At a Glance
History
The State Legislature established what was then known as Stanislaus State College in 1957. The first classes opened in September of 1960 in the Stanislaus County Fairgrounds. In 1965, the College moved to its permanent campus. It was awarded university status and renamed California State University, Stanislaus in 1985.
Residents of San Joaquin County gained access to public higher education when the University opened the Stockton Development Center on the campus of San Joaquin Delta College in 1974. In the fall of 1998, the Center, renamed CSU Stanislaus-Stockton Center, moved to its permanent site on Magnolia Avenue in downtown Stockton.
Affiliations
CSU Stanislaus is part of the California State University, a 23-campus system across California. With more than 400,000 students, it is the largest, the most diverse, and one of the most affordable university systems in the country. CSU campuses emphasize access to quality public higher education and workforce preparation that is responsive to regional needs.
CSU Stanislaus is a member of the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program, giving students from outside of California a valuable opportunity to participate in California’s top-notch public university system. The WUE is a part of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). Through WUE, students in Arizona, Montana, Oregon, Alaska, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Washington, Hawaii, South/North Dakota, Wyoming, and Idaho may enroll at CSU Stanislaus at a reduced tuition level: 150 percent of in-state resident tuition. WUE tuition is considerably less than nonresident tuition.
Campus
California State University, Stanislaus blends modern facilities with the pastoral charm of the countryside. The University enjoys an ideal location in the heart of California’s Central Valley, a short distance from the San Francisco Bay Area, Monterey, Big Sur, the Sierra Nevada mountains, and the governmental hub of Sacramento. The 228-acre campus is located in the City of Turlock – a community that prides itself on its small-town atmosphere, clean living space, excellent schools, and low crime rate. The campus itself is a beautiful, park-like setting in an environment conducive to learning. Shaded by hundreds of trees and graced by ponds, trickling streams and waterfalls, the picturesque campus offers moments of peace and relaxation to busy students, faculty, staff, and the community to actively participate in the learning-centered activities sponsored by the campus.
Facilities
The campus originally contained two buildings: the Classroom Building, renamed Dorothy and Bill Bizzini Hall; and the library building, named after founding President Dr. J. Burton Vasche. A few years later, the art, theatre, music, and science buildings were added. The Health Center, dedicated in 1981, provides basic medical services, health maintenance, and health education.
The University Union building houses the CSU Stanislaus Bookstore, the Associated Students, Inc. office, the Carol Burke game room, TV lounge, and the Warrior, Stanislaus, and Lakeside conference rooms. The Dining Hall complex offers a 553-seat cafeteria, a smaller dining room, Mom’s smoothie bar, and Pop’s convenience store.
The Residence Life Village student housing complex opened in 1993 and includes apartment-style accommodations with laundry facilities, a computer lab, recreation room, courtyard with barbecue areas, and a pool. Phase III, completed in 2004, nearly doubled the capacity and added a unit for the Faculty in Residence, a dining facility, a second pool, and more sports courts.
Physical education facilities include a fieldhouse, a 2,300-seat gymnasium, soccer field, baseball and softball diamonds, tennis courts, all-weather track, and swimming pool.
Demergasso-Bava Hall, built in 1998, houses classrooms, lecture halls, laboratories and faculty offices, several academic departments, The Signal (the student newspaper), the campus radio and television stations, and the Distance Learning Center.
The Mary Stuart Rogers Educational Services Gateway Building, completed in 2002, provides one-stop student services, including enrollment, advising, counseling, and career development, and several administrative offices.
The John Stuart Rogers Faculty Development Center, which opened in 2003, offers faculty members a gathering place to form research partnerships, promote service learning, integrate academic technology into pedagogical practices, and work on projects in multimedia laboratories.
The Bernell and Flora Snider Music Recital Hall, dedicated in 2003, provides the ideal acoustical showcase for student, faculty, and guest talent.
The Nora and Hashem Naraghi Hall of Science, completed in 2007, offers state-of-the-discipline classrooms and laboratories, plus a new observatory, animal care facility and greenhouse.