CBA Hits the Century Mark

The LMU College of Business Administration Celebrates 100 Years of Professional Business Education.

When 13 students gathered in downtown Los Angeles in 1926 to take Loyola University’s first courses in economics and accounting, they could not predict the legacy they helped launch in the form of LMU’s College of Business Administration.

Over the years, CBA has grown into LMU’s largest college and one of its fastest growing. Since Dayle Smith was named dean in 2018, enrollment has increased from 1,500 to nearly 2,500 students, and the faculty added 42 new members. The graduate portfolio expanded from three to eight programs, including new master’s degrees in business analytics, entrepreneurship and sustainable innovation, management, taxation, and entertainment leadership, as well as the college’s first doctoral program in business administration. 

“This milestone is not just about marking time,” Smith said. “It’s about honoring the generations of students, faculty, and supporters who built this community and reaffirming our commitment to educating ethical, creative, globally minded leaders for the next hundred years.”

For Smith, CBA’s anniversary also is a declaration of momentum. She announced four priorities for shaping the college’s future: expanding experiential learning and high-impact practices so students graduate with interdisciplinary intelligence, innovative thinking, and technological fluency; emphasizing “business for good” through ethics, sustainability, and mission integration; connecting theory to practice through applied projects, industry engagement, and global perspectives; and deepening the school’s ties to the business community.

Since its founding, CBA has evolved in depth and breadth, from increased degree offerings and faculty in the 1930s, to an enrollment resurgence after World War II, the launch of the Entrepreneurship and MBA programs, and the establishment of internationally respected centers, such as the Institute for Business Ethics and Sustainability, in the following years.

To mark the centennial, CBA organized multiple events, with a kick-off in January at SoFi Stadium with LMU leaders and industry partner Office Beacon. A highlight was Wall Street Week in March 2026, a student trip to New York that was part of the Career Trek, an experiential program organized with the LMU Career and Professional Development office.

“In this centennial year of LMU’s College of Business Administration,” said Thomas Poon, Ph.D., LMU president, “it was especially meaningful to see our students stepping confidently into the global marketplace, ready to lead and innovate with purpose.”

In July, the college will present “The World Comes to L.A.,” a series of three events bringing together educators, business and government leaders, diplomatic corps members, and changemakers to discuss the future of business and leadership.

“Our mission is to develop leaders with moral courage and creative confidence — leaders prepared to be a force for good wherever their careers take them,” Smith said.

A Brief Timeline

1926

The Commerce and Finance Course is established under President Joseph Sullivan, S.J. By 1929, the course becomes the College of Commerce and Finance. 

1944

World War II enrollments collapse: 7 in 1944 and 15 in 1945. At war’s end, CBA expands enrollments to serve returning veterans, with 681 students in 1948, aided by the GI Bill.

1969

The CBA accounting program is transformed into the B.S. in Accounting degree program. Three years later, the CBA entrepreneurship program is established.

1974

With the aerospace industry fueling the L.A. economy, CBA launches its MBA degree program. By 2026, CBA offers seven master’s degrees and a doctorate.

1995

The Conrad N. Hilton Center for Business, a $22 million home for CBA classrooms, faculty offices, technology labs, and an auditorium, opens.

2018

Dayle Smith is named dean of the College of Business Administration, becoming just the eighth person and the first woman to hold the post.