Cal State San Bernardino's Student Union was renamed Wednesday for a tribal leader who safely led the Serrano Mission Indians to a new settlement in the San Bernardino foothills in 1891.
The renaming was announced at a meeting of California State University trustees who approved acceptance of a $3 million donation from the San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians during a Wednesday board meeting in Long Beach.

The San Manuels requested that the student union be named after tribal leader Santos Manuel in exchange for the gift.

"We are extremely appreciative of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and their understanding of the importance of higher education in the Inland Empire and at Cal State San Bernardino,' said Albert Karnig, university president. "The university and San Manuels have worked closely on many collaborative projects, and this generous gift is another chapter in the mutual cooperation and partnership we've shared over the years.'

The donation was the largest ever received by Cal State San Bernardino at its main campus and is the largest donation from an Indian tribe to a state university, campus officials said.

"This gift is indicative of the tribe's continued commitment to higher education and the future growth of the Inland Empire,' said Deron Marquez, tribal chairman of the San Manuels. The tribe "recognizes the importance of universities and the role they play in providing education, culture and training for families and individuals within the region.'

The Santos Manuel Student Union is the first building on any Cal State campus named to honor a tribe.

Marquez said Santos Manuel was a chief who led the tribe through treacherous times.

"Our people were being hunted by various people within the valley,' Marquez told the Cal State system's Board of Trustees. "He led us into the foothills in 1891. He was a leader, a person who had the vision to save his own people from execution.'

A third of the tribe's donation will go be used to expand the Cross Cultural Center and the Santos Manuel Student Union, campus officials said.

Another $1 million of the money will be used to establish a diversity program endowment to fund annual operational programs for the Cross Cultural Center, the Women's Resource Center and the Adult Re-entry Center.

Of the balance of the donation, $800,000 will be used to endow a scholarship program and $200,000 to endow an internship program.

The Santos Manuel Student Union, already scheduled for renovation and a 40,000-square-foot addition, will now grow to more than 83,000 square feet, university officials said.

New signs will be placed at the three primary entrances to the student union, and design themes from the San Manuels are expected to blend into the architecture.

The student union expansion project will double the size of the existing building, providing larger dining areas and more office space for student clubs and organizations.

A 200-seat theater for movies, concerts and speakers, more lounging area for students and possibly a convenience store are in the works, campus officials said.

Work on the student union is expected to begin this summer with completion expected around August 2005.

The project will cost $15 million, with most of the money coming from increased student fees that were approved by student voters in March 2001.

Karnig credited John Futch, director of the Cross Cultural Center, for starting a strong relationship with the tribe.

The university is home to the California Indian Cultural Awareness Conference, the Native American Awareness Day, Native American Heritage Month and the annual People of the Pines Powwow.

The tribe is partnering with the university on the new Inland California Television Network and has a long history of supporting campus athletics, university officials said.