Features
Our Neighborhood Ghost Town
Nearby Surfridge is LMU’s connection to a forgotten part of L.A.’s past.
Securing the Midterm Elections
Voting misinformation will threaten the security of the 2026 midterm elections only if we let it, says democracy expert Justin Levitt.
Here Lies the Common Good
The notion of the Common Good seems dead and buried in U.S. political and social life. We asked writer Jim McDermott to go looking for it.
Springsteen’s Other America
“Inyo” and “Faithless,” two of Bruce Springsteen’s “lost” albums, explore the impact of California’s influence on his music and his wrestling with the meaning of life.
The Recruiting Game in College Athletics
Player payments, NIL deals, and the transfer portal have upended college athletics. Are the rules of the recruiting game being rewritten, too?
The Dangers of Authoritarian Power
A monarch’s abuse of power led to America’s war for independence. Michael A. Genovese asks whether unchecked power should alarm us as it did the nation’s founders.
Deconstructing Cruelty
Acts of shocking cruelty seem horrific and beyond the border of basic humanity. But the dehumanizing mindset that permits them may be reversible.
Laband Art Gallery Spotlights Chicanx Art
“Seeing Chicanx: The Durón Family Collection,” an exhibition of 50 artworks from Southern California Chicanx artists whose pieces span five decades, is showing at the LMU Laband Art Gallery.
Mark Volman’s Hits and Humor
Mark Volman ’97, MFA ’99 wasn’t your typical student when he transferred to LMU from L.A. Valley College. For one, he was already in his mid 40s. For another, Volman had already lived the rock ’n’ roll life that other students might have dreamt of doing.
The Road From Loss
After the wildfires of January 2025 ravaged Pacific Palisades and Altadena, we asked nine writers in the LMU community to reflect broadly on the experience of loss.