David H. Dornsife (born c. 1944) is an American businessman and philanthropist from California. He serves as the Chairman of the

Herrick Corporation The Herrick Corporation is a steel corporation headquartered in Stockton, California, USA. The company has additional factories in San Bernardino, California, San Bernardino, Texas, Mississippi, and Thailand. History The Herrick Corporation was f ...

, a steel corporation. With his wife, Dana Dornsife, he donated US$200 million to his alma mater, the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California, where the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences was named in their honor. The Dornsifes also support charitable causes in Africa.

Early life

David Harold Dornsife was born circa 1944. Both his parents, Harold and Ester Dornsife, graduated from the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles, California; they were also generous donors. Dornsife graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Southern California in 1965. At USC, he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order fraternity.

Career

Dornsife started his career at

Granite Construction Granite Construction Inc. is a civil construction company and aggregate producer, a member of the S&P 600 Index based and founded in Watsonville, California , and is the parent corporation of Granite Construction Company. The company is both a ...

in Watsonville, California. He also worked for M.M. Sundt Construction in Tucson, Arizona. Dornsife joined the

, a steel corporation, in 1977. He serves as its chairman. Until 2008 he served as the Chairman of the

Gillig Corporation Gillig (formerly Gillig Brothers) is an American designer and Bus manufacturing, manufacturer of buses. The company headquarters, along with its manufacturing operations, is located in Livermore, California (in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay ...

, a manufacturer of transit buses.

Philanthropy

Dornsife serves on the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, the University of Southern California. He also serves as chairman of the Board of the USC

Brain and Creativity Institute Brain and Creativity Institute (BCI) is a research unit of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences at the University of Southern California, which aims to "gather new knowledge about the human emotions, decision-making, memory, and communication ...

. In 2011, Dornsife and his wife donated $200 million to USC. As a result, the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences was renamed in their honor. They also pledged US$2.5 million to the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business at

Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Art, S ...

. In 2015, they pledged another $45 million to the

Drexel University School of Public Health The Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health is a part of the Drexel University Health Sciences network of schools. The Dornsife School of Public Health was located in downtown Philadelphia from its inception until December 2013. It has s ...

; in response, the school has officially changed its name to the Dornsife School of Public Health. With his wife, Dornsife has made charitable contributions to World Vision, whereby they support bringing water, sanitation and hygiene to 25 countries in Africa. In 2016 they received a World Vision Water Warrior Award for helping to bring water, sanitation and hygiene to 10,066,000 people since 1990. Additionally, they serve as council members of Yosemite Conservancy. In late 2021, Dana and David Dornsife donated $10 million to

Whitworth University Whitworth University is a private, Christian university affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Spokane, Washington. Founded in 1890, Whitworth enrolls nearly 3,000 students and offers more than 100 graduate and undergraduate ...

in Spokane, Washington to fund the Dana & David Dornsife Health Sciences Building. This state-of-the-art 38,000 square-foot new facility will house Whitworth's

Doctor of Physical Therapy A Doctor of Physical Therapy or Doctor of Physiotherapy (DPT) degree is a qualifying degree in physical therapy. In the United States, it is considered a graduate-level first professional degree or doctorate degree for professional practice. In the ...

(DPT), Doctor of

Occupational Therapy Occupational therapy (OT) is a global healthcare profession. It involves the use of assessment and intervention to develop, recover, or maintain the meaningful activities, or ''occupations'', of individuals, groups, or communities. The field of ...

(OTD), and Master of Science (MS) in

Athletic Training Athletic training is an allied health care profession recognized by the American Medical Association (AMA)"What is an Athletic Trainer?". The Board of Certification Website. 2003. Athletic training is also recognized by the Health Resources Serv ...

graduate degree programs.

Personal life

David Dornsife is married to Dana Dornsife (née L'Archevesque), an interior designer and philanthropist. Dana is also the president and founder of Lazarex Cancer Foundation, a non-profit organization that helps advanced-stage cancer patients find and access treatment through FDA clinical trials. They have six children and reside in Danville, California.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dornsife, David H. Living people People from Danville, California Marshall School of Business alumni Businesspeople from California American steel industry businesspeople American chairpersons of corporations Philanthropists from California Year of birth missing (living people)