Mar 28, 2024  
2023-2024 Academic Catalog 
    
2023-2024 Academic Catalog

About Stanislaus State


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Mission, Vision, Values and Diversity Statements

Mission

The faculty, staff, administrators, and students at California State University, Stanislaus are committed to creating an inclusive learning environment that encourages all members of the campus community to expand their intellectual, creative and social horizons. We challenge one another to realize our potential, appreciate and contribute to the enrichment of our diverse community and to develop a passion for lifelong learning. To facilitate this mission, we promote academic excellence in the teaching and scholarly activities of our faculty, encourage personalized student learning, foster interactions and partnerships with our surrounding communities and provide opportunities for the intellectual, cultural and artistic enrichment of the region.

Vision

California State University, Stanislaus strives is a major center of learning, intellectual pursuit, artistic excellence and cultural engagement for California’s greater Central Valley and beyond. We serve our diverse student body, communities and state by developing leaders and creating programs and partnerships that respond effectively to an evolving and interconnected world.

Indigenous Land Acknowledgement

We respectfully acknowledge that Stanislaus State is located on the traditional lands of the Yokuts Nation. Our campus is built on the unceded ancestral lands of these indigenous tribes. Thank you for allowing us to honor the Yokuts and give our gratitude to their ancestors and descendants for their constant and careful stewardship of this land.

University Values

To achieve our mission and vision:

  • We inspire all members of the campus community to demand more of self than of others to attain new knowledge and challenge assumptions.
  • We challenge each other to be fully engaged and responsible citizens with the ethics, knowledge, skills and desire to improve self and community.
  • We value learning that encompasses lifelong exploration and discovery through intellectual integrity, personal responsibility and global self-awareness that is grounded in individual student-faculty interactions.
  • We embrace diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice as vital components of educational quality.
  • We are a student-centered community committed to a diverse, caring, inclusive and respectful learning-focused environment that fosters collegial, reflective and open exchange of ideas.
  • We, as students, create the collegiate experience through initiative, participation, motivation and continual growth to meet the demands of self and others.
  • We, as faculty, elicit, nurture and enhance the different voices of ourselves, students and communities through deliberate engagement, continual discovery and ongoing transformation.
  • We, as staff and administrators, contribute to an inclusive learning environment by demonstrating the knowledge, skills and values that serve and support the University’s mission.

Statement on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice

California State University, Stanislaus is a collegiate community that serves a diverse population of students, faculty, staff and administration. These facets of diversity encompass but are not limited to race, ethnicity, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, creed, religion, age, social class, socio-economic status, physical and cognitive differences, political views and veteran status. The University is intent on engaging with all of its community members in meaningful ways that support the values and strengths each individual brings to this campus. In building a community inclusive of everyone, more than recognition, tolerance, acceptance and celebration are required. California State University, Stanislaus also strives to teach, incorporate, mediate and promote issues of diversity that go beyond the surface. The ways in which the University actively embodies diversity include:

  • Offering courses that are centered on or incorporate material for our diverse student, faculty and staff populations, as well as educating us about each other.
  • Recruiting and hiring administrators, faculty, staff and students to create a diverse campus community through employment practices and faculty/staff development opportunities.
  • Recruiting and hiring faculty who are passionate about and committed to: sharing, as appropriate, course materials reflective of underrepresented histories and cultural issues; participating in discussions related to these matters in the classroom on a regular, rather than occasional, basis; honoring the complex diversity of this region; and engaging colleagues and students in teaching and learning that promotes dialogue, critical reflection and action focused on human dignity. 
  • Encouraging, organizing, funding and promoting workshops, trainings, clubs, lectures, forums, orientations and other events that allow our community of students, administrators, staff and faculty to come together to learn about and support one another and discuss experiences, understandings and values.
  • Assembling services, activities, and committees that continually gauge the ways in which diversity is honored and promoted on campus and in neighboring communities.
  • Offering targeted methods of outreach toward the recruitment, retention and graduation of a diverse student body.
  • Understanding that creating an inclusive community is an ongoing project, thus always requiring reassessment.

Through these various strategies, California State University, Stanislaus seeks to do more than merely acknowledge its invaluable members and local constituents. We wish also to consistently demonstrate equity in status, rights and opportunities through establishing purposeful conversations that inspire our students to reach out to one another. This thread of respect should resonate through the attitudes of campus administrators, students, staff and faculty. The University believes this type of environment will continue to attract and retain a socially just image of what we represent and who we are.

Definition of Student Success

Stanislaus State recognizes that student success occurs when our students are engaged and supported in their quest for knowledge and understanding. Student success is realized when our students are equipped and empowered to positively transform their lives, inform the practice of their chosen profession and exercise civic rights and responsibilities to transform their communities. 

At Stanislaus State:

  • We use the power of education, community and civic engagement to transform lives.
  • Student success occurs when we engage and support our students in a quest for knowledge and understanding that encourages and empowers them to identify their personal goals and professional aspirations. Successful students strive to make their own unique contributions to our diverse world.
  • We support our students by expanding opportunities and enriching experiences that broaden their awareness of others’ perspectives and develop their intellectual capacity and ethical character.
  • Student success is achieved when our students can imagine a better world and are empowered to make it a reality within the Central Valley region and beyond.

History

The State Legislature established Stanislaus State College in 1957, and the first classes were held at the Stanislaus County Fairgrounds in 1960. The college moved to its current 228-acre location in 1965. It was awarded university status in 1985, changing its name to California State University, Stanislaus.

Stanislaus State established its first classes in San Joaquin County in 1974, occupying office space in downtown Stockton. Classes were moved to San Joaquin Delta College in 1981 and then to its current location in Stockton’s University Park in 1998, establishing a permanent site. To better reflect the University’s growing presence and impact in San Joaquin County, the site was renamed Stanislaus State Stockton Campus in 2018.

Institutional Accreditation

Stanislaus State received its first full accreditation in 1965 and full reaffirmation of accreditation in 1999 and 2010 from:

WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC)
985 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 100
Alameda, CA 94501
Phone: (510) 748-9001 | Fax: (510) 748-9797 | www.wscuc.org

Specialized Accreditation 

The following programs are accredited by their specialized accrediting agencies:

College of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

  • Art - National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD)
  • Music - National Association of Schools of Music (NASM)
  • Public Administration - National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA)
  • Theatre Arts - National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST)

College of Business Administration

  • Business Administration - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), Intl.

College of Education, Kinesiology and Social Work

  • Education - California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC)
  • Social Work - Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)

College of Science

  • Genetic Counseling - American Board of Genetic Counseling (ABGC)
  • Nursing - California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN); Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE)

Affiliations

Stanislaus State is part of the California State University, a 23-campus system across California. With more than 482,000 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.

Stanislaus State is a member of the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program, giving students from outside of California a valuable opportunity to participate in our state’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, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Idaho may enroll at Stanislaus State at a reduced tuition level: 150 percent of in-state resident tuition. WUE tuition is considerably less than nonresident tuition.

Reputation

For 17 consecutive years, The Princeton Review has honored Stanislaus State as one of the top 386 schools in the country, a distinction awarded to fewer than 15 percent of colleges and universities in the United States. In 2022, MONEY Magazine named Stanislaus State among California’s 10 best colleges along with Stanford University, UC Berkeley and UCLA. In August 2022, Washington Monthly ranked Stanislaus State as No. 5 in the West for best “Bang for the Buck” four-year college and No. 8 for the quality of master’s programs.

U.S. News & World Report ranked Stanislaus State among the 25 top colleges in the West in its “Best Colleges” report. The University placed in the top 10 in two rankings and in the top 25 in two others in the West: No. 4 for social mobility, No. 9 for top public schools, No. 12 for best college for veterans and No. 25 for regional universities in the West.

In March 2023, The Princeton Review ranked Stanislaus State’s Online Master of Business Administration (OMBA) program among the top 145 online MBA programs.

The University consistently receives high ratings from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. It is noted for small class sizes and for low student debt upon graduation.

Student Body

The diverse student body includes many first-generation college students and working parents. As of fall 2022, the student body of 10,155 includes 8,879 undergraduate students.

Alumni

The success of an educational institution is measured by the success of its graduates. Stanislaus State prides itself on its contributions to the economy of the state of California and to a wide range of fields that include education, public service, law enforcement, business, health care and other important professions. According to Forbes.com, Stanislaus State ranks in the top universities nationwide for producing top wage-earning alumni. Since the founding class, more than 64,000 alumni proudly call Stanislaus State their alma mater. The Office of Alumni Relations promotes involvement in the community with activities such as receptions, fundraisers, service projects, advocacy, networking and family-oriented events.

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, which is a short distance from the San Francisco Bay Area, Monterey, Big Sur, Yosemite National Park, the Sierra Nevada 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 one of the region’s largest urban forests and 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, staff and visitors. These physical surroundings encourage and welcome students, faculty, staff and the community to actively participate in the learning-centered activities sponsored by the campus.

Facilities

The campus had two buildings when it opened in its present location in 1965: the classroom building, renamed Dorothy and Bill Bizzini Hall, and the library building, named after founding President Dr. J. Burton Vasché. The library underwent a major $58 million renovation project and reopened in fall 2021. The art, theatre, music and science buildings were added in the 1970s. The Health Center, dedicated in 1981, provides basic medical services, health maintenance and health education.

A $52 million student-funded renovation of The University Student Center (SC) was completed in spring 2020. The SC houses the Associated Students, Inc. offices, student lounges, a game room, television lounge, Warrior Grill, Starbucks, Shake Smart a convenience store and other food options, as well as various conference rooms. The Dining Hall complex offers a 553-seat cafeteria and a smaller dining room.

The Residence Life Village student housing complex opened in 1993 and includes apartment-style accommodations with laundry facilities, a dining hall,  computer lab, recreation room, tennis courts, a courtyard with barbecue areas, two swimming pools and a unit for faculty-in-residence.

Physical education facilities include a fieldhouse, the 2,000-seat Ed and Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena, baseball and softball diamonds with lights for night play, tennis courts and an aquatic facility. In addition, the Student Recreation Complex, which opened in 2009, is anchored by an 18,000-square-foot fitness center and includes Warrior Stadium, a 2,100-seat state-of-the-art facility that is home to Stanislaus State’s soccer and track and field teams. The stadium hosted the 2011 NCAA Division II Track and Field Championships.

Demergasso-Bava Hall, built in 1998, houses classrooms, lecture halls, laboratories and faculty offices, several academic departments, The Signal 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, 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-art classrooms and laboratories, plus a new observatory, animal care facility and greenhouse.

The University Bookstore moved into the University Student Center. The original building, completed in 2008 as the first separate building for the bookstore in the history of the University, is being renovated and will reopen as a space for meetings and receptions. Designed by internationally known architect Thomas Gordon Smith, it features an impressive octagonal entry tower and basilican form.

Built in 1971, the Science 1 building underwent an $18 million, two-year seismic retrofit and renovation. The building - reopened in 2014 with eight new classrooms and an open computer lab - is the home of the departments of mathematics, philosophy and modern languages, as well as the School of Nursing, which boasts a cutting-edge simulation lab. Photovoltaic solar panels were installed on the roof to provide most of the building’s energy needs. Additional skylights and windows provide more natural light and have further reduced energy costs. 

Summary

Location: Turlock, California

Organization: College of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; College of Business Administration; College of Education, Kinesiology and Social Work; College of Science

First Class: 1960 (as Stanislaus State College)

President: Dr. Ellen Junn

Faculty:  702 full and part-time (as of Fall 2021)

Enrollment:  10,155 (as of Fall 2022) 

Affiliation: The California State University (23-campus system)

Fields of study: 45 undergraduate majors and 44 minors; master’s degrees in 17 programs; an Executive and Online MBA; a doctorate in education; credentials in teacher preparation and professional areas and more than 2,000 courses.

Annual Cost: $7,818 for full-time undergraduate in-state student tuition fees (2023-24)

Student Aid: About 80 percent of students receive some form of financial aid

Athletics: NCAA Division II

Women: Basketball, cross country, soccer, volleyball, softball, tennis, track and field

Men: Baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, track and field