LOS ANGELES _ On a rainy day in late November, the billionaire chairman of the University of Southern California's board of trustees sat in the front row of a classroom as one female student after another described how the university had failed women.
"USC appears to be more concerned with protecting their brand or reputation than protecting their students," said business major Cristina Jones.
Sexual assault victims were referred to a clinic 45 minutes away for treatment. Harassment was swept under the rug. The people running USC had little grasp of the problems of women and people of color.
"The board of trustees is mainly white men who are of the upper class," undergraduate Imani Davis said.
At the close of the presentation, part of a gender studies course, board Chairman Rick Caruso applauded the students, gave them his personal email address and encouraged them to keep speaking out.
"As students, you do need to hold us accountable and you need to hold me accountable for making change," Caruso said.
It was a remarkable moment that would have seemed impossible at USC seven months ago.
One of Southern California's most important private institutions is in a state of profound upheaval in the wake of allegations that its longtime campus gynecologist, George Tyndall, committed sexual misconduct against hundreds of women over several decades. Tyndall had been the subject of complaints from students and staff since at least the 1990s but continued practicing until 2016, when a frustrated nurse went to the rape crisis center. Administrators and attorneys worked out a secret deal with the gynecologist that allowed him to leave USC with a financial package and a clean record with the medical board. The doctor has denied any wrongdoing.
The costs of the scandal are steep. USC lost the president, C.L. Max Nikias, who had overseen record-setting fundraising and played a central role in the university's meteoric rise in academic stature. Now USC must find a new leader and confront a tarnished reputation, diminished fundraising and mounting legal bills. It must also heal divisions on its rich and powerful board, where some remain bitter that Nikias was forced out.
Many see opportunities amid the challenges. To them, the Tyndall scandal confirmed a nagging sense that USC's climb in renown and wealth had come at the expense of ethical leadership and sound management. They regard this period as a chance to repair a broken culture.
Examples of wrenching change have abounded in recent months, starting with USC's interim president, Wanda Austin, the first woman and person of color to lead the university. She ousted the popular business school dean this fall over his handling of harassment and discrimination complaints, a move many faculty members, donors and alumni condemned as hasty and shortsighted.
"I haven't found one decision I've made where I've gotten unanimous support," Austin said in a recent interview. "We have to send a message that ethics are first and foremost. ... I feel like we are making progress."
