An Interview With Esteemed Scholar, Writer, Artist: Mark “Coach” Marino
I had the privilege hosting an interview with renowned scholar-writer-artist Professor Mark “Coach” Marino, at the University of Southern California Grace Ford Salvatori Hall, room 223, on September 23, 2026. Mark, more correctly “Coach” (preferred address), with an undergraduate degree from the prestigious Ivy League Brown University, and a Ph.D in English, is a highly educated individual in the field of English and American Literature. I felt extremely honored to have the opportunity to interview him.
I actually wasn’t supposed to interview Coach — I arrived late to class, and there was no one else to interview — so he sat me down and told me “interview me instead, my fellow student” (I cannot confirm the accuracy of this quote). I entered the conversation aware that I was speaking with an academic who far exceeded my preparations of waking up 20 minutes before.
I sat. He stayed sitting.
Me: “Hello, what is your name?”
Coach: “My name is Coach.”
Me: “My name is [for the sake of anonymity, let’s call myself Jim].”
We shake hands.
Jim: “I have seen lots of your work, your website, I am honored to have the privilege of interviewing you.”
Coach: “Why thank you, I am honored to be interviewed by you — I’ve read lots of your blog posts and… assignments, yeah.”
We chat. I tell him about my hometown.
Pause.
He knows where it is.
Diamond Bar, California.
He says he taught there, Mount San Antonio College — the community college I went to before transferring to USC. What a nice surprise!
We begin to discuss my research topic: real estate development. He brings up the housing problem in Southern California, specifically the Los Angeles area. Developers are building luxury houses and apartments, pushing out local residents who can’t afford the rising prices of the area with the influx of affluent people.
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We discuss the case study of the University Village (now called USC Village).
Coach keeps looking down at my notebook while I scribble notes. I wonder why he is doing that. I hope my notes aren’t distracting the renowned scholar.
University Village was a small shopping plaza on the edge of USC campus, with local shops and small businesses. A quaint movie theater, a market, a Wendy’s, a food court.
He discussed how the University Village used to be a place where locals could shop and spend their time, and USC students could share the space. An open, welcoming, shared space.
However, the building was demolished in 2014, and the modern USC Village replaced it. Towering brick gothic dorms surround the perimeters of the village, a large courtyard sits in the center, with large chain stores huddling the interior. Target, Sephora, Trader Joe’s, Dulce, Starbucks.
Gone were the small businesses and the welcoming environment for all; what replaced was a large monument designed for USC students, psychologically locking away access from the neighbors around USC (Semi-literally, the gates lock at around 10PM and only allow USC students in for safety. An arguably good decision for the safety of the students considering the area, but it gets the point across).
“I mean — it’s nicer now, and there’s a TJ’s, but it definitely removed the feeling of a shared space where the community could shop and spend time together,” Coach states.
A bit later in our conversation we shift topics; Coach brings up a cruise ship analogy.
“Cruise ships have an above and below deck. There is housing for the above deck travelgoers, and for the people who run the ship. Right now, most developers want to build expensive luxury housing, because they make the most money.”
He discusses how we need more housing for the below the deck people — the working class.
I ask, “what is the line between the person below the deck person and the above decker? Is an above deck individual, the tourists — the wealthy people?”
Coach: “Yes.”
I itched to dive further into the topic, questioning what further differentiates an above deck individual from a below deck one. I think I may have been getting too focused on the semantics of the analogy. However, his familiar phone alarm tingle rang, and alas, our conversation time was over.
I thoroughly enjoyed his insight on the reality of the real estate developments around the area. It was the first time I had a firsthand perspective on the change of the USC Village, and his comments and thoughts on the state of housing in the Los Angeles area were genuinely intriguing.
I still think about that interview. I am still thinking about it because I am writing this post. I will stop thinking about it after I finish writing this, and will think about it another time when I have to reflect on that interview.
*Disclaimer: All written quotes are from memory, and as a result, may not be 100% accurate. Some may be stylized for dramatic effect.
