Golden news nuggets: with nearly 500 degree-granting institutions in the state of California, Diverse couldn't cover them all, but instead offers a few school snapshots

Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Dec 13, 2007

California State University, Chico: Graduate student Skye "The P.E. Guy" Dunn is talking the talk and walking the walk when it comes to promoting physical fitness as part of the solution to the nation's obesity problem. Over the last six months, Dunn, who is pursuing a master's degree in kinesiology, has biked, walked, skated and skateboarded across the country, talking to children along the way about physical fitness. His six-month P.E. jaunt started with a swim in the Pacific Ocean on June 4 in San Francisco and ended with a visit Nov. 19 to The Children's Storefront School in Harlem, where he encouraged students to take at least 10,000 steps every day and presented the school pedometers for two classes. Dunn is working with CASPER (Center for Advancement of Standards-based Physical Education Reform) at CSU-Chico to empower parents, school administrators and elected officials to demand quality EE. classes that include nutrition information.

California State University, long Beach: First-generation Latino students enrolled in nutrition science and health science at CSULB will be on the front lines in the fight against maternal and childhood obesity in the Long Beach Latino community. A new program, "Comienzo Sano: Familia Saludable" (Healthy Start: Healthy Families), will rely on students to work with participants in the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, encouraging breastfeeding, introducing them to foods and liquids to alleviate the development of asthma and allergies and providing nutrition and wellness instruction to prevent obesity. The new program is funded with a U.S. Department of Agriculture $295,000 Hispanic-serving institutions grant to the National Council of La Raza/CSULB Center for Latino Community Health, Evaluation and Leadership Training.

California State University, Stanislaus: Genetic counselors, medical professionals who use their expertise in human genetics and knowledge of important medical discoveries to help patients dealing with genetic disorders and inherited health conditions, are in high demand. CSU-Stanislaus is answering the call with the development of a new master's degree program starting in the fall of 2008. The Master of Science in Genetic Counseling program is being offered in collaboration with the University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco State University and Kaiser Permanente and is the third university program accredited by the American Board of Genetic Counseling on the West Coast.

Coastline Community College: The college is offering up to

$50,000 in scholarships to students who have demonstrated academic success, outstanding community service, financial need and leadership at the school. Granted by the Coastline Foundation and made possible through donations from faculty, staff, businesses, organizations and individuals, these scholarships range from $150 to $2,000 each. Applications must be received by March 10, 2008. Mariam Khosravani, director of the Coastline Foundation, is strongly encouraging students to apply. "In some years, scholarships have outnumbered the students applying for them," she says. The Foundation awarded $44,210 in scholarships to 132 students during the 2006-2007 academic year.

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College of Alameda: An applied politics social Certificate in Change Agency is in the works at the college for the spring of 2008. One of the most diverse community colleges in the nation, College of Alameda plans to start admitting students to this newly developed program next semester. The program will be set up to train students to run social change campaigns. Rooted in facilitating participatory democracy, this certificate will enable students to promote civic engagement. This program is fled to the Sustainable Peralta Initiative, which is an effort to "go green" in the Peralta Community College District.

East Los Angeles Community College: The largest community college district in the United States, the LACCD has implemented the $2.2 billion Bond Construction Program to better prepare all of its colleges for the environmental challenges of the future and to expand facilities. At East Los Angeles Community College, specifically, the new construction plans include energy- producing photovoltaic "solar energy" cells and new buildings that will be built to standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council.

El Camino College: Funded through Measure E, a $394 million bond that provides funds to modernize classrooms, El Camino College has gotten a facelift this fall. Both the interior and exterior of the humanities building at the college were renovated in a $29 million project. The school has also received upgrades in furnishings and technology. The Department of State Architects also approved plans for a new parking lot and athletic facility. The completion date is set for April 2009.

Hancock Community College: Overall enrollment grew this semester by 7.5 percent, and Latino enrollment increased by 11.6 percent at the college, according to the Santa Maria Times. Of the 700 new students at the college, 385 are Latino. Though enrollment dropped by 5 percent at Hancock Community College during the 2005-2006 academic year, the school's enrollment has grown consistently and steadily over last few years.