California State University, Dominguez Hills
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

The California State University (CSU or University) is committed to maintaining an inclusive and equitable community that values diversity and fosters mutual respect. We embrace our community differences in Age, Disability (physical and mental), Gender (or sex), Gender Identity (including nonbinary and transgender), Gender Expression, Genetic Information, Marital Status, Medical Condition, Nationality, Race or Ethnicity (including color, caste, or ancestry), Religion (or religious creed), Sexual Orientation, Veteran or Military Status. All Students and Employees have the right to participate fully in CSU programs, activities, and employment free from Discrimination, Harassment, Sexual Misconduct, Sexual Exploitation, Dating Violence, Domestic Violence, Stalking and Retaliation.

https://www.csudh.edu/equity/rights-resources/policies/

CSUDH complies with the system-wide Executive Order 1096 which mandates reporting for incidents of discrimination by virtually all employees (except healthcare professionals) to the Title IX officer on campus. The on-campus police department also tracks and reports incidents of hate crimes (zero have been reported over the past three years). The campus is encouraged to report incidences to the Title IX officer and/or campus police, which each follow a set of complementary processes to investigate the incidents:

Campus Police will assist in obtaining an emergency protective order and conduct an interview with the victim. If the victim chooses to pursue an investigation, the police officer will collect evidence and interview the victim, accused, and witnesses. They will then send the evidence to the District Attorney who will determine if there is sufficient evidence to pursue a criminal prosecution. If there is sufficient evidence, legal proceedings will begin. For incidents reported to the University, the Title IX officer will select a trained Title IX investigator to collect evidence, interview the victim, the accused person, and witnesses. The investigator will then complete a report within 60 working days and the Title IX Officer will notify the victim and the accused person within 10 working days in writing whether or not the accused person violated a CSU Executive Order using the perponderance of the evidence standard. Appeals may be made to the Chancellor's Office. If a violation is found, the Student Conduct Officer, Human Resources Office or Office of Faculty Affairs (depending on the case) will determine sanctions.

https://www.csudh.edu/equity/report-incident/

Victims/survivors are supported throughout the process with assistance provided by University Policy to ensure safe transport to a hospital or response center and/or access to a victim's advocate. Additionally, the Title IX Officer and/or CSUDH's Sexual Assault Victim’s Advocate provide assistance and support throughout the process. All CSUDH employees have certain degrees of confidentiality, and a report to these employees constitutes a report to the University, and generally creates a legal obligation for the University to investigate the incident and take appropriate steps to address the situation.

More information on these resources and campus support provided listed here: https://www.csudh.edu/equity/rights-resources/for-survivors/

There are many recruitment and support programs sponsored by a variety of staff associations, professional associations, student clubs, and campus departments. CSUDH is among the most ethnically-diverse universities in the United States as a result with a student population that is 64.3 percent Hispanic/Latino; 13.4 percent Black/African American, 8.5 percent White, 10.2 percent Asian or Pacific Islander, 0.1 percent American Indian, and 3.1 percent two or more races. Immigrant and visa students on our campus represent 100 countries.

A few examples of student recruitment programs:
-University Outreach specifically conducts recruitment events at a multitude of local high schools that consists predominately of underrepresented groups (https://www.csudh.edu/future-students/more-info/csudh-at-my-hs/index). The same policy extends to local community colleges in urban Los Angeles (https://www.csudh.edu/future-students/more-info/csudh-at-my-cc/). It also has events specifically targeted to recruiting a diverse student body. For example, the Super Saturday African American College & Career Summit hosted on campus to attract African American student applicants (https://www.csudh.edu/future-students/more-info/visit-csudh/open-house-events/)

-The Male Success Alliance, which also provides student services for current CSUDH students, also has a Middle and High School program to provide college preparation to underserved neighborhoods of Los Angeles County including Compton, Carson, Torrance, South Los Angeles, and Long Beach. The mission of MSA is to improve access, retention and graduation rates of boys and men of color by providing academic support, professional development and mentoring. (https://www.csudh.edu/msa/)

-The on-campus American Indian Institute has a primary goal of increasing the number of students from Tribal Nations who enroll and graduate from the CSU and conducts recruitment activities accordingly. https://www.csudh.edu/slice/aii/

Staff/Faculty:
-There is a CSUDH Black Faculty and Staff Association whose main vision statement includes supporting efforts "To encourage the hiring and promoting of more Black faculty, staff and administrators and to encourage the entry of more Black students at our campus." (www.csudhbfsa.org)
-CSUDH also has representation in the California Faculty Association, which regularly advocates and lobbies for mechanisms to increase diversity in faculty populations. For example, the CFA recently testified in the State Assembly to improve tenure density as a tool to address underrepresentation of faculty of color, and lobbied for funding to support the initiative. (https://www.calfac.org/headline/assembly-hearings-held-csu-faculty-diversity-ca-master-plan-higher-ed)

There are at least 6 dedicated programs for supporting representation in STEM alone targeted to students, as well as a variety of experience programs (e.g. Encounter to Excellence, Summer Bridge Program, etc.) to support retention and graduation rates for student from underrepresented groups. Many of the multitude of programs offered are included in the most recent WSCUC Institutional Report (https://www.csudh.edu/Assets/csudh-sites/academic-affairs/docs/accreditation/csudh-wscuc-institutional-report-2017.pdf)

Here are a few examples of programs designed to support students from underrepresented groups:

-The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) at California State University, Dominguez Hills designs, administers, and supports programs that deliver access and retention services to CSUDH students. EOP provides services to historically low-income, historically educationally disadvantaged, first-generation college students; a population that not only reflects the diversity of CSUDH feeder communities but also the diversity of the University itself. (https://www.csudh.edu/eop/)

-The Toro Dreamers Success Center aims to support the academic, professional, and personal development of undocumented students and be a resource for undocumented immigrant students and their families. It offers a range of programs and services to educate the campus community and support undocumented students’ access, persistence, graduation, and post-graduate pursuits. (https://www.csudh.edu/dream-center/)

-Student Support Services, also known as SSS, is a federal program funded through the Department of Education and designed to support the academic needs of 160 qualified undergraduate CSUDH students. The program is designed to increase the retention, and graduation rates of first generation and low income students, students with disabilities, and former foster youth who demonstrate a high potential for academic success. (https://www.csudh.edu/sss/)

There are also several associations that provide support services for students, staff, and faculty from underrepresented groups:

-The Rose Black Resource Center aims to serve as the nucleus for Black student, staff, faculty and alumni engagement and success at CSUDH. To that end, it hosts programming throughout the year including networking, mentorship, and professional development events. (https://torolink.csudh.edu/organization/blackresourcecenter). It is led by a Black Faculty & Staff Association Executive Board to ensure support services for both academic AND non-academic black staff at CSUDH.

-The Asian Pacific Islander Association organizes programming to further the development of Asian-American and Pacific Islander identity done through enhancing each member’s interest and involvement in social, cultural, and political events. This has included networking and events on-campus and off and is closely affiliated with the Asian Pacific Studies Program at CSUDH. (https://csudh.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/asia)

-The Faculty Development Center provides support, resources and services that enable faculty to achieve excellence, integration, and satisfaction in the areas of teaching, scholarship and service across their career lifespan. It often hosts events and retreats designed to support faculty from underrepresented groups (e.g. Women of Color Faculty Retreat, Transgender Language workshop).

-A variety of departmental programs will also often host networking or support events for faculty, students, and staff of color such as the Africana Studies department, Asian Pacific Studies Program, Chicana/Chicano Studies departments, etc.

An example program CSUDH participate in to encourage faculty diversity is the McNair Scholarship program. The program’s goal is to encourage and prepare students who are traditionally underrepresented in college to pursue graduate studies – specifically, the Ph.D. The program provides a variety of academic support and services. The McNair Scholars Program at CSUDH was established in 2004, and to date has successfully achieved a 93% graduate school acceptance rate. https://www.csudh.edu/mcnair/

The Minority Access to Research Careers, Undergraduate Student Training in Academic Research Program (MARC U*STAR) is another program that prepares students from underrepresented groups for PhD programs. Funded in part by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS} of the National Institutes of Health (NIH}, the MARC U*STAR program provides support for six honors level students underrepresented in the biomedical and behavioral sciences to improve their preparation for Ph.D. programs. This five-year training grant provides funding for the last two years of the student's undergraduate education to enable full engagement in the training experience. Upon admission to the program, MARC U*STAR students are integrated into active research laboratories at CSU DH and the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at HarborUCLA Medical Center. The program provides support for enrichment activities to improve students' educational and research outcomes including GRE preparation, graduate admissions preparation, scientific writing workshops, student career development, summer research training, and a research seminar series. The program also provides networking opportunities with notable scientists, graduate students and graduate school recruiters. https://www.csudh.edu/cise/stem-initiatives/

The campus also recently earned a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support students from under-represented populations in their pursuit of doctoral degrees in the humanities. The program specifically aims to address the lack of diversity among university faculty. https://news.csudh.edu/mellon-foundation-grant/