LACCD (Los Angeles Community College District) President Sydney Kamlager-Dove and LMU (Loyola Marymount University) President Timothy Law Snyder, Ph.D., led a conversation about the academic partnership before a signing ceremony on Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017, at Los Angeles Harbor College in Wilmington.
Joining Dove and Snyder on the stage of the college’s Music Recital Hall were Chancellor Francisco Rodriguez; Tom Gutto, LMU’s director of Transfer Enrollment Services; and Robert Walsh, S.J., executive director of LMU’s Center for Catholic Education and transfer student Darlene Zarazu.
The agreement reads, “The purpose of this agreement is to strengthen the academic ties between Los Angeles Community College District and Loyola Marymount University in order to develop greater curricular continuity between the two institutions; to encourage more well-prepared students to transfer from Los Angeles Community College District to Loyola Marymount University; and to alleviate the concerns of students about course transferability and admission feasibility, as they prepare to transfer to and enroll at Loyola Marymount University.”
Dove shared more insight to the agreement by sharing, “often times many of the students that are attending community college are going because of financial reasons. They can’t afford to pay full cost to go to a four-year private university. This agreement affirms our commitment to making sure our students can transfer to any institution that they want to go to.” She continued, “it also shows LMU’s commitment making its educational experience available and accessible to the students that go to a community college.”
LACCD is the largest community college district in the nation, serving more than 250,000 students every year across a district that spans nearly 900 square miles. To guarantee admission to LMU, prospective students must meet GPA and unit requirements by the end of the fall term, and maintain that performance through the spring term of the application year. Some majors will have additional requirements, such as specific coursework or a higher GPA.
In addition to the fall admission guarantee, the agreement will allow LMU to provide to LACCD students access to campus tours and workshops, information on financial aid and scholarships, and transfer/pre-admission advisement.
LMU’s three- part mission includes the encouragement of learning, the education of the whole person, and the service of faith and the promotion of justice. During the conversation Snyder championed how the transfer admissions agreement aligns with the mission.
LACCD community colleges include Los Angeles City College, East Los Angeles College, Los Angeles Harbor College, Los Angeles Mission College, Los Angeles Pierce College, Los Angeles Southwest College, Los Angeles Trade-Tech College, Los Angeles Valley College, West Los Angeles College. LMU enrolls roughly 550 transfer students annually.
