Dr. Sharon Nazarian: Bridging Worlds — Philanthropy, Education, and Combating Antisemitism

Dr. Sharon Nazarian is a prominent philanthropist, educator, and advocate whose multifaceted career spans academia, foreign policy, and community leadership. Born in Iran, she immigrated to the United States with her family due to the impending 1979 Iranian Revolution, settling in Los Angeles at the age of 10. Nazarian’s background as an Iranian-American Jewish immigrant has profoundly shaped her worldview and professional trajectory.

With a doctorate in Political Science and extensive experience in international relations, Nazarian has dedicated her life to education, diplomacy, and philanthropic endeavors. She played a pivotal role in establishing her family’s foundation, focusing on education as a catalyst for societal change. Her work includes founding the Center for Israel Studies at UCLA and conducting fact-finding missions to various countries to improve U.S. foreign policy engagement.

In 2017, following the hateful White Supremacist marches in Charlottesville, Nazarian redirected her efforts towards combating global antisemitism, joining the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in an executive capacity. She is currently President of the Y&S Nazarian Family Foundation and she continues to be a vocal advocate for Jewish students on college campuses and works tirelessly to promote understanding and combat hate in all its forms. Nazarian’s unique perspective as an immigrant, academic, and philanthropist allows her to bridge diverse worlds and make significant impacts in education, community building, and the fight against discrimination.

Q: Your background is quite diverse, with influences from Iranian and Jewish cultures, as well as your experiences in academia and foreign policy. How have these elements combined to shape your current professional and philanthropic work?

Dr. Sharon Nazarian: My background has indeed been a significant factor in shaping who I am today. About a decade ago, I found myself operating in three distinct worlds: philanthropy, academia, and foreign policy. In philanthropy, I had established our family foundation with my parents and siblings. In academia, I was teaching as an adjunct professor and had founded the Center for Israel Studies at UCLA. And in foreign policy, I was conducting fact-finding missions to places like Afghanistan, Iraq, North Korea, Cuba, and Tunisia, trying to understand how our democracy could engage more effectively with the rest of the world.

The turning point in my career came with the events in Charlottesville in 2017. When those people held tiki torches and chanted, “Jews will not replace us,” it crystallized everything for me. As an immigrant whose parents brought us here fleeing antisemitism and extremism, I felt compelled to act. I realized that I could bring together all my skills – as an educator, a philanthropist, and someone who understands diplomacy – to combat global antisemitism.

This led me to join the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in 2017, which was probably one of the most important turning points in my career. It allowed me to use my background as an Iranian American, as an immigrant, and as a Jewish member of our community to fight against hate and promote understanding.

Q: You’ve mentioned the difference between charity and philanthropy. Can you elaborate on that and how it has influenced your approach to giving?

A: Coming from Iran, where philanthropy isn’t as developed, the concept of charity was deeply ingrained in us. In our Jewish schools, we had tzedakah boxes, and from a very young age, we were taught the importance of giving. In Iran, if you were well-off, it was your obligation to help others, starting with your family members and extending to orphans and those with health issues.

The shift from charity to philanthropy came when my father approached me about giving back to USC, where all four of his children had studied. He didn’t fully understand the difference between private and public institutions; he just knew he had an obligation to give back. That’s when I realized we needed to approach this strategically.

We did a deep dive into education, interviewing every family member to understand their interests and values. We created a proper strategic plan, moving from the idea of charity to true philanthropy. This meant not just writing checks, but having a vision, understanding what we were trying to achieve, and how we could move the needle on important issues.

This strategic approach to giving has been very meaningful to me. It’s allowed us to develop and enact my parents’ legacy while they’re still alive. My father, who passed away two years ago, got to see everything he wanted to build come to fruition. I believe that his philanthropic work was probably the most meaningful and proudest achievement of his life.

Q: Given the deeply felt global issues we’re facing, what do you consider your most important role right now?

A: It’s really a combination of all my experiences and roles coming together. After October 7, I would say the fight against Jew-hatred is front and center for me personally. What has happened to the world since October 7, what has happened to people of Israel and to Jewish communities from Australia across Europe, across Latin America, across Africa, North Africa, South Africa, and the Middle East – this is a watershed moment in our 4,000-year history as Jews.

And second and deeply intertwined with that first role is the protection of our democracy in America. It’s too precious to take for granted. As an immigrant, I’m acutely aware of how fragile these freedoms can be. I’m concerned about the erosion of trust in our democratic institutions. Without a safe and secure democracy, we as a minority can never be safe, as my family and I experienced in our country of birth.

The second focus is combating antisemitism, which I see as a leading indicator of societal problems. When antisemitism is on the rise, it means that society is headed in the wrong direction. I’m trying to bring awareness to this issue, not just within the Jewish community, but to all segments of society – climate activists, LGBTQ+ rights advocates, feminists, Latinos, Asian Americans. I’m saying that this is an assault on everything we hold dear as minorities and as important segments of our society.

We need to come together because the division and antagonism we’re experiencing in our country, often fueled by bad actors like Russia, China, and Iran, is not healthy for our society. We’re really headed in the wrong direction, and that’s where my focus is right now.

Q: You recently wrote an article about Jewish students returning to college campuses amidst rising antisemitism. Can you speak more about this issue?

A: Even before October 7, we were seeing concerning trends on college campuses. There was increasing activism isolating Jewish students, telling them they had to “check their Zionism at the door.” We saw faculty bringing these issues into classrooms where they weren’t relevant, and administrators not taking antisemitic incidents seriously.

October 7 essentially took all of that and scaled it to an unprecedented level. I was teaching a class on global trends in antisemitism at UCLA when it happened, and I saw firsthand how difficult it became for students to talk about Jewish victimhood alongside Palestinian victimhood. There was this binary thinking that both couldn’t be victims simultaneously.

What we witnessed last year on campuses was truly a watershed moment. Universities showed how far hate would be allowed to go, and many administrators were at best unprepared and at worst willing accomplices. It’s heartbreaking to see.

As a community, we’ve had to use every means necessary to address this, from funders pulling out donations (which I’m not a big fan of) to repurposing philanthropic dollars to support Jewish studies, Israel studies, and centers for the study of antisemitism. We need to stay engaged with these institutions and be very clear about how we want our philanthropic dollars invested.

 Q: What do you believe is philanthropy’s role in addressing issues in higher education, media polarization, and the spread of misinformation?

A: I think philanthropy has a huge role to play, and in some ways, an outsized role. We have to understand the responsibility that comes with that. On one hand, we need to invest in those who are courageous enough to call out what’s happening, despite the social pressures they may face.

As philanthropists, we have a seat at the table. We are important stakeholders in what happens not only on university campuses but across our society. We have the privilege and responsibility to demand change from leaders who are not stepping up, who don’t understand this moment or cannot meet it adequately.

We also have the ability to invest in those parts of our campuses that are really in need of further understanding. For example, we need to better understand the role of technology and social media in dividing our society. We need to explore where legislation can play a role, despite our commitment to the First Amendment.

As donors and philanthropists, we have to use our dollars in a very targeted way. We have the most important resource – money – along with influence and access. With one phone call, we can reach any university president and potentially make a real difference. We have to use that responsibility judiciously, but also to propel different parts of our society forward, saying we need to do better because we’re headed in the wrong direction.

Q: Your foundation is instrumental in backing education as a catalyst for societal change. What do you see as the biggest impact philanthropy can have on promoting education?

A: The values my parents instilled in me are the tenets upon which we’ve built our philanthropic work: family, giving back, building bridges, investing in impactful parts of our community, and passing this gift to the next generation.

A perfect example of this is our investment in the performing arts center at Cal State Northridge, now named after my mother, the Soraya. This embodies who we are as a family. CSUN serves a diverse community of first-time university attendees, immigrants, and minority communities. By investing in this beautiful building, we’re telling that community that they deserve the best performances, the most beautiful architecture, right in the heart of their own community.

CSUN and the Cal State universities are engines of growth for California. Their graduates stay in California and become part of the state’s economic engine. So we’re investing in exactly the right demographic that we know will ensure the continued success of the state.

This investment has brought so much joy to my parents. My mother regularly encounters students and alumni who express their gratitude for the building. There’s no better reward for our investment than hearing these stories.

As a Jewish immigrant family who lost everything in Iran and rebuilt from scratch in America, being able to give back in this way is profound. It’s a blessing that comes with responsibility, and it’s something we’re instilling in our next generations. It’s about appreciating the opportunities this country has given us and feeling a responsibility to contribute to its continued success and beauty.

Q: If you were hosting a small dinner party and inviting two or three other noted California philanthropists currently making an impact, who would you invite?

A: That’s a great question! I’d invite three people who I know personally and deeply respect. They’re all role models to me in different ways.

First, I’d invite Haim and Cheryl Saban. The Saban family has done so much across a wide range of areas, from medicine and children’s health to Israel and fighting antisemitism. Haim and my father were good friends, identifying with each other as self-made men who experienced antisemitism, came to this country, and became incredibly successful. What they’ve done with their philanthropy is tremendous.

Second, I’d invite Wallis Annenberg. The Annenbergs have done so much for our city and community, especially in the arts and community building. Wallis has been a visionary, and I’m a big fan of her foundation. She has a clarity of vision, knows what she wants to do, and is there for her community, moving the needle in meaningful and measurable ways.

Finally, I’d invite Richard and May Ziman, trustees of the Gilbert Foundation. They’re very important in the L.A. community, as well as in Israel and the Jewish world. Richard, in particular, is a true mentor to me. As someone who’s a trustee of somebody else’s money, he takes his responsibility to the Gilbert family very seriously. The impact they’re having in academia, in the Jewish world, in early childhood education, and in so many other spheres is remarkable.

What I admire about all these people is that they live their values and take their philanthropy very seriously. It’s never about ego or personal recognition for them. It’s always about bringing impactful change, understanding the needs of our communities, and showing up in real ways. That’s something I deeply respect and strive to emulate in my own philanthropic work.