2025 College and University Fund Conference
Date: December 12, 2025
Location: University of Southern California
On Friday, December 12, 2025, the Social Science Research Council will convene institutional leaders from the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences, together with leaders of philanthropic organizations and other research partners, for a conference titled “On Earning Trust: The Case for the Social Sciences.”
Universities are under immense pressure to demonstrate their value (and their values) to constituencies including governments, students, parents, and civil society. Recent changes in federal funding are symptomatic of, and increase, this pressure. In this context, this conference will explore how social science can illuminate the challenge of earning and sustaining trust—in universities, research, leadership, and institutions. Across disciplines and continents, the event will examine how trust is built, eroded, and restored through credible action, transparency, and shared moral purpose.
This year’s conference will be hosted by the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. We will open with a welcome reception on the evening of Thursday, December 11, followed by a full-day conference on the USC campus on Friday, December 12. The conference will be preceded by a Deans’ Breakfast on the morning of December 12, for deans overseeing the social and behavioral sciences. And on Saturday, December 13, William Deverell, USC Dornsife Divisional Dean for the Social Sciences, will lead an exclusive guided tour of the Huntington Library and Gardens (tour capacity is limited; early RSVP is encouraged). Registration is open to attendees from the member institutions of the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences.
For more information about the conference or the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences, please contact Lisa Marshall, Chief of Staff, at marshall@ssrc.org.