Dear Campus Community,
I hope everyone has been enjoying these short but sweet summer months. Although we are just now easing back into the academic year, our work has not stopped as we continue to meet our strategic goals for Sonoma State. Some of those goals are noted in the GI2025 Initiative, the systemwide effort to raise graduation rates and reduce equity gaps by 2025.
I enthusiastically share some excellent news about SSU’s remarkable progress during the last few years!
A recent article in the Los Angeles Times noted that the system as a whole has not made robust progress toward the ambitious goals established in 2015. The article referenced a new progress report from The Campaign for College Opportunity, which detailed the sprawling data points being tracked and the complex goals and measures of progress the campuses are registering. I am pleased to report a few points of pride for SSU:
- We are first among CSU campuses that meet or exceed 45% two-year graduation rates for transfer students.
- We are one of only three campuses – the others are San Diego State and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo – to have been assigned goals at or above the CSU systemwide goals in all four GI 2025 categories.
- SSU is one of only five CSU campuses to meet or exceed the CSU goal of a 40% four-year graduation rate as of fall 2022
My point here is not to brag about SSU (OK, maybe a little), but to highlight that our hard work is coming to fruition, which I hope inspires all of us to sustain our efforts and energy into this new academic year. The hard work of our students, the extraordinary commitment of our faculty, and the unmatched dedication of our staff all contribute to meeting these goals. Yes, we have some miles to go before we sleep, as the poet Robert Frost reminds us, but each leg of this journey makes us and our campus stronger, and ever closer to reaching its incredible potential. Thank you again for all you do, every day, to make our community a better place.
Cheers to another year of significant strides forward!
Ming-Tung "Mike" Lee
President