Did this year move more quickly? Congratulations, LASA Class of 2026! We have enjoyed spending this year together. This month, we gathered at The Huntington to celebrate the class, consider next steps students move towards senior year, and meet an alum from LASA’s first class.

Deans Sharon Cuseo and Sarah Miller from Harvard Westlake joined us with a game and lots of advice for figuring out the best fits for college and more. LASA asked such terrific questions; we’re grateful for their expertise and the chance to (hopefully) reduce the stress level as summer approaches.

Congratulations to Max, Julia, Remick, and Noah! They received the Francine Werner Summer Research Prize for their proposals on LA-based research on Altadena fire recovery, trends in public health spending, and community engagement with the Olympics. We look forward to seeing their updates on ICW and LASA’s social media.

We then welcomed Ulises Penaloza, LASA Alum from the first class in 2013 and student from Montebello High School. He shared his journey since he left us, creating a moving company, continually thinking about LA history, and challenging the students to push through adversity as it crosses their paths. We are so grateful for Ulises’ time as well as his financial support of LASA. We found a quote by Ulises from his time in LASA: “I realize I am responsible, like the rest of my generation, to make the city a better, inhabitable place, friendly for both businesses and the environment…LASA has made me love Los Angeles.” May we all live into his wise thoughts!

Thanks to the LASA Class of 2026, our guests throughout the year, and especially our teacher colleagues who make LASA possible.