The winter holidays may be well behind us, but the spirit of giving has not totally left Columbia just yet.
A $1 million gift from James K. Copenhaver, a former USC bands director for more than 30 years, will fund four new scholarships for deserving, passionate students at USC’s School of Music. This news could not be more welcome. Despite USC’s current battles for state funding, Copenhaver has shown that one fact of the USC community remains resoundingly true: Individuals closest to this university — from faculty to staff to alumni — are willing to go the extra mile and beyond for a school that contributes so much to both its students and its state.
There is another lesson behind Copenhaver’s donation, though. A new business school, a new law school, a new aerospace center — new facilities seem to be weighing heavy on the minds of USC administrators. They are right to focus on updating our campus, but they seem to have forgotten what Copenhaver seems well aware of: Scholarships provide the sole means by which many students come to this school. They are a direct investment in students, whereas capital projects serve the prestige of a campus first and students a close second.
In USC’s continued push for adequate and sustainable resources, more focus should be made to push private donors toward creating scholarships. A lasting legacy doesn’t come from a name attached to a building; it comes from the memory of a handful of students whose lives and careers were realized through someone’s contribution. The students who take part in Copenhaver’s scholarship will not soon forget the man who made their educations possible. That sense of caring and investment in a student’s life is well worth a hundred business schools.