News and Announcements
SF State’s 123rd Commencement ceremony will be Friday, May 24, 2024, at Oracle Park, home of the San Francisco Giants. This is the eighth year the downtown ballpark will host the more than 30,000 graduates, family members and friends anticipated for the celebration.
“I look forward to San Francisco State’s Commencement each year,” President Lynn Mahoney said. “It’s the culmination of everything students have learned as undergraduate and graduate students — both inside and outside of the classroom. It’s a moment we acknowledge them, knowing they are prepared to tackle the challenges of today with thoughtfulness, resilience and creativity. Celebrating their successes with their loved ones is a joy.”
Students from SF State were among the hand-picked aspiring engineers and computer scientists to attend the MESA Student Leadership Conference in San Diego from Oct. 20 to Oct. 22.
This year’s conference challenged students to design a product or service (in about 30 hours) aimed at addressing one of the United Nations sustainable development goals. Students interacted one-on-one and in small groups with company executives, engineers and recruiters to establish connections for internships and full-time employment. Students also networked with each other and attended leadership and communications workshops and a company expo.
The MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement) program guides diverse students from underrepresented backgrounds into education and careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).
Employees in the Management Personnel Plan (MPP) are invited to gain critical management skills with the Human Resources (HR) office’s Principles of Supervision pilot cohort from Tuesday, Feb. 13, to Tuesday, March 26.
Principles of Supervision is a professional development program designed by the CSU Chancellor’s Office to provide supervisors with the knowledge and skills they need to lead and manage their teams effectively.
By participating in this program, managers, supervisors and leads will be better equipped to lead effective and engaged teams to success. They will build their leadership skills and gain a deeper understanding of best practices in supervision.
This cohort is open to MPP employees only. HR will offer the program to represented employees in another cohort, dates to be determined.
The deadline to submit proposals for presentations to the CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning is Sunday, Nov. 12.
Visit the CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning website for details and to apply.
The Library reminds all instructors teaching spring 2024 courses to please submit requests for new course reserve materials no later than Tuesday, Jan. 2. This ensures that all materials are available to students by the first day of spring instruction.
Placing required course materials on reserve helps lower the financial burden for students.
To place books on reserve not in the Library’s collection or already owned by the Library, please fill out the reserve request form.
The form is not necessary to reserve personal copies of books. Simply bring the books to the Book Checkout & Drop-off desk on the first floor of the Library and fill out a short form.
To make any changes to an existing course reserve list or course details, please fill out the online reserve request form selecting the “Renewals” option. If you do not wish to make any changes, no action is necessary.
For questions, email Course Materials Specialist Elliott Scheuer or call him at (415) 338-3473.
Now is the ideal planning time for a student to study abroad in fall 2024. Before students select their classes next semester, SF State Abroad recommends that students identify their top two to three programs for fall 2024, determine class availability abroad and determine which classes would be better to take at SF State.
Students are encouraged to attend an information meeting if they need help getting started. They can watch a recorded session on YouTube, attend in person every Wednesday at 3 p.m. in Building C of the Village at Centennial Square (next to U.S. Bank), or RSVP for the Zoom session held every Friday at 2 p.m.
The priority deadline for fall 2024 is Thursday, Feb. 15.
The SF State Academic Senate will meet Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2 – 5 p.m. at Seven Hills and virtually via Zoom for its sixth meeting of the academic year. Please contact the Senate office for a Zoom link.
Agenda:
- Strategic Issues Committee:
- Resolution in Support of International Education Month, consent item.
- Resolution Affirming Shared Governance, Curricular Integrity and Budget Transparency, in first reading.
- Academic Policies Committee:
- Resolution in Support of Deepening and Re-Imagining the Senior Capstone, in second reading.
- Revision to S02-217 Academic Program Assessment, in first reading.
- Revision to S99-206 Policy on the Academic Program Assessment Committee, in first reading.
- Faculty Affairs Committee: Resolution in Support of the Implementation of the CSU Course Equity Portal by the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, in first reading.
View the full agenda, meeting materials and minutes on the Academic Senate website.
The Lam-Larsen Initiative for Emerging Technologies invites students and alumni to its upcoming Meet-the-Expert talk on “Business Applications of Generative AI.” It will be held Monday, Nov. 6, 2 – 3 p.m. via Zoom.
Andrea Anderson, global head of user and information experience at Guidewire Inc., will share insights into some of the most transformative applications and use cases of generative artificial intelligence in business. Anderson is an industry leader in Silicon Valley with years of experience leading global teams to design innovative digital solutions.
For questions, email the Lam Family College of Business.
Join the Internships for International Students panel discussion on Monday, Nov. 6, 4 p.m., to learn about the legal and strategic routes you can take as an international student! Register via Zoom.
Panelists include:
- Mei-Ling Wang: assistant director, international student advising and designated school official
- Lina Jurkunas: instructional designer, educator
- Paul Glanting: director of career services, Lam Family College of Business
This event is a collaboration between the Lam Family College of Business and the Office of International Programs.
How might study abroad help students professionally, academically and personally? Join the SF State Abroad alumni talk “Where Are They Now?” on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 4 – 5 p.m., to learn from former SF State students who studied abroad and are now working in professional careers. They will share how study abroad helped and impacted them.
This event is part of International Education Month.
All are welcome to the Veterans Day spades and dominos tournament, scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 16, 1 – 5 p.m., in Student Services 401. This military-affiliated cultural event will include games, snacks and beverages.
The V.E.T.S@SFSU student organization is the event sponsor, with support from SF State and the SFSU Veterans Services Center.
Please register via Microsoft Forms.
For information on this event and other events happening around San Francisco on Veterans Day weekend, please contact V.E.T.S.@SFSU.
Human Resources will host a presentation on the Tuition Fee Waiver and Reduction Program on Friday, Dec. 1, 11 a.m. – noon, via Zoom. The program provides an opportunity for eligible employees or their dependents to take classes at any CSU campus at a reduced rate. For employees, this can help with professional development or advancing an undergraduate or graduate degree.
SF State Spotlight
Professor of Recreation, Parks and Tourism Nina S. Roberts, who passed away in March 2022, has posthumously won the 2023 Charles “Reb” Gregg Wilderness Risk Management Award. The award was presented Oct. 18 at the Wilderness Risk Management 30th Annual Conference.
In a moving tribute, her dear friend and colleague, Sky Gray, celebrated Roberts for her fearless fight for diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. Gray noted: “Nina would ask for people and organizations to connect the accurate historical dots and make needed systematic changes. …She would ask that we shift towards anti-racist liberation. … She would say if we are not leading culture, we will default to the dominant culture.”
Roberts’ sister Alyssa and cousins Monique and Kyra accepted the award on her behalf.
An Oct. 26 story published on Them explores how Halloween has become a sacred holiday celebrated in LGBTQ+ communities.
“Halloween has long been a holiday where we celebrate alternative forms of expression, the reversal of ordinary social roles and social hierarchies,” said Marc Stein, the Jamie and Phyllis Pasker Professor of History. “So for any marginalized group, carnivalesque holidays, including Halloween, have long provided opportunities to at least temporarily assert the possibility of a different role in society.”
Recreation, Parks, Tourism and Holistic Health Professor Richard Harvey gave an invited lecture at the 48th international conference of the Northeast Region Biofeedback Society on Oct. 28. His lecture is titled, “How good are the new tools: Off-the-shelf wearables in biofeedback practice.”
Recreation, Parks, Tourism and Holistic Health Professor Erik Peper appeared on an episode of The Root Cause Medicine Podcast on Oct. 30. The episode is titled “The Digital Detox Blueprint: How to Win the War Against Your Smartphone Today with Dr. Erik Peper, Ph.D.”
An Oct. 27 article in CalMatters explores the lack of qualified computer science teachers in high schools throughout California. An SF State program is highlighted for making the pathway to become a computer science teacher more enticing. With funding from the National Science Foundation, the University has offered online training courses to over 150 teachers since 2018.
“When you’re majoring in computer science, all you hear about is becoming a software engineer. They don’t know that teaching is an option. But some of them love working with kids, love teaching, and we’re able to help them become teachers,” said Hao Yue, associate professor and associate chair of Computer Science.
Management Professor Ronald Purser was a guest on the “Current Affairs” podcast on Oct. 30 to discuss “the corporate mindfulness racket.” He explains how incorporating mindful meditation practices in the workplace has obscured the systemic causes of distress and shifted responsibility away from employers.
“The fundamental message of the mindfulness movement is that the underlying cause of dissatisfaction and distress is in our heads,” Purser said. “Corporations have become really attracted to these mindfulness programs — because it lets management off the hook.”