USC president Carol Folt announces retirement
The University of Southern California President Carol Folt addresses graduates. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - University of Southern California President Carol L. Folt announced her retirement on Friday. She will hold her position through the end of the academic year.
Folt, who took over the university nearly five years ago to bring stability following a sweeping admissions scandal but came under fire last year like many other U.S. academic leaders during pro-Palestinian campus protests.
Folt joined USC in 2019 after leading the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for six years. She previously worked at Dartmouth College, where she served as interim president, provost, dean of faculty and a professor of biological sciences.
She was hired by USC at a time the university was reeling from a nationwide college-admissions cheating scandal that enveloped parents, athletic officials and coaches at various institutions, with students purportedly being admitted to colleges with athletic scholarships despite having never played their claimed sports.
The university had also been rocked by the criminal case involving longtime campus gynecologist George Tyndall, who was accused of sexual misconduct by hundreds of students. Many sued the university, contending campus leaders took no action in response to complaints about his actions. USC agreed to pay out hundreds of millions of dollars to settle class-action lawsuits against the university.
The scandal led to the departure in 2018 of USC President C.L. Max Nikias.
Folt pointed to a series of accomplishments from her time as president, including "the $1 billion investment in Frontiers of Computing and USC's new School of Advanced Computing, Health Sciences 3.0, Athletics Reimagined, Sustainable Urban Futures, and USC Competes," along with upgrades to athletic facilities, the move of athletic programs out of the Pac-12 and into the Big Ten, and the opening of the university's Capital Campus in Washington, D.C.
Over the past year, however, Folt -- like many university leaders nationwide -- came under fire from some critics over the response to pro- Palestinian protests and encampments. Earlier this year, an encampment at Alumni Park on the USC campus last year was dismantled in a law enforcement operation that saw 93 arrests.
Continued unrest also led to upheaval in commencement proceedings, with the traditional main stage ceremony canceled and replaced with a celebratory event at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The university also barred pro-Palestinian valedictorian Asna Tabassum from speaking at commencement activities, citing safety concerns.
The university also canceled plans to confer honorary degrees on recipients including filmmaker Jon Chu and tennis legend Billie Jean King.
Suzanne Nora Johnson, chair of the USC Board of Trustees, issued a statement Friday praising Folt's "exceptional tenure" as the university's 12th president.
"Carol was hired at one of the most important moments in the school's history, bringing her unique and significant experience as a university president and chancellor at two institutions of distinction," Johnson wrote. "Carol's leadership skills, and her innate ability to connect with community members on a personal level, have been on display throughout her tenure, and we are grateful for her commitment to our entire Trojan Family: students, faculty, staff, alumni, and our broader university community.
"While Carol's retirement marks a moment of transition for USC, thanks to her leadership the university is well positioned for the future. Her dedication to solving the difficult issues before her -- whether past or present -- have never impeded her focus on what lies ahead. Her keen strategic eye towards the future, and the groundbreaking initiatives she has launched as a result, will benefit both the current and next generations of Trojans, and undoubtably contribute to USC's long-term sustainable excellence."
USC President Carol Folt. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
A letter Folt wrote to the USC community says the following:
Dear Trojan Family,
It is with heartfelt gratitude that I write to share my decision to retire as the president of USC at the end of the academic year on July 1, 2025. Serving as the twelfth president of the University of Southern California is one of the greatest privileges of my life. Working with so many of you to achieve the promise of our incredible Trojan Family brings me joy and inspiration each day. After more than twenty years of leadership at three great universities, however, I am excited to embrace the freedom that comes with a next big leap, and to pass the baton to the next president who will be able to build upon our accomplishments and create a new chapter for this extraordinary institution.
My north stars always have been: students at the center; academic excellence (in research, teaching, creative practice, and visionary discoveries); safe, welcoming and sustainable campuses; tackling grand challenges; and building ethical, human-centered and empathetic teams. With these principles in mind, over the last five years, we have created a forward-looking vision that will serve our students, faculty and staff well as they look to better the country and the world.
I treasure the many relationships and friendships I have developed – none more than those with our exceptional students. I marvel at the myriad ways Trojans Fight On! and shine. The service, dedication and talents of our students, faculty and staff make USC a powerhouse for good – a valued member of our entire region, and a model for how universities enhance democracy.
It has been an honor to work with you to launch five transformational Presidential Moonshots. These initiatives – which include the $1 billion investment in Frontiers of Computing and USC’s new School of Advanced Computing, Health Sciences 3.0, Athletics Reimagined, Sustainable Urban Futures, and USC Competes – have securely positioned USC for the future. Our reorganization of the USC Health Sciences enterprise, the creation of an exciting strategic plan and the addition of USC Arcadia Hospital have Keck Medicine thriving. We’re upgrading our athletics facilities, we’ve tripled both student mental services and student cultural spaces, and we opened our Capital Campus in an iconic home in Washington, D.C. We moved to the Big Ten to ensure the competitive success of USC programs and athletes. Our research funding continues to grow at historic levels. And as part of the USC Competes moonshot, we made our largest investments ever in student financial aid, as well as faculty and staff salaries.
I also am immensely grateful for the way our campus and community came together during the COVID pandemic. Our people made sure that our educational, medical and community-driven missions continued – often at great personal cost – and Trojan care teams saved countless lives. You also helped us rectify deeply painful episodes, restore a tarnished reputation and resolve serious legal issues, drive culture change, and develop new policies to ensure the safety and well-being of our community.
Of special significance during my time here are four actions we took to memorialize our university’s mission and values. In 2022, we conferred honorary degrees upon 33 Nisei students – Japanese Americans who suffered through forced detention during World War II and were prevented from continuing their studies once the war ended. We created the "Nisei Garden" in their honor. That same year, we renamed the Center for International and Public Affairs to bear the name of Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow, a Native American leader and USC alumnus who served our country with great honor during World War II. Then, in 2023, we renamed the home of USC track and field for a USC alumna and proud Angeleno, Allyson Felix, the most decorated track and field athlete in Olympic history. And in 2024, for only the fourth time, we presented the University Medallion to survivors of the Holocaust whose testimonies now live at the USC Shoah Foundation.
Looking forward, I am enthusiastic about exploring opportunities ahead as a tenured faculty member. For the next nine months, however, my team and I will be laser-focused on the business of running this great university, and ensuring a seamless transition for the new president. And when Commencement comes in May, I will proudly salute our new graduates with an eye to the future and a heart filled with gratitude.
I believe that USC’s future burns bright, thanks to all of you. I want to express my appreciation for my extraordinary team of professional leaders, our generous philanthropists, the hundreds of volunteers and community leaders who advise our boards and centers, the elected officials who help drive higher education here and across the nation, and our Trojan Family – worldwide and lifelong – who love USC and have opened their arms to welcome me everywhere. I offer a special shoutout to the Presidential Working Group on Sustainability and thank them for the incredible progress USC has been making to become a leader in this critical area. Finally, I express my sincere appreciation to the USC Board of Trustees, with whom I have worked so closely.
I look forward to seeing you out and about in the coming months. As always, Fight On!
With gratitude,
Carol L. Folt
President
Robert C. Packard President's Chair