage.

DEFINING COURAGE, LIVING HISTORY

Nakamura worked as a mortar specialist with the 442nd Infantry Regiment. The regiment, including the 100th Infantry Battalion, is best known as the most decorated in U.S. military history, and it is their heroics and sacrifices that are detailed in Defining Courage

The program has been performed across the country more than a dozen times in recent years, including at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Last May was the first time it was presented at a university.

“As a Trojan, anything that happens like this here at USC is a great thing for me,” Nakamura said as he was surrounded offstage by well-wishers. “David Ono and Jeff MacIntyre put together the perfect program.”

Nakamura is the recipient of a Bronze Star and the French Foreign Legion medal. All members of the 442nd, living or dead, received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2011.

Freshman Belly Laird of the USC Kaufman School of Dance described the program as “incredible.” She watched with great interest because her grandparents were among those forced into incarceration camps.

“I’ve always known a little bit about the 442nd Infantry Regiment because I’m Yonsei [a great-grandchild of Japanese immigrants],” said Laird, who became emotional during the program. “But I never really heard the stories in depth or had this kind of overview of what happened until tonight. I think it’s really important to keep telling these stories.”

The performance of Defining Courage wrapped up USC’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month events and was part of the USC Center on Public Diplomacy’s Stroum Arts and Diplomacy Series.

Defining Courage tells the story of the heroic Nisei soldiers through documentary footage, old photos and eyewitness interviews presented with music and narration.

The Heart of a Trojan

The USCAA honors Trojans who’ve made a commitment to giving back. BY USC STAFF

What lies at the heart of every Trojan spirit?

A commitment to service. Whether by giving back to the university or their communities, USC students and alumni distinguish themselves by volunteering their time and effort to make the world a better place.

And every year, the USC Alumni Association recognizes a select group of prestigious alumni for their professional

achievements and outstanding service to the university and community: first at the Alumni Awards gala in April, then again at the Volunteer Recognition Awards in September.

ALUMNI AWARDS GALA

Since 1932, the USC Alumni Association has honored a select group of prestigious

At the USCAA Alumni Awards Gala in April: (front, from left) Diana E. Ramos ’88, MD ’94, Renata Simril MRED ’99, USC President Carol Folt, USC Life Trustee Charles Cale LLM ’66, Rachel Scott ’15; (center, from left) John Colich ’71, Janine Boskovich Colich ’78, Paula Ciaramitaro ’85, John Terzian ’02; (back, from left) Kathleen Campos ’83, Saul Alvarado ’00, Nadine Watt MA ’94, and USC Senior Vice President for University Advancement Scott Rabenold.

PHOTO BY GREG GRUDT/STEVE COHN PHOTOGRAPHY

alumni at the USC Alumni Awards gala. As part of the USCAA’s 100th anniversary festivities, on April 20, Trojan alumni from around the globe gathered to celebrate seven outstanding honorees at the 90th annual USC Alumni Awards gala. The overarching themes of the evening were the strength of the Trojan Family, “paying it forward” and giving back.

Those traits are hallmarks in the life of Charles “Chuck” Cale, who received the highest honor of the evening: the Asa V. Call Alumni Achievement Award.

Cale, who earned his Master of Laws degree from what is now the USC Gould School of Law in 1966, spoke of how Trojans’ sense of family sets USC’s alumni network apart from that of any other university.

“We may have our differences, but we stick together,” Cale said. “We look out for each other. That is what family does. And that is what makes us strong.”

USC President Carol Folt described Cale as a “lifelong and dedicated Trojan” who has made an impact throughout the university and Los Angeles. She applauded his commitment to the university as a member of the Board of Trustees, as well as his gifts that endowed the Charles Griffin Cale Director of Athletics’ Chair and named the Charles Cale Residential College at USC Village.

Past honorees of the USCAA Alumni Awards include Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong ’70, world-renowned architect Frank O. Gehry ’54, opera great Marilyn Horne ’53 and Academy Award-winning filmmaker Robert Zemeckis ’73. A few more recent honorees include: social work pioneer Suzanne Dworak-Peck ’65, MSW ’67, actress and activist America Ferrera ’13 and real estate developer and civic leader Rick Caruso ’80.

VOLUNTEER RECOGNITION AWARDS

In September, the USC Alumni Association honored the outstanding contributions of volunteers who have devoted their time and energy in service to the university at the 2024 Volunteer Recognition Awards. Held at Town and Gown on the University Park Campus, the volunteer awards are presented each year to recipients in the following categories: President’s

Make Your Impact

Each year, hundreds of alumni help to fulfill the promise of the Trojan Family by volunteering to make a meaningful impact in their communities. Whether you’re sharing your expertise by serving on an alumni board, mentoring students, participating in an annual tradition or bringing your local Trojan community together by hosting your own Alumni Meet Up, there are countless ways to strengthen our lifelong and worldwide alumni network.

Find your volunteer opportunity and get involved at alumni.usc.edu.

Awards, Widney Alumni House Volunteer Awards, Volunteer Liaison of the Year Award and Volunteer Organization of the Year Award.

USC Alumni Award Winners

ASA V. CALL ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Life Trustee Charles Cale LLM ’66, a steadfast supporter of USC academic priorities as well as USC Athletics. In 2016, Cale was elected to the USC Board of Trustees. He previously served on the USC President’s Leadership Council and is a founding board member of the Women of Troy, which champions gender equality and the principles of Title IX in USC Athletics.

ALUMNI MERIT AWARDS

Diana E. Ramos ’88, MD ’94 is a renowned public health leader who made history in 2022, when she became California’s first Latina surgeon general. An obstetrician gynecologist, Ramos has served as adjunct associate professor at the Keck School of Medicine of USC for many years.

Renata Simril MRED ’99 is the president and CEO of the LA84 Foundation, an organization that has transformed the lives of kids across Southern California through sports and play programs and ongoing investments as a legacy of the 1984 Summer Olympics.

John Terzian ’02 is the co-founder and co-president of The h.wood Group, a Los Angeles-based hospitality and lifestyle marketing company with a portfolio of luxury nightlife and restaurant venues.

Rachel Scott ’15 is the senior congressional correspondent for ABC News, reporting from Capitol Hill across all the network’s programs and platforms, including Good Morning America, World News Tonight with David Muir and 20/20

ALUMNI SERVICE AWARDS

Paula Ciaramitaro ’85 is a longtime member of the Trojan League of South Bay and Town & Gown of USC, and has held various leadership positions in both groups, including terms as president and CFO.

John Colich ’71 — who competed as a Trojan shot putter from 1967 to 1971 — and Janine Boskovich Colich ’78 are passionate supporters of USC Athletics who have made an indelible impact on several of the department’s programs.

2024 Volunteer Recognition Awardees

USCAA PRESIDENT’S AWARD

The President’s Award recognizes the outstanding leadership contributions of a volunteer over the course of several years:

Saul Alvarado ’00

Alex Blecksmith MBA ’12

Marilyn Tevriz Kezirian ’60, MS ’62

Darlene Larson ’92

Harjot Takkar ’93

For a full list of 2024 Volunteer Recognition Awards honorees, including the Widney Alumni House Volunteer Award, Volunteer Organization of the Year Award and Volunteer Liasion of the Year Award winners, visit alumni.usc.edu/vrd.

YOUNG ALUMNI MERIT AWARD

What Will Your Trojan Legacy Be?

When Paul R. Alwine ’62 met Binnie Neel at a Phi Delta Gamma exchange at USC, it marked the beginning of a great Trojan love story. Today, more than 60 years later, USC continues to hold a special place in their hearts for many reasons—from the friendships they made to the leadership skills they learned. In appreciation, they have included USC in their estate plans, making a life pledge to endow two scholarships.

To create your Trojan legacy, contact the USC Office of Gift Planning at (213) 740-2682 or giftplanning@usc.edu. Please visit us online at usc.planmygift.org.

“ We want to make it easier for future students to take advantage of all the opportunities and experiences we enjoyed at USC.”

Binnie and Paul R. Alwine ’62

1950 s

Oliver “Frank” Warren ’57 (BUS) published a children’s story book, Adventures of Scribbly Dog and Pointy Fox , the first of a trilogy.

1960 s

Beverly Falk ’65 (LAW), John Lappen ’65 (LAW), Walt Maxwell ’65 (LAW) and Lloyd Robinson ’65 (LAW) celebrated their 56th study group reunion. As the first graduates using the Yale study method at the USC Gould School of Law, they were assembled in study groups upon entering in 1965. Their class consisted of 108 students, and only eight were women. The students’ diverse backgrounds and career choices allowed them to bond and develop lifelong friendships; since graduation, they have met annually.

Gail Wilson Kenna ’65 (LAS) received nine awards at the National League of American Pen Women Biennial in Washington, D.C., in April — the most ever given to one member. At USC, she played on the women’s tennis team and still plays at age 79.

George Lucas ’66 (SCA) received the Honorary Palme d’Or during the closing ceremony of the 77th Cannes Film Festival.

1970 s

Dale Salwak MA ’70, PhD ’74 (LAS), who has been a professor of English at Citrus College since 1973, published his books The Life of the Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne (John C. Wiley & Sons) and Writers and Their Teachers (Bloomsbury) in 2023.

Joseph C. De Ladurantey ’73 (SPP) received his doctorate from the University of La Verne, retired as a chief of police and has published four crime novels based upon his career. His newest release is Inside.

Dan Woods ’74 (LAS), JD ’77 (LAW) was recognized by Los Angeles Business Journal as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers of Los Angeles” for 2024.

Vicki L. Thompson ’75 (LAS) has released the novel Destiny’s Calling, the third book of the short-story series Inspiration For The Journey. The novel centers on a USC college student whose response to study abroad uncovers her destiny. A retired banker, Thompson is the voice and founder of the podcast You, Life and God.

Emily Valdes Fonda ’75 (LAS), ’10 (BUS) was co-author of an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Fonda is currently the chief medical officer at CenCal Health in Santa Barbara, where she champions an Infection Prevention Nursing Home Pilot program across facilities in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.

Rosalyn King ’76 (PHR) received two prestigious awards from national pharmacy trade associations: The Donald E. Francke Medal from the American Society of HealthSystem Pharmacists Board of Directors and the Hugo H. Schaefer Award from the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). The Donald E. Francke Medal honors a pharmacist who has made significant international contributions to advance pharmacy practice. The Hugo H. Schaefer Award recognizes an individual with outstanding voluntary contributions to society, the

The Rev. Dr. Cecil L. “Chip” Murray

The Rev. Dr. Cecil L. “Chip” Murray, considered by many to be Los Angeles’ pastor, died on April 5 at the age of 94. Until the COVID-19 pandemic, Murray was known for being the first person in the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture’s (CRCC) office every morning. Then 90 years old, he would open the gate to welcome guests looking for career or academic mentoring, advice about how to lead a church or take social action, or simply a compassionate ear.

Born in 1929, in Lakeland, Fla., Murray grew up in the segregated South. He graduated from Florida A&M University and joined the U.S. Air Force. After serving for 10 years, he retired as a major. He then earned a doctoral degree in religion from the School of Theology at Claremont College and became a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church.

He was an influential city leader during his 27 years as pastor of the First African Methodist Episcopal (FAME) Church of Los Angeles. His distinctive theology of deep personal spirituality combined with socially engaged Christianity helped him transform a small congregation of 250 members into an 18,000-person megachurch. Community members worshiped alongside celebrities and city leaders such as Mayor Tom Bradley, Los Angeles’ first African American mayor and longest-serving holder of the office.

In 2004, when Murray reached the retirement age of 75 within the AME Church, he joined USC’s faculty at the invitation of the president and provost.

At USC, Murray started the Passing the Mantle program, which would become the Cecil Murray Center at CRCC. Through the center, Murray led initiatives that engaged lay and pastoral faith leaders in developing projects to serve their communities. Murray was preceded in death by his wife, Bernadine. He is survived by son Drew, niece Tammie Murray, nephews Anthony Murray and Kevin Murray, grandniece April Cohee, and grandnephews Isaiah Murray and Corey Murray.

TROJAN TRIBUTE

profession of pharmacy and APhA. She is also the author of a new book, From Watts to the World: A Chronicle of Service.

Joe Woo Jr. MFA ’76 (SCA) released his ebook and paperback memoir, Life’s Abyss Then You Dive, about the making and post-production of The Abyss (1989).

Wesley Mizutani ’77 (LAS) received the Advocacy Star award from the California Chronic Care Coalition (CCCC) in April. The CCCC is an alliance of more than 30 health organizations that promote the collaborative work of policymakers, industry leaders, providers and consumers to improve the health of Californians with chronic conditions.

Alan Wapner ’78 (LAS) was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Mobility 21, a coalition that brings together public, business and community stakeholders to pursue regional solutions to the transportation challenges in Southern California. He was recognized for his decades of regional leadership in transportation policy. Wagner was elected to eight four-year terms as a council member on the Ontario City Council and held the position longer than anyone in the 130-year history of the city.

1980 s

Baron Birtcher ’81 (BUS) released his latest novel, Knife River (Open Road Media), a crime thriller that is part of his Ty Dawson mystery series.

Rafael Alvarez ’82 (ENG) has been selected to receive the prestigious 2024 Community College Award from the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education. The award “recognizes an individual who has demonstrated excellence in advocacy, teaching, or leadership and has provided significant contributions to the community college enterprise.”

Bill Cernius ’82 (LAS) has retired from his partnership with Latham & Watkins LLP after a career spanning more than 38 years.

Maurice Hamington MBA ’83 (BUS), PhD ’94 (LAS), professor of philosophy and affiliate faculty in women, gender and sexuality studies at Portland State University, recently published his 16th book, Revolutionary Care: Commitment and Ethos (Routledge).

Tom X. Chao ’84 (SCA), MPW ’92 (LAS) released his latest musical project, a four-song EP titled Statement of Intent. The songs are in a rock/pop/synthpop vein.

Tom Hoffarth ’84 (SCJ) edited the book Perfect Eloquence: An Appreciation of Vin Scully, released in May by University of Nebraska Press. It has 67 essays — one for each of the 67 years Scully broadcast games for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Included in the compilation are essays by USC Annenberg faculty members Joe Saltzman and Dan Durbin, as well as alumnus Paul Vercammen ’83 (SCJ).

Neal H. Moritz MFA ’85 (SCA), a producer, is partnering with Paramount Pictures to reboot the Scary Movie franchise, which went into production this fall.

Stacey Sher MFA ’85 (SCA) was honored in August at the Locarno Film Festival with its Raimondo Rezzonico Award.

Carol A. (Silberman) Palmer ’87 (BUS) was appointed president of Amberton University in Dallas, Texas, in June. Her 14-year tenure with Amberton University began as an instructor in the business division. She previously served as the vice president for academic services, academic dean, director for business accreditations, business division chair and professor. She authored several business courses and has helped launch several new degree programs.

1990s

Greg Guedel PhD ’91 (BUS) has created and published the first Model Tribal Energy Code, which provides Native American Tribes with the legal basis to self-govern the energy resources within their territories.

Michael Ludwig ’91 (ENG) , JD ’94 (LAW) was featured in the Daily Journal article “Two Sides to Every Story.”

Michael Patane ’91 (LAS) was appointed to the board of directors of TFF Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Justin Vaicek ’93 (SCJ) has been named as a 2024 Barron’s “Top 1,200 Financial Advisor” for his work at Merrill Lynch. He has been quoted in various financial publications including The Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, Barron’s and The Orange County Register. Vaicek is active in the Newport Harbor Educational Foundation, Newport Navigators and served on the board of Newport Harbor Baseball Association.

Robert F. Clifford ’94 (SPP) recently returned to the United States after spending over two years in Kyiv, Ukraine, where he served as mission advisor and country program director for all U.S. Department of Justicesponsored law enforcement training in Ukraine. He managed a large team of international and Ukrainian experts dedicated to assisting, supporting and enhancing Ukrainian National Police and State Border Guard Service operations. Clifford was significantly involved in providing technical assistance to Ukrainian authorities in the investigation of war crimes committed by the Russian Federation against the Ukrainian civilian population. Clifford is a retired FBI executive and former senior vice president with Bank of America.

Alfred Gough MFA ’94 (SCA) and Miles Millar MFA ’94 (SCA) have signed a first-look deal with Sony Pictures to develop films through the duo’s Millar Gough Ink banner.

Shonda Rhimes MFA ’94 (SCA) was honored at Variety’s Power of Women event for her collaboration with the Debbie Allen Dance Academy.

Richard Downie ’95 (LAS) has been named president and chief executive officer of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall.

Liz Kern ’96 (SCJ), an anchor on Cumulus Media radio station KMJ in Fresno, has won

Small Car for Big Cuts in Auto Emissions

Dylan Qichen Di’s study on mini electric vehicles looks at a potential solution to urban air pollution.

Phasing out gas-powered vehicles is key to battling the climate crisis, but in the United States, one big hurdle to American use of electric vehicles (EVs) is the average price tag: roughly $53,500 in 2023, according to Kelley Blue Book.

Dylan Qichen Di ’24, who received his master’s degree in urban planning from the USC Price School of Public Policy, has a big idea to solve the electric car cost problem: mini EVs.

According to a study Di conducted, the compact cars — comparable in size to a golf cart — have lower sales prices and can be easily charged at home, making them an affordable option to improve EV adoption.

“We don’t want to have traditional gas-powered cars, but we don’t have enough cheap, accessible EV models,” Di says. “If our current technologies are not strong enough to support large-scale cars at a lower price, then maybe it’s time for us to think about smaller cars.”

Di, who grew up in China, was inspired to research the market viability of mini EVs after visiting his grandfather, who owned one. The tiny car looked cool and was practical, so he wondered why such models weren’t as popular in the United States as they are in East Asia and Europe.

His study concluded that mini EVs — with new models currently selling overseas for less than $20,000 — could compete well in the United States against used gas-powered cars. His analysis found that mini EVs have cheaper ownership costs than used gas-powered cars, thanks in part to low charging costs. Mini EVs’ market success in other countries was associated with the low sales price and operational cost, policy incentives, home charging options and the great flexibility they provide in short-distance commuting and parking.

Di’s work on exploring the potential for small electric vehicles in the United States is innovative and comprehensive, says Genevieve Giuliano, Distinguished Professor

and the Margaret and John Ferraro Chair in Effective Local Government at USC Price.

“He does a great job of showing both the challenges and opportunities for expanding the adoption of EVs into lower-price markets,” she says.

Di traces his interest in transportation pollution to his undergraduate studies at the University of British Columbia, where he conducted research on air quality. He found that pollution “hot spots” were sometimes connected to areas of traffic congestion and that better transit services were always treated as the solution. That got him interested in understanding mass transit and urban planning.

While at USC Price, Di landed an internship at Fehr & Peers, a transportation consulting company. Working from the firm’s Long Beach office, he analyzed traffic data to help agencies optimize the timing of traffic signals and help with road safety projects, such as Vision Zero, a national pedestrian safety initiative that includes Los Angeles.

Di credits USC Price faculty, including Giuliano and Assistant Professor Geoff Boeing, for giving him his first opportunities to participate in research. USC’s network of alumni also helped him land at Fehr & Peers.

“The faculty provided me a lot of insight on this industry,” Di says. “I’m very thankful.”

CHRISTIAN HETRICK

Dylan Qichen Di ’24 was looking for potential solutions to a climate problem and found them by studying mini electric vehicles.

a second consecutive Golden Mike Award for best newscast from the Radio Television News Association of Southern California. The city of Fresno honored the team, declaring April 18, 2024, as Fresno’s Morning News Day.

Robert Larios ’96 (LAS) was named president and CEO of Los Angeles City Employees Association on Jan. 1.

Mykle McCoslin ’96 (DRA) stars with Dennis Quaid, Jay Hernandez and Cheech Marin in the theatrically released feature film The Long Game. The film won the Narrative Spotlight Audience Award at SXSW in 2023. McCoslin serves as the SAG-AFTRA National Board Member for the Houston-Austin Local.

Kari Neumeyer ’97 (SCA) produced Fish War, a documentary film that premiered at the 2024 Seattle International Film Festival. The film highlights the violent struggle faced by Indigenous nations to exercise their treaty-protected rights to harvest salmon in the Pacific Northwest. The battle led to a Supreme Court decision that continues to protect treaty rights and the environment.

Edward Silva ’97, MS ’98 (GRN) started a new role as vice president of operations for Living Care Lifestyles Senior Living.

Roger J. Thompson EdD ’98 (EDU) was named the 31st president of Saint Mary’s College of California and began his tenure in July.

Brietta Clark JD ’99 (LAW) made history when she was named the 19th dean of Loyola Marymount University Loyola Law School. She became the first woman and the first Black dean of the school in its 103-year history in June, after serving as interim dean and senior vice president since July 2023.

2000 s

Joshua Erkman ’01 (SCA) premiered his feature debut, A Desert, at the Tribeca Film Festival in June.

Linda Hoos JD ’01 (LAW) was named vice president of the Office for Equity, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX at the University of Southern California.

Tiffiny Blacknell JD ’02 (LAW) was named 2024 Barbara F. Bice Public Interest Law Foundation’s “Alumni of the Year.”

Elizabeth Keech Dupuich JD ’02 (LAW) was appointed to serve as district court judge in Iowa’s Sixth Judicial District.

Amber Finch JD ’02 (LAW) was named by the Los Angeles Business Journal in the “Top 100 Lawyers for Los Angeles.”

Gary Lai ’02 (LAS) won a Goody Business Book Award for his book, Poverty and the Unequal Society in Hong Kong. The annual award honors books that have made a significant social impact.

Ethan Shaftel ’02 (SCA) won Best VR Works at the Annecy Film Festival for his work on Gargoyle Doyle

Stephanie (Danner) Frady ’03 (LAS) was named director of community development for the city of Irvine. She oversees a department of 125 people with an annual operating budget of $14 million. The city boasts a population of more than 320,000 and is one of the nation’s largest planned urban communities.

Jonathan Judge JD ’03 (LAW) has been appointed to the board of directors of Waymakers, a nonprofit organization that has provided counseling, education, shelter, conflict resolution and support services to struggling Orange County children and families for more than 50 years. Judge, head of the Private Labor and Employment Group’s Advice and Counsel Team at Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo, brings extensive experience representing employers in both private and public sectors and a deep understanding of labor and employment law.

Tim Stowe EdD ’03 (EDU), the superintendent of the Torrance Unified School District, was selected for the 2024-2025 Google GSV Education Innovation Fellowship. The fellowship champions K-12 superintendents

and top-level instructional leaders dedicated to using technology as a lever for innovation and impact.

Venita Blackburn ’04 (LAS) wrote Dead in Long Beach, California , published by MacMillan Publishing.

Dave Bridge ’04, MA ’07, PhD ’10 (LAS) released his book, Pushback: The Political Fallout of Unpopular Supreme Court Decisions, published by the University of Missouri Press.

Justin Chang ’04 (SCJ) won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for criticism for his work as a film critic for the Los Angeles Times.

Jamie M. Kurtz ’04 (LAS) has joined the firm’s Los Angeles office as an associate in the Matrimonial & Family Law practice group.

Rebecca Stuart ’04 (BUS) joined Sidley Austin as a partner in the firm’s Palo Alto office. She joins from Wilson Sonsini and has more than 16 years of experience with employment law matters.

Heidy Vaquerano ’04 (LAS) was selected to Billboard Magazine’s 2024 Top Music Lawyers List.

Kimberly A. White-Smith EdD ’04 (EDU) received the 2024 American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education Edward C. Pomeroy Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teacher Education. White-Smith is the dean and a professor at the School of Leadership and Education Sciences at the University of San Diego and vice president of the California Council on Teacher Education.

Martinos Aristidou MA ’05 (SCA) was nominated for a 2024 Daytime Emmy Award in the Single-Camera Editing category for Searching for Soul Food on Hulu.

Melissa Rosen ’05 (LAS) and Nicholas Rosen ’16 (LAS) are starting a matchmaking company and companion dating app for both business-to-consumer and business-to-business use.

Wes Smith EdD ’05 (EDU), superintendent of Newport-Mesa Unified School District, was inducted into the USC Rossier School of

Dreaming Big and Free

Award-winning podcaster and USC Thornton grad Shima Oliaee ’05 talks about her latest series on teen girls and how she made it as an artist.

As a teenager, USC Thornton School of Music grad Shima Oliaee ’05 always knew her future was in music. “I wanted to change the world, and music was the way,” she says. “I saw strong women in music with big personalities, and I felt the best way to be a grown woman was to be an artist.”

Watching the movie The Bodyguard in fourth grade sealed the deal: “Whitney Houston’s character has a big personality; she’s forthright and strong. I thought, ‘That is exactly how I want to be. I want to be that big and free.’”

A PARENT’S NIGHTMARE

By the time Oliaee was a senior in high school, she was winning awards as a singer, writing songs and accompanying herself on

piano. The only problem? As a first-generation Middle Eastern American growing up in Reno, Nev., her parents were dead set against her becoming a musician.

“It was their worst nightmare come true,” she says. “They’re immigrants and left their home country as teenagers. I was a straight-A student, ranked first in my class, and they thought I was throwing away my life.”

So, Oliaee had to figure out how to get to college on her own terms. She earned a full merit scholarship at USC and used it to take music industry, composition, theater, screenwriting and cinema classes. “I was a sponge,” she says. “A songwriting professor told us, ‘You can only put out what you put in.’ I use that all the time in my art now, in my journalism career, in podcasts. I try to soak up as much art, nonfiction reading and literature as I can. And I try to learn something of value from everyone I meet, wherever I go.”

A LOOK BACK

Today, two decades after graduating from USC, Oliaee has an enviable résumé and shelves of prestigious awards.

But her path to success wasn’t linear: She worked various gigs, spent four seasons in the writing room for Brooklyn Nine-Nine, then moved to New York City in 2016 for a position as a researcher at WNYC’s Radiolab

“That’s when everything I learned in comedy and television came to aid me,” she says. “I was able to do many things at once without letting one thing drop. I had so much passion for the work.”

Oliaee, who founded her own production company, has reported, written and produced many podcasts, which have received numerous accolades including a Peabody Award for the series Dolly Parton’s America and a Murrow Award for her series Pink Card

On her latest podcast, The Competition, she takes listeners behind the scenes of the Distinguished Young Women program. Formerly called America’s Junior Miss, it’s one of the most lucrative scholarship competitions for high school girls — a competition she entered and won in Nevada in 2001 but lost at nationals. The series reports on the lives and struggles of seven teenage girls competing today and allowed Oliaee to revisit her teen dreams and efforts to pay her way through college — while reflecting on two decades of her work.

“Because I had to build my life from the bottom up, it built in me a sense for what matters and a great instinct for thinking about and caring for others’ stories,” she says. “I always think about the voices that have been silenced, the person the world is not built for.” JULIE RIGGOTT

Shima Oliaee ’05 revisited her teenage dreams of becoming a professional singer to create The Competition, a podcast about the Distinguished Young Women program.

Every year, thousands of alumni volunteers give back to our Trojan Family in countless ways.

Find out how YOU can make a positive difference, either in person or online. Get involved at alumni.usc.edu/volunteer.

Education, Dean’s Superintendents Advisory Group (DSAG) Hall of Fame in January. The DSAG Hall of Fame induction recognizes Smith’s significant contributions to public education throughout his 25-year career.

Michael Gill-Branion ’06 (SPP) is a California 25th Congressional District elected delegate.

Ryan Smith ’06 (BUS) has been promoted to chief operating officer of Oakwood Homes. He brings more than 18 years of experience in the homebuilding industry.

Chad Greene MPW ’07 (LAS) has earned the rank of full professor and been elected co-chair of the English Department at Cerritos College. In 2023, Greene was awarded a Fellowship in Ideas by Harrison Middleton University and conducted research into portrayals of utopias in imaginative literature, from ancient classics to modern comics and movies.

Gregg Millward MEd ’07 (EDU) joined Whittier Trust as a vice president, client advisor in Pasadena. In this role, he provides a range of wealth management, family office and trust services.

Lindsey Shockley MFA ’07 (SCA) was promoted from co-executive producer to executive producer on the upcoming season of Night Court.

Jeremy Avila ’08 (LAS) joined the firm Epstein Becker & Green, a national law firm in San Francisco, Calif., as part of the Health Care and Life Sciences practice group. He is a trial lawyer, trusted advisor and former prosecutor and chief counsel who provides health care clients with practical and effective solutions to their legal, regulatory and litigation challenges.

Kyra Buch ’09 (SCJ), an attorney in the Los Angeles office of Littler, has been elevated to shareholder. Littler is the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management.

Alyssa Gjedsted ’09 (LAS), an attorney in the Los Angeles office of Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, was elevated to shareholder on Jan. 1.

Roberto O. Gonzalez EdD ’09 (EDU) was named president of Oxnard College starting in July.

Dallas Woodburn ’09 (LAS) published her third young adult novel, Before & After You & Me (Owl Hollow Press), about an artist, a runner, a tragic accident and the journey to recovery. Woodburn is also a book coach and host of the weekly Thriving Authors podcast.

Bosco Yuen ’09 (ACC, BUS) is now partner in risk advisory at Baker Tilly International, the eighth-largest advisory CPA firm globally.

2010s

Paul Rockower ’10 (SCJ) is the executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix. He received the FBI Director’s Community Leadership

TROJAN TRIBUTE

Nora Hamilton

Professor Emerita of Political Science Nora Hamilton died on Jan. 19. She was 88.

Hamilton served as professor of political science at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences from 2001 until 2007, although her time at the university spanned four decades, from 1977 to 2017.

Her teaching, research and activism efforts focused on Latin America, immigration and Latin

Award for his work helping support the Jewish community and other vulnerable communities deal with extremism in Arizona.

Nicolaas Bertelsen MFA ’11 (SCA) produced two films that premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, Bang Bang and McVeigh

Seepan V. Parseghian JD ’11 (LAW) , of counsel in Beck Redden LLP’s Houston office, received the Houston Young Lawyers Association 2023-2024 Outstanding Committee Chair Award.

Brandon Reilly JD ’11 (LAW) was promoted to partner and leader in the privacy and data security group at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP. Reilly works in the firm’s Orange County and San Diego offices.

Teddy Dief MFA ’12 (SCA) directed the interactive TV series/video game We Are OFK , which won a 2024 Peabody Award.

American communities in the United States, with her best-known scholarship focusing on the post-revolutionary Mexican state.

Hamilton attended Manhattanville College in New York, earning her bachelor’s degree in English literature in 1957.

When she started working for the Ford Foundation after college, Hamilton’s interest in political science crystallized. The foundation sent her to Chile for three years — 1966 to 1969 — to research agrarian reform, student movements and peasant organization in the country. She next went to graduate school, earning first her master’s degree in Latin American studies from New York University and then, in 1978, her doctorate in sociology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

At USC Dornsife, Hamilton taught courses on immigration, political development and political economy while her research focused on international migration, Central American immigrant communities, and the impact of economic and political developments in Mexico.

Hamilton authored several books on Mexico during her time at USC Dornsife, including The Limits of State Autonomy in Post-Revolutionary Mexico (Princeton University Press, 1982) and Mexico: Political, Social and Economic Transitions (Oxford University Press, 2010). She also co-authored several works on Mexican and Central American immigration to Southern California.

In the early 1980s, when many countries in Central America were being run by right-wing dictators supported by the U.S. government, Hamilton co-founded several key organizations in Los Angeles, including the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador, the Nicaraguan Task Force and the Central American Refugee Center. She was a key figure in the sanctuary movement in L.A., which aimed to understand Central American migration in the context of U.S.-sponsored civil wars.

Joe Dorri ’13 (LAW) founded the Good Student to address the ongoing challenges students continue to face, including increased mental health issues, limited social support and limited access to resources. Dorri has been recognized by the California Legislature for his excellence in academics, leadership and service to the community. His work has been published in scientific journal articles and conventions and is used internationally. Additionally, he was ACT Inc.’s speaker for their Mental Health Awareness Month and is the author of the book The Good Student: How to Take Control of Your College Years.

Aaron Fischman MA ’13 (SCJ), a sportswriter who has won two Los Angeles Press Club Awards, published his first book, A Baseball Gaijin: Chasing a Dream to Japan and Back The Los Angeles resident has spent the last decade as a writer, editor and podcast host.

Michael Santos ’13 (LAW) has been named chair of the American Bar Association Commission on Homelessness and Poverty. Santos, associate director of U.S. poverty policy at RESULTS, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit lobbying organization, plans to use his new role to educate the legal community and the public about the legal problems of people experiencing homelessness and poverty.

Gordon Shoemaker Foxwood ’13 (SCA) was selected as one of Austin Film Festival’s and MovieMaker’s list of 2024 Screenwriters to Watch.

Eric Weintraub ’13 (LAS) wrote South of Sepharad: The 1492 Jewish Expulsion from Spain, published by History Through Fiction.

Sherry Yam ’13 (SSW) published an article titled “EMDR Case Conceptualization for Fear of Flying in the AANHPI Populations” for the EMDR International Association Go With That magazine winter 2024 issue. She was also invited as a podcast guest to discuss eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR) and the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population. She published an article titled “Preliminary Investigation into the Effectiveness of Group WebSTAIR for Trauma-exposed Veterans in Primary Care” for the Military Medicine Journal.

Cale Bouchey ’14 (LAS) joined Carmody MacDonald PC, a law firm in St. Louis, after graduating from Washington University School of Law. He interned at the Missouri State Public Defender office while in law school.

Olivia Korchagin ’14 (SCA) just launched The Paper Girls Show: Origami Craft Book with Fox Chapel Publishing as an engaging alternative to ready-made digital entertainment. The book weaves together vibrant characters and interactive paper crafts complemented by accessible videos that invite children to roll up their sleeves and dive into making.

Cookie Walukas ’15 (SCA), Kerry Furrh (SCA) and Olivia Mitchell ’14 (Thornton) won Best Narrative Short Film for their short film Ripe! at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Sofía María Bosch ’16 (SCJ) received the 2024

Granville Alexander “Zandy” Moore

USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences Professor Emeritus of Anthropology Granville Alexander “Zandy” Moore died on Jan. 15. He was 86. Much of Moore’s research examined Maya civilization as well as Latin American ritual, symbolism,

American School in Japan Young Alumni Changemaker Award.

Andrés Cantero Jr. JD ’16 (LAW) received the 2024 Outstanding Young Lawyer Award from the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Alexandra McDermott EdD ’16 (EDU) collaborated with a group of women who tell their stories of strength, resilience and innovation to overcome the challenges of global women’s leadership in their book, Unstoppable: The Rise of Female Global Leaders. Co-authors include Diana Korayim EdD ’16 (EDU), Lilly Tam EdD ’20 (EDU), Desiree Del-Zio EdD ’22 (EDU) , Kacee Jones EdD ’22 (EDU), Elizabeth Walker EdD ’22 (EDU), Janine Lee EdD ’23 (EDU) and Nancy Morehouse EdD ’23 (EDU).

Paul Gothold EdD ’17 (EDU) retired as San Diego County Superintendent of Schools

law and history, but his wide-ranging interests also spanned subjects such as homeokinetics (the study of complex systems) and occupational therapy.

He served two terms totaling 13 years as chair of the Department of Anthropology and he taught and mentored generations of undergraduate and graduate students, retiring in 2013 after teaching at USC for 35 years.

Moore taught in diverse areas of anthropology, including theory and history, family and culture, politics and social organization, and the exploration of cultures through film. He contributed to the emerging body of work on ethnographic field methods and urban anthropology in film.

Several years into his USC Dornsife career, Moore developed an interest in occupational science, a subject pioneered at USC by Professor Emeritus of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy Florence Clark.

Their friendship and collaboration would eventually lead to an important USC milestone: Moore and Clark helped bring celebrated primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall to USC as an adjunct professor.

Moore’s contributions to the university included a guiding role in forming USC Dornsife’s Center for Visual Anthropology, and he held membership — often serving as chair — on dozens of advisory committees, helping to guide matters that ranged from cultural exchange with Mexico to reviewing students’ living conditions.

He wrote nine books on anthropology and more than 100 scholarly articles, including book and film reviews and academic papers, and he delivered 30 invited lectures, seminars and workshop sessions globally.

He is survived by his spouse and partner of nearly 40 years, Levon Mardikyan, and niece and nephews, Alison, Alex and Colin Roberts.

TROJAN TRIBUTE

in June 2024. In April, he received the Outstanding Instructional Leader award from the California Association of Supervision of Curriculum and Development.

Cate Hurley ’17 (LAS) was promoted to principal deputy speechwriter at the U.S. Department Office of Public Affairs.

Inès Béjaoui ’18 (LAW) was promoted to senior associate in the London office of A&O Shearman.

Sabrina Brennan ’18 (SCA) was selected as one of Austin Film Festival’s and MovieMaker’s list of 2024 Screenwriters To Watch.

Jade Clemons ’19 (LAS) was hired to lead AltaSea’s Blue Sustainable Economy Alliance program at the Port of Los Angeles.

2020 s

Tom Capehart ’20 (EDU) graduated at age 86 during the pandemic. The Cancer Support Community honored him and the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center at the Angel Gala in May. He has also written a book, Untold Stories of Capehart.

David Javidzad JD ’20 (LAW) and Camille Yona ’15 (SCJ), JD ’19 (LAW) are engaged. Javidzad proposed on campus with the USC Trojan Marching Band.

Mireia Vilanova MFA ’20 (SCA) was accepted into the 2024 Sundance Producers Lab, held in June in Wyoming.

Mahnoor Euceph MFA ’21 (SCA), Nate Gualtieri ’17 (SCA) and Yoo Lee MFA ’23 (SCA) were selected for the inaugural Proof of Concept Accelerator program created by Cate Blanchett, Stacy L. Smith and Coco Francini MFA ’10 (SCA). The program had over 1,200 applicants and is designed to address long-standing gaps in the inclusion of women, trans and nonbinary people in film.

Amy A. King EdD ’21 (EDU) was appointed to the Board of Directors for the Council for Accreditation on Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) for a

five-year term beginning July. CACREP accredits over 900 master’s and doctoral degree programs in counseling and specialized practice areas representing over 400 colleges and universities across the United States.

Andrew Morrell JD ’21 (LAW) joined Goldberg Segalla’s Los Angeles office as an associate in their retail and hospitality division.

Marquis Cardwell JD ’22 (LAW) joined Paul Hastings LLP as an associate in the firm’s Los Angeles office.

Jessica Stephan JD ’22 (LAW) joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Atlanta office as an associate in their Tax Controversy group.

Kim Sheehan EdD ’23 (EDU) was named superintendent and president of the Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District in July.

MARRIAGES

Jennifer Davis MPA ’19 (SPP) and Brandon Marquez MBA ’24 (BUS) , in California’s Bay Area, July 2024

Chelsea Thompson MS ’23 (HRM) and Brandon Gomez in Winters, Calif., April 2024.

BIRTHS

Tatiana Kalache ’04 (LAS) and Alex Trafton, a son, Miles Kalache Trafton

Arvin Bautista ’05 (SCA) and Lynn Hamilton ’06 (SCA) , a daughter, Valentine Lee, who joins sister Logan Rose

Cameron Roth ’12 (BUS) and Rebecca (Gilbert) Roth ’13 (ARC) , a son, Myer.

IN MEMORIAM

Carlos H. Reynales ’46 (BUS) of Long Beach; died Aug. 31, 2021, at the age of 99

Betty Carlson ’49 (LAS) of Springfield, Ill.; Dec. 27, 2023, at the age of 101

Jack C. Flynn ’51 (BUS) of Pasadena; Feb. 7, 2024, at the age of 96

Bob Glynn Gardenhire ’51 (PHM) of Cambria, Calif.; March 15, 2022, at the age of 94

Jack Nix ’51 (BUS) of Fallbrook, Calif.; April 10, 2024, at the age of 95

Joan Scanlon Taft ’52 (EDU) of Laguna Woods, Calif.; Jan. 2, 2024, at the age of 89

Richard “Dick” Brombach ’53 (BUS) of Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.; March 19, 2022, at the age of 92

Thomas Gordon Hall ’53, MA ’59, DMA ’70 (MUS) of Orange, Calif.; March 9, 2023, at the age of 89

James C. Frampton ’54 (SCJ) of San Diego; Aug. 28, 2022, at the age of 89

Henry C. Benedict ’55 (LAS) of Bronx, N.Y.; April 24, 2024, at the age of 90

E. Robert Wallach ’55 (LAS) of Alameda, Calif.; May 15, 2022, at the age of 88

John Byrne ’57 (LAS) of Hempstead, N.Y.; Jan. 11, 2024, at the age of 95

Lloyd Hitt ’59 (PHARM D) of Sunland, Calif.; Nov. 5, 2022, at the age of 90

Ralph Rendon ’59 (LAS) of San Diego; Nov. 13, 2023, at the age of 86

John Moseley ’60 (LAS) of Encinitas, Calif.; Nov. 22, 2023, at the age of 85

Roland S. Jefferson Sr. ’61 (LAS) of Washington, D.C.; Jan. 19, 2024, at the age of 84

Frederick Schug ’62 (SSW) of Olympia, Wash.; April 19, 2021, at the age of 94

Steven Ho ’67 (LAS) of Los Angeles; Nov. 2, 2023, at the age of 78

James F. Akers ’70 (LAS) of Palm Springs; Feb. 25, 2024, at the age of 76

Constantine Glezakos ’70 (LAS) of Kalamata, Greece; Nov. 13, 2023, at the age of 87

Ronald Allan Hoorn ’70 (LAS) of San Francisco; Feb. 20, 2024, at the age of 78

Robert Spelman ’79 (LAS) of Queens, N.Y.; Nov. 25, 2023, at the age of 67

Jacques Antoine Dungee ’92 (ENG) of San Diego; Sept. 21, 2023, at the age of 53

Scott Morielli ’93 (LAS) of San Clemente, Calif.; Sept. 10, 2024, at the age of 54

Peter B. Rimac ’97 (LAS) of Panorama City, Calif.; Feb. 23, 2024, at the age of 48

Michael B. Wachs ’98 (MUS) of Tujunga, Calif.; March 6, 2022, at the age of 54

Kimberly Blevins ’00 (LAS) of San Diego; Nov. 9, 2023, at the age of 45

Scott A. Kenyon ’07 (LAS) of Pacific Palisades, Calif.; Feb. 15, 2024, at the age of 39.

LEGEND

ACC USC Leventhal School of Accounting

ARC USC School of Architecture

ART USC Roski School of Art and Design

BPT Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy

BUS USC Marshall School of Business

DEN Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC

DNC USC Kaufman School of Dance

DRA USC School of Dramatic Arts

EDU USC Rossier School of Education

ENG USC Viterbi School of Engineering

GRD USC Graduate School

GRN USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology

IYA USC Iovine and Young Academy

LAS USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

LAW USC Gould School of Law

MED Keck School of Medicine of USC

MUS USC Thornton School of Music

OST USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy

PHM USC School of Pharmacy

SCA USC School of Cinematic Arts

SCJ USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

SPP USC Price School of Public Policy

SSW USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work

Tom Arteaga, Chloe Barker, Crisann Begley-Smith, Alexander Bernard, Maeve Harding, Kianoosh Hashemzadeh, Leticia Lozoya, Demetrius Ly, Katie Maloney, Alex Rast, Sabrina Skacan, Nicole Stark and Justin Wilson contributed to this section.

Rod Sherman

Rod Sherman ’66 (LAS), who caught one of the most famous touchdowns in USC football history, died on Feb. 6 of natural causes. He was 79. The three-year (1964-66) letterman wideout grabbed Craig Fertig’s fourth-down 15-yard touchdown pass with 1:33 to play against unbeaten, top-ranked Notre Dame in 1964 to lead USC back from a 17-point deficit and to a 20-17 win. Sherman actually suggested the play (“84-Z Delay”) on the sideline to head coach John McKay, who then sent Sherman into the game. He captained the 1966 Trojan team that played in the Rose Bowl and earned All-Conference first team honors that season. In his USC career, he caught 90

passes. After playing in the Hula Bowl, College AllStar Game and Coaches All-America Game following his senior season, Sherman was selected in both the AFL and NFL drafts and joined the Oakland Raiders in 1967, helping Oakland to an AFL Championship as a rookie. He played in Super Bowl II in 1968 with the Raiders.

He spent seven years in the NFL with the Raiders (1967, 1969-71), Cincinnati Bengals (1968), Denver Broncos (1972) and Los Angeles Rams (1973), finishing his NFL career with 105 receptions for 1,576 yards and five touchdowns. He then became a sports executive and founder of football fantasy camps. He was inducted into the USC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018 and is also a member of the California Community College Athletic Association Hall of Fame.

TROJAN TRIBUTE

Winning the ‘Hard’ Way

Trojans are still finding out about late staffer Darlene Hard’s previous life as an international tennis star.

BY GREG HERNANDEZ

Last year, USC alumna Gail Wilson Kenna ’65 came across a weathered newspaper clipping inside a box filled with mementos while doing research for a tennis memoir. The 1957 clip showed Darlene Hard, a future member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, presenting a young Kenna with the runner-up trophy at a junior tennis tournament.

“I wanted to know more about this woman who gave that trophy to me,” says Kenna, who titled her book Tennis Talk of a Nobody “I remember her as being so easy to talk to. So not full of herself.”

Kenna, who played on the USC women’s tennis team from 1961 to 1964, was sad to learn that Hard had died in 2021 at age 85. She was also shocked to discover they had a Trojan connection: Hard spent the last 42 years of her life working at USC in student publications.

Kenna had no idea. It seems neither did most people — including hundreds of students who worked on The Daily Trojan newspaper or USC’s El Rodeo yearbook each year. The woman known as “Darlene from Publications” had been one of the very best tennis players in the world in the 1950s and ’60s. Hard won two singles titles at the U.S. Championships (now the U.S. Open) and was twice the runner-up in singles at Wimbledon. Overall, she won a staggering 21 Grand Slam titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.

“Our students didn’t even know that she was a champion, and rarely did I disclose that because she didn’t want to be interviewed,” says Mona H. Cravens, USC’s longtime director of student publications. “But she seemed very happy to be right here.”

Lynette Merriman, USC Academic Affairs’ associate vice provost for campus support and intervention, describes Hard as “a hidden gem.”

“She really liked being around young people, seeing what they were bringing to the world and what they had to offer,” she says. “But she liked to be unassuming and stay in the background.”

Former USC staffer and international tennis champion Darlene Hard hits a volley to Zsuzsa Kormoczy during a quarterfinal match at Wimbledon in 1955.

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA 90089-2818

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Meet the Trojans of Whittier Trust

Whittier Trust’s success is built on the dedication and excellence of our team, including USC Trojans who embody our values of integrity, reliability, and empathy. eir Trojan spirit drives our commitment to exceed client expectations and uphold our legacy of exceptional service, contributing to our continued growth and success.

Matthew Mackel, Corey Dempster, Taylor Hughes, Atreyu Allen, Libby Baeza, Heidi Bitterman, Je Aschieris, Dominique Langerman, Greg Geary, Eben Bold, Pegine Grayson, Gregg Millward, Brian Bissell, Caleb Silsby, Carter icke, Ashley Fontanetta, David Dahl, Riley Sakioka, Kilik Ov, Alec Leterovian, Robert Renken

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