Faculty
Our faculty inspire, guide and drive the engines that move the university forward in knowledge and research. With a focus on diverse, multidisciplinary skills and engaging ideas, our faculty embody the university’s mission.
USC’s esteemed faculty members ardently participate in tackling contemporary challenges and fostering societal change. They lead the charge in devising inventive solutions to pressing dilemmas in vital domains like healthcare, technology, sustainability, social justice and beyond. Moreover, USC faculty’s expertise extends beyond academia, with many serving as advisers to government bodies, industry leaders and nonprofit organizations, shaping policies and practices worldwide.
Faculty News
The term “congestive heart failure” is falling out of favor with doctors. A Keck Medicine of USC cardiologist explains why — and why the shift may signal better outcomes for patients.
Shrikanth Narayanan and Amy Childress are honored with one of the highest professional distinctions an engineer can receive.
We are scheduling additional AI discussion sessions hosted by USC’s AI Strategy Committee to ensure broad participation across our community.
USC School of Dramatic Arts Professor Oliver Mayer recorded his somnolent story for the new Calm Sleep app.
Scholar Spotlight
USC’s award-winning faculty and researchers look beyond the ordinary to bring new, much-needed insights and developments to a rapidly changing world with complex needs.
Percival Everett
Percival Everett is a Distinguished Professor of English at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. Known for fiction that blends satire and philosophical inquiry, he won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for James, a reimagining of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from Jim’s perspective.
Marlena Fejzo
Marlena Fejzo is a clinical assistant professor of population and public health Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and a Harvard-trained geneticist whose work focuses on conditions that disproportionately affect women. She is best known for identifying genetic drivers of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, including hyperemesis gravidarum, and was named to Forbes’ 50 Over 50: Innovation list for her discoveries in women’s health.
C.-C. Jay Kuo
C.-C. Jay Kuo is a Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering and the Ming Hsieh Chair Professor in ECE-Systems. He directs USC’s Multimedia/Media Communications Laboratory, advancing the technologies behind modern visual and multimedia systems, from signal processing and data compression to video coding and quality assessment.
A Community of Scholars
At USC, we deeply value faculty excellence. Our faculty come from a vibrant network of individuals, each with unique knowledge and invaluable wisdom. Many are Nobel laureates, MacArthur Fellows and National Academy winners — all who contribute invaluable research discoveries to the world’s body of knowledge.
Nobel Laureates
The Nobel Prize, an international award administered by the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm, Sweden, has been awarded every year since 1901 for achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and for peace. Additionally, in 1968 the Sveriges Riksbank established the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, founder of the Nobel Prize.
MacArthur Fellows
The MacArthur Fellows Program awards unrestricted fellowships (often called “genius grants”) to individuals who have demonstrated exceptional creativity, promise for important future advances and potential for the fellowship to facilitate subsequent creative work.
National Medal Winners
National Academies Members
Members of the National Academies are recognized for outstanding achievements and contributions in matters of science, engineering and medicine. Academy members are leaders in their field and represent the world’s most distinguished scientists, engineers, physicians and researchers.
Other Academy Fellows
Fellows of other academies including the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, National Academy of Education, National Academy of Inventors and many more.
University Distinctions
Faculty Research
As a prominent research institution, USC places great importance on rigorous academic inquiry and innovative exploration. Our faculty members across all our campuses have access to cutting-edge research facilities, resolute resources, and funding, allowing them to conduct revolutionary research across diverse fields.
Academic Senate
The Academic Senate is a collective entity that collaborates through committees and task forces to address various academic and administrative concerns. Specifically, it champions advancing faculty rights, interests, obligations and initiatives to sustain and enhance USC’s standing as a flourishing educational establishment.
Faculty Portal
The University of Southern California’s faculty portal is a comprehensive platform for faculty members to engage with one another and access valuable academic resources. Additionally, mentorship, guidance on career advancement, governance information and other useful resources are available to support faculty in their academic pursuits.
