Monique Ramirez Lemus is a higher education professional committed to the principles of social justice and equity and supporting students in navigating barriers and finding pathways to success. She advocates with and for her students.
Monique serves as an Assistant Director for The Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy, and Innovation (The Coelho Center) at Loyola Marymount University (LMU) where she oversees the Coelho Law Fellowship Program (Law Fellowship). The aim of the Law Fellowship, a one-of-a-kind pre-law school preparation program, is to develop the pathway of disabled students to increase representation of disabled legal professionals.
As the administrator of the Law Fellowship, Monique provides comprehensive support to law fellows and alumni as they prepare for law school and learn about disability rights laws. She also assists fellows as they explore alternative pathways to leverage their leadership and experiences for positive change. Fellowship participants include college students and recent graduates from across the nation and internationally. As administrator of the program, Monique is committed to making the programming a place of belonging and access.
Monique assists the Director of The Coelho Center with administrative tasks, including assisting in organizing the Center’s conferences, media, and policy work. She supervises LMU undergraduate students who work at The Coelho Center as “Disability Justice Interns.”
Monique’s commitment to her work at The Coelho Center stems from a myriad of experiences working with diverse student populations during her career in higher education. Prior to joining LMU, Monique has worked at the University of Kansas, University of Oklahoma, and USC, working in several areas, including Student Affairs, DEI, Student Success and Academic Affairs.
Monique took a short break from higher education to work in direct care with people with I/DD, gaining experience working in early behavior intervention and with K-12 learners. She supported clients in classrooms, in clinics, and in the community. During the time Monique worked in direct care, she could not help but notice the ableist systems that continued to work against her clients’ success and that led her to seek out other opportunities to disrupt ableism and systemic barriers, and to continue fighting for the rights of those among us who are most vulnerable to systemic oppression.
Monique holds bachelor's degrees in Classics and English from USC, and a Master of Education in Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs, also from USC. She is in her last semester of a Master of Arts in Exceptional Student Education with a specialization in Applied Behavior Analysis, and an Organizational Behavior Management certificate, from the University of West Florida.
Originally from Oceanside, California, Monique grew up in a US Marine military family. She is a daughter, sister, wife, and mother. She is Latina, a first-gen college student, and a person with chronic illnesses that are disabling at times. She loves to travel, music, a good book, and time in community with friends and family.