A Tradition of Giving

The university held its first USC Good Neighbors Campaign in 1994 and gave out its first grants to local non-profit organizations in the spring/summer of 1995. In 2007, USC celebrated thirteen years of sharing over $8 million through 328 grants to community organizations and schools partnering with the university to build strong communities in East L.A. and South L.A.

The monies raised through the USC Good Neighbors Campaign are distributed through the USC Neighborhood Outreach program. Its goal is to help provide greater coherence, visibility and coordination of the university's partnerships with the community. Its priorities are to provide:

• special educational, cultural and developmental opportunities for children and families living in USC's immediate neighborhoods;
• work with our neighbors, city and county officials, and the Los Angeles Police Department to provide safe streets in areas surrounding the university’s two campuses; and
• encourage more entrepreneurs, especially minority entrepreneurs, to establish businesses in the immediate vicinity of our campuses.

Gifts from faculty and staff through the annual USC Good Neighbors Campaign are the primary source of USC Neighborhood Outreach funding.

(Updated October 2008)