CSULB faculty selected for inaugural CSU LIFT projects

Eight Cal State Long Beach faculty members have been selected for the inaugural cohort of the CSU Learning Innovation for Future-Forward Teaching (LIFT) initiative, a competitive, one-year funding opportunity that supports teaching innovations designed to prepare students to learn, adapt, and thrive in 21st-century work and life.

LIFT invites California State University faculty, individually or in teams, to design and test approaches that intentionally embed durable skills into undergraduate courses and programs. Through applied learning, feedback, and reflection built into coursework, students are better able to recognize, practice, and articulate the knowledge and skills they are developing for future employers, graduate study, civic engagement, and life beyond the university.

Durable skills are the intellectual, interpersonal, and self-directed capacities that allow students to apply what they learn across different contexts over time. Often described as transferable or 21st-century skills, they include competencies emphasized by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, such as critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and leadership, as well as skills identified as increasingly important in the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, including analytical and creative thinking, resilience, adaptability, technological literacy, and systems thinking.

When made visible through course design, durable skills help students connect their academic work to the broader contexts in which they will live, work, and contribute. They also strengthen students’ readiness for evolving professional pathways and support the CSU’s broader commitment to student success.

The CSU plays a vital role in expanding opportunity and preparing students to thrive across California’s diverse communities. Through CSU Forward and the complementary Student Success Framework, the CSU is strengthening student-centered teaching and learning environments that provide clear pathways through college and meaningful opportunities to apply learning in workplace, civic, and community settings.

Across the CSU, 45 projects were selected for the inaugural LIFT cohort. Academic Affairs is proud to recognize and congratulate the eight CSULB faculty awardees:

• Guido Urizar — A Community Health Equity Approach to Promoting Student Durable Skills
• Michelle Taylor — Workforce-Ready Foundations: Updating Child Development Coursework for Modern Career Paths
• Wikrom Prombutr — Making Financial Valuation Visible: Embedding Applied Learning and Reflection in FIN 300
• Jonathan Ocón — Geography at Work: A Department-Level Model for Career-Ready Learning
• Aparna Nayak — Assessing Global Competencies and Cultural Literacy in World Language Classes
• Richard Marcus — Discourse Across Disciplines: A Faculty Module Development Initiative
• Gayathri Manikandan — AI-Augmented Learning: Embedding Durable Skills in Entry-Level Mathematics Courses
• Mohammad Daneshvar Kakhki — Thinking with AI: Durable Skills for a High-Enrollment Gateway MIS Course

As members of the inaugural LIFT cohort, CSULB faculty awardees and their project collaborators will participate in a yearlong community of practice. Throughout the year, participants will share progress, exchange ideas, and contribute knowledge, practices, and resources that can benefit faculty across the CSU.

These projects reflect The Beach’s commitment to innovative teaching, career-connected learning, and student success — helping students see the value of their education and prepare for the opportunities ahead.