Technology and Internet entrepreneur David Bohnett, a member of the USC Board of Trustees, has pledged $15 million to the university to endow a “residential college” focused on social justice and community service, the university announced Wednesday.
The David C. Bohnett Residential College will be one of eight residential colleges planned at the 1.25-million-square-foot USC Village, which is being developed just north of the university’s main campus. The colleges are designed to be living and learning environments focused on specific themes with smaller groups of students, to give them the feel of a small college in the heart of a major university.
Bohnett’s gift will also establish a fund at the USC Price School of Public Policy to support a fellowship in public policy with the Los Angeles County Boardof Supervisors. It will also endow a chair in social entrepreneurship at the USC Marshall School of Business.
“David Bohnett is a visionary philanthropist who has consistently demonstrated his commitment to public service,” USC President C.L. Max Nikias said. “By empowering society through the next generation of leaders, and enriching civic spirit through understanding, Mr. Bohnett is a true champion of social justice. His generous gift underscores his enduring passion for USC, and will create a living and learning environment that nurtures personal growth through community action.”
Bohnett founded the e-commerce company GeoCities.com in 1994. He sold the company to Yahoo! four years later and established the David Bohnett Foundation and the Baroda Ventures investment firm that focuses on technology start-up firms.
—City News Service