Forever Yours

Each April, the Trojan Family congregates in formal attire for a gala dinner to recognize the year’s USC Alumni Association award honorees for their professional accomplishments and legacy of service. This year’s event, akin to those in the past, was an evening filled with camaraderie, family, and school pride.

However, unlike prior years, the 2025 gala served as a chance for the USC Alumni Association (USCAA) to bestow honorary alumna recognition upon USC President Carol Folt in celebration of her retirement.

USCAA Board of Governors President Daniel Prince ’00, MA ’02 presented the accolade, highlighting that Folt’s vibrant leadership, zeal for innovation, and devoted commitment to USC’s students resonated with Trojans globally. Prince further noted that Folt’s return to academia as USC faculty would empower her to “motivate new generations of Trojans.”

ALUMNI SERVICE AWARD

Antonio “Tony” Alamo MD ’91 serves as the chief physician executive and chief medical officer for Nevada Heart and Vascular Center, the largest cardiology group in Nevada, and is a steadfast advocate of the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He earned the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Keck School of Medicine in 2019.
For over three decades, Alamo has showcased his know-how and experience with the Keck School of Medicine as an ambassador, committee participant, and guide. He belongs to the school’s Board of Councilors. In 2022, Donna Elliott, vice dean of medical education, invited Alamo to assist in developing curricula for its students.

From his private practice in Las Vegas, Alamo has set up a patient referral network with Keck Medicine of USC. As a university ambassador, he facilitated a $3 million contribution from Michael and Sharon Ensign to the Keck School of Medicine and the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. Alamo acted as the president of the Ensign Cancer Research Foundation, which has donated over $5 million to bolster cancer research and medical training at USC.

ALUMNI MERIT AWARD

Ego Nwodim ’10 is an actress, comedian, writer, and producer best known for her performances
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on NBC’s Saturday Night Live (SNL). She received consecutive nominations in 2024 and 2025 for Exceptional Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series from the NAACP Image Awards for her contributions to SNL.

Raised in Baltimore, Md., Nwodim began her comedy journey after graduating from USC. She refined her skills at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Los Angeles, where she became a prominent figure. More recently, The Hollywood Reporter highlighted her on the front cover of its May 23, 2024, edition as one of “comedy’s leading ladies.”

Apart from acting, Nwodim is dedicated to philanthropy. In 2023, she co-founded the Life Skills Improv Program in collaboration with the Baltimore Curriculum Project to assist local youth in exploring and embracing new opportunities. An alumna of the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, she delivered the institution’s commencement speech in 2022.

ALUMNI MERIT AWARD

Wilbur H. Smith III MRED ’99 is the founder, president, and CEO of Greenlaw Partners, a full-service commercial real estate development and operating firm based in California. Smith oversees all facets of the company’s acquisitions, operations, and investment development and redevelopment initiatives. Under his guidance, Greenlaw has completed over $10 billion in acquisitions and sales across nearly 350 commercial properties.

Smith is a licensed real estate broker in California, an active participant in the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), and a board member of YPO’s Orange County Gold Chapter. He is also a founding member of the Orange County Chapter of Tiger 21 and serves as an independent director on the boards of American Healthcare REIT, Bronco Wine, and Uprite Construction.

An alumnus of the USC Price School of Public Policy, Smith currently holds the position of vice chair of its Board of Councilors. He is additionally a member of the executive committee of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate.

YOUNG ALUMNI MERIT AWARD

Tim Ellis ’12, MS ’13 is the co-founder and former CEO of Relativity Space, an aerospace firm that is developing manufacturing technologies, launch vehicles, and rocket engines for commercial orbital launch services.

Under his leadership, Relativity successfully launched Terran 1, the world’s inaugural 3D-printed rocket, and secured over $2.9 billion in launch service agreements with commercial and governmental organizations. Prior to co-founding Relativity, Ellis was a propulsion development engineer at Blue Origin. He was the youngest member of the National Space Council Users’ Advisory Group and directly advised the White House on space policy from 2018 to 2023.

Ellis has been recognized in Time magazine’s 100 Next list, MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35” list, and two of Forbes’ “30 Under 30” lists. He earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering from the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. During his time at USC, Ellis and Relativity co-founder Jordan Noone ’14 aided in launching the first student-built rocket into space.

ASA V. CALL ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Shelly Nemirovsky ’85 enhances the university’s esteem through her roles as a USC trustee, philanthropist, and community leader. In 2016 — the year Nemirovsky joined the USC Board of Trustees — she and her husband, Ofer, made a donation to establish and name the Nemirovsky Residential College for Sustainability at USC Village.

The Nemirovskys’ philanthropy has impacted almost every aspect of USC. They created USC’s Shelly and Ofer Nemirovsky Provost’s Chair, which provides acknowledgment and support for the leader overseeing the university’s academic initiatives, as well as USC’s NEMO Prizes, which stimulate high-potential health engineering collaborations between researchers at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering and USC’s health sciences faculties. The couple also established USC Viterbi’s Shelly and Ofer Nemirovsky Chair in Convergent Bioscience.

Nemirovsky and her husband are the delighted parents of three children: Genevieve ’20, Eric ’23, and Will.