Momentum Blog: Less Guesswork. More Clarity.

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If you’ve ever thought, “I wonder who’s working on this—and why it’s taking so long,” you’re not alone.

Welcome to the COO Blog. I’m John Kiralla, and I’m grateful and excited to serve as LMU’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. I’ve wanted to create a simple channel where I can share what we’re working on—on our campuses and across Los Angeles—in a way that I hope you find clear and helpful.

Universities run on thousands of moving parts. When we don’t explain what’s happening, people fill in the blanks. I believe good information is part of good leadership. And because I also serve as LMU’s chief communications officer, this blog is a new way I plan to close the gap.

Why a COO Blog?

Two reasons: transparency and connectivity—so the LMU experience and LMU’s reach in L.A. and beyond intentionally reinforce each other. Transparency transforms uncertainty into information—and information into better decisions. Clarity, after all, is a form of respect, and it strengthens my commitment to staying closely connected to the community I serve. 

Transparency: I want you to have straightforward updates on topics people care about—what’s changing, what’s staying the same, and what it means for you as an LMU Lion. Sometimes the topic will be very “inside baseball.” Sometimes it’ll be a big, external, L.A.-connected initiative that creates new opportunities for students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Often, it’ll be both.

Connectivity: My role sits at an intersection that doesn’t always get explained well: the work that keeps LMU running day-to-day—and the work that connects LMU to the region through partnerships, visibility, and engagement that open doors for our students.

A Little About Me

I’m an LMU alum, an LMU parent, a longtime staff member, and a former instructor—an LMU cheerleader who wakes up daily excited about having the privilege of serving this extraordinary community with friends and colleagues I’ve known for decades.

LMU has shaped my life in just about every way a place can. That’s why I care so much about the details and the direction: the small friction points that add up in a student’s week, and the big opportunities that expand what an LMU education can lead to.

My Commitment to You: Listen, Connect, Mobilize
This is the approach I’m bringing to the role—and to this blog:

• Listen: I’m listening to you—meeting students, staff, faculty, alumni, and partners where you are and learning what’s working, what isn’t, and what’s been “stuck” for too long.
  
• Connect: Many of the issues that affect daily life at LMU don’t belong to one person or office. They sit between teams. My job is to connect the right people so solutions move faster and feel more seamless.
  
• Mobilize: We’ll focus on tangible improvements, clear timelines when possible, and measurable progress. When we can’t move as fast as any of us want, I’ll try to explain why and what we’re doing in the meantime. I commit to mobilizing, catalyzing, and pushing us forward.

How You Can Help

This blog isn’t meant to be a one-way announcement feed.

If it’s a one-time, urgent service issue, the quickest path is usually the relevant team or service channel. If it’s a pattern, recurring friction point, or bigger question, I definitely want to hear it. If you have ideas, questions, recurring rumors you’re hearing, or topics you’d like me to address, the best way to share them is through my COO Feedback Form. For messages better handled by email, you can also reach my office at coo@lmu.edu. For area-specific needs, my COO Contacts links you to teams ready to assist you.

And if you see me walking by, please say hello. Sometimes the best fixes start as a two-minute sidewalk chat.

Takeaways

• This blog exists to share clear, timely updates and provide reliable context as the university’s work unfolds.
• My focus is on helping more Lions thrive by improving the LMU experience and L.A.-connected opportunities.
• I’ll also use this space for explaining the “why,” mythbusting when needed, and highlighting progress.
• Your questions and observations will help set the agenda.

Thank you for reading—and thanks for everything you do to make LMU the special place it is.

—John