July 1, 2025
Dear Faculty and Staff,
It’s a tremendous privilege to begin serving as your interim president today.
I step into this role during a period of unprecedented uncertainty and change. From research and global engagement to athletics and the rise of AI, nearly every aspect of USC’s mission and work is being challenged and reshaped.
While change can be unsettling, it also creates opportunities – to sharpen our focus, challenge assumptions, and recommit to what matters most: the impact we have on our students, patients, and society.
USC is uniquely well-positioned to lead in times like these. Along with the unsurpassed breadth of our interdisciplinary excellence – spanning the arts and humanities, sciences and engineering, the health sciences, and our acclaimed professional schools – we bring an innovative spirit that draws from our home in Los Angeles and the Pacific Rim. And no other university has an alumni community as passionate and far-reaching as the Trojan Family, now more than 500,000 strong. By leveraging our distinctive strengths – and through open and candid dialogue across our university and health system – USC can and will emerge stronger than ever.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll be sharing more about the steps we’ll be taking to continue advancing our mission of academic excellence. In the meantime, I look forward to connecting with as many of you as I can.
Now more than ever, let’s Fight On!
Beong-Soo Kim
Interim President