|  | | 10/26/2021 10:39 AM |  Ruble, Alisia | 10/26/2021 | 10/26/2021 8:50 AM | Expanding access to the program will help participating colleges and universities use data to close equity gaps among historically underserved students. | Student Success | Press Release | The California State University announced its acclaimed Student Success Analytics Certificate Program will be made available nationwide to all college and university faculty, staff and administrators interested in participating in the interactive professional development program. “Over the last several years we've seen how analyzing student data can help faculty, staff and administrators close equity gaps on CSU campuses. We have developed a unique and innovative program that has been successful within our system, and we are pleased to welcome our higher education colleagues to be a part of this vitally important work," said CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro. The program creates an environment where participants can work collaboratively to draw equity-focused insights from their campus data and move toward action. The Office of the Chancellor launched the program five years ago. Since then, teams from all 23 CSU campuses have joined the learning community. Alumni of the program have used data from the CSU Student Success Dashboard to create programs improving student success on their home campuses in line with the goals of the Graduation Initiative 2025. “We are laser-focused on our student success and equity goals. Over the last five years this program has helped the CSU continue on the path to achieving these goals by creating dynamic learning environments for campus teams to use data to drive positive change," said CSU Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs Sylvia Alva. Participation has increased tenfold since its inception, and the program has begun to garner national interest. “Last year we welcomed teams from the University of Northern Colorado, Southern University, and Stanford University to our learning community. This year we look forward to engaging with additional participants from around the country to learn strategies for improving evidence-based equity-minded practices on their campus," said Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Success Jeff Gold. The application process is open and runs through early December. The program begins on January 28, 2022 and runs through April 29, 2022. A certificate is awarded to all participants who successfully complete the program. # # # About the California State University The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards more than 132,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter.
| | | CSU Opens Student Success Analytics Certificate Program to National Audience | | | | 10/25/2021 11:00 AM | Kelly, Hazel | 10/25/2021 | 10/25/2021 9:45 AM | CSU social scientists receive grant from National Science Foundation to build and broaden research and opportunities among minority-serving institutions. | Research | Story | A new NSF Build and Broaden 2.0 grant given to the California State University and University of California will expand external funding opportunities in social sciences across the state, with a focus on Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). Totaling $796,858 in funding for the CSU and UC, with $260,740 going directly to the CSU, the program will create the California Alliance for Hispanic-Serving Social Science Advancement (CAHSSA). The group will provide professional development opportunities for hundreds of social sciences faculty across the CSU and UC to help strengthen proposals for external research funding. The NSF award will also support research and analysis into how HSIs may face bias and other barriers when seeking external funding for social science research. “This grant and the creation of CAHSSA is important because it shines a spotlight on the social sciences that are sometimes overshadowed by STEM research funding activity," says Leslie Ponciano, Ph.D., director of research opportunities at the CSU Chancellor's Office and co-principal investigator on the grant.
“This NSF grant provides a critical opportunity to identify and mitigate some of the barriers to faculty in the CSU working to secure external funding for research in the social sciences," says Billy Wagner, MPH, Ph.D., health sciences and sociology professor at CSU Channel Islands and executive director of the CSU's Social Science Research and Instructional Center (SSRIC) multi-campus affinity group. Dr. Wagner is also a principal investigator on the NSF award. “We are excited to be a resource for CSU researchers to collaborate with each other across the CSU system and with the UCs," Dr. Ponciano says. A series of funded grant activities will take place over a three-year period, including professional development in the form of webcasts, grant writing groups and leadership seminars. Social sciences faculty and leadership from all CSU campuses will be invited to participate.
“The overarching goal is to improve the quality and quantity of funded research in the social sciences across California," says Ponciano. With 21 of its 23 campuses designated as HSIs, the CSU's dedicated faculty will have a powerful impact in diversifying the social sciences and creating innovative research projects and proposals. Funding for the work begins in October 2021 and runs through August 2024.
Learn more about research, scholarship and creative activity across the CSU.
| | | Expanding Reach of Social Sciences at Hispanic-Serving Institutions | | | | 10/25/2021 9:57 AM | Rawls, Aaron | 10/25/2021 | 10/25/2021 8:00 AM | You’ve heard the term drought, but what does it mean, who does it affect and how is it categorized? | Research | Story |
Troubled Waters
“Human-induced climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe.”
–United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
“California receives 75 percent of its rain and snow in the watersheds north of Sacramento. However, 80 percent of California’s water demand comes from the southern two-thirds of the state.”
–California Department of Water Sources
“2021 tied for the third driest year on record.”
–AccuWeather THE WATER CYCLE
“Since 2000, the longest duration of drought (D1–D4) in California lasted 376 weeks, beginning on December 27, 2011 and ending on March 5th, 2019. The most intense period of drought occurred the week of July 29, 2014, when D4 affected 58.41 percent of California land.”
–National Centers for Environmental Information
Drone footage of Folsom Lake captures a dried-out marina in September 2021. How does drought affect you specifically and what is the CSU doing to find solutions to this urgent problem? Check back for our next two installments.
| | | Troubled Waters | | | | 10/25/2021 1:18 PM | Kelly, Hazel | 10/22/2021 | 10/22/2021 11:10 AM | Renewed focus on eliminating equity gaps will drive future CSU student success efforts. | Graduation Initiative | Press Release | The hard work to improve student success across all 23 California State University (CSU) campuses continues to pay off as graduation rates have risen to all-time highs for both first-time and transfer students, despite the turbulence associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. A record 132,167 degrees were conferred by CSU campuses in 2020-21—nearly 25,000 more than prior to the launch of the university-wide initiative in 2015.
“Our resilient students undoubtedly deserve our respect and congratulations for their perseverance and accomplishments," said Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic and Student Affairs Sylvia A. Alva. “And we should celebrate our own extraordinary efforts to help keep nearly half a million students learning, engaged and moving forward despite unprecedented challenges. The CSU's exceptional faculty, staff and administrators have shown truly remarkable commitment and fortitude," added Alva, who shared data related to increases in graduation rates during a university-wide virtual convening held on October 22 that drew more than 2,000 faculty, staff, leaders and students. Among the information shared by Alva: - The four-year graduation rate for first-time students increased to 33% from 19% at the launch of the initiative.
- The six-year graduation rate for first-time students increased to 63% from 57% at the launch of the initiative.
- The two-year graduation rate for transfer students increased to 44% from 31% at the launch of the initiative.
- The four-year graduation rate for transfer students increased to 80% from 73% at the launch of the initiative.
While student achievement has reached unprecedented heights on all 23 CSU campuses, the university continues to face challenges in eliminating equity gaps, which is the difference in graduation rates between students from historically underserved backgrounds and their peers. During the convening, CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro shared initial details about a university-wide action plan that will be implemented to close equity gaps across the board. “This has always been a top priority, and indeed we have a moral imperative to do better for our students," said Castro, who highlighted several examples of bold strategies to be implemented. “This plan, developed in conjunction with an advisory committee of expert stakeholders from across the system, pinpoints actions that all campuses must tackle immediately." The plan's action items include: - An immediate, systemwide re-enrollment campaign with specific goals for bringing underserved students back to CSU campuses beginning in spring 2022.
- Implementation of digital degree planners across all 23 campuses by June 2022 to ensure that every student has access to a clear pathway to graduation.
- A university-wide focus on dramatically improving student learning outcomes in key courses with the largest numbers of non-passing grades and highest enrollments of underserved students.
All CSU campuses have also been asked to develop their own customized action plans to address equity gaps immediately. Additional details about the university-wide action plan will be shared at the upcoming CSU Board of Trustees meeting taking place on November 9 and 10, 2021.
About the California State University The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards more than 132,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter. | | | Graduation Rates for All CSU Students Continue to Climb with Graduation Initiative 2025 | | | | 10/18/2021 11:43 AM | Salvador, Christianne | 10/18/2021 | 10/18/2021 11:40 AM | On October 18, 2021, CSUMB President Eduardo M. Ochoa announced that he will retire as campus president on June 30, 2022. | Leadership | Press Release | The following statement can be attributed to California State University Chancellor Joseph I. Castro:
“Throughout his many years of service to the California State University (CSU) and in higher education, President Ochoa has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to improving opportunities for students from all backgrounds. “During his time leading California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB), the campus has experienced unprecedented gains in four-year graduation rates for first-year students and two-year completion rates for transfer students. Those graduates go on to make an indelible impact on Monterey County and throughout California. “As a champion for higher education and a policymaker at the national level President Ochoa brought a unique perspective that he shared with his fellow CSU presidents and me. Tens of thousands of students at CSUMB, and indeed millions of students throughout the CSU have benefitted from his broad experience and wise guidance. “I congratulate President Ochoa on a long and distinguished career and thank him for his efforts on behalf of our students." On October 18, 2021, CSUMB President Eduardo M. Ochoa announced that he will retire as campus president on June 30, 2022. Ochoa has led CSUMB since 2012, first serving as interim president before being appointed president in 2013. Ochoa has served in a variety of roles throughout the CSU including formerly serving as provost and vice president of academic affairs at Sonoma State University, dean of the College of Business Administration at Cal Poly Pomona and as a member of the faculty at both Fresno State and Cal State LA. The CSU will soon launch a national search for Ochoa's successor. Under university policy, the chair of the CSU Board of Trustees, Lillian Kimbell, and Chancellor Castro will select a committee made up of campus and community stakeholders who will be publicly announced at a later date. Campus and community input will be sought in an open forum held on campus. # # # About the California State University The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards more than 132,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter. | | | Statement from CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro on the Pending Retirement of CSUMB President Eduardo M. Ochoa | | | | 10/18/2021 8:09 AM | Barrie, Matthew | 10/18/2021 | 10/18/2021 8:25 AM | The CSU is committed to supporting its transfer students from application to graduation. | Transfer Student | Story |
A Smooth TransitionThe CSU is committed to supporting its transfer students from application to graduation.
Every CSU student's path to college looks a little different. For the
2019-20 school year, that path included time at a community college before transferring to a CSU for 67,145 new students, with more than 28,000 of them enrolling with an
Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT). With so much of its student body composed of transfer students, the CSU ensures it is providing potential and current transfer students with the support they need to succeed—from planning their pathway to the CSU to their CSU graduation. While that support may look different across the 23 campuses, these students will find help no matter which one they choose. “It is important to remember that transfer students are first-year students, and they need additional support in order to make a successful transition to their new university experience," says Duan Jackson, interim systemwide director, Student Advising Initiatives at the CSU Office of the Chancellor. “Transfer support centers and coordinated services help students meet their academic goals and find their place on campus." In honor of
National Transfer Student Week, October 18-22, explore some examples of how the CSU supports its transfer students. From the Beginning
Before potential transfer students even apply to the CSU, campuses begin building connections with them through partnerships with local community colleges. At
California State University, Fresno, this effort includes pre-admission advising for these community college students. “We look at their majors; we're making sure they're taking the proper transfer classes and that they transfer on time," says Phong Yang, Fresno State director of admissions. “And we talk about other support services they may need, like financial aid and scholarships. We work all of that out before they even apply." Potential transfer students who are particularly committed to attending Fresno State receive additional perks, like a Fresno State student ID that includes library access. “That's so they feel part of the Bulldog family already," Yang says. “They're getting the advising they need, they're getting to see the campus and they're getting to meet with staff." With the opening of application season, campuses will also hold presentations, workshops or one-on-one appointments—depending on the campus—to help prospective students fill out their Cal State application. These may be offered on the CSU campus, the community college campus or online—with many transitioning to the virtual option during the pandemic. Simeone “Simi” Miller, a Cal State San Bernardino student and transfer peer mentor, speaks at the 2021 Transfer Student Welcome event. The CSUSB Transfer Student Success Center recently started giving out “Transfer Pride” shirts to help the students build community.
California State University, Long Beach, for example, holds a transfer admission workshop that covers the application process, applicant eligibility and timelines as well as student panels during which transfer students share their experience with the application process. Other events, like the
College Inclusion Summit specifically targeting historically underserved communities, provide help with Cal State Apply and financial aid applications for students and parents. “It's really important that we have outreach services that provide very distinct pathways and strategies that work for our campus so students and counselors can strategize for the breadth of their opportunities," says Evelyn Daliwan, CSULB senior director of University Outreach and School Relations. Upon being accepted to a campus, new transfer students will receive various communications from the outreach offices or their departments with reminders and help to complete enrollment, register for classes, submit necessary paperwork, develop a path to graduation and sign up for orientation. Getting Oriented“At our campus, once students are admitted, we are ensuring they enroll, turn in their intent and have the information to common questions. Then they sign up for orientation," Daliwan says. “Orientation ensures the student transitions from what it's like at the community college to how advising is done and what is required of you here—and gets them acclimated to the campus and connects them to the advisors they have in their college." Many campuses offer an orientation experience specially tailored for transfer students that helps them transition to life at their CSU campus.
California State University, San Bernardino—which recently won
CollegeSource's Innovation in Degree Achievement Solutions award and where about 70 percent of upper division students are transfers—has a three-phased orientation program. “It creates a transfer accelerator environment," says Rachel Beech, Ed.D., CSUSB associate vice president, Enrollment Management. “We want our transfer students to feel that when they walk onto our campuses, they can come in and lead because of their previous experiences. They have the ability to step into greater levels of leadership earlier in their CSUSB career than their traditional first-year peers. Owning, recognizing and honoring that difference has made us an environment where students want to come as a transfer student and feel that we are trying our best to support and serve them." The first phase is an online orientation tool that provides introductory information. This is followed by a mandatory transfer student orientation program that covers financial aid, paying tuition, enrolling in courses, advising, campus systems and the calendar. Fresno State’s Dog Days: New Student Orientation helps both new transfer and first-year students get acquainted with the campus and its resources.
Then, CSUSB's Transfer Tuesday series introduces new transfer students to services, resources and the
Transfer Student Success Center, and includes talks led by fellow transfer students. The sessions occur weekly before the beginning of each semester, but continue periodically throughout. “[The series] starts to introduce them to those folks who can help them get involved in clubs, join programs like model UN and get an internship or campus job," Dr. Beech says. “We're trying to make these connections before they step on campus so they're not looking to start that process on the first day of the term." Fresno State similarly holds a mandatory new transfer student orientation to acquaint new students with its
Transfer Success Center—though the admissions office also holds webinars on campus tools, scheduling classes and more before orientation. “We have to provide those kinds of support webinars for students so they're comfortable coming here, and when they come to the orientation, they feel empowered," Yang says. A Place to GoSupport for transfer students also continues once they arrive on campus—in the form of these on-campus transfer centers for a number of CSU campuses. “The students are here for such a short amount of time that we want to make sure we can help them mitigate transfer shock and get them connected to campus resources right away," says Kerilyn Counter, CSULB senior academic advisor. “That's one of the things we really look at and try to help with at the transfer center." CSULB's
Beach Transfer Transition Center (BTTC) connects these students with other campus resources and departments—such as the University Writing Center, Career Development Center, Graduate Center and Leadership Academy—through workshops and other communications. However, it also helps transfer students connect with each other through social events and the recently launched BTTC Ambassador Program, which pairs new transfer students with older transfers. “They can have someone to connect with who can be a friend, go to events with them, answer questions, help direct them to different parts of campus and share their experiences as peers," Counter says. Staff at CSULB’s Beach Transfer Transition Center provide support for new transfer students through social events like a bowling night, left, and workshops, right.
Staff at CSULB’s Beach Transfer Transition Center provide support for new transfer students through social events like a bowling night, left, and workshops, right.
Lastly, these centers also provide students with a physical space where they can study, meet with staff and connect with each other. “They find a place where they can connect with their transfer identity in addition to their broader identities on the campus and as a Coyote," Beech says. “Transfer students know, if they don't know where else to go, that the Transfer Student Success Center is there for them." “Even though we try to dismantle the stigma around transfer, I think there is still a perception that transfer is not as valuable an experience as coming direct from high school to the university," she continues. “This causes the students to be nervous about identifying themselves as transfer students. So, creating a safe space for them to be in that identity and to connect with other students who are slightly older, students who've gone through the experience and maybe even students they had seen at their previous institution … is a powerful experience. It helps them find the community at CSUSB that will help them be successful."
A Smoother Transfer PathwayWith Governor Gavin Newson's recent approval of
Assembly Bill 928, the Student Transfer Achievement Reform Act of 2021, community college students will have an even smoother path to the CSU. The bill creates a single general education pathway for students to transfer from a community college to the CSU or the University of California. It also opens opportunities for students to enroll in more major preparation courses in STEM and business—as well as allows for the development of more STEM ADT pathways to high unit fields like engineering, computer science, chemistry, biology, physics and business. “Currently, many transfer students are challenged to fit those courses into the 60-unit lower- and upper-division requirements established by the Associate Degree for Transfer," Chancellor Joseph I. Castro wrote in a
CalMatters op-ed. … “AB 928 corrects that and will lead to additional graduates in other critical fields such as computer science, physics and business, with many students coming from traditionally underserved communities."
Learn more about applying as a transfer student to a CSU.
Story: ALEX BEALL
Photography: C/O CSU Campuses
Share this story
| | | A Smooth Transition | | | | 10/12/2021 8:29 AM | Salvador, Christianne | 10/12/2021 | 10/12/2021 8:00 PM | As designated HSIs, CSU campuses will be developing programs to bridge the equity gap faced by Latinx and low-income students in STEM fields. | STEM | Story | Twelve CSU campuses received grants totaling more than $35 million from the U.S. Department of Education to boost support for Latinx and low-income students in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
CSU campuses make up some of the leading Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) in the nation, with 46 percent of the university's 432,000 undergraduate students being Hispanic or Latinx. And according to the Pew Research Center, no group faces a larger representation gap in STEM jobs than Hispanics. As designated HSIs, CSU campuses are using the federal funds to create programs that will bridge the equity gap faced by underrepresented minority and low-income students in STEM fields. Though programs are diverse and unique, they share the same three objectives: To prepare students to successfully transfer to the CSU; to provide the adequate support students need to retain in their courses; and to graduate workforce-ready professionals. Read on to learn how some campuses are enabling students to flourish and secure jobs in high-demand STEM fields.
Objective 1: Provide effective pathways from California Community Colleges to the CSU Starting at the community college level, CSU campuses will be working to increase the number of Latinx student transfers and empower them to persist in STEM majors. CSU Dominguez Hills is partnering with four local community colleges to make nearly every support service available to students at the community colleges. The Guided Pathways for STEM (GPS) program is an innovative approach that gives equal weight to addressing academic and nonacademic needs. Students will be provided with advising, assessment, tutoring and workshops, as well as services to help meet their basic needs so they can focus on academic success and efficiently transfer to CSUDH. CSU Fullerton's Project RAISER is making sure incoming students are prepared for the rigors of STEM courses. Community college students will be conducting undergraduate research at CSUF, and CSUF staff will be preparing them for high-impact internships and research opportunities after they transfer.
Objective 2: Keep students on track to a STEM Degree “Among other barriers, some Latinx and lower-income families and communities lack full awareness of the great opportunities in STEM. We want to strengthen the resources and support for our first generation Latinx students need to thrive and define the future here at CSUSB," says Sastry G. Pantula, Ph.D., dean of the College of Natural Sciences at Cal State San Bernardino. “Not only do they need proactive advising, but it's also important that they have Hispanic role models in academia. In addition, our transfer students from community colleges need to experience a smooth transition to CSUSB as a result of developing good articulation agreements." Cal State San Bernardino is establishing a Science Success Center to address the unique challenges that underrepresented students face. The center will steer students to valuable resources, including counseling and psychological services, provide supplemental instruction, tutoring, individual development plans, undergraduate research opportunities and other programs to improve academic and career success. The center will also give students access to Latinx mentors from professional societies. Dr. Pantula, who along with his colleagues, helped secure the HSI funding to build the center through the Proactive Approaches for Training Hispanics in STEM (PATHS) program, describes the center as “a one-stop shop for holistic advising, STEM Club activities, career panels and much more." At CSU Channel Islands, Project AYUDAS will be reassessing and modifying first-year required STEM courses, as these introduce students to STEM and can influence their decision on whether they want to stay or switch majors. Project AYUDAS will increase STEM student retention by redesigning the curriculum and developing equity-minded pedagogy for faculty.
Objective 3: Develop competitive, career-ready professionals The number of Hispanic graduates needs to triple by 2030 in order for the STEM workforce to reflect the demographics of our country, according to the National Science Board. To address the workforce equity gap, campuses are promoting students' employability with hands-on experience and sharpened job skills. Sacramento State's STEM4Equity will transform math, physics and engineering courses to align with what STEM employers need. Leadership activities and internships will be offered to develop STEM identity for Latinx and low-income students and equip them with real-world skills. Meanwhile, CSU San Marcos will leverage industry partnerships to align education and workforce. The campus will embed undergraduate research experiences in the curriculum and offer work-based learning opportunities.
Learn more about the HSI grant program and how campuses plan to maximize it on the U.S. Department of Education website.
| | | CSU Campuses Receive More than $35 Million to Increase Number of Latinx Students with STEM Degrees | | | | 10/11/2021 10:22 AM | Barrie, Matthew | 10/11/2021 | 10/11/2021 8:25 AM | See how the CSU Certificate Program in Student Success Analytics promotes shared responsibility for dismantling institutional barriers to student success. | Student Success | Story |
Transforming Equity Data into Collective Action
See how the CSU Certificate Program in Student Success Analytics promotes shared responsibility for dismantling institutional barriers to student success.
While graduation rates at the CSU have increased, equity gaps still persist—with underrepresented and first-generation students bearing the brunt of the effects. The CSU is committed to fostering equity-minded and data-informed action to close those equity gaps and support students on their way to a college degree. An integral effort to reach those goals of
Graduation Initiative 2025 (GI2025) is the
CSU Certificate Program in Student Success Analytics. Now in its fifth year, the professional development program empowers faculty, staff and administrators to work collaboratively on understanding and addressing the factors that perpetuate equity gaps in higher education. The curriculum features nationally-renowned guest speakers and harnesses the power of the CSU student success data disaggregated by race/ethnicity, income, first-generation status and gender. “Our program uses data as a tool to shine a light on what works well and what can be improved," says Cynthia Alvarez, Ph.D., assistant director of Student Success at the CSU Office of the Chancellor and program co-lead. "We leverage the data by addressing equity and student success in a holistic manner. This process helps our learning community think through what it means to make changes on campus to benefit students, especially historically marginalized students, all while spurring new goals and innovative ideas to serve their campus as a whole." The semester-long program boasts more than 600 alumni from all 23 CSU campuses, the Chancellor's Office and systemwide groups like the Cal State Student Association. Teams from non-CSU institutions—including Stanford University, Southern University at New Orleans, Minnesota State University, University of Northern Colorado and University of California, Riverside—have also completed the program. “Our professional development program first started with a learning grant, and we have piloted new features every year to continue our learning and to serve an ever-larger audience," says Nele Hempel-Lamer, Ph.D., program director and professor of German and former interim associate vice president for Undergraduate Studies at
California State University, Long Beach. “For our 2022 cohort, we are excited to announce that we have augmented our traditional team-based program structure and that we are now able to accommodate individual registrants from CSU and non-CSU institutions." Enrollment in the program is currently open for the
spring 2022 session.
See some examples of transformative collective action that program alumni have taken to help close equity gaps on their campuses. focus on the positive
California State University, East Bay has been participating in the Analytics Certificate Program since the pilot in 2018. Several campus teams have embarked on actionable projects inspired by the program and aligned with GI2025 goals and student success. “It provides an avenue to uplift and empower faculty and staff to be able to [advocate] on behalf of our students," says Fanny Yeung, Ph.D., director of Institutional Effectiveness and Research. “Now we can talk about our concerns and what our students need, and they know how to look at those data resources." One such project, the
Black Excellence Project, grew out of data showing lower graduation rates among Black students. As a way to address the issue, the project leads produced a series of videos showcasing the experiences and celebrating the graduation success stories of Black students at CSUEB.
Project leads Steven Cleveland and Sarah Aubert donned face masks for their Black Excellence Project campaign. “The goal is to amplify their voices, to share their stories, to highlight the best practices on our campus that worked for them and what didn't work or what challenges they faced during their time here," explains Sarah Aubert, university curriculum coordinator/catalog, curriculum specialist and project co-lead. “We have a personal connection to the story as first-gen Black students ourselves, having dealt with the challenges that come with that and having achieved a success in our own ways," she adds. “We know it's possible [to graduate] and there must be an avenue for our students to achieve that as well." The social media campaign focuses on freshmen who graduated in four years and transfer students who graduated in two years.
Bidemi Animashaun, fall '20, shared her story as a first-generation college graduate for the Black Excellence Project. "Education is the gateway to everything you want in life. … I wouldn’t have picked anywhere else to go for my undergrad." “We often look at the challenges [Black students] are facing, and we share stories that highlight deficits toward the end of trying to fix those challenges," says Steven Cleveland, filmmaker, CSUEB lecturer and fellow project lead. “To me, the strength-based approach allows us to celebrate excellence, to celebrate folks who are exceptional, as opposed to highlighting those who are struggling." The hope is the campaign will help CSUEB—as well as other institutions—implement changes and best practices based on the students' stories to minimize the graduation equity gaps affecting Black students. multi-campus effort
“The program was so focused on social justice and closing the equity gap; there's a lot of like-mindedness there when it comes to libraries in terms of access to information and information literacy."
—Dr. Jennifer Fabbi
With members from eight campuses, the
Council of Library Deans' Student Success Committee became the first multi-campus team to join the program. Their participation resulted in the development of a preliminary report analyzing the impact of low- and no-cost courses and materials on course passing rates. The idea grew from the librarians' work with the systemwide
Affordable Learning Solutions (AL$) program, which awards campuses funding to introduce faculty to alternative materials that could lower students' costs. The initiative has led to an increase in the number of low- and no-cost courses. “The AL$ program allows our libraries to do this work because it funds and has funded for many years the acceleration of adoption of low- and no-cost course materials," says Jennifer Fabbi, Ph.D., dean of the university library at
California State University San Marcos and committee chair. “This study can then feed back into the program to show the efficacy of these practices."
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Council of Library Deans’ Student Success Committee participated virtually in the spring 2021 session of the Analytics Certificate Program. Some ways libraries reduce course costs are through purchased course reserves that can be pulled together into class readings, unlimited licenses for electronic materials and Open Education Resources. By lowering the cost of materials, students have greater access to a more affordable and equitable learning experience. “To be successful, you have to do the reading, and to do the reading, you have to have access to the reading," Dr. Fabbi says. “But there are students who for one reason or another make the choice not to purchase their course materials because the cost can be very high." The team was able to identify relevant course data from fall 2020 for five of the represented campuses—California State University Channel Islands,
California State University, Fullerton,
California State University, Los Angeles,
California State University, Northridge and CSU San Marcos—and found low- or no-cost courses had a significant effect on course passing rates. However, the team plans to conduct further analysis and produce a full study once classes have returned to a more traditional format following the pandemic. learning from the CSU
The Analytics Certificate Program is also contributing to student success at other higher education institutions. University of Northern Colorado (UNC), which participated in the program for two consecutive years, is just one of the non-CSU universities that have been able to apply program learnings to close equity gaps on their own campuses. “It was a positive for our faculty who participated to have that experience of doing something that benefits the entire institution," says Kim Black, Ph.D., UNC assistant provost for Academic Effectiveness and team lead. “Their exposure to all of the webinars and seeing how other institutions are using data helped to create a core of people on campus who can be involved in future student success work." UNC's first team used the experience to analyze whether course scheduling impacted student retention—a project conducted by graduate-level statistics students that found it didn't have much of an effect. Building on this foundation, the second cohort worked on two projects: identifying additional data that would serve the academic program review process and building student success data dashboards, including one on students' sense of belonging. “Having access to the data in that format and with the equity gap focus ... opened up some new opportunities for our faculty to help us think about what kind of data would be most useful for academic departments to have when they're making decisions about how to improve student success within their own majors," Dr. Black says. The teams hope to develop a UNC professional development program like the CSU's certificate program to train faculty and staff on using data to close equity gaps. self-reflection
While Associate Professor of Psychology Sharon Furtak, Ph.D., completed the program with a
California State University, Sacramento team studying student drop-off rates between undergraduate and graduate programs, she was able to further apply her learnings to another endeavor. Using the data, Dr. Furtak started looking at equity gaps in her department and found about a third of psychology majors, most of whom were Pell-receiving or historically underserved students, left the campus within four years. In addition, she saw nine percent of students who took the course Navigating Psychology—a one-unit class required for all psychology majors—received a D grade or lower, which jumped to 14 percent for the spring 2020 semester when COVID-19 hit. “It is set up to be one of the first classes students have in the major, and it should also be one of their first interactions with our faculty," Furtak says. “It's a great opportunity to create an environment where they believe they can thrive, but also where they feel like they're coming into a supportive network of faculty who want to help them succeed."
Dr. Sharon Furtak, second from right, cheers with her Sacramento State team at the 2020 Kickoff Session. Her team transitioned to a fully virtual format mid-semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ahead of teaching the course for the first time in fall 2020, she redesigned the class to increase the students' sense of belonging. Changes included representing the campus as a diverse and welcoming place, making sure the students were represented in the class, sharing her own successes and setbacks, embedding a segment on cultural awareness tied to the university's anti-racist convocation, increasing accessibility and reaching out to students who were struggling. “Every single piece I tried to build in a way that was accessible, was community-based and created a sense of belonging," she says. That semester, 215 students enrolled in the course and the rate of students receiving a D or lower was only 3.6 percent.
“As I [work] to excel in supporting student success, I am regularly coming back [to the data] and looking at where our students are struggling and where there are equity gaps that could be addressed—and constantly using that to inform how to improve my classes," Furtak says. share the wealth
“There was certainly a profoundly empowering aspect that having access to this data gave me in terms of my own courses, interacting with other faculty, doing program review and within other contexts.”
—Dr. Nielan Barnes
After going through the certificate program in spring 2021, Adam Kahn, Ph.D., assistant professor of communication studies, and Nielan Barnes, Ph.D., professor of sociology, piloted workshops for their College of Liberal Arts at Cal State Long Beach on equitizing course syllabi to facilitate student success. They blended lessons from the CSU Analytics Certificate Program on using the student success data to make data-driven decisions on equity with takeaways from a Long Beach City College (LBCC) cultural curriculum audit course on embedding equity-minded practices into teaching. “The data helps you identify problems or identify areas of focus … [and] the curriculum audit, while it didn't necessarily help you identify the problems, provided you lots of solutions," Dr. Kahn says.
Dr. Adam Kahn and Dr. Nielan Barnes meet virtually with their CSULB program team. Dr. Barnes adds: “We identify the problem a lot of times, and we know students aren't doing well in our courses. We have an idea of who some of those students are. But when you look at the data, it's powerful visually, as well as numerically and statistically, in letting you know who the students are, where they are struggling and where they are doing well." The goal is to expand to other colleges at CSULB and include the program team members from those colleges in building out the workshops. “We see a workshop series that includes not just equitizing your syllabus, but using the data to do things like build effective communication strategies, build effective online content (for example, your course homepage) and build transparent and effective assessments," Barnes says. “So much of the equity work I see happening now is very conceptual, theoretical and—while there are applications—often not very data-driven. That I think is the kind of thing we want to highlight: how we're using data to drive equity-minded interventions." culture shift
“We want faculty involved in this [program]," says S. Terri Gomez, Ph.D.,
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona associate provost of Student Success, Equity & Innovation. “It is important that they, too, have access to this professional development opportunity to learn more about student success analytics." For this reason, a number of CPP faculty and staff have completed the program to work on equity-focused projects. One project sought to bring about a culture change after the campus switched from quarters to semesters and began encouraging students to complete 30 credits each year. Some campus staff were concerned the resulting course loads would undermine first-generation, underrepresented and Pell-eligible students' success.
During the spring 2019 program session, Dr. S. Terri Gomez brainstorms solutions to equity gaps at Cal Poly Pomona with her team.
After increasing the percentage of students completing 30 units each year from 25 percent to 63 percent over the course of two years, a team joined the certificate program to see how the change affected student success by looking at data by college, major, gender, race, ethnicity and GPA. The analysis showed year-to-year retention was higher and GPAs increased, with students who had a 3.0 GPA and below seeing the most significant benefit. Eventually, the analysis will also look at graduation data. “Part of the strategy was not just to put students in any 15 units, but to be intentional in working with the advisors so we made sure they were in a schedule that was leading to timely graduation," Dr. Gomez says. “We've been able to get much more sophisticated in our analysis and build a culture on campus that begins to embrace the idea that all students can perform well if we set high expectations but offer the support they need to be successful."
Register for the CSU Certificate Program in Student Success Analytics, and read more about how it has helped address equity gaps at the CSU.
Story: ALEX BEALL
Photography: C/O CSU Certificate Program in Student Success Analytics
Share this story
| | | Transforming Equity Data into Collective Action | | | | 10/6/2021 1:02 PM | Salvador, Christianne | 10/6/2021 | 10/6/2021 12:55 PM | CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro announced today that the university will not pursue any future investments in fossil fuels in the university’s three investment portfolios. | Sustainability | Press Release | California State University (CSU) Chancellor Joseph I. Castro announced today that the university will not pursue any future investments in fossil fuels in the university's three investment portfolios: Systemwide Investment Fund Trust (SWIFT), Intermediate Duration Portfolio (IDP) and Total Return Portfolio (TRP). “Consistent with our values, it is an appropriate time to start to transition away from these types of investments, both to further demonstrate our commitment to a sustainable CSU but also to ensure strong future returns on the funds invested by the university," said Castro. The CSU has a long-standing commitment to sustainability, which includes the CSU trustees' adoption of a university-wide sustainability policy in 2014, its pledge to honor the Paris Agreement after the Trump administration's withdrawal in 2017, and codifying sustainability considerations in its master investment policy later that same year. In May 2021, Chancellor Castro tasked the CSU's Investment Advisory Committee (IAC) to review the university's investments to ensure alignment between the university's fiduciary responsibility and its commitment to sustainability. At the conclusion of their meeting on October 6, the IAC shared its recommendations with the Chancellor, who agreed to adopt them and has tasked staff at the Chancellor's Office with implementation. The IAC's recommendations include: - Liquidating fossil fuel-related bonds held in SWIFT as soon as reasonable and restrict future fossil fuel investments for that same portfolio and the IDP.
- Transition out of the TRP's direct energy mutual fund and into other non-fossil fuel mutual funds.
- Work as appropriate and feasible to further reduce fossil fuel exposures in the TRP, which due to legislative restrictions is limited to mutual funds.
- Allow CSU investment managers discretion to continue to invest in businesses that are successfully transitioning to sustainable green business models.
CSU investments are centrally managed on behalf of the system and its campuses. As of June 30, 2021, the CSU has approximately $5.2 billion invested in its portfolios. Neither state general fund nor CSU auxiliary funds are included in CSU investments. Auxiliaries, which support the university and campuses but are separate legal entities, cannot be obligated to adopt the recommendations of the IAC but are free to adopt an investment strategy that best supports their own specific missions. # # # About the California State University The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards more than 132,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter.
| | | California State University Will Not Make Future Fossil Fuel Investments in University Investment Portfolios and Funds | | | | 10/5/2021 11:21 AM | McCarthy, Michelle | 10/4/2021 | 10/4/2021 8:00 AM | “Welcome back!" has a new ring to it this year. Join us in one of our most unique and celebratory years yet. | Community | Story | | | | Back to School | Move-In Day 2021 | | | | 10/1/2021 10:48 AM | Ruble, Alisia | 9/30/2021 | 9/30/2021 8:05 AM | Cal State Apply enables all CSU incoming freshman, transfer, graduate and international students to apply to multiple CSU campuses with just one application. | Apply | Press Release | All 23 California State University (CSU) campuses will begin accepting applications for admission to the fall 2022 term on October 1, 2021. Students interested in attending any CSU campus can apply online at the university's application portal: Cal State Apply. Cal State Apply enables all CSU incoming freshman, transfer, graduate and international students to apply to multiple CSU campuses with just one application. The website provides prospective students and their parents important information about degree offerings across the CSU. The site includes a comprehensive database detailing undergraduate and graduate degree programs offered at each campus, as well as information about the campus community, student housing, financial aid and campus life. Applying early during the priority application period is encouraged; high demand, impacted campuses will not accept applications after November 30. Campuses or programs that are "impacted" have higher demand from qualified applicants than can be accommodated. Prospective students are encouraged to check Cal State Apply for specific deadlines. For fall 2022 applications, the fee is $70 per campus. However, the CSU expects that about half of this year's undergraduate applicants will qualify to have the application fee waived based on income criteria. The CSU is committed to helping high school and community college students overcome university admissions challenges caused by COVID-19. The university has taken steps to ensure students are not adversely impacted by these disruptions and can pursue their degree as planned, including temporarily suspending the use of ACT/SAT examinations in determining eligibility for all campuses for the 2022-2023 academic year. First-time freshmen must meet the following eligibility requirements: be a high school graduate or equivalent; complete the 15-unit comprehensive “a-g" pattern of college preparatory courses; and earn a qualifying “a-g" grade point average. After applying, prospective students should visit the university's financial aid website to learn more about financial aid options. The CSU represents the best value in higher education with one of the lowest tuition fees in the nation and robust financial aid totaling more than $4.5 billion per year. In fact, 80 percent of all CSU students receive some type of financial aid, and 60 percent of undergraduates receive sufficient grant and scholarship financial aid to cover the full cost of tuition. It has never been a better time to be a CSU student. As part of Graduation Initiative 2025, CSU campuses continue to remove barriers to student achievement and provide students with additional support inside and outside the classroom, resulting in record graduation and retention rates – in the spring of 2021, CSU campuses awarded a record number of 132,617 degrees. Additionally, the university recently launched the first phase of the CSUCCESS program – a bold initiative to enhance student achievement and create more equitable opportunities for the CSU community by providing industry-leading technology. Learn more at the Cal State Apply website. # # # About the California State University
The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards nearly 129,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter. | | | CSU to Begin Accepting Applications for Fall 2022 on October 1 | | | | 9/28/2021 4:41 PM | Salvador, Christianne | 9/28/2021 | 9/28/2021 1:55 PM | The CSU Board of Trustees is beginning the search for a new president of California State University Channel Islands to succeed Erika D. Beck, Ph.D., who became president of California State University, Northridge in January 2021. | Leadership | Press Release | The California State University (CSU) Board of Trustees is beginning the search for a new president of California State University Channel Islands (CSUCI) to succeed Erika D. Beck, Ph.D., who became president of California State University, Northridge in January 2021.
The first meeting of the Trustees' Committee for the Selection of the President will be held in a virtual open forum from noon to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 12. During this time, the committee will outline the search process and the community will be invited to share their preferred attributes of the next president of CSUCI. Please note that campus and community members wishing to speak during the virtual open forum and address the committee are required to register in advance, and the deadline to register is Monday, Oct. 11 at 5 p.m. Confirmed speakers will receive details about how to participate. CSU Trustee Wenda Fong will chair the committee. The other trustee members include Larry L. Adamson, Diego Arambula and Jack B. Clarke, Jr., as well as Trustee Chair Lillian Kimbell and CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro. The virtual open forum will be web-streamed live and archived on the President Search website, where individuals may also provide their input via written submission.
Board policy requires the chair of the CSU trustees to appoint an Advisory Committee to the Trustees' Committee. The Advisory Committee is composed of representatives from the faculty, staff, students and alumni, as well as a member of a campus advisory board, all of whom are selected by the campus's constituency groups. Also on the Advisory Committee is a vice president or academic dean from the campus, and a president of another CSU campus—both selected by the chancellor. Both committees function as one unified group. Members of the Advisory Committee for the Selection of the President include: - Gregory G. Wood, Ph.D., chair, Academic Senate
- Jacob Jenkins, Ph.D., associate professor (faculty representative)
- Ekin Pehlivan, Ph.D., associate professor (faculty representative)
- Renee Fuentes, Title IX administrative specialist (staff representative)
- Sergio Gutierrez Mercado III (student representative)
- Aurora Rugerio, president, CSUCI Associated Students, Inc. (student representative)
- Atticus Ford Reyes (alumni representative)
- Jeff Green (campus advisory board representative)
- Nichole Ipach, vice president for University Advancement (administration representative)
- Irene Pinkard. Ed.D. (community representative)
- David M. Rodriguez (community representative)
- Lynnette Zelezny, Ph.D., president, California State University, Bakersfield (CSU president representative)
Over the next several months, the committee will review candidates and conduct interviews. # # # About the California State University
The California State University is the largest system of four-year higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, 56,000 faculty and staff and 486,000 students. Half of the CSU's students transfer from California community colleges. Created in 1960, the mission of the CSU is to provide high-quality, affordable education to meet the ever-changing needs of California. With its commitment to quality, opportunity and student success, the CSU is renowned for superb teaching, innovative research and for producing job-ready graduates. Each year, the CSU awards nearly 129,000 degrees. One in every 20 Americans holding a college degree is a graduate of the CSU and our alumni are 4 million strong. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU NewsCenter.
| | | California State University Channel Islands Presidential Search Committee to Hold Virtual Open Forum | | | | 9/28/2021 8:25 AM | Ruble, Alisia | 9/27/2021 | 9/27/2021 1:00 PM | CSU campuses are taking action to help those suffering from the crisis in Afghanistan. | California | Story | The CSU has a long history of showing compassion to those in need, and when California Governor Gavin Newsom announced in early September that the state would take action to support Afghan refugee arrivals, CSU campuses quickly identified ways in which they could help those suffering from the crisis in Afghanistan.
San José State’s Human Rights Institute has partnered with the University of California, Berkeley’s Human Rights Center and the UC Berkeley Afghan Student Association to launch a crowdfunded Afghanistan Emergency Fund, which has raised more than $250,000 including $50,000 from SJSU's Office of the President and Office of the Provost.
Halima Kazem-Stojanovic, the core faculty member at SJSU’s Human Rights Institute, and a lecturer in the campus’s journalism department, has also established a network of more than 15 colleges and universities to sponsor Afghan scholars, academics, activists, and journalists and bring them to teach at universities in the United States.
"We're trying to help them come here and do the work they did, and be able to share that knowledge. The J1 Foreign Scholar Visa is a route we can take," Dr. Kazem-Stojanovic said.
Sacramento State, which serves a large population of Afghan students, has started community and crowd sourced funding outreach to provide resources for refugees and assist the local and state government in the resettling process.
"The State of California, City of Sacramento, and Sacramento State will continue to welcome Afghan refugees and assist them with their transition to the United States,” Sacramento State President Robert S. Nelsen said in a message to the campus community. “There will be a great need for housing, language training, and job placement. To meet these needs, we will be called upon to demonstrate the compassionate caring that defines our Hornet Family.
Cal Poly Pomona is also working to support Afghan scholars fleeing the country, and representatives from Stanislaus State have met with Congressional Representative Josh Harder to begin planning for the arrival of refugees. Cal State East Bay and Cal State Long Beach are also providing translators.
Additional resources may be used to help Afghan evacuees arriving in California including assistance and possible admission to students wishing to further their education, translation services, English as a second language (ESL) instruction, foundation support and crowdsource funding.
California is projected to take in approximately 5,200 Afghan evacuees, more than any other U.S. state, and the CSU is prepared to provide support as they continue to arrive.
| | | CSU Provides Support for Afghan Refugees in California | |  | | 9/27/2021 9:42 AM | Barrie, Matthew | 9/27/2021 | 9/27/2021 10:00 AM | As the largest university system in the U.S., the CSU provides all individuals interested in furthering their education access to a valuable, life-changing college degree. Here are just 10 reasons to apply to the CSU. | Apply | Story |
10 Reasons to Choose the CSUNotable alumni discuss how their CSU education charted a path to success.
01 A High-Value Education at an Affordable Cost The CSU is the best value in higher education. Year after year, it remains one of the
most affordable university systems in the nation, with more than half of its students graduating with zero loan debt. In 2019, all 23 campuses ranked among the top 100 “Best Bang for the Buck” universities in the West, according to Washington Monthly. In addition, the university offers students a variety of
financial aid options to ensure access to higher education, including grants, loans, scholarships, fellowships, veteran’s aid and work study. In general, undergraduate students who qualify for financial assistance and whose family’s total annual income—as a family of four or more—is less than $70,000 will not have to pay tuition fees. In the 2018-2019 school year, 83 percent of undergraduate students received some form of financial aid—with 349,000 students receiving a total of almost $4 billion. “I am the grandson of a dreamer from Mexico. I am the son of farmworkers. I am the first in my family to graduate from college, raised by grandparents and my single mother who worked very hard to give me the opportunities they didn't have," CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro, Ph.D., said during
Super Sunday 2021. “Higher education transformed my life. I assure you that no matter your circumstances, the CSU is within your reach. It is affordable and it will change your life."
02 An Engine of Social Mobility As Chancellor Castro stated, the CSU changes the lives of its students. Its campuses consistently rank high each year in
CollegeNET’s “Social Mobility Index”—which measures to what extent higher education institutions are helping solve the declining levels of economic mobility in the U.S. The index looks at the cost of attendance, economic background of the student body, graduation rates and early career salaries to determine if schools are accepting economically disadvantaged students and graduating them into well-paying jobs. In 2020, 22 CSU campuses ranked in the top 60 percent of the index, and CSU campuses claimed 70 percent of the top 20 spots. The importance of the CSU’s role in ensuring individuals can move up the income ladder becomes evident when considering the system awards more than half of California’s bachelor’s degrees and nearly a third of CSU students are first generation. “We are stewards of the American dream,” San José State President Mary Papazian said in a 2019 LA Times article. “Where you see socioeconomic mobility is at institutions like ours.”
03 A Focus on Student Success With student success at the heart of
Graduation Initiative 2025 (GI2025), there has never been a better time to be a CSU student. The ambitious initiative seeks to increase graduation rates for all CSU students while eliminating opportunity and achievement gaps. Since launching in 2015, the effort has helped more students complete their degree programs and graduate on time. Each year, graduation rates have steadily increased, with the CSU conferring a record-breaking 132,617 degrees in 2020-21.
“Graduation Initiative 2025 has been a game changer for the CSU,” Dr. Castro says. “Thanks to our students’ intellect and drive—and to the skill, creativity and commitment of our world-class faculty and staff—graduation and persistence rates are at all-time highs for students from all walks of life.”
04 A University for All Students Everyone is welcome at the CSU. As the nation’s
most diverse four-year university, the CSU serves all students regardless of race, ethnicity, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, ability or socioeconomic status. In fact, almost half of CSU students are underrepresented minorities, 21 of 23 campuses are
Hispanic Serving Institutions and the CSU confers more than half of undergraduate degrees earned by California’s Latinx, African American and Native American students. The
university celebrates the diversity of its student body and ensures the success of all students through systemwide initiatives like the
Educational Opportunity Program and GI2025, campus-based programs, cultural centers and
anti-bias trainings.
05 World-Class Faculty CSU faculty are among the best and the brightest in the profession, providing students with a quality education while addressing equity gaps. They are the leaders who engage with students, meet their learning needs in the campus or virtual classroom and prepare them for their future. The innovation and dedication of
CSU instructors were made clear during the pandemic, when they found creative ways to
transition to online learning. Equally important is the CSU’s employment of diverse faculty members to reflect the composition of the student body. Efforts continue to both hire and retain professors of color who can offer unique support and serve as role models for students. “I think it’s very important for our students to see [faculty diversity] and to know that their instructors understand them and work to support their success,” Castro said in a
Public Policy Institute of California interview.
06 A Bridge Across the Digital Divide The CSU is working diligently to ensure that students have the technology they need to be successful beginning on day one. Most recently, it launched its CSUCCESS (California State University Connectivity Contributing to Equity and Student Success) initiative to enhance digital equity. The first phase will provide an iPad Air for up to 35,000 first-year and new transfer students at eight campuses. But COVID-19 and virtual learning also made apparent the technological disparities that exist along racial, ethnic and socioeconomic lines. The CSU refuses to turn a blind eye to these challenges and works to address these inequities that ultimately lead to unequal access to education. Ongoing efforts include
providing low- and no-cost resources to students and faculty alike, but during the pandemic, the CSU also provided
technology like Wi-Fi hotspots to students and
transformed virtual instruction methods to continue offering a high-quality and robust education.
07 A Home to the Next Generation of Experts One in 10 employees in California is a CSU graduate. As a result, the university is responsible for preparing the next generation of experts leading the state to a better future. With the support of top professors, laboratories, relationships with local industries and hands-on learning, CSU students will have the knowledge and experience to tackle the challenges of tomorrow—whether in
agriculture,
aerospace,
cybersecurity or a variety of
other industries. And, through the campuses’
entrepreneur and incubator programs, the university also encourages students to pave their own path forward, pushing California’s industries ahead or disrupting them when needed. “The California State University provides unprecedented and transformational opportunities for students from all backgrounds to earn a high-quality college degree and to better their families, their communities and the industries in which they become leaders,” Castro said in
an article exploring how a CSU degree changed the lives of alumni. “There is no other institution that makes this great of an impact on the entire state—the CSU is key to a growing and thriving California.”
08 A Generator of Innovation and Research Even before graduation, CSU students get
hands-on experience and learning opportunities conducting cutting-edge research in the lab and the field with faculty. Beyond the educational value, students help address some of the state’s, nation’s and world’s most pressing challenges. Just this past year, CSU research helped California understand and combat
COVID-19, while other ongoing research has looked at
climate change, aid for those with
disabilities,
fire prevention,
ocean conservation and
earthquakes.
09 A Champion of Leadership Students will also develop leadership skills, both inside and outside of the classroom, before entering the workforce. Whether through work study or internships, campus organizations or
athletics,
volunteering or
civic engagement initiatives, the CSU ensures students’ learning experience prepares them to serve and lead their communities both inside and outside a professional capacity.
10 A Global Alumni Network With the graduation of the Class of 2021, the CSU reached
4 million alumni. This extensive network provides students and graduates with people to turn to for mentorship, advice and internship or job opportunities.
While 84 percent of CSU alumni live in California, the network stretches across the globe with
alumni groups operating in Washington, D.C., and New York and new groups starting up in Tokyo and the United Kingdom.
Story: Alex Beall
photoGRAPHY:
Jason Halley, CSU Chico; Cal State Fullerton; Jessica Vernone, Sac State; Robert Huskey, Cal State LA; CSUN; Sean DuFrene, Cal State Long Beach; CSU Bakersfield; Patrick Record; Cal Poly SLO; Jessica Bartlett, CSU Chico; CSU Channel Islands.
Share this story
| | | 10 Reasons to Choose the CSU | | | | 9/20/2021 7:48 AM | Rawls, Aaron | 9/20/2021 | 9/20/2021 5:25 PM | Three CSU alumni-teachers reflect on their journey to the classroom, virtual learning and what it means to be an educator. | Teacher Preparation | Story |
A Teaching Moment
Three CSU alumni-teachers reflect on their journey to the classroom, virtual learning and what it means to be an educator.
“The duties of a teacher are neither few nor small, but they elevate the mind and give energy to the character.” —Dorothea Dix
Block by block, lesson by lesson, day by day, teachers build the foundation of students’ knowledge and character that carries them from childhood to adulthood. Now, after endeavoring to continue that work virtually during the pandemic, educators are beginning to re-enter the classroom with their students. Preparing more of California’s teachers than any other institution, the CSU's
teacher preparation program helps ensure those instructors are equipped to provide that strong educational foundation. As we head into the new school year, we spoke with three teachers who earned their credentials at the CSU.
ERIC CALDERON-PHANGRATH
Seventh-Grade Teacher, Fort Miller Middle School
Fresno State, B.A. Liberal Studies ’17, Teaching Credential ’19, M.A. Special Education ’21
“I can have deep conversations with kids, and they can respond back with genuine responses—and that’s what I enjoy about middle school.”
The son of immigrants from Cambodia and Laos, Eric Calderon-Phangrath was only 16 years old when he enrolled in the liberal studies program at
California State University, Fresno. “English was not my first language, I was young, I was a first-generation college student and my parents really didn't know how to help navigate the college avenue for me,” he says. “So, it was a lot of figuring it out myself.” Despite his uncertainty, Calderon-Phangrath already knew he wanted to be a teacher because of his experience in school and the support he received from his teachers. “[My siblings and I] had teachers who would take us after school when our parents were still on the farm,” he says. “They would read stories with us or have us staple packets and keep us busy. They would essentially give us a space to stay until our parents could get home.” With the help of campus advisors, Calderon-Phangrath mapped out a track to complete his undergraduate degree—a journey that took him 12 years to finish as he took off semesters here and there while he and his husband fostered and adopted their children. But it was his children who ultimately led him to become a special education teacher. “I had the realization that I needed to be a better advocate for my own kids, because they have special needs,” Calderon-Phangrath explains. “What better way to advocate for your children than being in the classroom?” His teaching career, however, actually began before completing his credential program, when his professors encouraged him to apply for a school district job immediately. Now he’s entering his fifth year of teaching and is currently a seventh-grade teacher at Fort Miller Middle School. Working in the same school district he grew up in, Calderon-Phangrath is serving students who live in areas like his childhood neighborhood that have high drug use, gangs and violence. This shared experience allows him to have deep conversations with his students about how they can break those cycles and “change the trajectory of their lives.” And it’s making these connections with students in person again that he was most looking forward to as this new school year began. “I can think back to the teachers who watched us after school that I had in second grade: Ms. Murray or Ms. Brannon or Ms. Toto,” Calderon-Phangrath recalls. “They were more than just our teachers, and I want to be able to give that to my students. I can check on their well-being when they're here; I can make sure they're fed and clothed. Yes, I'm looking forward to the kids coming in so I can teach them in person and give them support and accommodations. But it's also making sure the students are OK.”
STEPHANIE ORTIZ
Fourth-Grade Teacher, Evergreen Elementary School
CSU Bakersfield, B.A. Liberal Studies ’15, Teaching Credential ’15, M.A. Curriculum and Instruction ’19
“What I missed the most is being able to support all of my kids. Once I meet those kids in person, I already know what each kid needs. I don't need a report card. I don't need a grading system. I don't need to look at their work to know where they're at.”
Throughout Stephanie Ortiz’s journey to the classroom, she has kept coming back to her first- and second-grade teacher Mrs. Salazar and Evergreen Elementary School—where she attended school and now teaches. It was Mrs. Salazar who wrote her recommendations to receive
California State University, Bakersfield scholarships, and it was Evergreen where Ortiz tutored young students as a college sophomore. It was also Mrs. Salazar’s first-grade class at Evergreen where Ortiz started her student-teaching. “My whole experience and my journey to being a teacher always called me back to my elementary school, and I’m still there,” Ortiz says. “I've always been a [Bakersfield City School District] kid, and I knew when I was starting my journey as a teacher, I always wanted to go back to BCSD because they made me successful. They were able to put me on this path to graduate high school and then graduate college.” Ortiz also thought she wanted to teach first grade, until her initial time student-teaching. She then began student-teaching with Evergreen’s fourth-grade teacher and realized she enjoyed the older grade. Following that experience, the fourth-grade teacher changed roles and Ortiz applied to the position and was offered the job. She’s now entering her seventh year teaching and works with students who come from similar backgrounds as hers. As a Mexican American and a daughter of immigrants, she finds she can understand the challenges her students face coming from Spanish-speaking households. “I'm able to relate to them because this was my journey, this was my school. I finished school here, and then I went to Sequoia and then I went to West High,” Ortiz says. “I tell them, ‘It's possible for you to end up where you want to be—if you want to become a teacher, a vet, a doctor, whatever you want to do, whatever path you want to take.' … I feel really lucky that I'm able to connect to a lot of these families, as a first-generation college student, and set that example for these kids.” Ortiz also works as an inclusion teacher, which means she has students in her class who have individualized education programs or are classified as requiring special education. But when the district transitioned to virtual learning and then hybrid learning during COVID-19, these students were moved into a separate class. As her district returns to in person, Ortiz was ready to have all her students together again. “I was looking forward to being back with them, having that human interaction and being able to build relationships with them,” she says. “Because not many of our kids come from good home lives, they come with challenges. We have foster kids. We have kids who don't feel like they're cared for at home or have other challenges they're facing. Building that little environment, that little safe space for them is great, and they always thrive in that kind of environment.”
NAGEL FLORES
First-Grade Teacher, Baldwin Stocker Elementary School
Cal State LA, M.S. Mental Health Counseling ’16; CalStateTEACH, Teaching Credential ’20
“I really like going through the day, spending time with the students and interacting with each of them individually. Each of them has such a unique personality, and I really enjoy that.”
First-year teacher Nagel Flores had spent plenty of time in the classroom before earning his teaching credential through
CalStateTEACH and accepting his first full-time teaching position. After working as a school counselor to help students who needed extra behavioral support, he switched to substitute teaching in 2018, when he taught students of various grades and need levels. “After a while I was like, ‘Hey, you know what? I want to be a teacher, too,’” Flores says. “I looked online to see what programs would help me as a full-time substitute teacher, but also acquire the multiple subject credential. So, I found CalStateTEACH, and I really liked the program because it was all online and it allowed me to work during the day.” Thanks to that flexibility, he continued working in a substitute capacity while completing the program, serving as a long-term substitute for a transitional kindergarten class through spring 2021 after graduation. In addition, the program’s blend of mentorship opportunities, academic resources and student teaching prepared him to enter the classroom. “All these things coming together really made me a more equipped educator,” Flores says. “Especially because CalStateTEACH, too, is very technology heavy, where they make you do a lot of assignments that require some experience and understanding of technology—whether that be for assessing students, making resources more accessible to parents or just how to make it more transformative and integrated for the students.” The technological skills became especially helpful as he taught both virtual and hybrid classes during the pandemic. “Some families felt more comfortable staying at home, but that didn't mean that they were going to get left behind, because it's all about equity,” he explains. “If some students wanted to stay home and some students wanted to come back in person, it's still the same level of quality in education that you're providing to both parties.” But with the return to the classroom this school year, Flores was particularly looking forward to opening day procedures, especially as it was his first day as a full-time teacher. “As a sub, it would be the teacher setting those foundations and the classroom management style, but now I get to be that teacher,” he says. “I'm in that position now, and I get to teach them how to walk in lines, how to play on the playground and how to interact with their peers."
“It comes down to being with the students; that's the main reason why I became a teacher in the first place. And I just want to see how I can help develop each and every one of my students.”
Story: Alex Beall
Photography: Patrick Record;
C/O Bakersfield City School District
Share this story
| | | A Teaching Moment |
|