“What my overall goal has been since I started is getting students excited about the semester, getting students connected to LMCAS, to clubs, to Student Life, so they can succeed in their semester and feel connected to the campus,” said Robert Delgado, LMC’s new interim director of Student Life and International Students Program.
Delgado became the temporary director in July. Before filling the position, he worked closely with Student Life as the senior program coordinator of Equity & Inclusion for two years where they collaborated often to organize campus events.
This marks his sixth position after almost 10 years of working at the college. Throughout his journey at LMC, Delgado has also worked in the Student Success Center, EOPS, Human Resources, and Student Outreach.
Although each of these roles were different, Delgado enjoyed entering a new department as they welcomed him with new knowledge.
“For me it’s so exciting going into a new place and being like ‘I have so much to learn and I’m going to absorb as much as I can,’” he said.
Embracing the knowledge that awaited him, Delgado always had the mindset of wanting to change positions at some point as he wanted to continue learning about more areas of the college.
“You make a choice to go into, in my example, a new department where now it’s all new stuff, and now you are learning a lot faster because you’re learning everything new,” Delago said.
As director, Delgado oversees four main areas: Student Life, LMCAS, Basic Needs, and the International Students program.
A big component that Delgado admires about Student Life is “the amount of opportunities that exist outside of the classroom,” as he said the activities help students become better individuals.
“I’ve seen it with different students, they start getting excited, they start getting engaged and I see them more and more on campus with more enthusiasm,” Delgado said.
One of the ways that Student Life gets students engaged is with the many clubs that are offered and opportunities for development of new clubs. He is currently an advisor for the LatinX and Business clubs.
Delgado said that Program Coordinator Linsday Litowitz handles most of the organization for clubs and he provides support to her.
Similarly, he supports Basic Needs Program Coordinator Megela Ohare, who takes the lead when it comes to resources like the LMC Marketplace.
“The work really is carried by Linsday and Megela, and I’m their supervisor and I support them and provide the foundation to make sure that they’re successful and the students enjoy the things we put together,” Delgado said.
Student Life Ambassador Edgar Sanchez who works closely with Delgado in the Marketplace said that he “uplifts all kinds of students” and “doesn’t limit your creativity.”
Sanchez praised his mentorship saying that whenever he and other students need help with problem solving, Delgado offers hints that guide them to find solutions on their own.
Delgado embraces students’ desire to learn and said he wants to help create a safe environment for them.
“The philosophy is creating an environment where if a student wants to seek knowledge, where if a student wants to learn, they’re going to feel like they belong in this space,” Delgado said.
As the LMCAS advisor, he works closely with the student government, supporting their launch and recruitment strategies and attending their weekly meetings.
“He is very passionate about what he is doing and tries to be as involved as he can,” said LMCAS President Armon Gonzalez about Delgado’s role as advisor.
Gonzalez emphasized the impact Delgado has made on him, personally adding “he’s changed my mindset in terms of marketing the experience of LMCAS, and not just what LMCAS does or is.”
One part of the LMCAS experience will be a student leadership conference they will attend next month in Los Angeles, which Delgado helped organize for them to go.
Gonzalez said that they’ve had a conference fund for a while now but they’re barely using the money thanks to Delgado’s encouragement.
“He’s pushing to actually go to conferences and stuff like that with the board and extend it to more than just the board members,” Gonzalez said.
Promoting experiences is important to Delgado even beyond the student government. It is also a big aspect of his work with the International Students Program.
“When I work with the international students, it’s more about how to integrate the LMC experience into their life and their time at LMC,” Delgado said, explaining Student Life’s role in the program.
Delgado’s goals for LMC’s international students is that they can take in every opportunity and resource that they can access along with getting them involved with the activities that the school hosts.
Looking back on his time as a college student, Deglado said he regrets not being involved in student activities.
“I wasn’t involved in many of these activities when I was a student,” he said. “But I think that’s why I’m so passionate about students being involved now, because I see the benefit and I don’t want them missing out on these opportunities like I did.”
He wants all LMC students to take advantage of the many resources offered not only in Student Life, but in other departments like the free university tours from EOPS and Transfer services.
“Because I didn’t do it, now it hurts me when others don’t take advantage of it,” said Delgaldo. “I’m like ‘come on don’t make the same mistake I did.’”
