Luis Agregan has taught at PCC in the English Division for fourteen years. His stalwart presence as a dynamic and knowledgeable faculty member has made him a treasure in the division.

Born in Echo Park, not far from Dodger stadium, Luis is a native Angelino but his parents were Spanish immigrants. His father, Luis, originated from Ourense, Galicia and his mother, Pia from Bilbao, Viscaya, Spain. Tragically, Pia suffered a debilitating disease when Luis was still in elementary school, and subsequently Luis’ relationship with his father was made stronger.

Luis and his wife Gladys (an Argentine native) will be celebrating their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary this July. Congratulations to them! Their son Julian is nineteen years old.

As a boy, Luis collected baseball cards and loved the Dodgers. He received a substantive academic education at one of Los Angeles’ premier Catholic institutions, Loyola High School, where he starred as a goalie in soccer and ran high hurdles in track. He was a fan of Queen and loathed all things disco. While he retains part of his religious background, he now calls himself a “Catholic Buddhist.”

At Loyola Marymount University Luis graduated with a B.A. in English (1987). He had tried a more practical business major, but found his calling in the humanities: “I decided to study English because I believed that one should study something one loves as opposed to studying something one feels forced into.” Subsequently, he took his M.A. in Comparative Literature at California State University, Fullerton. Some of his favorite authors include Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende, and Camilo Jose Cela.

Luis is an avid film enthusiast as he treasures the great modernist classics of Luis Bunuel (Spain), Ingmar Berman (Sweden) and Adrei Tarkovsy (Russia). His musical interests reveal eclectic tastes, from Bach and Beethoven, to the sensual electronic innovations of Tangerine Dream (Germany). He also enjoys the contemporary music of Philip Glass (American) as well as the Samsara Blues Project, which blends progressive blues with Indian Raga and Folk.

Luis values his spiritual life, and his passions include practicing Zen, reading Aldous Huxley and Thich Nhat Hanh, and listening to lectures by Alan Watts and Terence McKenna.

Perhaps his Pilgrimage Walks are his greatest joy. Just this past year, he completed the Camino Frances (the French Way), a 580 mile walk across northern Spain. It took Luis 37 days to complete it as he averaged a full 27 kilometers per day! That’s hoofing it! His plans include many more walks that combine physical exertions with cerebral expansiveness.

As an avid L.A. Kings fan, Luis is not so happy with the team’s recent hard times, but he thoroughly enjoyed their past Stanley Cup successes, especially when he attended games in 2012.

Luis’ spirituality sustains him as a passionate devotee of the arts, as a dynamic teacher, as a caring husband and father, and as a human being who seeks a meaningful existence. Congratulations Luis Agregan on your significant contributions to Pasadena City College!

We salute you.