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PHOTO BY GUS RUELAS
A Gift That Makes History
USC Trustee Ronnie C. Chan MBA ’76 and his wife, Barbara, have a special appreciation for occupational therapy after watching their younger son go through the program at USC. Now, thanks to their generosity, countless other occupational science and occupational therapy students will share their knowledge around the world. The Chans’ $20 million naming gift, announced in September, represents the largest to any academic program in the history of occupational therapy. More than 70 years old, the program is now called the USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy. Their gift names the program in honor of Ronnie Chan’s mother, who worked for many years as a nurse. It also endows the Mrs. T.H. Chan Professorship in Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, which is held by Florence Clark, associate
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dean of the division. And there’s more: the new USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Occupational Therapy China Initiative will establish a partnership with a top Chinese university to create a graduate program in occupational therapy there. Ronnie Chan has extensive business experience in China. He’s the chairman of Hang Lung Group Limited and its subsidiary, Hang Lung Properties Limited, which stands among Hong Kong’s leading real estate companies. He also co-founded the Morningside Group, a privately held investment firm that owns and manages industrial and service companies throughout the United States and Asia. A longtime leader dedicated to helping USC partner with organizations around the Pacific Rim, Ronnie Chan established the USC Hong Kong Alumni Association and supported construction of the USC International Residential College,
where international students have the opportunity to live and learn side by side with their American classmates. He also led efforts to raise money for the International Plaza at the Ronald Tutor Campus Center—rallying support from USC alumni in Asia—and donated toward the plaza’s building fund. The Chans have two children who graduated from USC: Adriel ’04 majored in international relations, while Adley ’06, ’07, MA ’08, OTD ’12 went on to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in occupational therapy after earning his bachelor’s degree in sociology in 2006. Adley Chan recently joined the division as a clinical faculty member. Having grown up in Hong Kong, Adley Chan is passionate about enhancing occupational therapy education and practice in Asia. “Although there are already several occupational therapy degree programs in China, and a number of outside
universities have established relationships with Chinese partners to bring occupational therapy education to parts of China, USC has the potential to help expand the spread of occupational therapy in China on a larger scale,” he says. “Beyond China, the whole of East Asia needs well-trained occupational therapists,” Ronnie Chan adds. “USC has a very strong presence and reputation in this part of world, so the potential for the university to set the standard there—just as it’s done in the United States— is huge.” JESSICA RAYMOND
ABOVE: From left, C. L. Max Nikias, Barbara Chan, Mrs. T.H. Chan, Ronnie Chan, Adley Chan and Adriel Chan.
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