Cal State allocates $10 million for 'attracting more Black students'
CSU states in an executive report that it 'must disrupt policies and procedures that inhibit rather than support the progress of Black students in the CSU.'
California State University is a system of public schools with 23 campuses across the state. For the 2022-23 school year, annual undergraduate tuition and fees at the campuses ranged from $6,663 to $10,319.
California State University will allocate $10 million over three years to address declining graduation and retention rates among black students in the CSU system.
“While correcting longstanding inequities will take time, we must take immediate and decisive action,” Chancellor Jolene Koester said in a June 19 press release.
A workgroup released 13 recommendations to “advance Black student success” across the 23 CSU universities, according to a report released June 19. Recommendations include creating “welcoming and affirming spaces” for Black students, early outreaching in California K-12 schools, and launching a “Central Office for the Advancement of Black Excellence.”
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”Members met regularly as a full workgroup,” according to the report, to discuss “such key topics as attracting more Black students to the CSU,” among others.
California State University is a system of public schools with 23 campuses across the state. For the 2022-23 school year, annual undergraduate tuition and fees at the campuses ranged from $6,663 (Fresno) to $10,319 (San Louis Obispo).
The recommendations were established following Graduation Initiative 2025, which is a plan to “increase graduation rates, eliminate equity gaps in degree completion and meet California’s workforce needs.”
That plan reportedly helped increase system-wide graduation rates but has not fixed “stubborn equity gaps” and declining Black student enrollment and retention, according to the report.
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“The result of this work is a call to action for the CSU to think broadly and act boldly. Through 13 systemwide recommendations, the workgroup seeks to catalyze the cultural change urgently needed to advance Black student success,” the report states.
CSU states in the executive report that it “must disrupt policies and procedures that inhibit rather than support the progress of Black students in the CSU.”
Campus Reform has reached out to all parties for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
