Loyd Commons
Creativity | Friendship | Growth | Purpose | Responsibility
Inspiring Community through Service.
What you can expect
Dr. K Treats
Every week, our very own Faculty-in-Residence, Dr. K, cooks up some homemade treats for the Loyd Community!
Llama Rama
Llama Rama is Loyd's Annual Fall Carnival. Loyd celebrates the fall season with food, games, and fun.
Loyd Pinning Ceremony
The Loyd Banquet is the first official event that certifies our newest community members. Each First-Year student is given the Loyd pin and the values of the community are presented by the Faculty-in-Residence and Residential Community Director. Resident Assistants are given the honor of pinning new First Year residents on their floor!
Serve where you live: Engage Dallas
Engage Dallas is a place-based community engagement initiative via SMU’s Residential Commons to address community needs focusing on South and West Dallas. The initiative is a long-term, university-wide commitment led by students to partner with local residents, organizations, and other leaders to positively impact the community. There is equal emphasis on campus and community impact stemming from the initiative.
In Loyd Commons, we focus on STEM Education Access as a community need in Dallas. Loyd students address this by collaborating on service events and activities with local partners, Jubilee Park and Community Center, and RowDallas, to directly help those most in need. Our students who serve gain a broader understanding of current social problems, build community with both the city and their peers, and can earn their Community Engagement Proficiency required for graduation. Engage Dallas cultivates unique and enriching experiences for SMU students to explore and serve Dallas!
Questions? Email your Loyd Engage Dallas Student Director, Reese Mellor, at rmellor@smu.edu.
Get a sense of the community
Get a feel for all that Loyd Commons has to offer by scrolling through the photo gallery or viewing the video. If you prefer, check it out for yourself by visiting campus, or take an online 360°room tour.
We've got a lot to offer
Amenities
Fully furnished rooms- Furniture (per resident): desk, chair, bed, & dresser
- Wired and wireless internet
- Free on-site washer/dryers
- ADA-compliant rooms available
- Electricity, water, sewer, & recycling/trash service included
- Free laundry
- Movable furniture
- Game room
- Community microwaves
- Walk or bike to class
- Nearby parking in Binkley garage
- Easy access to Mac’s Place
- 24-hour study rooms and spaces
- Faculty-in-Residence
- Peer Academic Leaders (PALs), Honors Mentors, and Student Wellness Champions
- Educational programs
- In-Commons classroom
- Professional, on-site maintenance
- 24-hour, on-call staff
- Card-controlled building access
- Security escorts
- Roommate matching available
- Adjacent bicycle racks
Sample floor plans
Community bath double room
Room and furniture dimensions
Square footage ranges- Typical square footage ranges from 180-205
- Desk: 2'6" H x 4' W x 2' D
- Desk Storage Unit: 30"H x 17W x 24 1⁄2 D; Grommet allows students to lock desk storage)
- Dresser: 2'6" H x 2'6" W x 2' D
- Bed: 80" L x 36" W (XL Length Twin)
- Window: 45" inches wide. Height depends on floor.
About our namesakes
Loyd Commons was named for Paul B. Loyd, Jr. (’68) and his wife Penny Requa Loyd for their generous $5 million gift for the new residential commons buildings. The gift was announced during the Founders Day Celebration in April 2012. SMU has benefited in countless ways from the long-standing support of Penny and Paul Loyd, Jr. Their contributions have impacted areas across the University, including athletics, student programs and scholarship support.
The Loyds’ involvement at SMU includes Mr. Loyd’s service as a member of the Board of Trustees, and both Mr. and Mrs. Loyd serve on several University boards and committees. The Loyds received the Mustang Award in 1999 in recognition of their remarkable philanthropic support of SMU.
In 2012, Mr. and Mrs. Loyd provided a leadership gift for a new Residential Commons facility. Fittingly, the building is located near Ford Stadium, the home of SMU football and the Paul B. Loyd, Jr. All-Sports Center. These campus landmarks are a testament to the Loyds’ ongoing commitment to the many facets of the SMU educational experience. SMU is honored to name Loyd Commons in recognition of their continued generosity.
Building facts
| Community abbreviations | Loyd |
| Building capacity | 241 |
| Year built | 2014 |
| Residential area | Southeast |
| Physical address | 5901 Bush Avenue |
| Room types | Singles and doubles |
| Gender | Co-ed by gender by room |
Live, learn, achieve—together
Get to know the faculty, staff, and student leaders of Loyd.
Dr. Alice Kendrick (She/her/hers)
Faculty-in-Residence
Dr. Alice Kendrick, or “DrK” as her students like to call her, is professor of advertising in the Temerlin Advertising Institute, specializing in advertising research and strategy. She grew up in Alexandria, Louisiana, and earned a BA and MA in Journalism from LSU, and later received a PhD in Communication and an MS in Adult Education from the University of Tennessee. Dr. Kendrick is the author of four books and more than 40 peer reviewed journal articles. Her research interests are how communication efforts can affect international citizens’ views of other countries, trends in advertising education, and the role of advertising in the informal economy, including garage sales. She is currently the co-editor of the Journal of Advertising Education. Learn more about Dr. Kendrick and her family.
CJ Schufford (He/him/his)
Residential Community Director
CJ Schufford will join the RLSH team as the RCD for Loyd Commons. CJ completed a Bachelor of Arts at the University of North Texas and a Master of Education in Higher Education Leadership at TCU where he worked as a Fraternity and Sorority Life Graduate Hall Director and a Fraternity and Sorority Life Graduate Advisor. He served as a Conference Intern at the University of Michigan. His areas of interest include Equity and Access in Higher Education, Promoting Mental Health Awareness among Underrepresented communities, and improving Multi-Cultural Competency within the communities where he works. CJ is a huge Dallas sports fanatic and is looking forward to exploring Dallas with his finance Jacqueline and puppy Frida. C.J.'s favorite aspect of the Residential Commons is how each commons have unique identities and traditions!