As part of the university’s 142nd commencement ceremony, USC President Carol Folt will award honorary degrees to three individuals who have made significant contributions to film, the arts and culture. This year’s honorees, selected by a committee of students and faculty, are filmmaker and alumnus Jon M. Chu; alumna, arts champion and former chair of the National Endowment for the Arts Maria Rosario Jackson; and writer and environmental activist Terry Tempest Williams.
Jon M. Chu is a renowned filmmaker known for his visually stunning blockbuster films. Most recently, Chu directed Universal Pictures’ critically acclaimed Wicked, which garnered 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and two wins. His memoir, Viewfinder, was released in Summer 2024 and highlights his journey from growing up in Silicon Valley to transitioning to Hollywood and helming major studio projects. Chu’s 2018 film Crazy Rich Asians became a global phenomenon, earning multiple award nominations and ranking among the top 10 highest-grossing romantic comedies of all time. It was the first contemporary studio film in over 25 years to feature an all-Asian cast, making history for Asian American representation in Hollywood.
Photo by Sophy Holland for Universal Pictures
Maria Rosario Jackson has dedicated her career as a researcher, scholar, educator, administrator and policymaker to understanding and elevating arts, culture and design as critical elements of healthy communities. She is the first African American and the first Mexican American woman to have led the National Endowment for the Arts. Prior to becoming the NEA’s chair, she served on the National Council on the Arts for nearly a decade.
Photo by Aaron Jay Young
Terry Tempest Williams is an acclaimed American writer, educator, environmental activist and public lands advocate. She has authored more than 20 books, including Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place, a classic in environmental literature. Williams has testified before Congress on women’s health, been a guest at the White House, camped in the remote wildernesses of Utah and Alaska, and worked as a “barefoot artist” in Rwanda.
Photo by Williams Zoë Rodriguez