The Summer 2025 edition of Trojan Family Magazine has arrived

What’s in a Name?

A tangible measure of a university president’s influence can be seen through concrete, brick, glass, and metal. USC President Carol Folt’s six years in leadership have been consistent with this, showcasing new and revamped structures such as the Dick Wolf Drama Center, the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Human-Centered Computation Hall, the reimagined student areas in the Gwynn Wilson Student Union Building, the upcoming Rawlinson Stadium for women’s soccer and lacrosse, and the well-advanced Bloom Football Performance Center.

In this special edition of USC Trojan Family Magazine, we will present numerous similar instances showcasing Folt’s enduring and constructive influence on this institution. Her tenure has been characterized not only by significant construction and renovation initiatives like the ones mentioned, but also by modifications that — despite their smaller scope — carried immense significance.

Folt understood that names possess symbolic significance, and that the titles of buildings on a campus can reflect a university’s ethos.

This is why Folt renamed a prominent structure on the University Park Campus the Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow Center for International and Public Affairs, in honor of the Native American historian and notable chief of the Apsáalooke (Crow) Nation, who obtained his master’s degree at USC.

Likewise, she renamed the field where the USC track and field teams compete after USC alumna Allyson Felix, an advocate, entrepreneur, mother, and the most decorated track and field athlete in Olympic history.

Additionally, she paid tribute to USC Nisei students — Trojans of Japanese descent who were forced into internment camps during World War II — posthumously granting honorary degrees to all who had not yet received them. A serene rock garden located near the main entrance to the University Park Campus memorializes what Folt has termed “a profoundly shameful chapter in our history.”

As you will discover throughout this edition, the present-day achievements of Folt’s leadership are numerous. Both through these successes and her commitment to confronting challenging chapters from USC’s history, Carol Folt has positioned the university to achieve even greater accomplishments in the future.

Ted B. Kissell
Editor-in-Chief
USC Trojan Family Magazine