Provost's Message April 2025


CSULB Announces 2025 University Achievement Awards Recipients 

CSULB is proud to announce the recipients of the 2025 University Achievement Awards! This year, 19 awards will be presented across nine categories, recognizing the outstanding contributions of 16 faculty members and three students.

 

CSULB Celebrates APID Heritage Month & MENA Cultural Awareness in April

CSULB is proud to recognize and celebrate Asian, Pacific Islander, & Desi (APID) Heritage Month and Middle Eastern & North African (MENA) Cultural Awareness throughout April! Check out the variety of events planned to honor and uplift our APID and MENA communities at The Beach.

 

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and CSULB is committed to fostering a safe and supportive community. Participate in a series of empowering events focused on consent, healthy relationships, and mindfulness. Together, we can build a campus culture of respect and care.

 

Celebrate Trans Week of Joy 

Celebrate Trans Week of Joy with the CSULB campus community from April 14-18! A week full of events is planned to celebrate and uplift the trans community.

Apr. 15 – Meet the Librarians

Apr. 16 & 17 – Stella Cole Concert

Apr. 17 – ¿Dime Quien Eres? Power, Identity, and Good Allyship with Gaby Hernandez

Apr. 17 – Green Generation Showcase

Apr. 19 – An Evening with Isaac Mizrahi

Apr. 25 – Beach Culinary & Wine Excellence Series

Apr. 25 – Data Fellows Symposium

Apr. 26 – 30th Anniversary Concert with Renée Elise Goldsberry

Apr. 28 – The Wound and the Stitch

“Reporting from Uvalde” Wins Prestigious Golden Mike Award for Best Documentary

“Reporting from Uvalde,” a documentary directed by Raya Torres ‘24 and produced by Jesús Ayala, assistant professor in the Department of Journalism & Public Relations, recently won a Golden Mike Award for Best Documentary. The pair accepted the award on March 31 during the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California’s award ceremony. The film was lauded for its raw and unflinching portrayal of the aftermath of the Uvalde school shooting in May 2022. Over the next year, Torres and Ayala will showcase the film through selected screenings, at journalism conferences, and at film festivals across the country. 

 

Four CSULB Alums Named in Interior Design Magazine 30 Under 30 List 

Four CSULB Design alums, graduates of the BFA program in Interior Design, have been recognized by Interior Design Magazine in their 2025 30 Under 30 list. Congratulations to Ben Balingit, Joyce Leung, Kwon Lee, and Suvini Gunaratna. We are so proud of you!

 

Black Student Success Efforts Receive Local Recognition

CSULB's Black Student Success and Black Resource Center efforts were recently recognized by Long Beach District 8 Councilwoman Tunua Thrash-Ntuk!

A huge congratulations to our Associate Director of Black Student Success, Demetri Kelley, and Assistant Director of the Black Resource Center, Paul Carter. Your dedication and hard work in supporting and uplifting our campus community is truly appreciated. Keep up the amazing work!

 

Dr. Amber Johnson Named New CHER Director 

Congratulations to Dr. Amber Johnson, who has been named the new Director of the CSULB Center for Health Equity Research (CHER). Dr. Johnson’s career has focused on reducing inequities and disparities among marginalized populations. She uses this position to inspire and embolden the next generation of leaders to develop innovative solutions to public health challenges facing our society.

View the latest accolades and see how our Academic Affairs faculty members are contributing as experts in the news. 

View the latest grants and gifts recipients of our Beach community. 

Expand Your Wine Knowledge with Hospitality Management Students

You’re invited to the spring 2025 renewal of the Beach Culinary and Wine Excellence Series taking place April 25 from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. at The Queen Mary. Come support our Hospitality Management students who are preparing to put on a spectacular night of great wine, exquisite food, live music, and a fun evening enjoyed with CHHS colleagues and students! View the wine list and food pairings, and purchase tickets.

 

Celebrate Earth Day with the Green Generation Showcase
April 17 | 4 - 7 p.m.

Celebrate Earth Day with CSULB Sustainability’s annual celebration that fosters connections, educates, and promotes environmental awareness: the Green Generation Showcase. This lively event that has been going strong for more than a decade brings together students, faculty, staff, and the Long Beach community sustainability leaders for a fun evening of mingling, music, and snacks at the beautiful Earl B. Miller Japanese Garden. This event is free and all are welcome!

 

Faculty & Students Attend 2025 Global Physics Summit

Students and faculty in the Physics & Astronomy department attended the American Physical Society’s (APS) 2025 Global Physics Summit – an event uniting 14,000 members of the scientific community across all disciplines of physics. Students and faculty presented their research, conducted demonstrations, attended workshops, and connected with fellow physicists in the APS community. 

 

CSULB Physics Celebrates 10 Years of APS Bridges

On March 21, the Physics & Astronomy department hosted a 10 Year celebration of the CSU Long Beach / APS Bridge Program for current and former faculty and students with special guests from APS and Google. The purpose of the APS Bridge Program is to welcome, train, and successfully send off students to complete a Ph.D. in physics. The CSULB Physics and Astronomy department is one of only five nationally funded Bridge Sites of the American Physical Society.

 

Metaverse & AI Symposium at The Beach
April 25 | 11:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Academic Affairs is excited to invite faculty and staff to learn about emerging technologies that impact student engagement and teaching. Explore how CSULB faculty are using XR and AI technology in the classroom at this year’s Metaverse & AI Symposium. Space for this hybrid event is limited so please RSVP as soon as possible. RSVPs will be collected on a first come, first served basis.

 

Fall 2025 First Wave Registration

Fall 2025 First Wave Registration is happening NOW for current CSULB students! Students can log in to MyCSULB Student Center to check for holds and enroll ASAP to secure a spot in their preferred classes!

 

Future U: Building Legacy
University Student Union 2028

Reminder: The Friendship Walk stairs will undergo construction beginning April 14 and continuing through Aug. 30, 2025. This project will create enhanced ADA-accessible pathways that will be permanent fixtures on campus, improving mobility from lower to upper campus during construction and beyond.
As part of the Future U project, essential student services and resources are relocating to alternative locations around campus to ensure uninterrupted support. For the most current updates on the USU renovation, including where food and resources will be relocated, please visit the Future U website.
Thank you for your continued patience as we work to create a more accessible, modern, and dynamic campus environment.

 

Did You Know?
Tips from the Division of IT

Outlook
Ever find yourself writing the same email response over and over? Save it as an email signature and insert when needed.

  • Create a new email message and type your text. Select and copy it.
  • Go to the Signature tab > Signatures (Manage Signatures for Mac OS).
  • Click New, give it a name, paste the text and click OK (Save for Mac OS).
  • To use the reply, create a new message, click the Signature tab and select your preferred reply.

Teams
Have you ever joined a Teams meeting only to discover your headset or microphone doesn’t work? Here’s how to check before you enter your meeting.

  • Click the three dots in the upper right corner of Teams and go to Settings.
  • In the menu that appears, go to Devices. Click Make a Test Call. Teams will make a test call with an AI attendant.
  • To adjust Device setting during the call, go to settings in the upper panel to check your speaker and microphone devices. Make selections as needed.

 

Get Ready for the Week of Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The fourth annual Week of Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity (RSCA) will be held April 14-18, 2025, at CSULB. This event showcases some of the amazing work of students, staff, and faculty, emphasizing the immense value and importance these projects have on campus and within local communities. Attendees can meet with presenters, engage in dialogue regarding various scientific and social topics, and network with members from various disciplines across CSULB. Week of RSCA encourages participation in sessions both within and outside one’s own discipline. 

 

37th Annual CSULB Student Research Competition Winners

The purpose of the Annual Student Research Competition is to showcase excellence in scholarly research, and highlight creative activity conducted by CSULB undergraduate and graduate students. The 37th Annual CSULB Student Research Competition was held on March 7, 2025, and we are pleased to announce the winners. These distinguished students will have the chance to represent CSULB in the upcoming systemwide competition, which will be held at Cal Poly Humboldt this month. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winners and wish them the best of success as they present their research at the systemwide level.

 

Basic Estate Planning Workshop
Wills, Trusts, and Peace of Mind 
April 17 | 12 - 1 p.m.

Life can change in an instant - are you prepared? Learn how to protect your loved ones, avoid costly probate, and ensure your wishes are honored with estate planning attorney and CSULB alumna Laura Meier. Please register to attend.

 

Learn About Innovative Projects at the Data Fellows Symposium

Join us for the annual Data Fellows Symposium on Friday, April 25 at 9 a.m. in the University Library, 2nd Floor. Ten Data Fellows teams from across campus will present innovative projects related to student success. This event features an open-format poster session with opening remarks at 9 a.m. and closing remarks about 10:45 a.m. Breakfast and coffee will be served. Please RSVP by April 18.

 

Reminder: Call For Proposals for President – Provost Initiative Faculty Research Awards in Inclusive Excellence

In pursuit of our campus values, vision and mission, President Jane Close Conoley and Provost Karyn Scissum Gunn are excited to invite CSULB faculty to contribute scholarly efforts toward inclusive excellence at The Beach. The President – Provost Initiative Faculty Research Awards in Inclusive Excellence (FRA-IE) focuses on equity and offers thematic funding opportunities important to the campus’ inclusive excellence efforts. Submit proposals by April 14.
For any questions, faculty can contact their respective dean’s office or email ORED-Grants.

Submit items for upcoming messages to aa-communication@csulb.edu with a hyperlink.