Tag: CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI)

CSUCI to offer a new Dance Studies major

by Community Contributor • August 11, 2022 • Comments Off

When she begins her senior year in the Fall, Performing Arts student Madison “Maddy” Hitchcock will be among the very first Dance Studies majors at CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI). Hitchcock declared her major in Dance Studies in late Spring, as soon as she learned the Performing Arts program was offering the new major beginning in Fall 2022.

“I’m really, really excited about it,” Hitchcock said. “This is what I always wanted to study. I think so many dancers would benefit from being a part of this program because it isn’t specific to any age, body type or experience level.”

Previously, the University offered a Performing Arts major with a Dance emphasis, but this is the first Dance Studies major ever offered at CSUCI. And it won’t be your typical college Dance Studies major, according to Associate Professor of Performing Arts Heather Castillo, who has been a champion for the program along with Performing Arts/Dance Lecturers MiRi Park and Bonnie Lavin-Hughes.

“The degree is a global look at dance and how dance has always been a way to communicate and pass down our culture from generation to generation with the stories in our bodies,” Castillo said.

CSUCI Economics faculty study suggests potential employers may view maternity breaks as unemployment rather than relevant experience

by Community Contributor • July 28, 2022 • Comments Off

Stay-at-home mothers know their 24/7 unpaid job involves the skills of a nurse, cook, chauffeur, therapist, maid, endurance athlete, logistics expert and, in the case of toddlers—conflict negotiation.

Yet, a study conducted by CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) Associate Professor of Economics Bryan Tomlin, Ph.D., suggests that employers tend to view time taken off for maternity duties the same way they would view a period of unemployment or any other unexplained gap in a woman’s resume.

CSUCI free Juneteenth presentation on June 21 will detail how enslaved people fought to free themselves

by Community Contributor • June 17, 2022 • Comments Off

The Juneteenth federal holiday celebrates African American history, culture, and the abolition of slavery in the United States. President Abraham Lincoln signing the Emancipation Proclamation into law on January 1, 1863 is central to the celebration as it declared enslaved people as free, but we should not forget how much the enslaved people did to free themselves.

That’s the theme of “Juneteenth: A Freedom Celebration,” a free public Zoom presentation sponsored by the CSU Channel Islands(CSUCI) Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). On Tuesday, June 21 at 1 p.m., University of Maryland Professor of History Richard Bell, Ph.D., an expert on slavery in America, will discuss Juneteenth and how the enslaved people had to fight for their own freedom before and after the Emancipation Proclamation.

“We associate Juneteenth with Abe Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation, but to the confederacy, it was just a piece of paper,” Bell said. “They didn’t’ recognize the paper or Lincoln as their president. Freedom had to be seized.”

CSUCI named a Tree Campus USA for the 10th year in a row

by Community Contributor • June 10, 2022 • Comments Off

Because of its ongoing commitment to the 1,579 trees and about 90 species on campus, the Arbor Day Foundation has named CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) a Tree Campus USA for the 10th year in a row.

CSUCI is among 411 campuses across the nation to earn the Tree Campus USA distinction for their work in 2021. The annual recognition is for campuses whose members develop and maintain a healthy tree canopy and create programs to make the tree population sustainable.

“Trees not only play a vital role in the environment but also in our daily lives,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Having trees on college and university campuses is a great way to show a commitment to students and faculty’s overall well-being.”

CSUCI Nursing student and her mom make history by getting inducted together into an international Nursing honor society

by Community Contributor • June 6, 2022 • Comments Off

After CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) 2022 Nursing graduate Sabrina Shaboti takes and passes her state board exams this summer, she plans to become a professional nurse practitioner, just like her mother, Nadia Malik Shaboti.

Before Nadia and the rest of the Shaboti family watched Sabrina graduate on May 22, both mother and daughter made history by getting inducted together into the Gamma Tau at Large Chapter of the Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Nursing Honor Society in April. It was the first time in the 40-year history of the honor society that a mother-daughter duo were inducted together.

“I felt embarrassed,” Nadia admitted. “I felt it was taking the shine off Sabrina.”

“I was honored,” Sabrina countered. “My mom is my biggest inspiration and my biggest role model.”

CSUCI building to be renamed to honor President Emeritus Richard R. Rush

by Community Contributor • June 2, 2022 • Comments Off

A building that sits at the heart of the CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) campus – University Hall – will be renamed Richard R. Rush Hall in honor of President Emeritus Richard R. Rush.

Rush became president of the 23rd and newest campus in the CSU system in June of 2001 and retired in 2016. He first welcomed students and the campus community to CSUCI in 2002 and laid the groundwork for success that the institution has realized and continues to realize today.

The announcement was made during the CSU Board of Trustees Open Session the morning of May 24 during a meeting of the Committee on Institutional Advancement. Before putting the action item to a vote, Trustee Douglas Faigin said he was personally thrilled to see his good friend receive a well-deserved honor.

“The accomplishments during his tenure were significant, which included establishing an array of public partners that helped to raise nearly $49 million in contributions to support student scholarships and help launch programs to better serve regional needs,” Faigin said. “As the founding president, he established the vision and direction of the campus with a clearly-stated focus on students and their success.”

CSUCI Model United Nations team wins awards at National Model UN conference

by Community Contributor • May 24, 2022 • Comments Off

A team of students from CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) attended the National Model United Nations (NMUN) conference in New York for the first time, and even though they had little time to prepare, the entire team walked away with an Honorable Mention and four students took home individual awards.

“I cannot lie, I was nervous going to New York to a new conference where we’d never been before, and our preparation was rushed,” said Political Science Lecturer Chris Scholl, Ph.D., the team’s faculty mentor. “They really rose to the occasion. It was impressive!”

The 14 students on the CSUCI Model UN team were competing among 96 schools and over 1,300 students from around the world when they traveled to New York this spring semester.

“It was right in the heart of New York City, not too far from the United Nations itself,” Scholl said.

Congresswoman Julia Brownley presents $250,000 to CSUCI for a Native American and Indigenous Studies Program

by Community Contributor • April 26, 2022 • Comments Off

CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) will begin working to develop a new Native American and Indigenous Studies academic program thanks to a $250,000 check presented to the University by Congresswoman Julia Brownley recently.

The presentation ceremony took place Thursday, April 21 in the President’s Courtyard where about 20 campus and community members gathered to hear remarks from Brownley, President Richard Yao, Ph.D., Provost Mitch Avila, Ph.D., and Chumash elder Raudel Bañuelos, who holds an honorary Doctor of Letters from CSUCI.

Bañuelos began the ceremony with a traditional Chumash blessing, filling the courtyard with the smell of sage as he fanned the fragrant herb with an eagle feather and honored the east, west, north and south, all living beings, and the Chumash ancestors.

CSUCI student advocate for LGBTQ individuals is named a Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellow

by Community Contributor • April 12, 2022 • Comments Off

The CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) student who founded the national Youth Pride Association (YPA) has been named a 2022-2023 Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellow.

Chemistry major Cameron Bartosiewicz, who founded the 501(c)3 to support and advocate for LGBTQ youth, is among 173 students from 38 states and Mexico to be named a Newman Fellow.

CSUCI Teacher Residency Partnership gets two $250,000 grants to expand program

by Community Contributor • April 8, 2022 • Comments Off

Two $250,000 grants from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing will enable a successful CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) teacher residency partnership program to expand and explore new opportunities.

One of the grants went to the teacher residency program launched in 2019, which provides full tuition for CSUCI teaching credential candidates who are selected as residents, plus a stipend up to $10,000. The program is in partnership with the Oxnard School District (OSD), Oxnard Union High School District (OUHSD); the Rio School District and the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD).

CSUCI program that paves the way to college for farmworking families gets a boost

by Community Contributor • March 18, 2022 • Comments Off

For children who are the first in their family to attend college, pursuing higher education is often a family decision. This can be especially true for farmworking families who may believe they don’t have the background or finances to support their student.

A CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) program designed to show farmworking families a pathway to college has just received a $50,000 boost from Reiter Affiliated Companies’ philanthropic arm.

CSUCI’s 2022 commencement will be four ceremonies over two days

by Community Contributor • March 7, 2022 • Comments Off

CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) graduates, friends and families will celebrate 2022 Commencement in-person.

Commencement will consist of four in-person ceremonies spread out over the weekend of May 21 and 22 to allow for social distancing. There will be a morning and an afternoon ceremony on both Saturday and Sunday, with different academic programs scheduled for specific times and dates.

President Richard Yao, Ph.D. said he is thrilled that his first commencement ceremony as the permanent president of CSUCI will be fully in-person.

“These students have worked hard for this moment, and we are delighted to be able to offer them, their friends, and families a full in-person experience,” Yao said. “The past three years have been filled with challenges that these students met with resilience and determination, and we could not be prouder of them. This also gives our faculty, who have been equally resourceful, a chance to celebrate this day along with the graduates. I am honored to be the president of such a dynamic campus community.”

Calling all citizen scientists to the CSUCI BioBlitz!

by Community Contributor • February 18, 2022 • Comments Off

Download iNaturalist on your smartphone, grab your sneakers and come on down to CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) on Saturday, Feb. 19 to join in the annual BioBlitz.

CSUCI students of all majors and members of the community are invited to wander around campus anytime between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. this Saturday and take photos of any plants, flowers, fungi, insects, birds, or trees that catch your eye. The iNaturalist app will identify what you’ve just seen and upload it to their global citizen science database of plants, flowers, fungi, trees, insects and animals found on and around the CSUCI campus – and the world.

No scientific background is required, just a smartphone, the app and a healthy sense of curiosity about the world around you.

CSUCI Open CI program saves students almost $1.8 million in textbook costs over one semester

by Community Contributor • January 20, 2022 • Comments Off

Ever since the “OpenCI” initiative was launched at CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) in the 2016/2017 academic year, the savings for students on textbooks has risen steadily. But the most recent report on this initiative shows the most dramatic student savings to date.

A mid-year report shows OpenCI saved CSUCI students almost $1.8 million —$1,769,569.73 — over the Fall 2021 semester alone. Since 2016, Open CI has saved students over $7 million total in textbook costs.

“I was genuinely surprised — shocked, in fact,” said Associate Professor of Communication Jacob Jenkins, Ph.D. “That number from just one semester is bigger than our savings from the entire 2020/2021 academic year. And we’re on pace to save well over $3 million for students this academic year with a student body of only 7,000.”

First two weeks of CSUCI Spring semester will be virtual and “fully vaccinated” is redefined

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2022 • Comments Off

To minimize class disruptions to the greatest extent possible, CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) courses will be virtual for the first two weeks of class, from Jan. 22 through Feb. 6, with some exceptions.

In addition, the CSU’s recently updated Interim COVID-19 Vaccination Policy redefines “fully vaccinated” to include a booster vaccine for students, staff and faculty when they become eligible to receive one.

Measures are being taken in addition to the ongoing requirement of appropriate mask-wearing indoors and other safety protocols because of the current wave of the highly-contagious Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus, according to Interim President Richard Yao, Ph.D.