CSU Teams Earn 20 CASE Circle of Excellence Awards

Advancement and communications​ teams across the California State University earned a combined 20 awards in the 2026 ​Circle of Excellence Awards, an international program presented by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). The awards recognize excellence in areas including human resources, alumni relations, communications, marketing and fundraising. Among the 4,185 entries from 628 institutions across 33 countries, CSU campuses distinguished themselves with projects that demonstrated creativity, innovation and measurable impact.

Learn more about the award-winning work from across the CSU.​

Gold Awardees:

• In the Photography | Individual Photograph category, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo took home a top prize for a photo taken by campus photographer Joe Johnston​. The image was captured during a multi-day field trip to the remote location of the Bennett Juniper, one of the largest and oldest known juniper trees on record. The photo is also one of 23 vying for top recognition in the CSU's annual Photo of the Year contest​.​
• Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also earned a gold prize in the Communications | Storytelling category for a feature in its Winter 2025 issue of the Cal Poly Magazine called “Science Beneath the Surface." The article highlighted a unique course that teaches undergraduate students how to conduct scientific studies underwater.​
  

Silver Awardees:

• Chico State earned a silver award​ in the Marketing | Micro-sites (Other) category for launching its first-ever micro-site for Spanish-speaking families of prospective students—an audience historically underserved in higher education communications. In just four months, the micro-site matched a year of traffic from decentralized Spanish sites. More importantly, the site centers families as partners in the college experience.
• Chico State also earned recognition in the Video | Videos on a Shoestring (Student Audience) category for a video that immersed audiences in what Wildcats see every day: an idyllic, charming, walkable town in Northern California with incredible academic opportunities. Titled​ ​“Classes Rory Gilmore Would Take at Chico State," the video got more than 116,000 views across multiple platforms and resulted in nearly 100 new Instagram followers.
• Cal State Long Beach won a silver prize in the Engagement | Student Engagement category for its “Senior Send Off: Invest in Your Success" event, which transformed a traditional senior celebration into an alumni transition initiative embedded within commencement season.
• Cal State San Bernardino earned a silver prize in the Fundraising | Annual/Regular Giving Campaigns (More Than 25 Staff) category for a story-driven Giving Day campaign called “Detective Cody's Case of the Missing Donation Box." The efforts engaged 603 donors, retained 46% of prior-year supporters, acquired 207 first-time donors and reactivated 84 lapsed donors. The campaign earned a bronze CASE Circle of Excellence Award, as well, in the Fundraising | Flash Campaigns/Giving Day Campaigns category. 
• A photo series created by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo photographer Joe Johnston for a Cal Poly Magazine feature earned a silver award in the Photography | Series/Collections category. The feature, “This Class is on Fire," was about a prescribed burn course and the first prescribed burn on university land.
• Cal State San Marcos took home a silver prize in the Fundraising | Donor Relations & Stewardship Initiatives category for an initiative honoring Emilie Hersh, departing chair of the CSUSM Foundation Board. Nicknamed “A Chair for a Chair: Signature Leadership Stewardship," the initiative advanced an established, student-centered approach to stewarding volunteer leaders and strengthening long-term donor affinity. 
• Cal State San Marcos also took home a silver prize in the Publications | Fundraising Case Statements & General Cultivation Publications category for its “Blueprint for the Future" case statement. The fundraising campaign is the largest in CSUSM's history with a goal of raising $200 million, and the theme reflects the momentum of CSUSM as one of the CSU system's fastest-growing campuses.​​
  

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Bronze Awardees:

• Fresno State's Ag Fest–themed Fresno State football jersey earned the university a bronze award in the Design | Specialty Pieces category. The white jersey with bright green lettering was designed to honor the Central Valley's agricultural heritage. 
• Fresno State also earned a bronze award in the Marketing | Micro-sites (Other) category for the creation of Fresno State Today, a centralized micro-site designed to modernize Fresno State's communications.
• Cal State Long Beach received accolades in the Engagement | Volunteer Engagement category for demonstrating a thoughtful approach to volunteer engagement by integrating alumni into CSULB's annual spring open house, Day at the Beach. The Alumni Engagement team led the project and pursued a dual objective: expanding college participation on the Beach volunteers platform, Galaxy Digital, while advancing the university's broader goal of cultivating campus and community partnerships that strengthen alumni relations. 
• Cal State LA earned a bronze award in the Communications | Digital Campaigns (Student-oriented) category for its Accelerate Your Degree: Summer Session campaign, which aims to increase summer session course enrollment by motivating continuing students to take timely action toward degree progress and completion. 
• Cal State LA also received a bronze award in the Video | News and Research category for its Prison Graduation Initiative Documentary, which sought to illuminate the transformative power of higher education within California’s prison system.
  
• Additionally, The Luckman Fine Arts Complex at Cal State LA earned a bronze award in the Marketing | Marketing Initiatives category for its Luckman Sessions​, a free, internationally distributed streaming series that showcased the university’s cultural leadership.
  
• San Diego State earned a bronze award in the Publications | Fundraising Annual Reports and Fund Reports category for its annual Impact of Philanthropy report, which highlights the achievements of the SDSU family over the past year. This year's title, "A New Aztec Era," placed a spotlight on SDSU's success and progress, with spreads detailing the recent R1 designation, additional campus accolades and milestones, newly established program and scholarship funds, and more. 
• San José State took home a bronze award in the Fundraising | Annual/Regular Giving Campaigns (More Than 25 Staff) category for reimagining its annual 24-hour Giving Day as 1,857 Minutes of Giving—tied to its founding year of 1857. By providing custom toolkits, the university transformed 116 campus projects across departments into autonomous fundraising hubs.
• A story about the philanthropic efforts of longtime Cal State San Marcos supporter Greg Hunter won CSUSM a bronze award in the Writing | Profile (Less than 1,000 words) category. Judges called the profile “a polished and strategically effective profile centered on a transformational donor gift and the donor's personal classroom experience."​
  

Watch a video from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo's 2026 gold CASE Circle of Excellence-winning storytelling feature, "Science Beneath the Surface."