Giving

School of Law Receives $1 Million Gift from the Vorsatz Family, Andersen, and the Andersen Foundation

by Matthew Hose, School of Law

Mark and Liz Vorsatz, together with Andersen and the Andersen Foundation, recently contributed $1 million in support of the USF School of Law graduate tax programs. Mr. Vorsatz is the Chairman and CEO of Andersen, and served as the law school’s 2019 E. L. Wiegand Fellow. The gift comes on the heels of a milestone academic year in the years-long collaboration between the company and USF Law, with 60 Andersen employees obtaining graduate tax degrees from USF, and an additional 130 currently enrolled, 40% of them based internationally.

The $1 million donation also marks a significant leap forward in Changing the World From Here: Campaign for the University of San Francisco, as it will open doors to create greater opportunities for students in the School of Law. 

“Our synergistic partnership with Andersen continues to grow,” said Susan Freiwald, Dean of the School of Law. “We are honored that Andersen and the Vorsatz family value our partnership and program, and their generous gift helps USF Law maintain the highest level of legal taxation education.”

For close to a decade, many of Andersen’s 6,000 associates worldwide have had the opportunity to enroll in USF Law’s graduate tax programs through flexible, online classes, and with the firm funding tuition.

“This partnership is a vital component to developing our employees, who get the opportunity to master their understanding of the field under the guidance of esteemed faculty members like Daniel Lathrope and Joshua Rosenberg,” Mr. Vorsatz said. “The USF Law graduate tax degrees provide a key differentiator for our professionals and we support the law school’s efforts to enhance and expand the program.” 

Professors Lathrope and Rosenberg have inspired numerous law students to follow careers in taxation throughout their distinguished careers.  Lathrope, the academic director of the graduate tax program, is the E .L. Wiegand Distinguished Professor in Tax. Rosenberg, who has taught at the law school for more than 35 years, also has expertise in alternative dispute resolution and human behavior and psychology. Both professors have written scholarly articles and treatises on taxation and are the co-author of the nation’s leading casebooks in corporate tax, partnership tax, and the taxation of business enterprises.  

Mark and Liz Vorsatz’s ties to USF go beyond the professional. Their daughter, Tory, is a EdD candidate in the School of Education, and Mark’s father and brothers all graduated from USF.

Additionally, Frank Cassidy LLM ‘16, Partner and Managing Director of Andersen’s San Francisco Office, recently joined USF Law’s Board of Counselors, the group of experienced lawyers and professionals who provide critical advice to the dean on questions of strategy and sources of funding.

This landmark gift to the School of Law is part of Changing the World From Here: Campaign for the University of San Francisco, a $300 million comprehensive campaign to reinvent Jesuit education in the heart of San Francisco. The campaign has the goal to raise $300 million for scholarships and financial aid, programs, faculty, and new learning spaces.  

Learn more about how you can participate in Changing the World From Here: Campaign for the University of San Francisco, and how you can support the School of Law at USF.