University of Southern California

Alumni & Friends

Your Membership Fuels Innovation At Marshall

The Dean’s Exploratory Fund

When you join Marshall Partners, your membership gift is dedicated to the Dean’s Exploratory Fund—the engine of innovation at Marshall. So, while you reap the benefits of insider status in the school and its networks, your membership delivers exponential value to the whole organization. Your financial participation gives Dean Ellis the ability to execute strategic moves with agility and courage. Your collaboration and presence strengthens the school’s network and know-how.

The Dean’s Exploratory Fund is the difference that makes a difference. Dean Ellis explains:
“My office is a launching pad for angel bets, small and large, that keep the USC Marshall School of Business on the edge of discovery. As I think about seeding innovation at Marshall, my fund places bets on our scarcest resource—talent. I’m investing to win the hyper-competitive global battle to attract the best students, faculty, and staff—the talent we must acquire and support to build Marshall competencies and influence going forward.”

By becoming a Marshall Partner, you join other leadership donors in helping ensure the faculty and students receive the academic support they need to shape the future of business and the future of USC Marshall.

"At the margins, my ability to green-light initiatives and adventures that take students out of their comfort zones and spark the school’s intellectual agenda comes from the Dean’s Exploratory Fund."

--Dean James G. Ellis, Robert R. Dockson Dean's Chair in Business Administration, USC