Programs and Partners

USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study

Located in its own quarters on the second floor of Doheny Memorial Library, the USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study offers a series of conversational encounters intended to intensify polymathic (integrated interdisciplinary) awareness.  Conversations and other forms of presentation will include faculty, junior faculty, postdoctoral scholars, graduate students, and undergraduates.  These discussions are anchored in and structured by the Four Quadrants of Polymathic Inquiry: critical and integrative thinking, study of the great polymaths, tapestry, and communication.

L.A. as Subject

L.A. as Subject is a research alliance dedicated to preserving and improving access to the archival material of Los Angeles history. Much of the city’s history is preserved in libraries, museums, and other cultural institutions. Other valuable and unique collections – those that reveal the stories of neighborhoods, families, and influential Angelenos – are scattered across Southern California, curated by smaller institutions and individual enthusiasts. With an online directory of more than 230 separate collections, L.A. as Subject ensures that researchers know what materials are available, where they are located, and how to access them.

ONE Archives Foundation

Founded in 1952 as ONE Inc., the publisher of ONE Magazine, the ONE Archives Foundation is the oldest active LGBTQ organization in the United States. In 2010, the ONE Archives Foundation deposited its vast collection of LGBTQ historical materials with the USC Libraries. Today, the organization is dedicated to promoting this important resource through diverse activities including educational initiatives, fundraising, and range of public programs.

Scripter Awards

Established in 1988, the USC Libraries Scripter Award is an honor bestowed annually by the Friends of the USC Libraries in recognition of the best adaptation of the printed word into film, and is given to both the author and screenwriter. By honoring the literary artistry and collaborative process of turning a book into a screenplay and ultimately into a film, this unique award acknowledges the full spectrum of the writers' creative process.

The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

Founded in 1897 at the University of Maine, The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (PKP) is one of the nation's oldest and largest honor societies and is a charter member of the Association of College Honor Societies. PKP's membership currently numbers more than 900,000 scholars from across the globe. Drawing membership from all divisions within the academic institution, PKP is the largest interdisciplinary honor society. It is in a unique position to cultivate consciousness of relationships by bringing together individuals from a variety of disciplines.

USC Shoah Foundation Visual History Archive

The Visual History Archive is USC Shoah Foundation’s online portal that allows users to search through and view more than 52,000 video testimonies of survivors and witnesses of genocide. Initially a repository of Holocaust testimony, the Archive expanded in April of 2013 to include 64 testimonies from the 1994 Rwandan Tutsi Genocide and again in April 2014 to include 12 testimonies from the 1937 Nanjing Massacre in China. All told, the testimonies have been conducted in 61 countries and 39 languages.

USC Digital Repository

The Repository Team draws upon the extensive resources of USC, particularly USC Libraries, the USC Digital Library, the USC Shoah Foundation and the USC Information Technology Services group.

Expertise includes:

  • Large-scale digitization
  • Information technology and security
  • Imaging services
  • Physical preservation
  • Metadata
  • Mass-conversion media preservation 
  • Cataloging systems
  • Design and deployment of software infrastructures
  • Flexible storage options