Flora Thornton Donates $5 Million to USC
“This gift is another demonstration of Flora Thornton’s passion for the arts and particularly for music and music education,” said USC President Steven B. Sample. “Her steadfast generosity and vision enhance not only USC but the cultural life of the entire region.”
This gift brings the total of Thornton’s support for the music school to $30 million. Her 1999 gift of $25 million – recognized by naming the school for her – was the largest donation to a school of music in the United States at the time.
“Flora is a gem,” said USC Thornton School Dean Robert A. Cutietta in announcing the gift. “Her dedication to this school and enthusiasm for the important work of our faculty and students is truly a blessing to all of us.
“We cherish her continued relationship with the school,” Cutietta said. “I know the faculty sees her gift as an endorsement of their work with students.”
The USC Thornton School, recently named as one of the five best music schools in the country by Rolling Stone magazine, will celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2009.
In the last two years, the school has added a number of highly accomplished artists and experts to its faculty ranks, including renowned violinist Midori Goto, who now holds the Jascha Heifetz Chair in Strings, broadcasting veteran Jerry Del Colliano, and stage and music directors Ken Cazan and Brent McMunn, among others.
Thornton’s affiliation with USC spans nearly four decades and includes gifts to the USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Keck School of Medicine of USC. In addition to serving on the Board of Councilors at the USC Thornton School of Music, she has been a major supporter of the Los Angeles Music Center and the Los Angeles Opera, and serves on its board of directors. She also served on the board of the Santa Fe Opera.
Appointed by President Reagan to the Library of Congress Trust Fund Board, she is also a member of the Library Foundation Board of the Los Angeles Public Library, where she was instrumental in forming the Council of the Library Foundation.
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The Wall Street Journal highlighted the $200 million naming gift from USC Trustee and alumnus David Dornsife and wife Dana Dornsife to the USC Dornsife College, and the $110 million gift from USC Trustee and USC Viterbi School alumnus John Mork and wife Julie to create the USC Mork Family Scholars Program.
KPCC-FM reported that this fall USC will offer Persian language courses for the first time. A $250,000 grant from the Farhang Foundation helped to establish the program. Bruce Zuckerman of the USC Dornsife College said he has many students interested in the Persian language, culture and region. “The Iranian region is one that has great impact on our lives today and has had great impact going back into ancient times,” he said. The story noted that USC and the Farhang Foundation hope to raise more money to create an Iranian studies minor. Payvand also featured the new courses.
American Songwriter ran a Q&A with Christopher Sampson of the USC Thornton School about the school’s Popular Music program, which Sampson founded. He noted that the program has been available as a major in Songwriting since 2009, and has incorporated a diverse range of musical genres. “We have now established a consistent track record of students having professional success to know that the program gets results,” Sampson said. He also highlighted the achievements of Songwriting faculty members Lamont Dozier, Andrea Stolpe and David Poe of the Thornton School.
The Economist featured research by Valter Longo of the USC Davis School finding that short periods of fasting could help cancer patients better tolerate chemotherapy, and may even make treatment more effective. The Globe and Mail (Canada) reported that cancerous tumors are essentially energy hogs. “They need to burn lots of energy just to stay alive,” Longo said. The study was also covered by Irish Independent (Ireland), Magyar Tavirati Iroda (Hungary), Anadolu Ajansi (Turkey), Son Haber (Netherlands), Vietnam+ (Vietnam), Turkish Radio and Television (Turkey) and Romania Libera (Romania).
L.A. Weekly featured research by USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies, which has developed video games based around physical movement for people recovering from strokes or other injuries. The games develop strength in specific body parts. Traditional video games weren’t right for these patients, said the institute’s Belinda Lange. “Often, the fun parts of the game would only be unlocked after a series of other levels, which our patients often couldn’t achieve,” she said. The games are now being tested with physical therapists in three major clinics.
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