Student Success

  • Office of Student Success Logo and students smiling

    High Impact Practices with an Equity Focused Lens

  • Pathways 2 Excellence

    Experience Summer with P2E

  • Two students amongst CSUN imagery

    Graduation Initiative 2025

  • Matching Matadors for Success

    Supporting Students in their Transition to CSUN

Matador S.U.C.C.E.S.S Series Archive

Monday, November 15th

Steps Towards Implementing Institutional Change by
Empowering Student Scholars Part II

Description: All CSUN faculty, staff, and students are invited to attend the next event in the Matador SUCCESS Series, University Student Union, Chief Diversity Office collaboration.

Join us as we give voice to our student scholars to learn about how their unique experiences have informed their research and activism as emerging student and community leaders. Learn ways that you can impact our students' academic lives and play a crucial role in transforming CSUN into an anti-racist institution.

March 30, 2021

Advancing Equity in a Climate of Resistance:
Aligning Culture and Strategy with Dr. Frank Harris III

Description: Although the concepts of “equity” and “equity mindedness” are more widely embraced by educators now than they were a decade ago, closing equity gaps remains an elusive goal at most colleges and universities. Thus, in this address, the presenter will unpack the myriad of institutional barriers that thwart systematic efforts to close equity gaps. In addition, he will propose intentional strategies to be enacted by college educators to move equity efforts forward despite these barriers. The insights of this presentation will be derived from the presenter’s experiences in working with colleges and universities across the United States in a range of equity-related efforts and initiatives.

 

March 8, 2021

Student Voices: Leaders of Change

Description: Have a conversation with Dr. Frank Harris III! Dr. Harris III is not only a renowned expert in student equity, institutional effectiveness...he is also a CSUN alumni! Join us to learn about his academic journey, as well as his research on racial equity in higher education and insights around the intersection of race and gender. Event Program.

 

November 5, 2020

Real Connections in a Virtual Community

Description: The webinar will focus on the efforts we have made to create and sustain virtual connections to one another as well as to students during the pandemic. Our planned workshops will highlight the successful interventions, tools, and strategies the CSUN community is utilizing to positively impact the student experience during these unprecedented times. Event Program.


April 16, 2020

Celebrating Student Success: Stronger Together

Description: Join us as we celebrate the culmination of the Series, during which we will hear from our campus leadership, honor series attendees and student success champions, and lay the groundwork for future events. Event Program.

 

 

March 10, 2020

Event Program

https://www.csun.edu/student-success/events/provosts-student-success-series-event-5

This Provost's Student Success Series event “Bridging the Gap Together: More Practical Strategies for Student Success” HAS BEEN CHANGED TO WEBINAR FORMAT ONLY.

Time: 2:00-4:30 p.m.

Webinar:

Please note:
Webinar visuals begin at 6:04, following the Provost’s Welcome.

Description:

This event will feature several different workshops for faculty and staff that highlight best practices around student success both inside and outside the classroom. Attendees will learn practical strategies that they can employ in their daily work with students and campus community members.

TitlePresenters
By the Book: How Oviatt Library Helps First Year Students Succeed
By the Book Presentation
  • Laura Wimberley
  • Yi Ding
Canvas Insights as an Early Alert Intervention for Student Success
Canvas Insights Presentation
  • Helen Heinrich
  • Joyce Marie Brusasco
Faculty ‘Stories of Self’ Inspire Student Success
Stories of Self Presentation
Faculty Stories of Self Worksheet
  • Alejandra Acuña
  • Jeremiah Buenrostro
  • David Contreras
What Students Don’t Tell Professors:
A Presentation on Boosting Student Success

What Students Don’t Tell Professors Presentation
  • Elizabeth Poloskov
  • Daniel Alonzo
  • Pat Alfrod-Keating
  • Milton Abram
February 17, 2020

Event Program

https://www.csun.edu/student-success/events/provosts-student-success-series

2:00-5:00 p.m.

USU Plaza Del Sol Performance Hall

Dr. Sumi Pendakur, the Chief Learning Officer and Director of the USC Equity Institutes at the USC Race and Equity Center

Talk title:

“Inclusion Isn't Accidental: Purposeful Strategies for Belonging”

Description:

In this interactive talk, Dr. Pendakur will dive into a multi-part framework for the way we approach our work, as educators and as designers of the learning environment. Blending story and skill-building, she will explore the possibilities of imagining and taking action, in ways that transform practices, the experiences of students, faculty, and staff, and the institution itself.

November 18, 2019

Event Program

https://www.csun.edu/student-success/events/provosts-student-success-series-event-3

2:00-5:00 p.m.

USU Plaza Del Sol Performance Hall

Dr. Allison Calhoun-Brown, Vice President for Student Engagement and Programs at Georgia State University

Talk Title:

“From Collaboration to Application: Implementation Strategies in Support of Student Success”

Description:

Dr. Calhoun-Brown is Vice President for Student Engagement and Programs at Georgia State University, where she helped lead Georgia State’s pioneering work in deploying large-scale student success initiatives. As a Vice President, Dr. Calhoun-Brown leads a number of the departments formerly under Student Affairs and has oversight over the University Advisement Center and campus Student Success programs.

This session provides an opportunity to learn lessons and opportunities from an institution which has made significant progress in student success outcomes, and has emerged as a national leader in increasing retention, reducing equity gaps, and improving graduation rates.

 

October 31, 2019

Event Program

https://www.csun.edu/student-success/events/student-success-workshops-practical-strategies-supporting-student-success

2:00-5:00 p.m.

USU Northridge Center

Talk Title:

Student Success Workshops: Practical Strategies for Supporting Student Success

Description:

This event features several different workshops for faculty, staff, and students that highlight best practices around student success and inclusive strategies. Learn practical strategies that you can employ in your daily work with students and campus community members.

TitleDescriptionPresenters
Communicating with Inclusive Language and a Growth MindsetHow and what we say to our students by using inclusive language in conversations, emails, and when providing positive and constructive feedback influences students in profound ways. While we do not intend to embarrass, discourage or belittle students, sometimes we do so, without understanding the consequences. Let us learn, reflect and share ways to enhance our communication with students so they feel supported, included, and academically motivated.
  • Mark Stevens
  • Freddie Sanchez
Help Seeking: Support 101This workshop will cover both sides of the coin- how to ask for help, how to offer help, and how to recognize the signs that someone needs help. We’ll also discuss stigma, cultural influences, and the myths people have about emotional support and mental health. Finally, we’ll discuss caring and tactful ways to encourage someone to seek help.
  • Judy Schmidt-Levy
  • Angel Legaspi
Student Success Data WorkshopIntro data workshop, going over dashboards on student characteristics, retention rates, grad rates, and equity gaps.
  • Janet Oh
  • Grishma Bhavsar
  • Whitney Scott
Matador Advising Hub (aka The Hub)Information session on the new freshman advising hub and highlights from the first semester.
  • Elizabeth Adams
Diversity and Inclusion to Support Student SuccessDiversity and inclusion resources and strategies to improve the student experience.
  • Natalie Mason-Kinsey
  • Barrett Morris
Supporting Success for Students with Disabilities (accessibility strategies that support everyone)This interactive workshop will cover the roles and responsibilities for various people on campus in ensuring that programs are accessible. This includes basic principles of accessible design for instructional materials and academic experiences, including video captioning and using Ally in Canvas, as well as information about faculty and departmental roles in ensuring that individualized accommodations are provided to students.
  • Jodi Johnson
Positive and Supportive Communication for Student SuccessProviding positive and supportive communication from a customer service perspective isn’t just about a business transaction or a written notification, it’s also about creating a sense of belonging. Sense of belonging leads to overall academic success. This session will talk about positive and supportive communication from a very broad perspective that any member of the CSUN community can apply to their work. We will talk about ways that all of us can make small changes in our communication that could have a broad, positive impact.
  • Matt Soto
  • Jessica Fred

Additional opportunities available at the event:

Donations information

Help support students and student success! The Provost’s Student Success Series Planning Committee will be collecting donations for both the CSUN Food Pantry and Matty’s Closet. Bring a canned or dry goods item and/or gently used professional clothing to the registration tables on the day of the event.

CSUN Food Pantry is a resource for CSUN students, faculty, and staff to help alleviate food insecurity and hunger within our campus community. https://www.csun.edu/mic/csun-food-pantry

Matty’s Closet provides students one professional outfit free of charge to help them look their best as they enter the professional world of work. https://www.csun.edu/career/mattys-closet

Voter registration information

All In Democracy ChallengeCampus Team encourages students, staff, and faculty to register to vote at our upcoming Provost’s Student Success Series event during the resource fair.

What will you need to register online to vote:

  • Your California driver license or California identification card number
  • The last four digits of your social security number
  • Your date of birth
  • If you do not have a California driver license or California identification card, you can still use this form to apply to register to vote by completing the online interview by 11:59:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the 15th calendar day before an election (see https://allinchallenge.org/ for more information)
  • What you will receive for completing this important and civic-minded task: an ‘I registered to vote’ sticker and a more engaged democracy!
October 2, 2019

Event Program

https://www.csun.edu/student-success/provosts-student-success-series-0

2:00-5:00 p.m.

USU Grand Salon

Event title:

Matadors Rising—We Can Do This!

Description:

This event kicks off the 2019-2020 Provost's Student Success Series. As we welcome our first cohort of students who will be measured by our GI2025 goals, the series is an opportunity to hold several campus-wide conversations on current and emerging student success efforts. Wednesday’s event will review where we are, and where we need to go this year. We will hear from divisional leadership, as well as from students, faculty, and staff on how different units approach student success, and how those efforts are experienced by students.

This session is not intended to include a review of all efforts on campus, as that would not be possible in a single event. Instead, we are interested in hearing from several diverse units across campus on their approach to student success, and from students on where these efforts succeed and where we might improve. Later sessions will allow a deeper dive into specific initiatives, data trends, and capacity building.