A new marketing campaign is reaching the higher education community—university leaders and faculty—with a simple message: LMU and its people create a more equitable world, starting with a more inclusive campus. The Ignite Equity campaign targets rankings voters, prospective faculty, research partners, and other university thought leaders, seeking to elevate LMU’s visibility and academic reputation authentically and in alignment with our values.
The campaign highlights LMU’s successes in diversity, equity, and inclusion in three areas: campus culture change and the journey to become an anti-racist university, led by LMU Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; equity in the classroom and student experience; and faculty-led research centers that drive equitable public policy change. LMU has many tangible successes to celebrate:
- Since 2020, LMU has secured an unprecedented $23.5M+ in external funding for DEI-related research and improvements to student experience and campus culture.
- Faculty research is leading the conversation on pressing equity issues that impact Los Angeles and beyond: classroom equity at the Center for the English Language Learning; a more equitable urban tree canopy at the Center for Urban Resilience; diverse approaches to healthcare and social services at the Psychology Applied Research Center; public polling that ensures all Angelenos’ voices are heard at the Center for the Study of Los Angeles; and much more.
- In student experience, recent external funding wins include a grant to support first-generation and BIPOC students in theatre arts; a pilot program to create open educational resources on DEI topics; college pipeline programs for first-generation students; and an initiative to train faculty to create more equitable learning experiences for STEM students.
- Projects at all levels of the institution support LMU’s goal of becoming an anti-racist university, including the Recruiting and Hiring Teacher-Scholars for Mission Initiative, the “Studies in American Diversity” core requirement, the campus-wide Systemic Analysis process, and the Inclusive History and Images Project.
LMU Marketing, Communications, and External Relations is leading the campaign, in collaboration with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Provost Thomas Poon, and other campus partners. High-impact placements include Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, NYTimes.com, along with targeted email and print mail. The campaign is in market through the end of May and has already exceeded last year’s benchmark for impressions and web visits.
See some of the tactics:
For more information, visit the Ignite Equity campaign landing page.
