Presidential Medallion recipients exemplify USC’s goals in education, innovation and spirituality

During this month’s Academic Honors Convocation events, USC President Carol Folt announced the latest Trojans to earn USC’s Presidential Medallion, awarded to those who have brought significant honor and distinction to the university’s campuses. They are: USC Dean of Religious Life Varun Soni; Jimmy Iovine and Andre “Dr. Dre” Young, co-founders of the USC Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy; and Leslie and William McMorrow, benefactors of the USC Leslie and William McMorrow Neighborhood Academic Initiative.

“The recipients of this honor are people whose contributions touch so many hearts and minds and become part of the fabric of our Trojan community,” Folt said. “They’ve brought immeasurable value and innovation to the learning experience for our students, and it would be a privilege to honor everything they’ve done to usher in a new era of education.” The Presidential Medallion is the university’s highest honor.

USC’s Academic Honors Convocation took place across two events this year: on April 16, 29 faculty members were honored, while an April 21 ceremony celebrated the work of 49 students.

Varun Soni

Few people have the résumé of Varun Soni. Education aside — he holds a bachelor’s degree from Tufts University; master’s degrees from Harvard Divinity School and the University of California, Santa Barbara; a juris doctor from UCLA; and a doctoral degree from the University of Cape Town — Soni’s life experiences make him the ideal candidate to lead the USC Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. Born in India and raised in Southern California, he has family on five continents who collectively represent many of the world’s major religious traditions. He has lived in a Buddhist monastery, conducted research across South Asia and been published in various publications. Now, he is a recipient of USC’s highest honor, the Presidential Medallion.

“It was intense disbelief and then it was immense gratitude,” Soni said in an interview about receiving the award. “I’ve been giving the invocation at academic award convocations for 17 years now, so I know what a big deal this is.”

In addition to his role as dean of religious life, Soni is also a University Fellow at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism’s Center on Public Diplomacy and an adjunct professor at the School of Religion in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. He authored the book Natural Mystics: The Prophetic Lives of Bob Marley and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, as well as articles in publications such as The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Crosscurrents, Jewish Journal and Harvard Divinity Bulletin. Soni also ventured into the realm of graphic novels, producing the critically acclaimed Tina’s Mouth: An Existential Comic Diary by Keshni Kashyap, which is being adapted as a feature-length film.

Soni’s love for and expertise in music also led him to produce and host his own radio show on KPFK-Pacifica that showcased music from South Asia and its diaspora. In 2009, he was one of the organizers of the historic Concert for Pakistan, a benefit concert at the United Nations General Assembly Hall featuring Salman Ahmad, Sting, Outlandish, Jeff Skoll, Deepak Chopra and Melissa Etheridge.

As extensive as his list of accomplishments is, Soni said adding the Presidential Medallion is “extremely humbling” and “an affirmation of the critically important work that so many people have done in religious and spiritual life over the last 20 years.”

“USC takes an expansive view of human flourishing that includes spiritual health, and that has allowed us to be very creative and collaborative in addressing the spiritual needs, aspirations and possibilities for our community,” Soni said. “As a result, USC is really looking to the future of well-being in higher education and is truly a pioneer in the field — there’s no way I could do this work in this way at any other American university.”

Jimmy Iovine and Andre ‘Dr. Dre’ Young

In 2013, two music industry legends joined forces to launch a one-of-a-kind learning experience at USC that blends technology, design and business. With a $70 million gift, prolific producer Jimmy Iovine and hip-hop legend Andre “Dr. Dre” Young created USC’s 21st school, the USC Iovine and Young Academy.

“Education was siloed,” Iovine said while on stage with Young to receive their award during the April 21 student awards night. “So, we said, ‘What if we create a school where people work together and collaborate and learn how to innovate together?’ So, if you lean towards engineering or if you lean toward design, you actually understand the why of each other.”

Iovine, co-founder of Interscope Records and Beats Electronics, started his decadeslong music career in his teenage years, working as a recording engineer at Record Plant in New York City. From there, Iovine went on to produce for musicians such as John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Nicks. He met Young in 1990, after co-founding Interscope Records.

An icon of the hip-hop world, Young co-founded the revolutionary hip-hop group N.W.A. before embarking on a solo career. In 1992, he released his debut album, The Chronic, on Iovine’s Interscope Records. The album was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and reached the top 10 on Billboard 200, winning Best Rap Solo Performance at the Grammy Awards — for “Let Me Ride” — in 1994.

In 1996, Young launched Aftermath Entertainment, which has discovered and produced hip-hop superstars such as Kendrick Lamar, Anderson .Paak and Eminem.

Young has since ventured into television and film production, including the Emmy Award-nominated HBO docuseries The Defiant Ones.

More than a decade after meeting, the pair would partner to launch Beats Electronics (Beats by Dre) in 2006 and Beats Music in 2014.

In 2013, Iovine gave the commencement address to USC’s graduating class after receiving an honorary degree. The next year, the USC Iovine and Young Academy admitted its first freshman class.

“This school was very, very patient and understanding to help us do something that was pretty new at the time … so I want to thank those people for really believing in us, because we really didn’t know what we’re talking about,” Iovine said to laughs from the awards ceremony audience. “I think we created something really special, and we’re very, very proud of it. And thank you Dr. Dre — you’re the greatest partner and friend that ever lived.” 

In 2022, Iovine and Young opened the Iovine and Young Center Integrated Design, Technology, and Entrepreneurship Magnet in Los Angeles, and last year, the Iovine and Young Center at Frederick Douglass High School opened in Atlanta. Both high schools offer students grounding in the same cutting-edge curriculum as the USC Iovine and Young Academy.

Leslie and William McMorrow

For Leslie and William McMorrow, giving back to others comes naturally. In 2018 — the year that William McMorrow was awarded the Asa V. Call Alumni Achievement Award, USC’s highest honor for alumni — the McMorrows made the largest donation ever to the university’s community outreach programs.

The endowment gift enabled a significant expansion of what is now known as the USC Leslie and William McMorrow Neighborhood Academic Initiative, which provides college admission and graduation support to nearly 1,000 sixth through 12th grade students from low-income households in neighboring communities each year.

The McMorrows’ commitment to philanthropy and USC earned them the USC Presidential Medallion.

“This is a moment where I really reflect on my life and really how lucky I’ve been,” William McMorrow said to the crowd at the April 16 faculty award dinner. “USC has been at the intersection of every part of my life. … It’s just been a real privilege and honor.”

Started in 1991, USC NAI has a 100% high school graduation rate and a 99% college graduation rate. Graduates of the program — the majority of whom are first-generation college students — enroll in prestigious institutions across the country, with many choosing USC as their next academic home.

William McMorrow said his passion for USC grew out of childhood trips to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. McMorrow credits much of his success to the lessons learned and connections made while earning his undergraduate and master’s degrees in business from the USC Marshall School of Business.

McMorrow built his real estate investment and management company, Kennedy Wilson, into a global powerhouse. In three decades, he grew it from one office with 11 employees to 25 offices with roughly 500 employees around the world. He has been a strong supporter of real estate research and education at USC for decades, serving on the executive board of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, endowing the McMorrow Global Real Estate Initiative and helping launch the Performance Science Institute. He has served on the USC Board of Trustees since 2015.

Leslie McMorrow, a specialist in the L.A. art scene, is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in business economics and Asian studies. She then studied at Sophia University in Tokyo, where she honed her knowledge of Asian aesthetics, culture, art and design. Her community involvement includes serving on the board of overseers of the Hammer Museum and the board of The Rape Foundation.

“We are so grateful to the faculty of this university who shape young people’s lives and make a positive impact on our country and honestly, the whole world,” William McMorrow said. “So many of these young people have gone on to extraordinary careers. It’s really been truly one of the great privileges that Leslie and I have ever had to be part of this great journey.”

USC’s Greg Hernandez contributed to this report.