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California State University, Long Beach
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Welcome to the 2012 Annual Report

From the President

President Alexander

California State University, Long Beach remained a national model for higher education in 2011-12.

We awarded more than 9,000 degrees, making the class of 2012 among the largest in CSULB history. We received 54,086 applications from first-time freshmen for Fall 2012 – a 10 percent increase from 2011. Our student loan indebtedness remained among the lowest in the nation, bringing national recognition from U.S.News and World Report and Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.

As a result of our graduation success, low comparative tuition and fees, and our very low student loan indebtedness, our university was invited, with only six other public universities, to meet with President Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. We met in the Roosevelt Room of the West Wing to advise the President about new policies that could reward campuses such as ours while also putting federal pressure on other institutions that do not prioritize graduating students, remaining affordable, and keeping students out of debt.

It is our collaborative spirit that drives our university forward for the benefit of tens of thousands of students each year. Our faculty and staff are the reason that we remain a national leader, consistently ranking among the best public universities in the nation.

I hope you will enjoy reading the many additional university achievements and individual accomplishments of our faculty, staff and students.

GO BEACH!
F. King Alexander Signature

President F. King Alexander

From the Provost

ADon Parat CSULB, as is the case in most any large organization, no one person can accomplish anything of significance alone. Throughout 2011-12 our outstanding faculty and dedicated staff worked together to help our university continue to produce high quality in instruction, research and creative activity, a commitment to service, and great experiences for students in the classroom, on campus and in the greater community.


Working together, the campus community had another year of distinguished accomplishment and recognition, despite significant budget challenges:

  • CSULB received a second Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) grant. The purpose of this $4.4 million HSI: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) grant is to increase the number of Latino students earning degrees in those fields.
  • Two new doctoral programs - Doctor of Nurse Practitioner (DNP) and Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) – will welcome their first cohort of students this year.
  • Student Success has long been the prime campus priority. The purpose of our Highly Valued Degree Initiative (HVDI) is to help students earn their degrees in a timely manner. The campus Enrollment Advisory Committee, with broad consultation internally and externally, developed new admissions guidelines that will improve student preparation in challenging fields such as engineering and science, improve guidance to applicants and counselors and reduce unneeded course-taking.
  • Faculty, staff and students completed their first year in the $110 million Hall of Science. One of the namings in the new facility is the Health Professions Advising Offices named for chemistry alumnus, Gregory L. Whitaker whose generous donation allowed us to start an endowment in support of the program.
  • In March 2012, a California Commission on Teacher Credentialing report showed that, once again, CSULB produced more students with teaching credentials than any other institution in the CSU in 2010-11. Among all institutions in California, we were second in the number of students we recommended for teaching credentials. Not only do we produce the majority of teachers for the state but, according to a recent report from the Center for Teacher Quality (CTQ), our graduates also have a highly significant positive impact on K-12 pupil achievement when compared to non-CSU prepared counterparts.
  • Construction was completed on the Cole Conservatory of Music Pavilion and Plaza, thanks to funding from private donations. The pavilion and plaza serves as the hub of the conservatory, serving students, faculty and the community.
  • We were pleased to welcome new faces to the university, including Dr. David Wallace, the new Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.

These are just a few of our many achievements. Every day we transformed lives, whether it was in the classroom where knowledge was transferred; in labs and studios where research and creative work was underway; in offices where academic support helped students advance toward graduation; or at our Commencement ceremonies where more than 9,000 degrees were conferred.


This annual report seeks to highlight some of those transformative moments. I hope you will enjoy looking back on our achievements.

Don Para Signature

Donald J. Para, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs