News and Announcements
Prospective Gators will visit the campus for the University’s annual fall open house Saturday, Oct. 19, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. The free event, “Discover SF State,” is an opportunity for prospective students, newly admitted students and their families to meet peers and faculty, take a tour, explore the cutting-edge academics and facilities, and learn about housing, financial aid and Gator life. Dozens of staff and faculty volunteers will be on hand throughout the day to serve as University ambassadors.
Visit the “Discover SF State” page to learn more.
Multi-factor authentication, or MFA, is a security measure that requires anyone logging into an account to navigate a two-step process to prove their identity. It makes it twice as hard for criminals to access an online account. When it’s available, always turn it on because it’s easy to do and increases your security. Why go through all this trouble? Because multi-factor authentication makes it extremely hard for hackers to access your online accounts, even if they know your password. Check out Information Technology Service’s website on MFA for more tips on staying safe online.
A film crew from SF State was at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, France, this summer working with Susan Zieff, professor of Kinesiology, to shoot a film on Paralympic hand-cyclists and a blind judo athlete. Zieff is producing the film in collaboration with Professor of Cinema Daniel Bernardi, who is directing the film. Cinema graduate students Jesse Sutterley and David Brzezinski shot footage of the athletes as they competed for their medals, as well as context footage of the city of Paris and its monuments. The athletes in both sports won medals — two in hand-cycling and one in judo. The two films, the short on para-cycling and the feature on judo, are expected to be completed by summer 2025.
Pictured: Susan Zieff in Paris with David Brzezinski (left) and Jesse Sutterley (right)
Strategic Marketing and Communications (SMC) is excited to share the results from several updates made to University homepages over the past several months.
Six Month Update for Online Visibility Efforts
Search engine optimization (SEO) work across 300 pages was implemented to improve our online visibility and search engine reach. As a result, users coming from Organic Search rose to make up 35% of the University’s web traffic (up from 18%).
My Story Landing Page Refresh
In mid-August, SMC updated the My Story landing page with more content, driving a noticeable increase in engagement as visitors interacted with more engaging material.
- Engagement rate increased to 33.72% from 18.5%
Tracking Key Conversions
With the refreshed content on the My Story page, SMC measured the number of clicks to apply and request information.
- Apply clicks increased by 255% (530 vs. 149).
- Request Info clicks increased by 128% (420 vs. 184).
Are you aware that the Student Health Services (SHS) pharmacy offers a reasonable price for over-the-counter (OTC) products for staff and faculty? Visit the Student Health Services website for an online listing of current OTC products and prices. Effective Oct. 1, payment is no longer charged to the Bursar’s account. Payment options include credit card/debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. SHS does not accept cash or checks. Prices and products are subject to change. Generic equivalent products are used when available.
This is a friendly reminder that the enrollment period for Paperless W-2 for the 2024 tax year is open from Feb. 1 to Nov. 30. Please note: You may only change your preference during this enrollment period. If you have already opted in to receive your W-2 electronically for this year, you will not be able to opt out until the next calendar year.
The 2024 W-2 address change deadline is Dec. 9.
For more W-2 information, please visit the Human Resources website.
The SF State Academic Senate will meet Tuesday, Oct. 15, from 2 to 5 p.m. via Zoom for its fourth meeting of the academic year. The agenda includes:
- Recommendation from the Campus Curriculum Committee proposals for substantive decrease in units as consent items:
- Master of Arts in History
- Minor in Computer Science
- Recommendation from the Educational Policies Committee proposals in first reading:
- Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religion, program suspension
- Bachelor of Arts in Earth Sciences, program discontinuance
- Recommendation from Academic Policies Committee in first reading:
- Revision to S22-298 Academic Integrity Policy
- Revision to S19-230 Grade Appeal Policy
- Recommendation from Strategic Issues Committee: Revision to S13-266 Academic Freedom Policy, in first reading.
- Recommendation from Faculty Affairs Committee in first reading:
- Assigned Time for Temporary Faculty Unit Employees Performing Institutional Service (new policy)
- Revision to S23-306 By-Laws for Departments, Equivalent Units, and All Other Faculty Units That Offer Academic Degrees
- Hiring Policy for Tenure Track Faculty
- Recommendation from Executive Committee: San Francisco State University Resolution to Suspend Implementation of Interim CSU Time, Place and Manner Policy in second reading.
The senate will hear formal presentations from:
- Senator Robert K. Collins and Senator Dipendra Sinha, “ASCSU Report” (time approximate 3:30 – 3:50 p.m.)
- Alexander Dursin, Government and Community Relations Liaison, “Legislative Update” (time approximate 3:50 – 4:10 p.m.)
Students, staff and faculty are invited to meet with Provost Amy Sueyoshi during her open office hour in fall 2024. Meetings will occur 8 – 9 a.m. on varying Thursdays through December depending on the provost’s availability. Please reserve your time to discuss any topics. All meetings will be at the provost’s office in ADM 455. Reserve your meeting via Qualtrics. Breakfast refreshments will be provided.
Campus staff are invited to the next Staff Forum of the semester on Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 10 to 11 a.m. via Zoom. Agenda includes a Title IX and DHR presentation/training from Anna Titus, assistant vice president for Title IX and discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in Equity Programs and Compliance.
Please share with your staff colleagues. All campus staff (who are not MPP or faculty) are encouraged to attend. The forum is hosted by Human Resources. RSVP via Qualtrics to opt in for all Staff Forum Zoom links for 2024–2025.
The CourseMatch program is part of the CSU Graduation Initiative 2025 that decreases bottlenecking in General Education courses and enables students to access required courses in a timely fashion. CourseMatch courses are fully online and asynchronous for maximum accessibility. The program allows any student enrolled in any of the 23 CSU campuses to take online courses offered by any campus and that meet CSU requirements.
SF State departments and instructors can consider submitting qualified undergraduate general education fully online and asynchronous courses (Learning Mode 01) to gain additional funding for their programs. The submission deadline for course submissions for spring 2025 is Wednesday, Oct. 16.
If you have any questions, please contact at@sfsu.edu.
Superfest Disability Film Festival is coming Oct. 17 – 20, and whether you are joining in-person in the Bay Area or online anywhere in the world, you need to be a part of it! Superfest is the longest-running disability film festival in the world. Since 1970, it has celebrated cinema that portrays disability through a diverse, unabashed and engaging lens.
For the second year Superfest is a hybrid event, with new levels of access. The festival will run virtually Oct. 17 through Oct. 20 with all 18 films available for screening online. Learn more on the Superfest website. Passes start at $0!
Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability will host a kickoff event on Thursday, Oct. 17, from 3 to 4 p.m. spotlighting the new Disabled BIPOC Film Collective. Register online.
A synchronous Zoom screening of selections of Superfest’s award-winning films will be available Friday, Oct. 18, 2:30 – 4 p.m. Register online.
There will be two in-person screenings on Saturday, Oct. 19, at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. The first screening will be from noon to 2 p.m. The second screening will be from 3 to 5 p.m., with a panel following.
Even Superfest’s in-person screenings have passes available starting at $0!
The Disability Cultural Center will host an event with Superfest filmmakers and attendees Sunday, Oct. 20, 4 – 5:30 p.m. Register online.
Host a watch party! Select the “Watch Party” pass option and bring your community together to screen these films.
Visit the Superfest Disability Film Festival website to review pass options.
Expand your generative AI (GenAI) toolkit. Academic Technology will host “Beyond Chatbots: GenAI Images & Meetings” Thursday, Oct. 17, from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in LIB 281. This hands-on workshop will show you how to harness the power of GenAI for image creation and virtual meeting transcription and support. Open to both beginners and advanced users, this event is a great opportunity to elevate your GenAI skills in a supportive environment. For more information and to register, go to the Academic Technology website.
The longtime campus Technology Acquisition Request (TAR) process has relaunched over the summer, with a new streamlined interface and a new name: BuyIT. Academic Technology (AT) will host a series of informational sessions on BuyIT. These informational sessions will provide a brief overview of the project and process history and a guided tour of the new IT purchasing interface. Next up is a 30-minute informational session via Zoom on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 2 p.m. Registration is required.
More information is available on the Academic Technology website.
The Division of Graduate Studies & Career Development (GSCD) will host its annual Grad Preview Week from Monday, Oct. 21, to Friday, Oct. 25. GSCD asks faculty to encourage undergraduate students to explore SF State graduate education opportunities by joining one or more of over 60 virtual and in-person events. Staff are also encouraged to explore advanced degree or certificate opportunities. As part of Grad Preview Week, Career & Leadership Development will host a Graduate School Fair Tuesday, Oct. 22, 12 – 3 p.m. with over 30 participating universities. The fair will be held in Jack Adams Hall.
Are you stressed and exhausted? Do you experience neck and shoulder pain? Does your mind never stop? Attend the noon Holistic Health workshop series to learn skills to enhance health.
- Wednesday, Oct. 23, from noon to 1 p.m.: Mindful Movement Meditation (based on Feldenkrais® and Body-Mind Centering®) with Sonja Riket
- Wednesday, Oct. 30, from noon to 1 p.m.: Quick Posture Reset with the Alexander Technique® with Elyse Shafarman.
All sessions will be held in HSS306.
The Holistic Health Lecture Series is open to the University community and sponsored by the Institute for Holistic Health Studies and the Department of Recreation, Parks & Tourism.
“Everybody” is a modern take on a 15th century morality play that offers a whimsical perspective on death and dying. Part of the School of Theatre and Dance’s fall 2024 season, it will be presented in the Little Theatre located in the Creative Arts building from Thursday, Oct. 24, to Saturday, Nov. 2. Showtimes are as follows: Oct. 24 and Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. and Oct. 25, Oct. 31, Nov. 1 and Nov. 2 at 2:30 p.m.
Tony and Obie Award winner and MacArthur “genius” grant recipient Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (“Appropriate,” “An Octoroon”) remixes the archetypal medieval morality play, “Everyman,” with incisive, contemporary wit and insight. His award-winning work follows “Everybody” (played by one of four actors selected by lottery for each performance) as they are summoned by Death to travel down a road toward life’s greatest mystery and confront their inevitable end. As directed by Kurt Daw, this fresh take on a timeless tale playfully satirizes contemporary culture while reminding us that life is a gift.
Student tickets are $9. General admission is $15.
For more information and tickets, please contact Michael Schweikardt.
Calling all artists, creators, makers, innovators and tinkerers! Join the Staff Maker Faire to exhibit and sell original work on Wednesday, Nov. 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Science and Engineering Innovation Center. Register via Qualtrics. For questions, please email the Staff Council.
SF State Spotlight
Professor of Recreation, Parks & Tourism Erik Peper presented a keynote speech entitled “Body Changes Mind, Mind Changes Body Integrating Biofeedback, Posture, Breathing and Stress Management for Health” at the XIX AIAMC National Congress held Oct. 5 at the University of Parma, Italy. This year’s congress, “Psychology, medicine, psychotherapy: lifestyles, awareness and change,” was organized by Istituto Miller, AIAMC and the University of Parma.
On Sept. 30, Associate Professor of the Latina/o Studies Bárbara Abadía-Rexach participated in a community conversation sponsored by the Black Orchestral Network with multimedia journalist and “Ain’t I Latina?” blogger Janel Martínez and musician Emilio Carlo. Abadía-Rexach not only explored what Afro-Latinidad means to her as a Black Puerto Rican scholar in U.S. academia but also discussed the rich musical history of Afro-Latinx artists and the role they have been playing by denouncing colonialism and anti-Black racism through their music and performances. Abadía-Rexach emphasized the importance of including Black Hispanics and Black Latinx’s stories and experiences while celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. She provided the audience with resources to raise awareness of the historical importance of Black Hispanic and Latinx musicians whose works embrace African ancestry and help instill a sense of pride and belonging across generations. An included example was on an episode of the La Brega podcast in which Abadía-Rexach produced and hosted the episode on the famous Latin American song “Las caras lindas.”
Associate Professor of Biology Robyn Crook has continued to use her research findings on cephalopods to advocate for better understanding and treatment of these animals. On Oct. 8, Issues in Science and Technology published a discussion of the various bills and acts passed through the U.S. leading up to the OCTOPUS ACT of 2024, a bipartisan Senate bill that would prohibit commercial octopus farming if passed. The article cites Crook’s research at SF State as “the definitive piece of evidence that octopuses feel pain.”
2024 is a big year for politicians both nationwide and locally as many strive to obtain or maintain a seat with a variety of sectors and departments. Locally, the San Francisco mayoral race is an important focus. Associate Professor of Political Science Jason McDaniel’s comments on Mayor London Breed’s reelection chances were featured in a Governing article about other political figures who lost their seats in primaries. “The last few years have been quite a rebuke of some progressive policies and candidates on things like public safety,” he said, “London Breed astutely understood where the city was going and has been trying to do things both substantive and symbolic to signal she understood the mood of the city has shifted.” He also spoke to Reutersabout the issues dominating San Francisco’s mayoral race. “What voters care about right now are not currently the kind of issues that progressives tend to do well on,” said McDaniel.