The Daily Forty-Niner: history in the making

Promotion • Name changing came to an end when the campus was promoted to university status and named California State University Long Beach. Tracey Roman/Online Forty-Niner

 

By Brooke Karli
Online Forty-Niner
Contributing Writer

Favored among faculty, students and alumni, "CSULB" and "LBSU" hooded sweatshirts are seen throughout many campuses, shopping malls and sporting events. Found within the archives of the Daily Forty-Niner lies the history of Cal State Long Beach, which is stitched into every block letter of those warm, comfortable pullovers.

Established in 1949, CSULB, then known as Los Angeles-Orange County State College, consisted of 25 courses taught by 13 faculty members in two apartment buildings on Anaheim Road.

The first California State Normal School, presently San Jose State University, was created in 1862, becoming the first institution of higher education established by California.

"Normal Schools" later became "Teachers Colleges" in 1921, which transformed into "State Colleges" in 1935.
It was declared in the Donahue Higher Education Act of 1960 that the primary function of state colleges was to include undergraduate and graduate instruction in the liberal arts and sciences in applied fields and professions. Such changes were recommended by a Master Plan for Higher Education in California for 1960 to 1975.

Soon after the land was purchased, Los Angeles-Orange County State College progressed into Long Beach State College (LBSC). It was not until 1962 that a proposal was made for a new name. The proposition was to change the college's name from LBSC to CSCLB California State College at Long Beach, desiring to unify the state system and enhance its prestige. More than a year later, the Associated Students Senate approved the name change, agreeing greater prestige would be attained by associating the college with the state of California.

Six years later, CSCLB Associated Students' leaders sought and failed to achieve "university" status for the second consecutive year. Cited from a 1968 Daily Forty-Niner, AS President Rex Gay presented the case by simply supporting three main reasons for the title change, "Prestige, finance, and growth. We don't wish to change the system of three levels, yet the university level is growing into a monster. We want the name change for prestige, a most important factor when a graduate is applying for graduate school or a job."

California's Senate voted against CSCLB's bid due to lack of met requirements outlined by the California Master Plan for colleges and the Donahue Act.

As enrollment grew, CSCLB became the third largest school in California, alongside UCLA and UC Berkeley. Things began to shift in 1971 when Gov. Ronald Reagan signed Assembly Bill 123, a legislation allowing some California state colleges to be renamed state universities.

Again, the Board of Trustees and the Coordinating Council for Higher Education partnered up and broadened specific criteria which colleges have to meet before qualifying for the new title.

Nearly six months later, Long Beach, along with 12 other state college campuses, was selected for promotion to university status. The promotion was decided by the Board of Trustees according to total enrollment, size of graduate programs, complexity and diversity of majors and number of doctorates held by instructors at each college. CSCLB became California State University, Long Beach (CSULB).

Ecstatic about the change, college President Stephen Horn commented in a 1972 Daily Forty-Niner article, "We are going to have a party and start ripping off the word "college" wherever it appears on the campus within an hour after the Coordinating Council for Higher Education's vote is recorded."

Sparked by institutions that claimed their football yells were easier to work out with their original names, campuses such as California State University at San Diego converged back to being called San Diego State. The change occurred in 1973 on four campuses. Students attending CSULB at the time also wanted to condense the college's name, desiring to be called Long Beach State. University President Stephen Horn rejected the request, emphasizing the "current title has a more regional identification over a city designate," as published in a 1973 Daily Forty-Niner article.