W LOYOLAN
Ф
Ну
www. L A LO Y OLAN.com
EST.
1921
Your favorite restaurant Atheletes use their
off campus will be platform to help those
replacing your least in need,
favorite on campus!
Page 8 Pa9* 24
VOLUME 96 I ISSUE 27
Coleman’s approach to presidency
ASLMU President elect Alo
Coleman plans progress by
spreading LMU’s mission.
Mitchell Storey
News Intern
@LALoyolan
Alo Coleman was in Malone 112 when he
found out that he and his longtime friend,
Brenda Quintanilla a junior political science
and Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies major,
had been elected as the 2018-2019 ASLMU
president and vice-president, respectively.
When the announcement was made , Coleman,
a junior sociology and Asian and Pacific
Studies double major, described himself as
being at peace. In a bag next to him was his
grandfather’s Ula Fala, a traditional Samoan
chief’s necklace that is almost a century old.
He said he has always taken his ancestors
wherever he goes, attributing his existence to
them.
Coleman said that he and Quintanilla
didn’t plan to to run for office. In fact, they
only decided to register themselves as
candidates a few days before the submission
was due. Coleman does feel, though, that he
indirectly planned for presidency through
his participation in the LMU community.
He visited
Б
different states to share the
intercultural work LMU does on campus or
opened for Aloe Blacc and Bebe Rexha at
2016 Fallapalooza. Coleman said that all of
his experiences have informed the way he
decided to approach his tenure as president .
“It was one of those things where you don’t
really know that you were actually planning for
it until the time came ,” Coleman said.
Coleman and Quintanilla’s campaign
platform is rooted in reconnecting to LMU’s
mission statement. The pair noticed that even
though many of their fellow Lions lived out the
University’s mission, few of them knew what it
actually was.
Before he and Quintanilla could make any
progress or affect any real change, Coleman
said, they needed to find some common
ground with the student body that they could
stand on — they found this common ground in
the mission statement .
“It’s what separates us from other universities
and colleges and what truly makes us unique,”
Coleman said. “We used the framework of the
mission statement as a foundation for how we
would make a difference .”
The pair pledged to focus their platform
around breaking down the mission
statement into its three parts: the
encouragement of learning, the education
of the whole person and the service of faith
and the promotion of justice.
They used these three parts to show that by
committing to them, they could improve the
quality and scope of campus life.
Coleman used the first piece of the mission,
the, encouragement of Learning, as an
example. He wanted to encourage learning in
all areas of education and improve the dialogue
between the various social groups on campus.
“We plan to do this by humanizing and
diversifying ASLMU’s social media by
portraying Lions from all walks of life,”
Coleman said. “Through involvements such as
service organizations, sorority and fraternity
life, athletics or cultural clubs.”
For the full article, go to
laloyolan.com
Deported U.S.
veteran is given
citizenship
“[It] validates what I’ve always
felt in my heart,” said Hector
Barajas on his citizenship.
Kayan Tara
Asst. News Editor
@LALoyolan
Hector Barajas, a U.S. veteran who served
in the military for six years, was given
naturalized U.S. citizenship on April 13. After
being deported in 2004 and then again in
2010, California Gov. ferry Brown pardoned
Barajas in April 2017, clearing his path towards
citizenship, according to CNN.
“The citizenship only validates what I’ve
always felt in my heart : I’m a proud American
patriot,” Barajas said in a public statement on
April 13, according to NBC. “I believe I am no
less a good American for my mistake.”
In April of 2017, the Loyolan published
a special section under the title, “City of
Deportees," investigating immigration in
Tijuana, Mexico, which has been impacted
from U.S. deportations. The multimedia
package included several videos shot and
edited by De Colores trip leader, Antonio De
Loera-Brust (‘17), who interviewed Hector
Barajas in Tijuana regarding the immigration
crisis and U.S. deportations.
“I think Hector being granted citizenship
is increasingly significant; it’s an all too
rare example of there being justice in our
immigration system,” said Loera-Brust.
“While it’s just one small victory, coming in
the midst of a really kind of unprecedented
crackdown on all immigrants, even authorized
ones, I think it serves a reminder that we are
a nation of immigrants, that immigrants have
always contributed to our society, including in
See Citzenship | Page 3
Juliana Ferraro | Loyolan
Alo Coleman and Brenda Quintanilla, after being elected on March 22, 2018.
Dean of students to retire from
Dean Jeanne Ortiz will retire
in May and plans to teach
again by next spring.
Kayla Brogan
Asst. News Editor
@LALoyolan
The LMU community will say goodbye
to the dean of students and vice president
of student affairs, Jeanne Ortiz, at the
conclusion of this semester. Ortiz officially
announced her retirement from these
positions on Wednesday, April 3, according
to LMU News Week.
Ortiz has been a dean of students since
1988, and prior to that, a faculty member
for 10 years at previous institutions. She
originally worked in residential community
development with a background in urban
planning. As she was beginning her second
masters degree in architecture , she was invited
by the president of a previous university to
explore the administrative area in higher
education. Ortiz explained that this offer
completely changed her career track. She fell
in love with how students learned outside the
classroom and how significant their personal
development was to their college experience.
She then applied to a PhD program in higher
education.
Ortiz was drawn, in part to, LMU because
of the Jesuit values LMU upholds and
how the University opens up new modes
of communicating and engaging with
students.
“I just became a believer in Catholic
higher education. I felt like the depth,
meaning and genuineness of conversation
was much more authentic and substantial.
I love what can happen and the ethic of
care that is inherent in Catholic higher
education,” said Ortiz.
Before she reaches her desk in the morning,
Ortiz typically catches up on all her e-mails,
she said. Her day is then centered around
meetings with students and meeting with
various people of the departments she
supervises.
Ortiz is also responsible for a program called
Community of Care. Community of Care
is, “an initiative that gives members of the
community an opportunity to refer students
to our office for whom they’re concerned the
student is not thriving. And we work with the
student to get them back on track,” said Ortiz.
She explained that Comunity of Care acts
as an early intervention strategy. Faculty who
notice a sudden change in student behavior
or class engagement are encouraged to report
their concerns to Ortiz, and the situation is
handled accordingly from there. In 2014, 300
students were referred to the Community of
Care program. “We will probably see 1,200
students this year. We are seeing a good sixth
of the undergraduate population,” Ortiz said.
A big part of her role is acting as a liaison
between student affairs and academic affairs
for the student. Additionally, she handles
student crisis situations. She explained that
it is a
24/7
job. She will often drop whatever
she is doing to tend to a student in need — she
believes it is the most important thing to do at
a time like that.
“My time here has been priceless,” said
Gabriela Arana, who has worked with Ortizfor
eight years. “All the value that has come from
working with her is just amazing. There has
never been a supervisor that has cared more
deeply about my personal and professional
development the way she has .”
Arana is an administrator specialist for
student affairs. Arana added that while she
is happy for Ortiz as she retires, knows that
her innovation and drive within the LMU
community will be deeply missed. Arana and
Ortiz met at Whittier College. “All I want is
to grow up and be just like her one day,” said
Arana.
Ortiz described her commitment to LMU’s
social justice scholars and DACA students.
“[They] provide me with inspiration everyday
for their resilience and tenacity to persist and
get their education in light of all the external
messaging that doesn’t value who they are
and what they can contribute,” said Ortiz. She
added that 93 percent of LMU’s social justice
scholars graduate from the University.
“She is one of the rare people on the
administrative side of tilings that I felt like
truly loved her job because it allowed her to
connect with students,” said Lowell Morris,
a junior health and human sciences major. He
explained that she loves getting to know her
students and strives to connect with them on
a personal level. “She is so wise and provides
... great guidance and advice,” added Morris.
Ortiz said her favorite part of her job
is working with students. “I think one
of my most rewarding experiences is
watching students walk across the stage at
commencement and reflect back on the ways
I have had the opportunity to interact with
them and accompany them on their journey
to who they have become as young adults,”
said Ortiz.
Tim Vassallo, a senior history and film and
television production double major had the
opportunity to attend an Ignacio Companion
(IC) trip with Dr. Ortiz, which took place in
Nicaragua and is located in Central America.
“There is silent strength in the way she feces
each day,” Vassallo said. “I’ve been honored
to experience her both in the capacity of
that intimate group abroad, and then more
position
recently as the moderator of my service
organization, Sursum Corda.”
Vassallo also said that, “her work with
DACA and the various Dreamers on LMU’s
campus as both an advocate and educator
has been inspiring.” He added that he is sad
to see her go, but is positive about what the
future will hold for her.
Ortiz has plans this summer to travel,
but mostly she is looking forward to
decompressing and “getting zen.” However,
she does plan to participate in Register's
Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa
(RAGBRAL), which is a bike ride across the
entire state of Iowa. Additionally, she aspires
to bike in Tuscany, Italy. She does want to
return to teaching again in the spring —
either at LMU or another university.
For the full article, go to
laloyolan.com
via Jeanne Ortiz
