Loker Student Union: From Living Room to Learning Lab

For Kim Clark, every one of her 15 years on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills, has been a busy one. The last year, however, has been unique for the executive director of the Loker Student Union (LSU). January 25 marked one year since the LSU celebrated a grand reopening following a two-year expansion project.

“To have watched [the Union] turn into something that is so integrated to the university’s expansion and is such a center to the campus is really rewarding," enthuses Clark. “The other thing that’s been really great to see is the students really embracing the building and saying, ‘Okay, how can we make student life better? Now that we have this great building, how do we bring it to life?’”

Under Clark’s supervision, a team of student leaders have formed a student life task group to answer these questions. Markus Biegel, Associated Students, Inc. vice president of operations, collaborated with Erick García and Don Manning, students-at-large on the LSU board of directors, have been working with the Office of Student Life, the Multicultural Center, and Associated Students, Inc. to find out what Dominguez Hills students expect from what García calls the “living room” of the campus.

“It’s still on its way up,” says the business administration major, who commutes daily to campus from Pasadena. “We can do more. A lot of students don’t take advantage of it because they’re on the go, but if you take the time to just sit back and relax in the student union, it’s a pretty cool place to catch up with friends or do some homework.”

Apart from providing a respite from the rigors of academia, the LSU is also part of the educational process. The daily operations of running such an enterprise have become a laboratory for these student leaders who aspire to the business world.

Last fall, Clark, the three students, and Lui Amador, coordinator of the CSUDH Multicultural Center, showcased the campus at the yearly conference for the Association of College Unions International, hosted by CSU Northridge. Biegel, García and Manning were recognized for the best overall presentation in the case study competition. Additionally, Manning received the Carol Burke Memorial Scholarship Award. Amador’s graphic designs won two third place awards in the “Steal This Idea” graphics competition. Finally, Clark received the Don and Noel Hinde Distinguished Service Award for ACUI’s Region 15, which includes California, Hawaii, Nevada and Guam. Although CSUDH has participated in the regional conference for nearly 10 years, this is the first time it has received numerous accolades at the event.

“I think at first, we were just another school on the list,” notes García. “But we’ve gotten out there and gotten the word out about Dominguez Hills. A lot of people usually say it’s a hidden jewel, and it really is. When you get a chance to get to know Dominguez Hills, the diversity and the people who work here are just great.”

García emphasized how the diversity of the Dominguez Hills campus prepared them for the case study competition, which required solutions on how to deal with a student protest scenario on campus.

“A lot of the case study was like what we deal with on our own campus, so we had the advantage because our campus is so diverse,” he says. “There was protest on campus that had to do with a lot of constituents, like the LGBT groups, the minority groups, a bunch of religious groups. We had to figure out a way to bring everyone together and overcome the situation. So we just found a way how we could involve other people on campus, like the students and administrators, and how we could unify everyone and identify the same goals that everyone has.”

Clark extols the benefits of ACUI membership, particularly for students.

“For our students and for staff that want to move up in the student union and student activities profession, I think it’s a great training ground,” she says. “The national conferences are held once a year, with a plethora of sessions on topics that you can delve into and just a broad range of things that you get exposed to. That exposure is what helps to round out the professional.”

- Joanie Harmon

Photo above: Kim Clark, executive director, Loker Student Union, relies on CSUDH student leaders to help her present programs that students want. L-R: Don Manning, senior, business administration and Erick García, senior, business administration. Photo by Joanie Harmon