Daniel “Dan” J. Epstein

Honorary Degrees
 
 


California State University San Marcos​​

Dan Epstein is the founder of the ConAm Group headquartered in San Diego. ConAm is among the top privately owned apartment management/ownership firms in the country, operating more than 50,000 apartments throughout the United States. He graduated from the University of Southern California (USC) in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in engineering.

Mr. Epstein is an exceptionally accomplished businessman who believes in giving back to his community. The Epstein Family Foundation's philanthropy extends throughout Southern California, including California State University San Marcos. The foundation's support has resulted in milestone achievements for the university and has inspired other community members to contribute. Mr. Epstein's philanthropy at CSU San Marcos began in 2016 when he contributed to the purchase of the university's first Steinway performance grand piano. This gift inspired the university to become an all-Steinway School, a designation realized in April 2018 and reserved for fewer than 200 institutions worldwide.

In 2017, the Epstein family generously gifted CSU San Marcos with $1 million to facilitate an expansion project for the university's Veterans Center and to create the first program endowment for veterans. In honor of the family's gift, the center was renamed the Epstein Family Veterans Center. Mr. Epstein stated that his investment in veterans at CSU San Marcos is one of the most meaningful of his lifetime. He also believes that the university is uniquely and effectively serving the educational and personal needs of veterans, better than any other institution in the region. In 2018, the Epstein Family Foundation made a second $1 million commitment to CSU San Marcos to support the university's first comprehensive fundraising campaign, Forward Together. This gift supported Veteran Services, the Alliance to Accelerate Excellence in Education, ACE Scholars Services (serving former foster youth), music and scholarships.

Mr. Epstein's volunteer and board service includes the USC Board of Trustees, the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate Development, the Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute, the National Multi-Housing Council and the USC Viterbi School's Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. The Epstein Family Foundation recently supported USC with a gift of $10 million to enhance sports medicine research through the Epstein Family Center for Sports Medicine. Mr. Epstein was recently awarded USC's Alumni Achievement Award. In 1999, Ernst & Young named him San Diego's Entrepreneur of the Year for the real estate industry. 
 

In recognition of his significant accomplishments and transformational philanthropy, the Board of Trustees of the California State University and California State University San Marcos are proud to confer upon Daniel J. Epstein the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters.