Alumni
return to support campus
By Akiko Sugimori
On-line Forty-Niner
What
will you do after you graduate? Some alumni
choose to come back to Cal State Long Beach
to work with students.
CSULB alumni created the Alumni Association
nearly 50 years ago. The organization supports
and stays connected to its alma mater, maintain
and increase the institution’s reputation
and maintain the prestige of alumni’s degrees.
Such alumni include: “X-Files creator Chris
Carter; pop duo Richard and Karen Carpenter;
volleyball sensation Misty May; Craig Nickoloff,
owner of Claim Jumper Restaurants; Long
Beach Mayor Beverly O’Neill; screenwriter
Linda Woolverton, who had done “Beauty and
the Beast” and “The Lion King;” and director
Steven Spielberg.
Richard Haller, executive director for Associated
Students Inc. for 20 years, started working
on this campus when he was a student.
He graduated from CSULB in 1987 with a B.A.
in Sociology
“As a student here, I became involved in
student activities, and eventually student
government,” said Haller, who became a full-time
employee before graduating. “Through those
experiences, I learned so much more than
I would have if I had attended classes only.
“Being involved on campus made me feel connected
to something very important, and made me
feel a part of something much larger,” said
Haller, who graduated in 1987 with a bachelor’s
in sociology. “I can honestly say it had
a tremendous, life-affirming impact on me.
I love this school. … I am still involved
today because I want to help students get
the most out of their experience here.”
After graduating, Eric Murakami, who has
worked at University Student Union candy
bar as a service coordinator for more than
two years, started to work as an accounting
technician at this school for four years.
“I had a really good time in this school.
I could leave the school, but the office
needed admission at that time and I was
happy to take it,” Murakami said.
Arlene Oloresisimo graduated in December
1998 and started working at the Event Planning
office as an event coordinator since April
1999. She has noticed several changes since
she came to school here.
“The school has changed a great deal since
I was a student,” Oloresisimo said. For
one thing, students are younger. When I
came here I was only 17, and I think the
average age of the student body was in the
mid-20s.
“I also think that students are more studious
now than they were back then,” she continued.
“They take more classes and seem to really
concentrate on their academic studies, which
is a good thing.
“Physically, the campus has changed tremendously.
There are more classrooms, more parking,
and more event venues now than back in the
’80s.”
Alumni programs include Concerts in the
Grove, Kaleidoscope, homecoming and commencement.
The association contributes more than $30,000
yearly to student programs, and actively
engages alumni with publications, invitations
and leadership opportunities, and supports
the university. Members receive CSULB sporting
and theater event discounts, statewide California
State University system access, free use
of the Career Development Center, Learning
Assistance Center services and discounts
at theme parks. For more information, log
on www.csulb.edu/alumni.
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