The Office of Communications and Public Affairs will conduct a routine full database test of the StanAlert emergency notification system Thursday, May 12, around 10:30 a.m. This is only a test. In the event of an actual emergency, the StanAlert system will be used to convey critical information and directions to help ensure the safety of the University community.

Legendary basketball coach Al McGuire once said that the best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores.

But for far too many freshmen and sophomores, the academic road ends far too soon. Whether caused by being overwhelmed by the college experience or a failure to gather a sense of belonging, the attrition rate of students in their first two years is something nearly all colleges are attempting to address.

Forrest Kohl, a senior chemistry student who won the Stanislaus State Student Research Competition in March, earned 2nd Place in the Physical and Mathematical Sciences Undergraduate category of the 30th Annual CSU Statewide Student Research Competition at Cal State Bakersfield.

Kohl’s presentation, “Spectroelectrochemical Characterization of Free Base Triphenylcorrole,” was from a research project for which he was serving as a research assistant under the direction of Dr. Elvin Alemán, assistant professor of chemistry.

Stanislaus State student Kathleen Giles won the Flachman Award for the best paper at the 13th Annual CSU Honors Student Conference at Sacramento State on Saturday. Her paper, on intrafamilial violence in Santa Clara la Laguna, Guatemala, aims to better understand the history and development of gender-based violence in Guatemala, to explore the relationship between the current rise in violence and the past civil war, and to investigate what factors are impeding women’s access to services.

Professor Edward H. Hernandez and students Jessica Garcia and Alejandra Delgadillo will continue Stanislaus State’s 11-year run of awards at the annual HR Symposium, which will be held Tuesday, April 26, in Santa Clara.

Hernandez will be awarded the 2016 Human Resource Excellence Award after being nominated by a large group of Bay Area-based Stan State alumni who have used their Stan State educations to gain employment as human resource professionals.