Growing up near LAX in the Westchester neighborhood of Los Angeles, Charles Isham '65, MBA '72 always wanted to graduate from a top-tier university so that his degree would be recognized and respected. To save money, he first enrolled at Santa Monica City College and then transferred to USC to major in economics.
Although he looks back fondly on his undergraduate years—like taking a Renaissance literature class that introduced him to the beauty and history of Florence, Italy—Isham still had to work two jobs to put himself through school. Balancing the demands of school and work wasn't easy, but he made time to take full advantage of everything USC had to offer.
"I took a course in cosmology and would go to a small planetarium on top of Bovard. It was absolutely fascinating."
After graduating, Isham first worked in the aerospace industry before going into real estate, investing in Westside commercial properties and apartment buildings. Later, he donated one of his Santa Monica apartment buildings to USC in exchange for a life annuity. It turned out to be a shrewd investment; the income generated by the life annuity has far exceeded earnings from the rental property. Nevertheless, it proved a win for USC: Isham's windfall enabled him to make a life pledge to establish a scholarship for USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences undergraduates studying economics.
"I wanted to make sure that students in need would not the feel the same financial burden I experienced as an undergrad," he explains.
This scholarship fund covers 50% of tuition expenses for recipients—and teaches them a valuable lesson about economics.
"It's important that they earn their education like I did," says Isham, who returned to USC in the 1970s to pursue an MBA at the USC Marshall School of Business, then known as the Graduate School of Business Administration. He's also a former member of the USC Dornsife Economics Leadership Council.
Isham's generosity did not end with the scholarship fund; he also made a gift to endow the Charles A. Isham Assistant Professor of Economics chair. For him, it's about building a legacy through philanthropy.
"Long after I'm gone, the chair and scholarship will remain."