Perched atop the bluff and across the Westchester campus, Loyola Marymount University’s student housing offers comfortable living spaces coupled with gorgeous views — one of the many perks for thousands of LMU students who are “Living in Lion Nation.”
A new campaign created by the Student Housing Office, Living in Lion Nation highlights the benefits of living on LMU’s campus. More than 3,200 of LMU’s students — including 95% of first-year students — choose to Live in Lion Nation each year for a variety of reasons including the convenience of being close to their classes or having access to a the many dining options. In addition, living on LMU’s campus provides students with a community inside and outside of their residence halls.
“Our hope is that all students experience a sense of community and belonging during their time Living In Lion Nation,” says Beth Crowell, assistant director of Resident Services. “We believe that to be the greatest benefit.”
Living In Lion Nation is not just a campaign, Crowell adds, but a way to express the on-campus residential experience.
“To Live in Lion Nation means to live in the heart of campus, to fully immerse yourself as part of the Lion Nation community and to take pride in your school as well. We wanted to give our program an identity so that students could connect with it,” Crowell says.
To complement this new campaign, the Student Housing Office created a Living in Lion Nation website. On the site, students have all the information they need to picture themselves living on LMU’s beautiful campus. The site features dozens of photos of campus and the residence halls, videos, information about the roommate process, on-campus amenities, dining options and student involvement opportunities.
“We have seen an increase in the number of students visiting the website over the last year,” Crowell notes, “and we have received a lot of positive feedback.”
Dozens of activities occur in the residence halls throughout the year adding to the experience of campus living. LMU students can partake in the Rains Hall pingpong tournament, first-year Hall Brawls, Tea Tuesdays in McCarthy with a resident minister, McKay’s Transfer Student Social, RA’s floor dinners and BBQ and ice cream socials in the apartment picnic areas.
Students who live on campus have access to 19 different housing options. There are eight traditional residence halls and three suite-style halls for first-year students and sophomores, six apartment-style buildings for sophomores and upperclass students and two houses out the back gates that offer themed community living.
Although on-campus housing is not guaranteed for upperclass students, the Student Housing Office has historically been able to provide every applicant with a living space, according to Crowell.
“If we have a large amount of applications and need to create a waitlist, sometimes it can take time to make those placements,” Crowell says, “but our goal is to be able to get every student who wants to live on a campus a place to live.”
Along with the mission of LMU, Student Housing strives to support and create an inclusive and safe community and challenge and care for every person.
“We desire to see our students experience growth that aligns with what they are experiencing in the classroom, in their clubs & organizations, on athletic teams and in areas all across campus,” Crowell adds.
Photos courtesy of LMU Student Housing Facebook