Write About Me, I’m Dying to Analyze You
The Future Therapist Takes on Life After Whittier
Douglas Manuel II | FOR THE QC
April 23, 2026
Peering into the hum and lowlit glow of the Quaker Campus office, you might first notice the quiet before you notice him clad in his jean shorts that reach his ankles, Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival hoodie, and grass-green Adidas. Not silence exactly, but a kind of steadiness.
A presence that does not rush to fill the room, yet somehow holds it together, just as his many rings circle his fingers. In this space, of this space, dressed in this manner you will find Elias Loya.
Not loud. Not performative. But deeply there.
Listening, thinking, absorbing, and then, when the moment is right, offering something precise, generous, and real, always real, always keeping in a Buck 100! Or in other words, simply put, Loya is cooler than a polar bear’s toenail, to Big Boi from Outkast!
Loya did not arrive at Whittier College with a fixed script. Like so many of the best stories, his unfolded through pressure, through questioning, through a willingness to change direction when something no longer felt true.
Originally moving through an Engineering track in high school, he found himself, especially during the isolating conditions of COVID, confronting something more urgent than technical mastery. He began to notice the fractures. The way distance reshaped relationships, and the way mental health, often discussed abstractly, became immediate and undeniable.
That noticing became a turning point.
It was not spectacle, but instead recognition, and from that recognition came a shift toward psychology, toward care, toward the kind of listening that does not try to fix people but understands them.
That same ethos carries through everything Loya does. Whether in the classroom, in rehearsal spaces, or in the newsroom, he operates with what can only be described as ethical attentiveness. He speaks when he has something to say, and when he does, people listen. Not because he demands it, but because he has earned it.
As he himself reflects, one of the most valuable lessons from his time here has been simple but profound: talk to people. Reach out. Build connection. Not as performance, but as practice.
His time with the QC embodies that principle fully.
What began as a hesitant step into student journalism quickly became a sustained commitment. From his first article on the Oasis reunion tour, to a deep portfolio of music writing.
Loya carved out a space where culture, feeling, and analysis meet. He did not chase attention. He followed his interest, wrote about what mattered to him, and, in doing so, made it matter to others.
As the Arts and Entertainment Editor, he brought music back to the center of coverage, reminding us that sound is not just background. It is structure and how people process, survive, and understand the world.
And yet, what makes Loya exceptional is not simply what he produces, but how he moves through difficulty. He will tell you about the solo that did not go as planned, the public moment where things fell apart. And then he will tell you what he learned.
Not in the language of defeat, but in the language of growth. This maturity shows that he knows how to take a loss, to hold it, and to continue anyway.
He has that discipline and knows what staying is and how crucial and fundamental it is.
Music itself has been one of his deepest grounding forces. From years of playing clarinet and guitar to the immersive, almost meditative state of rehearsal, Loya understands what it means to disappear into craft.
To lose track of time not because it is wasted, but because it is fully inhabited. Listening, too, has shaped him. He appreciates all genres from hip hop to alternative to indie, to punk, to funk, to any artists who articulate interior struggle and social awareness. He’s here for it.
And all of this has expanded not just his taste but his empathy.
As Loya prepares to leave Whittier, he does so with both clarity and openness. His path forward points toward therapy, toward becoming a practitioner who can offer others the same kind of grounding and insight that once helped him.
Whether through Marriage and Family Therapy or a doctoral route in Psychology, his direction is clear even as the details remain in motion. And that is exactly right.
Not rushing. Not forcing. Just staying cool, calm, and collected, like a well-placed guitar riff or a well-played clarinet solo.
Loya will be where he needs to be and get where he needs to go, rocking a fresh fit, with his fingers full of rings.