USC Marshall School of Business

Adlai Wertman, a professor of clinical management and organization in the USC Marshall School of Business, was tapped by USC’s Torch and Tassel Chapter of the Mortar Board, which promotes and recognizes scholarship, leadership and service. A group of students, including Angeli Agrawal who nominated Wertman, performed the tapping ceremony in one of his classes on Nov. 28.

Wertman is founding director of Marshall’s Society and Business Lab, which supports Marshall students who want to use their educations to solve global and social issues such as poverty, homelessness, education and health care. He and his SBL colleagues study and teach about social entrepreneurship — the creation of a new kind of hybrid business model for organizations that balance a revenue mission with a social mission. "My mission at Marshall is to teach, inspire and mentor students who want to use their USC educations to change the world," said Wertman. "Five years ago, Dean Ellis gave me the opportunity to join his team at Marshall and implement our shared vision. I feel that this honor is acknowledgment that we are doing our job."

Before joining USC, Wertman left an 18-year career as an investment banker to become president and CEO of Chrysalis, a nonprofit in downtown Los Angeles devoted solely to helping the homeless turn their lives around by finding and keeping jobs.