CSUN’s Plan on Minorities Held Up as System Model

A plan developed at California State University, Northridge for recruiting minority students has been recommended as a model for the 18 other state university campuses, the system’s Board of Trustees was told Wednesday.

The CSUN plan would shift responsibility for minority recruitment to faculty members and administrators and away from specialized offices such as the Student Affirmative Action Project and the Equal Opportunity Program.

“Unlike segmented efforts in the past, the idea is to involve all the faculty and staff” in minority recruitment, CSUN President James W. Cleary said.

At a meeting in Long Beach, the state system’s trustees were told that the proposal will be forwarded to universities around California for their consideration in revamping minority recruitment programs.

“Educational equity ought to be an institutional responsibility rather than a program responsibility,” said Herbert L. Carter, the vice chancellor for administration for the California State University system. Under the new program, he said, “We will hold the entire campus accountable.”

Headed Advisory Council

Carter was chairman of the CSU Educational Equity Advisory Council that made 24 recommendations, presented before the trustees Wednesday, to change the direction of programs for minority students. The recommendations will be implemented without the need for the trustees’ approval, according to Charles Davis, a CSU spokesman.

The plan calls for evaluations of CSU faculty and top administrators to determine their success at achieving goals of the program.

“The intent is to make minority participation a part of the whole university,” Carter said, rather than maintaining minority programs as separate islands.

Cleary said the CSUN program might, in practice, call on faculty members and administrators to visit high schools to spur the interest of minority youths in college studies. He said faculty members might also serve as academic counselors.

The plan is similar to one launched 12 years ago at the Northridge campus to foster recruitment of minority engineering students. As a result of that effort, Cleary said, “Retention rates are up, and students are highly motivated.

“It’s basically an attitudinal thing. There will be a special sensitivity developed,” he said.