Stephens Selected as New VP

Mary Stephens has been selected as the new vice president of administration and finance at CSULB, President F. King Alexander announced today.

Stephens, who is currently vice president of business and finance at CSU Stanislaus, will manage university operating and capital budgets of more than $500 million in her new position.

"I am thrilled to have the opportunity to join the Cal State Long Beach community," she said. "It is a campus clearly focused on the success of its students."

49er Store Opening Off-Campus

Forty-Niner Shops, Inc. will be opening a store Dec. 1 in Belmont Shore, the Press-Telegram said Thursday.

The store will provide a way for people to purchase 49er clothing and tickets for events at CSULB, without having to actually come on campus. It is also a way for the campus to connect with the surrounding community, President F. King Alexander said.

"The real point of this is that it gives us a link in town, a link with the community," he said.

Robinson Explains Veto of Latino Center

CSULB administration did not use the HSI grant to make a Latino student center because this would isolate the Latino students, Doug Robinson, vice president of student services, explained Monday.

All the recruitment, financial aid and academic advising for Latino students would have been done in the center, which would separate the students from the rest of the college population and violate Proposition 209.

“We know separate but equal does not work in America,” Robinson said. “We’ve gone through that.”

HSI Grant Causing Conflict

Controversy still surrounds the use of the $2.8 million Hispanic Serving Institute grant awarded to CSULB about a year ago, the OC Weekly reported Wednesday. The grant is supposed to be used to help Latino students on campus.

The Chicano/Latino Studies Department complained that they and other Latino groups were not being involved enough in the implementation of the grant. They wrote a letter of no-confidence to President F. King Alexander, who did not respond until a year later.

Students indicated they wanted the grant to go towards a Latino student center, but the money is currently being used to hire peer mentors who counsel at-risk Latino students and to make various programs more "culturally competent."

Other programs are being planned, according to Provost Karen Gould, who sent an email to students and faculty explaining what is going on with the grant.

Daily 49er Criticizes Administration

The Daily 49er criticized CSULB's administration Tuesday for not taking action against the Conservative Student Union, which invited Minuteman Project co-founder Jim Gilchrist to speak at CSULB last week.

The article compared Gilchrist's visit to nooses being hung at various campuses across the country and said the CSU is bringing "hate-filled activities" to campus.

President F. King Alexander and Provost Karen Gould were urged to speak out against this "ignorant intolerance."

For more information about Gilchrist's visit and the controversy it spawned, see the Daily 49er archives or the Press-Telegram.

Alexander Gives Goals for CSULB

President F. King Alexander said Thursday that his goals for CSULB include "de-commuterizing" the campus and getting alumni back involved in the university.

He wants to see more housing on campus, more dining, a recreation center and other things that will cause students to spend their free time on campus.

“I think students who come here and just go to class and leave are missing 50 percent of their collegiate experience," he said.

He also wants to grow CSULB's endowment by getting more alumni support. CSULB's endowment per student is among the lowest in the country, according to Alexander.

“We haven’t endowed enough funds to sustain ourselves as we continually fight these budget difficulties," he said.

Alexander is proud of the progress that has been made in this area, as CSULB’s endowment has grown about 30 percent in the last two years, up to $35 million. However, “We’ve got a long way to go,” he said.

Alexander Speaks to City Group

President F. King Alexander spoke at Downtown Long Beach Associates' fourth annual state of the downtown luncheon Wednesday, according to the Press-Telegram. He talked about how universities need to be involved in their communities.

"We're not just building a city with a university in it, we're building a university city," he said.

Other speakers at the event included Mayor Bob Foster and author Richard Florida. Florida also emphasized the need for good university-downtown relationships.

Council Dragging Feet on Lighting Issue

The issue of funding for lights around CSULB's campus will hopefully be on the Long Beach City Council agenda in the next couple of weeks, Councilman Gary DeLong said today.

He said city staff, the county and CSULB are still working to pull the pieces together. Nonetheless, "We are committed to moving forward with installing the lighting," he said.

More Controversy Over Raises?

An analysis of the CSU system's compensation policies was released Nov. 6 by the California Bureau of State Audits, an article in the Daily 49er reported.

The audit showed that the Chancellor's Office does not oversee every detail of executive compensation policies at individual CSU campuses. Recommendations were made for ways to keep better track of executive compensation and executive transition programs.

The Chancellor's Office said that the audit did not reveal any violations of CSU policy. President F. King Alexander said he thought the audit was fair and balanced.

"I was particularly pleased that they found no CSU actions to be inappropriate, in violation of existing policy or illegal," he said.

49er Rooting for Stephens

The Daily 49er said Tuesday that Mary Stephens is the best choice to be the new vice president of administration and finance at CSULB.

Stephens is currently vice president for business and finance at CSU Stanislaus. Since she already has experience working in the CSU system, the 49er argued, she is a "shoe-in for the job."

Students Ask for Better Security

A group of students met Wednesday with President F. King Alexander and several other campus officials to discuss improvements to campus security, an article in the Daily 49er said.

Some topics covered were lighting issues, security cameras, an increase in the number of community service officers, and the acquisition of another van for the Night Escort Program.

Alexander said it is important to continually improve security, but also indicated he believes the campus is a safe environment. He encouraged students to let the administration know if they have ideas about how to make the campus safer.

Alexander Speaks to House Committee

President F. King Alexander spoke Thursday before a House committee on the subject of rising tuition rates, according to Diverse magazine.

Alexander said one reason for increasing costs is that states are not providing as much funding for public education as they used to. He asked for a "maintenance of effort" partnership between federal and state governments to keep states from seriously cutting higher education funding.

The committee will consider a comprehensive Higher Education Act bill later this month, said Rep. George Miller, D-Calif, the committee chair.

To see the full text of Alexander's speech, go to the American Association of State Colleges and Universities website.

For more information see the Press-Telegram, InsideHigherEd.com, the Daily 49er or the Daily Texan.