Provost's Message - January 15, 2020

January 15th, 2020

Message From Provost Jersky

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Provost Brian Jersky
Dear Campus Community,

Welcome back to CSULB and to the start of a new decade. I hope you had a restful and safe holiday break. I always appreciate the collective time off before the new semester. As we celebrate the start of a new decade, I recognize that the year 2020 already seems full of changes not only for our campus, but the nation and world as well. I believe this year we will see history in the making. 

In just a few short weeks, so many concerning events have occurred in the world. It seems that every moment, we’re faced with ever more troubling developments, from fires and wars to elections. Each day seems to bring something new. It’s sometimes hard to not lose hope for our future. 

And yet, around the world, we’re presented with equal, if not greater, amounts of good. Fundraising efforts for the devastating Australian wildfires continue to grow, as well as numerous uplifting stories of kindness. Our youth lead the way in anti-war protests, environmental mindfulness, and political activism. 

At CSULB, we’re facing numerous important milestones of our own. We’ve been preparing for a spring semester that will include our WASC Accreditation renewal, campus-wide surveys of students, staff and faculty, commencement, and numerous other large-scale events. This spring, CSULB expects another increase in our 4-year graduation rates with a record number of students graduating. Our campus is rolling out more opportunities for student engagement and research. We are surrounded with many who are committed to our campus vision, mission, and working hard to advocate for that change. I can’t help but feel hopeful. 

As we prepare for the year, I’ve found that taking a moment to recharge and prioritize internal growth can keep a positive perspective. We’ve likely all read about the benefits of a growth mindset – here is another from the CSU on the topic. Our perspectives and how we handle our external circumstances are really the only area we can control. As J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in The Fellowship of The Ring, “I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

It’s sure to be a memorable decade and I truly look forward to making positive changes within our university, society, and within ourselves.

Happy New Year! 

Brian Jersky
Provost and Senior Vice President


News

Academic Affairs News

Grants and Gifts

Forouzan Golshani. Automation Boeing Lab. COE Administration. COE. Boeing. $31,169. (December 2019 - July 2020)
 
Forouzan Golshani. Boeing Research & Technology Projects 2020. COE Administration. COE. Boeing. $66,112. (January 2020 - December 2020)
 
John Hamilton/Dominica Scibetta. Long Beach Cal SOAP. University Outreach & School Relations. SA. California Student Aid Commission. $439,448. (July 2019 - June 2020)
 
Shailesh Chandra. The Transformation of Transportation: The Potential of Distributed Ledger Technologies in Transportation Applications. Civil Engineering & Construction Engineering Management. COE. Caltrans. $30,000. (February 2020 - January 2021)
 
Ju Cheol Moon. A Security Framework for Information Control System. Computer Engineering & Computer Science. COE. Kun Chang via Ministry of Science (Republic of Korea). $13,000. (July 2019 - June 2020)
 
Kristin Powers. An Interdisciplinary Project to promote Culturally-responsive Transition policies, planning, and Practices. Advanced Studies in Educ & Counseling.CED. US Department of Education. $249,999. (August 2015 - August 2020)
 
Kristin Powers. Preparing School Psychologists to Implement MTSS. Advanced Studies in Educ & Counseling. CED. US Department of Education. $249,970. (August 2015 - August 2020)
 
Saba Yohannes-Reda. PUSD MESA Schools Program. Engineering Student Success Center. COE. Paramount Unified School District. $25,000. (July 2019 - June 2020)
 
Hamid Rahai. CFD Investigation of a NASA High Lift Common Research Model with and with CVG's. Center for Energ&Envir Rsrch& Serv.COE. Edgewind. $15,746. (November 2018 - May 2020)
 
Vesna Terzic. Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure: Computational Modeling and Simulation Center. Civil Engineering & Construction Engineering Management. COE. The Regents of the University California Berkeley. $55,531.(October 2018 - September 2021)
 
Kirsty Fleming. Leveraging a Faculty Community of Practice Model of Professional Learning to Enhance Diversity, Equity, and inclusion in STEM Teaching, Learning, and Leadership. Faculty Affairs. AA. CSU Dominguez Hills via NSF. $251,772. (January 2020 - December 2024)
 
Tracy Maples. Title V grant. COE Administration. COE. Antellope Valley vis U.S. Dept. of Education. $240,000. (October 2018 - September 2023)
 
Rafael Topete. LACOE Intern Program. Edu Equity Srv/CAMP & HEP. SA. LACOE. $10,000. (January 2019- June 2020)
 
Sudha Krishnan. The CSU 5+ VITA Initiative. Accountancy. CBA. The University Corporation Northridge. $52,668. (October 2019 - May 2020)
 
Frank Fata. Language Training Center. Comparative Literature & Classics. CLA.Institute of International Education. $11,292. (June 2019 - May 2020)
 
Tom O'Brien. Task Oder 22: Caltrans Freight Academy. CITT. CPIE. USC via Caltrans. $115,000. (September 2019 - April 2020)
 

In Memorium 

Emeriti Faculty Frederic J. Masback passed away Dec. 5. He taught English in the College of Liberal Arts and was a member of the Legacy Society.
 

The next Provost’s Message will be published on Wednesday, February 19th. Items for the upcoming message should be submitted by Friday, February 14th, to aa-communication@csulb.edu.