Incoming freshmen from throughout California will participate in the 24th Summer Bridge Program at California State University, Stanislaus from July 5-24.

A total of 45 students from the ages of 17 to 20 will prepare for their first-ever college experience, living in the Village apartments on campus and receiving an orientation to higher education that includes English and mathematics instruction, academic advising and other activities. The program features an English course taught by CSU Stanislaus faculty and preparation for the mathematics placement test.

For the third consecutive year, California State University, Stanislaus students have won internship scholarships from the Society for Human Resource Management. The students learned of the honor during the organization’s 2010 conference, held June 27-30 in San Diego. The three $5,000 internship scholarships were among 20 awarded and equaled the number won by CSU Stanislaus students last year.
 

CSU Stanislaus President Hamid Shirvani was among the national education leaders who gathered with legislators at the Annual Meeting of the Southern Regional Education Board in West Virginia this week to discuss how to substantially improve college completion rates.
 
CSU Stanislaus’ success in student retention and graduation has become well known. The University retains about 82 percent of incoming freshmen. About 50 percent of freshmen graduate within six years.
President Shirvani sees room to improve these already outstanding numbers.
 

You may have heard recently of the firm resolve of both the Governor and the California Legislature to protect funding for higher education in this state. This is welcome news and means that our message is getting through. Nevertheless, while the budget has not yet been enacted, the Governor’s current proposal still assumes a 10% increase in CSU student fees. Under this circumstance, the CSU Board of Trustees met on June 18, 2010 to consider an increase in student fees. Regrettably, the Board must make its decision before the final budget is known.

A free two-week camp to give girls entering the 11th and 12th grades or who are recent high school graduates the tools to successfully manage their personal finances will be held July 6-15 at California State University, Stanislaus. Openings are still available for the program that gets under way on Tuesday, July 6.

California State University, Stanislaus generates a total impact of $169 million annually on the regional economy and $268 million on the statewide economy, according to a new report on the California State University system’s fiscal influence on the state.

Were it not for the Noyce Teacher Scholarship that California State University, Stanislaus student Alice Poulson is receiving this coming academic year, her goal of becoming a science teacher would still be just out of reach.
 
“I couldn’t afford to stay in school, so I dropped out,” she said. “I’ve wanted to be a teacher for a long time, but – if it weren’t for this scholarship – I wouldn’t be here at all,” Poulson said.
 
Since winning the $10,000 award, Poulson, 39, has re-enrolled in CSU Stanislaus and is on track to earn a teaching credential.
 

Isaac Farhadian, whose dossier includes study abroad, service to the community and campus volunt