Go Forth and Teach—Loyola Alumni at 1901 Venice Boulevard

WHAT IS IT ABOUT LOYOLA that so many alumni come back to teach, to lead, to coach? What is the draw to this great school of ours?

There are currently 37 alumni helping to form Men for and With Others. We asked them what drew you back to your alma mater? What changes have you seen, innovations? What are you looking forward to in Loyola’s and your future? We received many, varied responses, but all had a recurring, central theme: it’s all about the mission and the boys. Here’s what they shared with us.

John Ahearn ’07, Theology Teacher

What drew me back to Loyola was the strong sense of community and belonging. Learning is not just about what takes place in the classroom, but also what takes place on retreats, service immersion trips and global learning experiences.

My goal is to educate our young men to become intelligent, compassionate and faithful citizens for our world. My favorite roles at Loyola include attending retreats, service trips and extracurricular activities in which my students participate. I want to support them in any way I can. They do appreciate it when teachers and staff support them outside the classroom!

We had to go to the faculty bulletin board each day to see announcements from the administration (There was no email.), while the biggest cheating scandals involved kids copying from the Encyclopedia Britannica (before Google, Wikipedia, or Chat GPT). Having been an assistant principal for 18 of my 30 years, I was able to personally witness how some of our most amazing faculty led the charge to innovation and have brought us to where we are today.

The other, even more compelling reason for me to come back to my alma mater was that by then I had a son, Alex ’09, and I wanted him to have the same high school experiences as I did. A few years later, his brother Michael ’13 was born. Now that they have both graduated, I am more grateful and deeply indebted to Loyola than ever before.

Andrey Aristov ’80, Science Teacher

I came back to Loyola 30 years ago after serving on active duty in the Air Force. One of my jobs while in the Air Force was teaching in a military college. It was there that I developed a love for teaching and a desire to continue in such a career. At Loyola, Brother Robert McDermott ’37, SJ† had recently retired so there was a need for an earth science/chemistry teacher. Since I had been an avid member and president of Brother McDermott’s GeologyPaleontology Society while a student at Loyola, I was immediately drawn to continue in his footsteps. Over the past 30 years, Loyola has been revolutionized by technology. I still remember being covered in chalk at the end of each teaching day and using the single on-campus phone in the faculty lounge to call parents.

Frederick Muth ’13, Latin Teacher

When I was first looking for teaching jobs, I was not living in LA, and I remember thinking, “if only I could find a school just like Loyola, but over here!” As an alum, I had very fond memories of my time here—the excellent teachers, my great friends, the Jesuit values that still shape how I live my life—so I knew I would enjoy teaching in a supportive environment where I could be part of that experience for future students. Not long after, the perfect set of circumstances lined up and I was in LA when Loyola had an opening in the subject area I am most passionate about.

Although I am still in my first year back, I have been constantly affirmed in my choice to return. It has been surreal being welcomed by so many familiar and supportive faces from my time a decade ago (although a bit jarring at first to call them by their first names). And so far I have loved the creative, collaborative and sometimes messy and exhausting work of helping students learn and grow. I’m excited to continue to improve as an educator and deepen my roots in this community once again.

Many aspects of the school are comfortingly familiar and speak to the timeless values of Jesuit education. At the same time, I am glad to see that our community is moving forward to better serve the ever-changing needs of our students and community. For example, I think our recent commitments to diversity and building out the Office of Equity and Inclusion are an important visible and tangible affirmation that we value and wish to serve everyone who lives in the greater LA area.

I think we will continue to become a better place in the spirit of Magis, and that is exciting. I see a lot of exciting new talent in our faculty, staff and administration who I am confident will leverage our strong foundation to continue innovating and adapting the education we offer to best serve the students of today and the future. We cannot be certain what our students and the world will need in 10 years, 20 years, or 100, but the Jesuit disposition of listening, learning and finding ways to seek a greater expression of God’s love in all things will help our graduates meet those challenges and brighten the world around them.

Chris O’Donnell ’88, Athletic Director

I never really left. After I graduated in 1988, I started coaching swimming and water polo while I attended UCLA. It was a great college job. It kept me connected to Loyola and kept me involved in high school athletics.

In terms of innovations, the student-athletes are more skilled than when I attended Loyola. They specialize on one sport from an early age. There are advantages and disadvantages to that approach, but 9th graders are (on average) more skilled and stronger (work in the weight room) than 35 years ago.

Mathew Pentecost ’95, Department Chair, English

For me, Loyola has made an impact on my life that I never imagined when I was a student here. To come back and be a faculty member for almost 15 years is remarkable. During that time, I have had the opportunity to teach, lead, research, collaborate, contribute, discover and further my education beyond Loyola’s walls. Not to mention, take care of my own family. Most recently as the English Department Chair, I have an eye on shaping some of Loyola’s programs into what I would want them to be for my own sons when they hopefully attend this school.

It has been exciting to see people come and go and various buildings and programs change over the last decade or so, but the mission of the school and what it stands for remains the same. That is what Loyola is all about.

Daniel

Perez ’13, Data Analyst Prospect Manager

I always knew I would find my way back to Loyola. Loyola played such an integral role in my development, that I think I knew early on in my adult career that I would return to Loyola to continue the Jesuit tradition of developing Men for and With others. While I am amazed to return to campus to find so many familiar faces, it is also incredible to meet so many new, passionate faculty and staff as well as take in the new facility upgrades such as Caruso Hall. I am looking forward to reconnecting with the Loyola community in a new way so that I can support our students, faculty and staff to achieve their goals in the Loyola tradition.

Paul Picard ’75, Science Teacher

I began my career right out of college, teaching at an Archdiocesan school and at a public high school. After five years, I felt called to return to Loyola because of its commitment to teach the whole person, intellectually, socially and spiritually.

There have been many significant changes to our Loyola including the Hannon Ardolf building with state-ofthe-art instructional space for science, counseling and more. With the new building, curriculum changes were made in the science department. It matched students’ cognitive growth from more concrete thinking in Physics 9 as freshmen to more abstract thinking in sophomore chemistry to application of both these physical sciences to biology with a focus on molecules, genes and the environment. Seniors have additional opportunities to pursue the sciences such as Oceanography, Honors Astronomy and Human Anatomy and Physiology.

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On another note, the Kairos retreat program has put students in the roles of leadership to witness their experiences of life and the love of God.

Loyola has been a welcoming community in which I have had the pleasure of serving as a teacher in the Science department for 38 years. I have taught Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Global Science and Human Anatomy and Physiology. I have been moderator of several clubs including the Pre-Med Club. I also had the joy of accompanying my three sons, David ’01, Daniel ’20 and Mark ’22 during their high school experience at Loyola.

Chris Walter ’93, Director of Student Activities, Varsity Soccer Coach, Mathematics Teacher, Assistant Director of Summer Session

Initially I was drawn back to Loyola during my freshman year at LMU when my former coach at Loyola HS, Carlos Leon, offered me the opportunity to be the head freshman soccer coach. During my four years at LMU, I was the head freshman and JV coach, and ended up being the varsity assistant coach my last two years of college. It was during those experiences with the student athletes and coaches on campus that assured me that teaching and coaching were my calling. I was fortunate enough to get hired on as a full-time faculty member and coach in June 1998 and have been at Loyola since.

Emil Sol ’18, Program Coordinator for Service and Justice

The Loyola High community is what brought me back here. My experience was very transformational, and I credit that to all the amazing faculty and staff. Being that I just graduated from LMU with my B.A. and teaching credentials last May, I knew that I wanted to be in a school environment where I could be part of the formation students experience into being Men for and With Others.

Though I only graduated in 2018, I can definitely say that I’ve seen many changes on campus. The first ones that come to mind are the Office of Equity and Inclusion and the fact that Loyola is now a 1-1 MacBook school. The First-Gen program is also something I’ve seen develop even further since graduating. I still remember when the First-Gen Student Association club was just an idea for a new club, and now I get to be the comoderator with Dr. Gina Liberotti.

I think one of the main things I’m looking forward to in Loyola’s future is seeing where Jamal Adams ’90 takes the school in his upcoming principal position. As an alumni first-year staff member, I truly believe that coming back has allowed me to reintroduce myself to Loyola as someone who has taken what I learned here and applied it to life outside of Loyola. My experience as a Loyola Cub allowed me to hear the call to come back and continue supporting the formation of our Cubs through service and justice.

Through my many roles as math teacher, soccer coach, activities director and asst. summer school director, what is consistent and what drives me every day are the students. I want the students to have an amazing experience so that when they look back at Loyola in 10, 20, 30 years it is a place that taught them more than just academics, it taught them how to be in relationships with their peers, their coaches/teachers and with God. I want them to look back and say that Loyola prepared them not only for college but for the real world after college.

James Zucker ’91, Department Chair, Social Science

I loved going to Loyola High School as a student. When I went out to teach in Los Angeles, I believed that I carried with me the mission of the school, “Be a person in service to others.” I returned in 2005 because I wanted to come back home to this amazing place. Often, I am asked by parents, thinking about sending their sons here, why this is the place for them. My answer, based upon the incredible experiences that I have had as a student and as a teacher, is this: Loyola wants to bring in all of the myriad, unique talents of individual students from the Los Angeles area. And, Loyola offers the opportunity for students to express themselves in the arts, athletics, speech and debate, robotics, theater and music.

But we, as teachers and members of this community, are called to be a part of a mission. We are a part of something so much bigger than ourselves. That is the mission of a Cub—being a Man for and With Others. And, to be always on the lookout to see what is needed from us. I know that is why so many of my friends and colleagues have left Loyola to go out and help others in need in our communities.