The Latin American Student Association (LASA) at UCLA currently stands as one of the largest student groups on campus. Primarily an organization that has served the needs of students at the University since 1990, LASA exists to provide a haven for those who would like to enhance their academic experience at UCLA through a large array of activities that help foster awareness of issues that impact all individuals of Latin American descent. Our mission states:
LASA’s Mission
We aim to support the teaching, research, and public service functions of the University of California, Los Angeles. By providing programs, services, and educational experiences that promote the academic success of students, LASA strengthens and enhances the quality of the Latino/a cultural identity on campus. These services are geared toward supporting a healthy, safe, and intellectual development of our students in a challenging environment. LASA is concerned with the retention of our students and with being a representative voice for the Latino/a community at UCLA.
The Four Pillars of LASA
LASA strengthens its foundation by incorporating a set of four principles, which are recognized as the “Four Pillars of LASA.” They serve as a framework for establishing its many cultural and community learning activities.
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Cultural Identity and Awareness Address issues and significance of Latin American culture by educating the UCLA community of the heterogeneity of cultural expression, significance, and value of Latin American culture and better understand our own cultural roots and identity. |
Community Learning
Provide empowerment to the Latino/a community by establishing relationships with surrounding communities. This will enable our members to better represent and create change in our communities based upon the immediate needs of people. |
| Student Retention Provide a forum in which to discuss and actively address issues affecting Latino/a student retention. These forums and workshops help establish an academic support system among Latin American students on campus. |
Educational Enhancement
As people who have been denied our cultural and political history, we recognize the need to educate and inform ourselves and the UCLA community of the realities of Latin America and its people. |
More About LASA:
LASA is an open organization that welcomes all UCLA students and does not discriminate membership based on race, class, origin, religion, gender, sexual or political orientation. Instead, it explicitly strives to eliminate such discrimination by promoting active participation to all students by all students. Furthermore, all members are strongly encouraged to become active within the organization. In the past few years, LASA’s membership has been growing in members, this year to around 400 from a population of around 47,000 students with about 150 members being considered as highly active in accordance to LASA Member in Good Standings (MIGS) requirements. The majority of members were undergraduate students of Latin American descent and other ethnicities, notably of Asian and African-American descent.
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