| Founded | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Location | Los Angeles, CA |
| Supporting Institution | Loyola Marymount University |
The Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles (LCSLA or CSLA) is a non-profit, non-partisan education and research institute at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California.
The center was founded in 1996 by Loyola Marymount University Professor of Political Science and Chicana/o Studies Dr. Fernando Guerra with a grant from the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Foundation. Guerra, who has been a faculty member at Loyola Marymount University since 1984, is currently the director of the Center.
The CSLA conducts expert and public opinion polls, focusing on public policy and community interests in the city of Los Angeles. Its research covers a broad range of issues including health care, education, race relations, urban outcomes and voter interests. The center offers employment and research experience opportunities to LMU undergraduate students.
Contents |
The Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles Research Collection covers various aspects of the Los Angeles region. The collection contains numerous materials and papers unique to Los Angeles, including:[1]
Sacramento Seminar The Sacramento Legislative Seminar is a longstanding program in the Loyola Marymount University’s Political Science Department. The program is held at the Capitol Building and consists of a number of panels that include legislators, government leaders and advocates. Each panel focuses on current issues and allows the students to engage in the discussion by asking pressing questions during the Question and Answer session. In addition to attending the panels, the students are given the opportunity to personally meet with government leaders to discuss the state of California and possible future careers. LCSLA plays a key role in planning, coordinating and executing the Sacramento Legislative Seminar.
Urban Lecture Series The Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles has presented the Urban Lecture Series for the past 10 years. The Center plans, coordinates, and moderates these forums, however, the series is part of a larger inter-departmental curriculum. The forums consist of panelists from the private and public sector of Los Angeles who then engage in discussion and debate over current issues facing Los Angeles. Each forum is hosted and moderated by Dr. Fernando Guerra,and are taped and televised on local television stations.
Notable Urban Lecture Series Participants:
Exit polls. The center conducted exit polls for the 2005 mayoral election, 2008 presidential election, and 2010 gubernatorial election. Surveys were collected from 50 racially stratified homogenous polling locations. A total of 50 precincts were chosen, 10 for each ethnic category: White, Black, Latino, Asian, and mixed precincts. Survey collectors and data processors consisted of LMU undergraduate volunteers along with the CSLA staff. The data collected from these polls has been featured throughout various media outlets and has been analyzed in various scholarly studies.
LA Riots 5/10/15 years. In observance of each of the 5, 10, and 15 year anniversaries of the LA Riots, the Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles (CSLA) at Loyola Marymount University sponsored cross-sectional phone surveys of Angelenos to study their attitudes toward Los Angeles. The 1992 LA riots had a profound impact on nearly every aspect of Los Angeles, from government and community relations to quality of life to demographics. In a longitudinal effort to learn more about this impact, the Leavey Center conducted surveys in 1997, 2002 and 2007.
Leadership Initiative. CSLA is engaged in a study of leadership and its relationship to urban outcomes in the city of Los Angeles. “The Leadership Initiative,” will have established the largest action oriented effort that identifies the top 1000 leaders in Los Angeles and integrates leadership, research, collective action and outcomes across Los Angeles’s infrastructure. The study focused on specific areas of leadership: education, health, politics, business, law, community, arts/culture, media/entertainment, land use/housing, religion, and environment