Honorary Degrees
The California State University awarded its first honorary degree to then-President John F. Kennedy in June 1963 at San Diego State University.
Since that time, the 23 CSU campuses have awarded honorary degrees to 409 distinguished individuals through spring 2011. These individuals have demonstrated excellence in areas that benefit humanity, CSU campuses, the state, nation or world. They serve as examples to be recognized and honored. The degrees are given by the CSU Board of Trustees in the name of the California State University or in the name of the CSU and a campus, which is the typical designation.
Glenda M. Bayless
San Bernardino, 2011
Robert Nathan Danziger
Monterey Bay, 2011
Jeffrey L. Bleich
San Francisco, 2011
Robert A. Johnson
Sonoma, 2011
Alex Mehran
East Bay, 2011
Regina E. Dugan
Fullerton, 2011
Hugo Morales
Sacramento, 2011
Anthony Jackson
San Jose, 2011
James Berk
Northridge, 2011
John Mack
Los Angeles, 2011
George M. Marcus
San Francisco, 2011
Janet Murguía
Dominguez Hills, 2011
Jack T. O'Connell
Channel Islands, 2011
Bernard A. Osher
East Bay, 2011
A. Jerrold Perenchio
Fresno, 2011
John J. Tracy
Dominguez Hills, 2011
Bruce D. Varner
San Bernardino, 2011
Kim Polese
East Bay, 2011
Steven M. Lopez
San José, 2011
Kazuo Inamori
San Diego, 2011
Sil Garaventa, Jr
East Bay, 2011
Nisei Diploma Project
Mindful of its mission and responsibility to the residents of the state, the California State University
Board of Trustees unanimously voted at its September 23, 2009, meeting to award Special Honorary Bachelor of
Humane Letters degrees to CSU students of Japanese ancestry whose college educations were disrupted due to
their forced removal from the west coast and incarceration during World War II.