University of Southern California

Oscar Munoz is a USC Trustee, the former CEO and chairman of United Airlines (UAL) and the author of the bestselling memoir, Turnaround Time: Uniting an Airline and Its Employees in the Friendly Skies.

A widely revered business executive with decades of leadership experience, Munoz made history in 2015, when he joined UAL as the first Latino CEO of a major U.S. airline. Under his leadership, UAL experienced rapid improvement, delivering industry-leading operational reliability and sustained financial success, its stock value increasing 54 percent during his tenure. Munoz formally retired as UAL’s chairman in 2021. 

Prior to joining UAL, Munoz served as the president and COO of the North American rail-based transportation supplier CSX Corp. From 2001 to 2003, he served as the chief financial officer and vice president of consumer services at AT&T. 

Munoz currently serves on the boards of Salesforce, CBRE, TelevisaUnivision and Archer Aviation. He is also a Brookings Institution trustee, an independent trustee for Fidelity, and a member of the Pentagon’s Defense Board.

As a first-generation college graduate from an immigrant family, he founded, along with his wife, the Oscar and Cathy Munoz Pave It Forward Foundation to raise scholarship funds for first-generation students. Since 2022, the foundation has partnered with the American Heart Association to create its Social Impact Fund, which provides financial grants and low-interest loans for evidence-based, community-driven work that addresses heart health inequality.

A USC Marshall School of Business alum, Munoz earned an MBA from Pepperdine University’s Graziadio Business School.

Martha M. Escutia is driven by a passionate belief that preparation and opportunity should be equitably available to all. As the first to graduate from high school, college and law school in her immigrant family, she is living proof that education is America’s great equalizer. 

During her 14-year legislative career representing California’s 30^th State Senate District (1992-2006), Escutia became the first woman to chair both the Assembly and Senate Judiciary Committees. She distinguished herself by developing innovative solutions to promote broadband access; encourage environmental remedies in transportation and energy infrastructure; and ensure that the judiciary was accessible to all litigants. For her exemplary service, Escutia received the California Supreme Court’s Commitment to Justice Award.

Prior to joining USC in 2013, Escutia focused on her legal practice. From 2007 to 2010, she was a partner at the national law firm of Manatt Phelps and Phillips, and also served as legislative counsel for Proposition 7, an initiative to jumpstart California’s Renewable Energy Portfolio. Escutia later became the founding partner of The Senators’ Firm, specializing in legal and regulatory advice.

As USC’s vice president for state government relations and special counsel, Escutia provides strategic advice to advance USC’s institutional mission and academic interests. In addition, she is a lecturer in law at the USC Gould School of Law.

A member of several nonprofit boards, Escutia also established mock trial programs in several East L.A. high schools, where she coaches students to compete in competitions.

Escutia graduated magna cum laude from the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy.