University of Southern California

Chairman and CEO Byron Allen founded Allen Media Group (Entertainment Studios) in 1993. After starting the company, Byron Allen set out to produce low-cost non-fiction television programming. The first show, Entertainers with Byron Allen, featured interviews between Allen and celebrities. The company was then able to move into court shows and scripted programming at the turn of the century. From there, Allen Media Group successfully launched eight 24-hour HD television networks serving nearly 300 million subscribers.

After graduating from USC, Ward went on to achieve two historic firsts: She is the first Black woman to serve as both a flight instructor for the U.S. Air Force and as a captain flying for a commercial airline.

Ward trained to become a pilot at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock, Texas. In addition to being the only female graduate in her class, she became the first Black woman to receive a fighter pilot rating. However, because women were banned at the time from flying fighter jets and bombers, Ward instead trained male students to operate the two-seater, 5,000-pound T-37 jets.

In 1992, Ward moved from active to reserve duty and joined United Airlines, where she continues to fly several times a month in addition to teaching pilots in a flight simulator that artificially simulates aircraft flight in various environments and conditions. In 2010, she received the USC Alumni Association’s Alumni Merit Award in recognition of her groundbreaking achievements.

Watkins was ranked the number one recruit in her class by ESPN and earned national high school player of the year honors as a senior at Sierra Canyon. In her first season at USC, Watkins was named a unanimous first-team All-American and won the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award. She received national freshman of the year recognition and set the NCAA Division I freshman scoring record.

Watkins has won two gold medals with the United States at the youth international level. She was named Most Valuable Player of the 2022 FIBA Under-17 World Cup and the 2021 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship.

A passionate volunteer and alumni leader, JaBari helped re-establish the BAA’s USC Legacy Through Leadership mentorship program and has served as a mentor and scholarship reader for the USC Black Alumni Association. He held numerous leadership roles with the USC Alumni Club of West Los Angeles, including Membership Chair, Vice President, and President, and later served as the inaugural Chair of the USC Alumni Association Los Angeles Regional Board. In recognition of his exceptional volunteer service, he received the Widney Alumni Volunteer Award.

His leadership extends across the university through service with the USC Staff Assembly, where he served as Vice President, Transportation Chair, and inaugural Chair of the Scholarships and Awards Committee, helping establish the Staff Assembly Staff Scholarship Program and contributing to the creation of the Lincoln Riley Staff Scholarship Award. JaBari also served as the inaugural Chair of the USC Annenberg Staff Council and currently serves on the USC Department of Public Safety Community Advisory Board and USC University Club Board. He has served as a mentor in the Dornsife Gateway Internship Program since its inception.