A Moment with President Tomás Morales – March 2023

The original California Master Plan for higher education, as it was launched several decades ago, viewed the University of California System as the place where the primary research occurred and the California State University System as the place where research was subordinated to teaching. But as higher education has evolved over the years, the role of research as one of the three primary elements of any faculty member’s responsibilities has grown.

The highly qualified faculty members whom Cal State San Bernardino continues to recruit to our campus see research as not only integral to their own academic careers, but also as a tool to engage students in their specific field, teach them additional skillsets and, as a result, demonstrably grow students’ engagement with their own education. Student-faculty research projects have become a key part in building student success. Which is, ultimately, what we are all about here at CSUSB.

For example, we recently held the 37th annual CSUSB Student Research Competition. Students presented their research before a panel of judges in the James R. Watson and Judy Rodriguez Watson College of Education Atrium on February 10, 2023. All of the winners will advance to the system-wide competition in San Diego on April 28-29, 2023.  Besides deepening their own knowledge and research skills, last month’s competition provided students with the opportunity to work closely with the faculty member who served as their research project mentor.

I am furthermore proud to say that CSUSB continues to demonstrate a robust track record in applying for grants (which includes research grants) and having them awarded. Our efforts for the first two quarters of 2022-23 (July – December 2022) are no exception to that trend. Our grant proposal submissions were 76 (72 for Academic Affairs and 4 for Student Affairs), totaling $55,586,548. Our grant awards over the same period were 103 (90 for Academic Affairs and 13 for Students Affairs), totaling $35,052,920.

The Office of Academic Research (OAR), the Office of Research Development, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs and the Office of Sponsored Programs Administration provide the university’s research support infrastructure.  My additional thanks, for their leadership, go to Dorota Huizinga, associate provost for research and dean of graduate studies, and Cynthia Crawford, OAR’s faculty director.

Therefore, we can say, here at CSUSB, research and teaching are intertwined. Both support one another and ultimately support our students and the faculty members who teach them. This is truly a win-win situation for us.

I cannot close my March blog without saying a few words about what we call Womxn’s History Month at CSUSB. This inclusive set of programs, selected and organized by a cross-university planning committee, is an annual effort to enlighten, question and stretch our understanding. This year’s theme—“Celebrating and Telling Our Stories”—is intended “to amplify the voices of diverse womxn and recognize their contributions across various sectors and disciplines.” The culmination of the month will be the Annual Womxn’s Leadership Conference on March 22, 2023, which I have been proud to support since its inception.

CSUSB continues in its life and work as a busy institution of higher education, serving our students and the residents of the Inland Empire, practicing inclusivity and equity, and always striving to build a better tomorrow.

Until next time—