The Los Angeles City Planning Commission unanimously has approved a $250 million apartment and retail complex in South Los Angeles after the developer and community activists reached agreement on a series of community benefits.

In addition to developing a six-story building with more than 900 apartments and 34,000 square feet of retail, the building also will set aside space for a medical clinic and hire community residents for construction and permanent jobs.

Known as The Lorenzo, the project will be built on the site of land previously owned by Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital at the corner of Flower and 23rd streets. The developer is expected to break ground later this year.

The project now will go before the city council and city redevelopment officials.

A New Way to Say Thank You

Lisa Rayburn-Parks, administrative services coordinator in the Department of Sociology, is appearing in a new staff recognition video at www.usc.edu/dept/adminops/thankyoustaff/story.html

She has worked at USC just over 20 years as an administrative support staff member in several departments.

Trojans who would like to share their stories as a USC staff or faculty member can contact Jandy Stone at jandysto@usc.edu or (213) 821-8129.

Jadvar Receives Nuclear Medicine Award

Hossein Jadvar, associate professor of radiology and biomedical engineering and the director of radiology research at USC, has received a Distinguished Scientist Award from the Western Regional Society of Nuclear Medicine.

UCLA associate professor Daniel Silverman was co-winner of the award.

USC Marshall Undergraduates Meet Warren Buffett

Twenty USC Marshall School of Business undergraduates recently met legendary investor and philanthropist Warren E. Buffett in Omaha, Neb.

The trip marked the fourth time that Alpha Kappa Psi, a coed business fraternity, has organized a visit with the founder and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., a company with interests in life insurance, annuity sales and sales of jewelry.

The students attended a question and answer session with Buffett, learning about his views on the economy, investment strategy and management style.

“The trip was a great learning experience,” said Saya Taniguchi, one of its organizers.

USC Marshall students were joined by peers from seven other universities, including Columbia and Dartmouth.

Human Subjects Protection Program Renewed

The Council of the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP) recently voted to reaccredit the USC Human Subjects Protection Program for another five years.

Receiving its first accreditation in 2007, USC ranks among an elite group of institutions internationally renowned as promoting ethical and professional standards in the conduct of human subjects research.

The accreditation process included two major phases: preparation of a 1,300+ page-written application addressing each of the 73 AAHRPP accreditation standards and a site visit by a team of four professionals from other accredited institutions.

The Office for the Human Research Protection Program conducted its site visit to USC last March, prepping each of the 90 interviewees handpicked by AAHRPP from medical, social and behavioral faculty, staff and students and from all four review boards.

Findings from the site visit report were minimal, which indicate the ongoing commitment of the USC Human Subject Protection Program to continuously monitor and improve its human subjects research policies and practices.

More stories about: Norris Foundation