“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” –Joseph Addison

With those words from Addison, a 17th-century writer, Delmar T. Oviatt Library Dean Mark Stover kicked off the first installment of the Read to Lead initiative, which brings together several California State University, Northridge campus leaders to discuss some of their favorite books and how those written works helped shape their leadership skills.

Four members of the CSUN campus community — President Dianne F. Harrison, College of Health and Human Development Dean Sylvia Alva, University Student Union Executive Director Debra Hammond and CSUN baseball coach Greg Moore — were the first panelists to take part in the program, a partnership between CSUN Athletics and the Oviatt Library. Several other panels are planned for the remainder of the school year, with more than a dozen additional campus leaders participating.

The Nov. 18 panel discussion included each of the four guests taking some time to talk about their respective books and their influence. Lynn Lampert, interim associate dean of the library, began the discussion with a famous quote of her own:

“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers,” said Lampert, quoting President Harry S. Truman.

Harrison led off the discussion with observations on her two chosen books, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Diary of Anne Frank. The CSUN President said that when she was asked to take part in this initiative, she looked for leadership qualities in characters within more traditional books.

“I find I gain a lot more about values and leadership, in particular, in other types of literature,” Harrison said. “In To Kill a Mockingbird, what kind of leader was Atticus? He had a moral compass and the courage to make a tough decision, to stay with it when it wasn’t popular, when it went all against the grain to do the right thing. That, to me, is leadership.”

For the other novel, Harrison mentioned reading The Diary of Anne Frank when she was a teenager, and that she’d reread it multiple times since.

“Why Anne Frank? Why leadership?” Harrison asked, rhetorically. “Good heavens, all the lessons we can learn from the power of her words and her lessons in courage. Believing in good when she was in a position when it was so easy for her not to. For a young woman, she really influenced me tremendously, and continues to influence me truly to this day. When someone is in a situation that is really difficult and still can think about the good in people, I find that remarkable.”

Alva mentioned that her favorite genre of books is autobiographies, and she recently had finished the memoir of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. For Read to Lead, Alva talked about how Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High can occur in everyday life, and not just in perceived moments involving political leaders or others on a global scale.

“One of the things that this book has brought home for me is that crucial conversations are those day-in and day-out conversations that if we learn to do them well, really bring meaning and quality to our lives,” Alva said. “When I read this book, it helped me reflect back and think about my role even as a parent.”

For Hammond, the book The Corporate Mystic: A Guidebook for Visionaries with Their Feet on the Ground gave guidance for developing the type of organization a leader would want to create.

“It’s more about a spiritual approach to work,” Hammond said. “For me, spirituality means your essence, why you’re doing what you’re doing. What’s your contribution?

“Probably one of the most interesting parts of this book talks about holding the paradox of life, looking at the big picture, strategic visions and where you want to be. At the same time, having enough foresight for when to get into the weeds, because sometimes you have to do that.”

Moore hit cleanup in this group, speaking about the Steven Covey book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change, which the baseball coach said he discovered when he was developing a master’s thesis centered around a nine-inning instructional course — with each inning being a different portion of the curriculum. He incorporated the book into that course, and Moore noted that there are important messages throughout the book that he still teaches to this day.

“Be proactive. Get out of bed and do it,” Moore said. “Some of these great lessons that even now I don’t fully grasp, they’re so powerful. The most powerful for our athletes and now our students — we’ve taken this to young people in general — it’s the idea of understanding first and then expressing yourself.”

CSUN Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Brandon E. Martin closed out the session by pointing out that through partnerships such as the one that spawned Read to Lead, “CSUN got better today from what we learned.” He said he looks forward to future events, when other leaders will offer their own perspectives on different literary works.

“Being mindful of Dr. Harrison’s vision for our university, Dean Stover and I wanted to create a program that would leave an indelible imprint on our students, faculty and staff, with reading being the catalyst for advancement, for growth and change in all aspects for our university,” Martin said. “But now there’s accountability. I encourage all of you to select a book that will aid you in being a leader. It’s our job as change agents to change the world, especially with our students. This morning, we learned about the power of reading, and it’s our job to seek comprehensive excellence in all aspects of our lives.”

California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison and visionary businessman and CSUN alumnus David Nazarian have announced an additional $6 million in gifts toward a $25 million fundraising campaign, launched this past spring with Nazarian’s personal gift of $10 million to support his alma mater and the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics. This brings the total committed to date to $16 million.

Among the newest benefactors, all CSUN alumni, are retired Chief Financial Officer for Bank of America and AT&T Charles Noski and his wife, Lisa; Chief Executive Officer and Founding Partner of Public Communications Services Paul Jennings and his wife, Adrienne; retired Artissimo Holdings Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Ken Floyd and his wife, Ana; and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Risk Officer for Aristotle Capital Management Richard Schweitzer and his wife, Julie.

In 1964, California State University, Northridge was the first university to offer integrated programs for Deaf students, and the first to provide professional interpreters anywhere in the world; just a few years later, CSUN became the first to establish Deaf Studies as a discipline.

Today, 50 years later, thanks to the vision and the leadership of the National Center on Deafness, CSUN’s program is one of the largest of its kind in the western United States and a model program of excellence regionally, nationally and internationally. The NCOD recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with a series of events including an art exhibit, Deaf college leaders conference, and a gala that recognized educators, community leaders, alumni and businesses for their support.

“NCOD serves to advance the university’s mission by providing Deaf and hard-of-hearing students the confidence, the skills and education to succeed and make a difference in the world,” said President Dianne F. Harrison, at the center’s 50th anniversary gala on Nov. 15 at CSUN. Harrison, who welcomed attendees to the event using sign language, said the number and caliber of guests in attendance are a testimony to the “deep and lasting impact the program has made on many people.”

Those in attendance at the gala included T. Alan Hurwitz, president of Gallaudet University; Gerald Buckley, president of the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at the Rochester Institute of Technology; Christopher Wagner, president of the National Association of the Deaf; Claudia Gordon, special assistant in the White House and the first known Deaf African-American woman to become an attorney; award-winning actress Marlee Matlin; and Linda Bove of Sesame Street fame.

“Our anniversary celebration really highlighted the work we’ve been doing for more than 50 years,” said Roz Rosen, director of the NCOD. “With academic and career advising and with quality access services, our students thrive at CSUN and become success stories.”

The seeds of the NCOD were planted more than 50 years ago at San Fernando Valley State College. The National Leadership Training Program (NLTP) was established on campus in 1962 by a federal grant to train administrative personnel concerned with rehabilitation and education of Deaf people. NLTP projects introduced innovations in areas such as community services and communication technologies.

In 1964, NLTP admitted its first two Deaf students and provided them with interpreters and note-takers for full access to university classes. By the 1970-1971 academic year, the entire curriculum of the college was opened to Deaf and hard-of-hearing students. Services provided to ensure accessibility were direct communications in academic advising, interpreting, note-taking and tutoring.

The Deaf and hard-of-hearing student population grew steadily during the 1970s, as did the need for qualified interpreters and note-takers. The Center on Deafness was formally established in 1972 as an administrative coordinating unit for the Deaf programs on campus.

At the same time, campus services for Deaf students were expanded to enable CSUN programs to meet student service needs. By 1978, the achievements of NLTP and NCOD’s alumni and students had begun to have national impact and the name of the Center on Deafness was changed to the National Center on Deafness.

With continued success came the need for a building more consistent with the status and character of the program. In 1989, the NCOD celebrated the grand opening of the Jeanne M. Chisholm Hall. Today, 200 Deaf and hard-of-hearing students attend CSUN each semester and register through the National Center on Deafness to receive services such as interpreting, captioning, note-taking, tutoring and academic advisement, in addition to NCOD orientation programs and direct communication courses in U100, basic English and Math. Additionally, NCOD offers leadership opportunities for Deaf and hard-of-hearing students and in-service training for professional interpreters.

“Coming to CSUN opened up a lot of opportunities for me,” said Janette Duran ’08 (Child Development). “I came out of my shy shell and blossomed.

“CSUN NCOD gave me the confidence I’d been hiding inside of me,” continued Duran, who is Deaf and now works as a counselor at a school for the Deaf. “Without their [NCOD’s] services, I wouldn’t have made it.”

From the day California State University, Northridge alumnus Homero Magaña M.A. ’12 (Educational Administration) came to California from Mexico, he has been dedicated to getting an education.

Magaña’s father, an agricultural worker, brought Homero (who was 12 at the time) and his other children to the United States to get a better education and improved life. Last month, Homero Magaña’s dedication was validated when First Lady Michelle Obama recognized him at the College Opportunity Day of Action.

“Out of all the recognitions in my life, by far this is one of the most rewarding because it validates all the years of dedication and commitment to educational excellence,” Magaña said. “This recognition for me inspires me to be a voice for the thousands of students and parents who sometimes believe that education is not necessary.”

Magaña was selected to introduce the First Lady at the White House event on Dec. 4. The First Lady thanked the 33-year-old Moorpark High School counselor for his introduction and applauded his success.

“He’s just an amazing story, an amazing person,” the First Lady said. “[He’s] a clear reminder of why we’re here today.”

The White House College Opportunity Day of Action is part of President Obama’s commitment to partner with colleges and universities, business leaders and nonprofit organizations to support students across the country to help the nation reach its goal of leading the world in college attainment. CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison was among hundreds of college presidents and other higher education leaders, including CSU Chancellor Timothy White, to also participate in the event.

Harrison said CSUN will continue to do its part by supporting research and career pathways, and strengthening project-based learning and programs that link coursework to the world of work through engaged STEM research and careers starting in the first year of college.

Magaña said CSUN has contributed to his success. After graduating from high school, he attended Moorpark Community College. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley and a master’s in counseling at San Diego State University. He graduated from CSUN in 2012 with his master’s in educational administration.

“I strongly believe that having a positive attitude in life despite the barriers we face as first-generation college students is key to achieving goals in life,” Magaña said. “It is my hope that other students and parents will see this example in my story and, as a result, become inspired to remove those barriers that prevent them from maximizing their full potential.”

Citing a wide array of higher education thought leaders, California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison championed inclusive excellence and diversity during her keynote address at CSUN’s annual Faculty Retreat. Focusing on the areas where faculty can have the greatest impact, Harrison highlighted how innovative pedagogy and faculty hiring and retention can influence student learning.

“Inclusive excellence means that every one of our students deserves the very best that we can offer to ensure not only that they complete their degrees but that they also can demonstrate achievement of the expected learning outcomes needed for success in the 21st century,” said Harrison at CSUN’s annual Faculty Retreat.

Harrison, who titled her speech, “The Role of Faculty in Inclusive Excellence and Diversity” said she was pleased when she found out that this year’s retreat was focused on celebrating diversity because it has been one of her priorities. The past year saw CSUN host leaders like Nancy Gutierrez, dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Daryl G. Smith, a senior research fellow at Claremont Graduate University and an expert on faculty diversity.

“I believe we need to have a shared understanding and appreciation of the role of diversity in higher education and specifically at CSUN and the policy and practices that are necessary to achieve the associated benefits for our students and our campus,” Harrison said. “We should not focus exclusively on numbers or simply relax because we have an incredibly diverse student body.

“Rather, the generally recognized and legally sanctioned approach is to focus on the educational benefits that flow from diversity, including improved teaching and learning, preparing students for the 21^st century workforce, and enhanced preparation for civic engagement and leadership among others.”

Throughout her address, Harrison pointed to higher education research and data to illustrate her points. During a recent conference on Accelerating Academic Success, Harrison noted that Dr. Eric Cooper, Executive Director of the National Urban Alliance, shared strategies to reach students who are traditionally described as “academically at risk.” In her book, The Pedagogy of Confidence, Yvette Jackson turns the moniker on its head, calling these students “students of opportunity.”

“We also know from many different sources and research studies that students are more engaged and have better learning outcomes when they participate in active, applied learning activities that involve real world issues and cultural contexts to which they can relate personally and also better understand and apply course content,” Harrison said. “High impact practices that include students in research, community service learning, internships, and capstone and culminating projects that occur over more than one semester, should be available to all of our students.”

At the Faculty Retreat, the president also announced plans to appoint a chief diversity officer who will report directly to the president and to create and appoint a Commission on Diversity and Diversity Initiatives composed of faculty, staff, students, administrators and community leaders.

“We need to be open to dialogue and discussion on issues of diversity and inclusion,” Harrison said. “We need to be intentional and strategic about our diversity and inclusion efforts. We must walk the walk. This requires focus, sustained efforts and collaboration across many institutional sectors.”

Harrison’s remarks were made during her keynote address on Jan. 12. About 165 faculty attended the two-day retreat. The event was opened with a welcome from Acting Faculty Senate President Adam Swenson and event co-chairs Jongeun Kim and Christina Mayberry.

The retreat included a variety of panels and presentations, including “Diversity, Inclusiveness, and Assessment: Do We Need to Check Our Assessment Practices?,” “Knowing Me, Knowing You: Getting to Know the International and Exchange Student Center,” and “Engaging in Safe, Meaningful, and Connecting Conversations about Diversity.” Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Harry Hellenbrand offered remarks on “Why Diversity Matters.”

In support of the theme, students in the Department of Art’s printmaking class produced hand-printed covers inspired by the diversity of the campus. The second day of the retreat included a field trip to historic downtown Los Angeles and lunch in Chinatown.

“We as a faculty are only going to get better at understanding and promoting diversity if we talk about it,” said Swenson, a professor in the Department of Philosophy. “I hope this event gives us an opportunity to do that and begin to open the dialogue.”

Jessica ChenFeng, a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling, who co-presented a discussion on engaging in safe, meaningful and connecting conversations about diversity, said faculty should be cognizant that not all students come from the same backgrounds and that students from varying ethnic and racial backgrounds bring those experiences to the classroom.

“These experiences are not always celebrated or encouraged,” ChenFeng said. “We hope our presentation brought some awareness.”

California State University, Northridge’s Delmar T. Oviatt Library, in partnership with the CSUN Athletics Department, will present the second Read To Lead panel discussion, which highlights the significant relationship between literature and leadership.

Women’s golf coach Gina Umeck

Campus leaders gather bi-monthly to discuss books that have influenced their leadership skills. The upcoming panel will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 9 a.m. in the Jack and Florence Ferman Presentation Room located on the garden level of the Oviatt Library.

Presenters at the second Read To Lead event include Michael Spagna, dean of CSUN’s Michael D. Eisner College of Education; Thor Steingraber, executive director of the Valley Performing Arts Center; Gina Umeck, head coach of CSUN women’s golf team and Deborah Wallace, CSUN’s associate vice president of financial services.

“When CSUN’s director of intercollegiate athletics, Brandon Martin, approached me with an idea to promote reading as a way to build leadership skills among staff, faculty, and students, I was on board immediately,” said Library Dean Mark Stover.

Thor Steingraber

The Read To Lead initiative includes 20 campus leaders from CSUN and includes faculty, staff, students and alumni. Each leader selects a book that played a vital role in their personal life and/or professional development. Some of the influential writing that will be discussed are “The Mismeasure of Man” by Stephen Jay Gould, “If”, a poem by Rudyard Kipling and “The Effective Executive” by Peter Drucker.

The panel discussion will be followed by a reception and light refreshments. The event is open to the public and RSVP’s are required by Thursday Feb. 20 by calling 818-677-5081 or via email at fatema.noor@csun.edu.

The Oviatt Library serves as the main research facility in the San Fernando Valley. Information about all library events can be found at the library’s website http://library.csun.edu/blogs/goingson or by calling 818-677-2638.

(L-R): Harvey and Harriet Bookstein and Rafi Efrat celebrate Efrat being named CSUN’s first Bookstein Chair in Taxation in the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics. Photo by Lee Choo.

California State University, Northridge honored accounting professor and institute director Rafi Efrat in January for his innovative leadership and expansion of the Bookstein Institute for Higher Education in Taxation. CSUN named Efrat ’89 (Accounting Theory and Practice) as the university’s first Bookstein Chair in Taxation in the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics. This is the college’s first endowed chair within the Department of Accounting and Information Systems.

Launched in 2005 with the support of an endowment created by philanthropist and longtime public accountant Harvey Bookstein ’70 (Business Administration) and his wife, Harriet, the institute assists about 130 low-income taxpayers each year to resolve their disputes with the IRS — free of charge. The institute’s clinic opened in 2008 and is the only one of its kind in Los Angeles County.

“I did this as a way to give back to the school, but I had no idea there would be someone of the caliber of Rafi — someone who would take it to a whole other level,” Harvey Bookstein said. “What Rafi has done for the school is beyond expectation. He’s got the IRS believing in the institute, and other CPA firms believing in it. His passion is demonstrated every day on campus.”

Harriet Bookstein, who also attended CSUN, echoed those sentiments. “Rafi has done an amazing job of bringing the institute to this point and should be recognized for it,” she said.

The clinic grew out of the institute’s master of science in taxation program, and many of the graduate students are supported by scholarships from the institute’s endowment. Students work as a team, studying federal tax procedures and meeting with clients on campus, as well as researching tax issues.

The federal government recognizes the clinic’s community service. The U.S. Department of the Treasury has supported the program with matching grants since its inception. It awarded $70,000 in matching funds in 2014. In September, the IRS honored the contributions of the Bookstein Institute, presenting Efrat with its Excellence in Partnering Award.

The institute aims to empower students to reach their potential in the field of taxation and to fill the unmet needs of the underprivileged in the community, said Efrat, who has taught at CSUN for 15 years and has led the institute since 2006. The ability to serve the community through hands-on learning and experience in technical areas is a win-win for CSUN students and Los Angeles, he said.

“I feel very strongly about the mission and the purpose behind the institute, and what we do here,” Efrat said. “I’m deeply honored to be the inaugural name holder of the chair for the institute. It characterizes the success that one of our own alumni has exhibited in professional life. Harvey is an example of the best of what our students do when they leave us. To be associated with his legacy is a great honor.”

In 2014, the California Society of Certified Public Accountants recognized Efrat with its Outstanding Educator Award. The university also has celebrated him for his leadership and dedication to students, honoring Efrat with accolades including the Distinguished Teaching Award, the Preeminent Publication Award, the Visionary Service Award and the Outstanding Service Award.

He mused that his work with the Bookstein Institute and the new title seem to bring things full circle: In his undergraduate days, Efrat worked as an intern at Bookstein’s accounting firm, RBZ.

Kenneth Lord, dean of the Nazarian College, praised Efrat as one of the leading scholars in his discipline.

“Rafi’s visionary leadership of the Bookstein Institute is a best practice in higher education in taxation and provides invaluable service to our students and the community,” Lord said. “I am thrilled that he is being recognized in this way through the generosity of CSUN’s dedicated alumnus and friend Harvey Bookstein.”

“Rafi makes our department and programs better, and impacts our students in a positive and significant way,” said Paul Lazarony, chair of the Department of Accounting and Information Systems.

The Bookstein Institute’s tax clinic is so popular that it has a waiting list, and most clients come to the program by referral from the IRS website or word of mouth. Graduate students also travel around Los Angeles presenting workshops in several languages. Popular topics include the earned-income tax credit and payroll tax FAQs for small-business owners. The students offer about 30 workshops each year, reaching about 700 Angelenos.

“Acknowledging Rafi’s great work in building the institute and the master’s in taxation more than warrants this chair and shows how important the Bookstein Institute is to the university — and there’s no one more deserving than Rafi,” said Matt Rinnert, senior director of development for the Nazarian College.

He also praised Bookstein’s engagement with CSUN students and commitment to give back to his alma mater. “As significant as this gift has been, what’s even more significant to the university has been the involvement of Harvey and Harriet with CSUN and their impact.”

Bookstein said Efrat’s bold leadership of the institute has given him high hopes that the program will continue to educate generations of future tax professionals and contribute even more to the community, especially with support and recognition from the IRS. Efrat echoed those hopes for the future.

“We’ve grown and established ourselves primarily in the San Fernando Valley, but there is clearly an unmet need beyond the immediate vicinity,” he said. “We hope to expand services so that we can serve other neighborhoods outside the San Fernando Valley, in the greater Los Angeles area.”

The quality of young Americans’ higher education will make or break our nation’s future in the global economy. California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison addressed national leaders on this topic at the recent Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) centennial symposium in Washington, D.C.

Harrison presented as part of a plenary session, “Mobilizing Bold Leadership for America’s Global Future,” that included leaders from Mount Holyoke College, the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, the Lumina Foundation and the S. Engelhard Foundation. The session explored how leaders in philanthropy, policy and education can make the quality of students’ college learning a national priority and a shared achievement.

“The issue of preparing problem-solvers for our future is really critical,” Harrison said. “We want all college graduates to possess specific competencies when they finish: the ability to problem solve, to think critically, to think creatively, to communicate, to be culturally competent and work in a team — things that will carry graduates into the future, no matter what that future is.”

The daylong national conference, “America’s Global Future: Are College Students Prepared?” was designed as a “deep dive” for leadership teams — presidents, senior academic leaders, and key partners such as trustees, employers and policy leaders.

AAC&U advocates for the quality, vitality and public standing of undergraduate liberal education, according to its mission statement. Founded in 1915, the organization counts nearly 1,350 member institutions, including public and private colleges, community colleges, research universities and comprehensive universities. Harrison served on the AAC&U board of directors from 2011 to 2014.

The organization also featured Harrison and CSUN in its recently released centennial video, which explores the power of “an engaged, public-spirited liberal education to transform students’ lives and address the ‘big questions,’” according to the AAC&U. The video spotlighted just a handful of member institutions, including CSUN, Cal State Fullerton, Michigan State University and The College of Wooster in Ohio.

In its opening minutes, the video introduces CSUN fourth-year student Bobby Lebeda and Harrison, talking about best practices for 21st-century liberal education.

“It really has to be an institutional effort, understanding what it is that we’re trying to achieve with our students, what our students are trying to achieve,” Harrison said. “I think AAC&U is encouraging us to ensure that all of our students have culminating experiences, so that they can demonstrate that they have the skill set needed to do analysis, to do research, to think about problems as they affect the wider society.”

The video highlights the national organization’s commitment to experiential, problem-based education to foster undergraduates’ future success. CSUN shares these priorities, with a commitment to experiential education that contributes to and solves problems in the surrounding community.

As part of CSUN’s student-run Theatre Guild, Lebeda is working on a yearlong documentary project studying “emotional eating” and how it impacts college students, he said in the video.

“The cool thing here is you do a lot of projects that are designed to be outside of the class,” said Lebeda, who is studying cinema and television arts, with an emphasis in screenwriting.

“Seeing how emotional eating has impacted my life and those around me, I want to shed some light on the problem,” he said of his documentary. “That’s a huge project that I’m working on outside of the class that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to have unless I went to Cal State Northridge. … Once I started doing those projects, I started to make connections with other people, I started to feel more confident and I think those skills are transferable to any profession.”

The video also includes David Rattray, senior vice president for education and workforce development for the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, visiting the CSUN campus. Rattray commented on the economic value of college graduates who are ready to go to work and employ their knowledge. Those graduates, he said, will “get a job, keep a job and do well.”

To mark its 100th year, AAC&U is exploring what its leaders have dubbed “the equity imperative”— the need to provide an empowering liberal education to the rapidly growing “new majority” of college students who have, traditionally, been underserved in higher education.

“We’re also talking about inclusive excellence. We are a minority-serving institution. We have a large number of students, and many of them are first generation,” Harrison said. “We talk about cultivating talent. We want all of our students to have these kinds of opportunities for excellence and high-quality learning.”

Serving more than 40,000 undergraduate and graduate students each year, CSUN is one of the largest universities in the United States. CSUN ranks 16th in the country in awarding bachelor’s degrees to underrepresented minority students, fifth nationally in awarding master’s degrees to Hispanic students, and enrolls the largest number of deaf and hard-of-hearing students of any U.S. state university. CSUN is recognized for the opportunities it provides students to climb up the social and economic ladder. The university was recently ranked as the fifth-best in the country for enhancing the social mobility of its students, in a study by Payscale and College Net.

“How does reading turn us into leaders?”

Mark Stover, dean of California State University, Northridge’s Delmar T. Oviatt Library, posed this question to the audience during his opening remarks for the second installment of the Read to Lead series on Feb. 24. Launched in November 2014, the program is a partnership between the library and CSUN Athletics to promote the value of reading. Enlisting the participation of leaders from across the campus, people can hear firsthand about how books have impacted those university notables’ leadership skills.

“Reading awakens, enlarges, enhances and refines our humanity in a way that almost nothing else can,” Stover said. His words helped set the tone for the second Read to Lead session.

Like the first event, there were four presenters who are leaders on campus. This time, the participants were: Dean of the Michael D. Eisner College of Education Michael Spagna, Valley Performing Arts Center Executive Director Thor Steingraber, CSUN Women’s Golf Head Coach Gina Umeck and Associate Vice President of Financial Services Deborah Wallace. Reprising her role from the first event was Lynn Lampert, the associate dean of the library. These leaders all shared insights into how their chosen books impacted them.

Spagna talked about The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould, noting that he felt the book actually “found” him. The dean shared a story from his graduate school days at the University of California, Berkeley, recalling a time when he heard a woman weeping in a hallway. When she had composed herself, the woman shared that her son had been described using a derogatory term because he’d been diagnosed with special needs. Spagna said the encounter inspired him to read the book, which solidified his awareness of how terminology impacts people and their perceptions.

“This book is all about the misapplication of labels,” Spagna said. “In our work as leaders at the university, this happens all the time. I challenge myself every day to not fall into the human habit of categorizing people. In my career, this book is meaningful as a watershed, to think about that difference every day and celebrate that difference.”

Wallace chose the book The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker, which she first came across early in her college days. Wallace pointed out that the edition she has is not the original one she purchased, as that one had become so tattered and worn that it had to be replaced.

One of the great lessons she learned from the book emphasized not doing so many different things, but “the right thing,” Wallace said. She pointed out that working with finance, the days for her and her staff can become very “transactional” in nature. Drucker notes the importance of keeping one’s priorities top of mind, she said.

“Sometimes we lose that real insight, the real reason why we’re here. We’re here to serve students,” Wallace said. “I have to remind my staff, ‘We all get caught up in the small things. As the saying goes, we don’t sweat the petty things, and we don’t pet the sweaty things.’

“Drucker encourages that. He said to write down a plan, and how you will accomplish that plan. That’s being an effective leader.”

Steingraber chose the book House of Stone by Anthony Shadid, which chronicles the author’s move to Lebanon to claim his ancestral home that had been his great-grandmother’s. Shadid, a journalist who would later die while on assignment in Syria, shared how he overcame the difficulties of moving to the Middle East.

“His moving back to Lebanon was not to the Lebanon of his great-grandmother,” Steingraber said. “His moving back was not to a place where he’s accepted as an insider — he’s now a Westerner. Everything about trying to accomplish that very simple thing, reclaiming his ancestral home in the face of everybody’s opposition, really spoke to me as a leader.”

Umeck made the unique choice of the poem If by Rudyard Kipling, and she quickly pointed out that the famous work became her personal “constitution.” She quoted the stanza:

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings — nor lose the common touch.

The golf coach pointed out that those words related to her profession because in coaching, she has to deal with student-athletes from different backgrounds. She added that some of the leaders she most admired displayed a “stoic cynicism,” and sought to display this quality as well. Umeck said there was something else she learned from Kipling’s prose.

“Life’s going to take us a long way,” Umeck said. “You’re going up and going down. This poem forces you to look from above, and that’s something, more and more, I try to do.”

CSUN Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Brandon Martin closed the proceedings by relating the importance of reading to his young children, ages 5 and 2.

“As we read these children’s books, it’s not just about reading the books,” Martin said. “It’s about what dreams emerge, what values emerge.

“It’s that obligation that I have to give my kids. It’s impactful.”

Martin said the next Read to Lead session will take place in the fall in The Matadome, and it will feature Men’s Basketball Coach Reggie Theus as one of the speakers. Martin went on to quote the famous writer Aldous Huxley: “Every man who knows how to read, has it in his power to magnify himself, to multiply the ways in which he exists, to make his life full, significant and interesting.”

Martin added, “The questions that I pose to you all are, how do we magnify ourselves to advance the mission of CSUN? How do we multiply our knowledge to better serve our students and the campus community? How do we use reading to enrich our lives with more meaning, purpose and substance?

“We’ve learned about the power of it. It’s our job to seek comprehensive excellence in all aspects of our lives.”

The award, which was presented to Hellenbrand at the CSUN Faculty Senate meeting on March 5, recognizes the critical role of the chief academic officer in advancing the civic mission of the campus through curricular reform, public advocacy, accountability for institutional citizenship, faculty development and recruitment and partnerships with community organizations.

Elizabeth Say

Elizabeth Say, dean of California State University, Northridge’s College of Humanities, has been elected president of the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences.

Say, who is currently president-elect of the organization, will take her place as head of the council in November. The Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences is a national association of deans of colleges of arts and sciences whose purpose is to sustain the arts and sciences as a leading influence in American higher education.

“It’s an honor to be elected to lead such an important body,” Say said. “I am, and the council is, firmly committed to the principle that liberal arts and sciences are the foundation of democracy. If we don’t have citizens who can think, read and write critically and understand the critical issues and global implications of a changing society, then we don’t have a future.

“The humanities and liberal arts provide the lifelong learning skills that are necessary for people to succeed, and for us to succeed as a nation,” she said.

An alumna of the university, Say received her bachelor’s of arts degrees in English and religious studies in 1981. She has a doctorate in religious social ethics from the University of Southern California.

She returned to CSUN in 1989 as a faculty member in the Department of Religious Studies. She is the founding chair of CSUN’s Department of Women’s Studies and served as associate dean of the College of Humanities before being named dean in 2004. Her research and publications are in the areas of women and religion, and gay and lesbian studies.

The Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, serves as a forum for the exchange of ideas and information among deans of arts and sciences representing member colleges and as a representative of the liberal arts and sciences at a national policy-making level. It seeks to support programs and activities to improve the intellectual stature and public understanding of the disciplines of the arts and sciences.

Arts and sciences colleges represent more than half of the undergraduate instruction offered at their institutions, and many member colleges are responsible for a wide spectrum of master’s and doctoral degree programs. The council’s member institutions represent the largest component of American higher education in publicly and privately supported universities and colleges.

With eight academic departments and seven interdisciplinary programs, CSUN’s College of Humanities is the most diverse college at the university. The college comprises disciplines that traditionally make up the study of humanities — including philosophy, English and modern and classical languages — while also housing one of the oldest and largest Chicana/o studies department in the United States and the only Central American studies program in the country. Also core to the college is a Liberal Studies Program that puts CSUN among the top three institutions in California in preparing K-6 educators for the classroom. Among the college’s newest programs are minors in Middle Eastern and Islamic studies and queer studies. In all, the college offers students more than 40 major, minor and graduate degree paths, with many potential options for specialization.

Elaine Berke’s passion about mainstreaming education began during a visit to her 9-year-old granddaughter, Lana’s, classroom. Lana, as a child with special needs, was part of a mainstreamed classroom, where students with special needs are integrated into general education classrooms.

“When the children began to do their reading, the teacher put up an easel and gave Lana crayons,” Berke said. “It was wonderful how many kids would rush to help her, but after the class, I asked the teacher what Lana’s goals were. She answered, ‘Socialization.’ I said, ‘She’s too social — she needs to learn to read!’ And the teacher said, ‘Those aren’t my instructions.’ That’s what prompted me to look into mainstreaming.”

Mainstreaming can present challenges for unprepared educators, who must meet the needs of both sets of students simultaneously. Berke believed it was important to help future teachers gain a deeper understanding of the most effective methods of mainstreaming children with special needs.

Having lived in the San Fernando Valley for more than 50 years, Berke chose to give to CSUN’s Michael D. Eisner College of Education because the university is an integral part of her hometown. “I live in the Valley, and CSUN is a Valley school,” she said. “I believe it’s important [to give to] your community.” That generosity and philanthropic spirit lead to the College of Education’s Berke Assessment Clinic and Library.

The Berke Assessment Clinic and Library serves local residents by offering low- or no-cost learning assessments to children with learning differences. Part of the Teaching and Learning Counseling Consortium, the Berke Assessment Clinic provides assessment materials and curriculum support for CSUN students earning their degrees in special education, under the supervision the clinic’s director, Dr. Wilda Laija-Rodriguez.

Berke credits her husband, Lou, with teaching her the value of giving. Born in blue-collar surroundings in Brooklyn, N.Y., Berke didn’t come from wealth; she graduated from high school at age 16 and immediately went to work to help support her family.

“I was married at age 19, and Lou and I were together for 30 years until he died in his 50s,” Berke said. “We were both of modest means. The December before our marriage, he called me and said, ‘You’ll never believe it: They just gave out year-end bonuses! I got $1,000, so I’m giving $100 to the United Jewish Appeal!’

“I said, ‘Are you crazy? You make $90 a week, I make $45 a week, we’re getting married and nobody can give us anything. How could you possibly give away $100?’” she continued.

“Then he said, ‘Okay, let’s start this conversation over. ‘You’ll never believe it: They just gave out year-end bonuses! I got $900!’ He believed if you didn’t give first, you wouldn’t have money left over to give. That’s how I learned philanthropy,” she said.

Sadly, Berke and her family lost Lana as a child to a malignant brain tumor, but the work she inspired has had a lasting impact for both Berke and CSUN. “Even though Lana died, it didn’t stop me from wanting to take care of more children like her who were being mainstreamed but not really taught,” she said. “I believe it’s important for student-teachers to learn about these children so they can be better educated to get to whatever academic level they’re capable of.

“I’m not a wealthy person, but I believe in giving,” Berke added. “These student-teachers will teach our future generations. It’s as simple as that.”

Psychologist Thomas E. Backer, Ph.D. remembers his first visit to California State University, Northridge. It was 1963, and CSUN was then known as San Fernando Valley State College. As a high school student, Backer had come to compete in regional debate championships held on the campus.

“CSUN was the first college campus I ever visited,” Backer reminisced, “It was a pretty heady experience for me as a high school freshman to visit a college campus and see what it was like to be in college.”

Although it would be several decades before Backer returned to CSUN, when he did, he brought with him  Valley Nonprofit Resources (VNR) that serves  the surrounding community.

Backer has a long history with the San Fernando Valley, first as a six-year-oldin Reseda and now living in the same house in Sherman Oaks for 36 years. “I’m a Valley boy,” he said. Due to his love for the region, Backer devoted much of his work to improving conditions for nonprofit enterprises within the Valley.

As the long-time president of the nonprofit Human Interaction Research Institute (HIRI), Backer oversaw the formation in 2007 of VNR, a resource for the more than 4,500 San Fernando Valley nonprofit organizations. VNR offers services to staff and Boards of these nonprofits.

Backer came to the campus after two HIRI board members, CSUN faculty Richard Moore, Ph.D., and Herman DeBose, Ph.D., encouraged him to consider CSUN’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences as a home for VNR. After speaking with Social and Behavioral Sciences Dean Stella Theodoulou, Backer was convinced VNR should have its home at CSUN.

“Dean Theodoulou is practical and creative, and it was very clear to me that there were a number of resources here on campus — faculty, students and other centers — that could help us strengthen our own program,” Backer stated.

In 2011, Backer opened negotiations with CSUN to bring VNR to campus. In mid-2014, Backer officially closed HIRI, donating more than $800,000 of its assets to CSUN, with a portion earmarked for future funding of VNR. On June 1, 2014, Backer and VNR moved into their new home in Sierra Hall.

Thanks to this gift, the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences was able to create HIRI Nonprofit Research Fellowships, which grants $5,000 to $10,000 for faculty research in the nonprofit sector a few times a year. CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison has emphasized the importance of research at the university..

“Offering the HIRI Nonprofit Research Fellowships is one small step in furthering this mission,” Backer noted.

In addition, Theodoulou has asked Backer to teach a course on philanthropy, focusing specifically on the Los Angeles area. Backer is developing the syllabus.

“Part of its purpose is to help students learn how philanthropy supports the nonprofit sector,” he said of the course.

In addition to being a senior research fellow in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Backer had been active with CSUN as a donor and executive board member of the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication, as well as a subscriber to the Valley Performing Arts Center. He is also chair of the Community Advisory Board for the Center for Southern California Studies in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Backer’s desire to support the Valley in which he lives is apparent through his belief that supporting CSUN will help strengthen the community.

“All universities have a responsibility to relate to and support the community they live in,” he explained. “My coming to CSUN and my happiness in being here comes from knowing that my two programs will help increase CSUN’s leadership in the Valley.”

Six faculty members have been selected for the California State University, Northridge Research Fellows Program for the 2014-2015 academic year in support of their research and academic development in their fields of study. Top (left to right): Brian Burkhart, J’aime Morrison and Ani Nahapetian. Bottom (feft to right): Carrie Rothstein-Fisch, Hélène Rougier and Cristina Rubino.

Examining morals and ethics from an indigenous philosophy, cellphone security and how culture impacts problem-solving and learning are all topics under investigation by faculty selected for California State University, Northridge’s Research Fellows Program for the 2014-2015 academic year.

The program, founded in 2007, was created and is funded by the Office of the Provost — and administered by the university’s colleges and the Delmar T. Oviatt Library — to offer faculty an opportunity to pursue compelling research or a creative activity.

“The Research Fellows program’s significance is that it allows the selected faculty the time to expand their existing work or begin new creative projects both on their own and with colleagues across the research space,” said Marianne Afifi, former associate dean of the Oviatt Library and the program administrator. “CSUN, as well as the research community at large, benefit from these endeavors as they shed light on the exciting work that these faculty members embark on.”

Six research fellowships were awarded last year, based on the extent that the proposed activity explores creative or original concepts; the likelihood of achievement of the stated outcomes in the proposed time frame; the benefits of the research or creative activity to society; the organization of the proposal; the ability to disseminate the results widely to advance understanding; and the contribution to the field of study or across other fields.

Research fellows are required to present their findings at a colloquium in the fall. The selected research fellows and their respective projects are:

Brian Burkhart (College of Humanities) – Burkhart, faculty in the American Indian Studies program, will focus his research on the “American Indian/Indigenous Philosophy and Environmental Ethics.” His goal is to reshape the way society thinks about the environment and create a different context for how human beings think about what is moral in environmental ethics, animal ethics and the like. In presenting an indigenous philosophy of the environment, he must counter the deeply held stereotypes of native people’s relationship to the environment as something animalistic and magical, and not rational and reasonable. He has been teaching at CSUN since 2010.

J’aime Morrison (Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication) – Morrison, faculty in the Department of Theatre, will develop a theater piece based on the history of Los Angeles. Her research will involve “performative research,” a way of engaging with history, landscape and memory that includes texts, documents and images but also involves site visits to downtown Los Angeles and other historic areas. She has been teaching at CSUN since 2001.

Ani Nahapetian (College of Engineering and Computer Science) – Faculty in the Department of Computer Science, Nahapetian’s research will focus on “Mobile Sensing-Based Stealth Computer Monitoring.” She will examine mobile system security and use sensors, readily available on most mobile devices — namely accelerometers, microphones and ambient light sensors — for the recovery of users’ computer usage activity with keyboard, mouse and screen emanation sensing. She has been teaching at CSUN since 2011.

Carrie Rothstein-Fisch (Michael D. Eisner College of Education) – Rothstein-Fisch, a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling, will focus on “Connecting Cultures: Problem-solving in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).” It will examine the framework of individualism and collectivism in exploring how teachers can use knowledge of students’ home culture to shape their curricula. She will be using an ethnographic approach. She has been teaching at CSUN since 1986.

Hélène Rougier (College of Social and Behavioral Sciences) – Faculty in the Department of Anthropology, Rougier’s research is titled, “Saint-Césaire (France): Reassessment of a Prominent Neanderthal Site.” She plans to re-examine and sort the faunal collections from the site of Saint-Césaire, in southwest France, to check for the presence of Neanderthal remains that may have been overlooked. Her project has the potential to shed new light on the disappearance of Neanderthals and their replacement by early modern humans, our direct ancestors. She has been teaching at CSUN since 2009.

Cristina Rubino (David Nazarian College of Business and Economics) – Department of Management professor Rubino will focus her research on “What Do You Bring to the Table? Examining the Role of Personal Resources in Various Work Contexts.” Her goal is to expand employee well-being and diversity research by investigating how individual factors help employees manage stressful situations that can contribute to strain, burnout and turnover. She has been teaching at CSUN since 2011.

How do you attract the most creative minds to the manufacturing industry?

California State University, Northridge graduate students: James McCloskey, pursuing a master’s degree in the Department of Manufacturing Systems Engineering and Lily Thiemens, earning a master’s degree in English Literature, have the answer. The pair were recently awarded the first-place prize and $7,000 for The Miller Ingenuity Challenge, a national competition aimed at encouraging more individuals to pursue careers in the manufacturing industry.

“At Miller Ingenuity we know new ideas that can benefit our customers come from working together cross departmentally,” said Steve Blue, CEO and president of Miller Ingenuity. “Like these two students, the best outcome came when people with different expertise were able to collaborate and solve the challenge at hand. Imagine the possibilities for American manufacturing if we could use this same principle on a much larger scale.”

McCloskey, and Thiemens, who just so happen to be dating, submitted a seven-page written response and a video that addressed the question: “How might American manufacturers attract the best and brightest innovative minds to pursue careers in the manufacturing industry?” The three-tiered plan starts with introducing manufacturing to elementary students through the use of video and simulation games, then engaging them through after-school programs and mentorships in high school and the final tier focuses on recruiting the best and brightest from colleges and universities.

“I believe that manufacturing is going through a renaissance and we need the best and brightest minds to bring us to new places,” said McCloskey, who would like to use his knowledge and skills to manage teams of engineers so they can build products that make the world a better place.

Thiemens said she and McCloskey drew from their own life experiences to develop their presentation. She said both of them were involved in after-school programs and clubs that encouraged and supported their respective pursuits of their disciplines at an early age. They also have enjoyed playing video games and have found that as a way to engage young minds.

“The tiers, stages all made sense to us, so we just put it all together and incorporated the use of simulation games and technology to present manufacturing concepts,” said Thiemens, whose goal is to earn a doctorate and teach literature at a university.

The national contest, which received more than 30 submissions, was launched in celebration of the opening of Miller Ingenuity’s Creation Station, a Google-like think space in the middle of the factory. Under the leadership of Blue, Miller Ingenuity has undergone significant changes, which resulted in quadrupled total sales. Company officials said the construction and opening of Creation Station is the physical manifestation of the cultural change taking place. The contest, a first for the Minnesota-based rail manufacturing company, was seen as a way to share how it gained its success in order to strengthen manufacturing in Minnesota and throughout the U.S.

Blue said the award stems from his mission to save U.S. manufacturing from decades of outsourcing and shifting generational interest.

“We are delighted that the submission from James and Lily has been selected as the winning entry in the Miller Ingenuity Challenge competition,” said S. K. Ramesh, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. “It is a testament to the quality of our programs as students from our college continue to shine in various national and international events.”

CSUN offers cutting-edge programs in engineering and computer science and is one of 150 universities across the country to pledge to help “fuel a renaissance” in American manufacturing as part of the White House Maker Faire Initiative launched in June 2014. CSUN is also taking a leadership role in the University Alliance Partnership to build strategic partnerships with universities around the country to strengthen advanced manufacturing.

The university, under the leadership of President Dianne F. Harrison, Provost Harry Hellenbrand, Dean Ramesh and Tseng College Dean Joyce Feucht-Haviar, is also part of the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership, an initiative launched last year by the U.S. Department of Commerce designed to revolutionize the way federal agencies leverage economic development funds. It encourages communities to develop comprehensive economic development strategies that will strengthen their competitive edge for attracting global manufacturing and supply chain investments.

CSUN is part of the Southern California effort, one of 12 communities selected by an interagency panel for the program out of 70 nationwide. The Advanced Manufacturing Partnership of the Southern California Manufacturing Community is focused on aerospace and associated industries in the supply chain. The partnership is led by the University of Southern California’s Center for Economic Development and includes local governments, businesses and educational institutions, including the five CSU campuses in the area.

Crist Khachikian

Crist Khachikian, a professor of civil engineering and construction management and associate vice president of research and graduate studies at California State University, Northridge, has been named one of 47 emerging college and university leaders in the 2015-16 class of the American Council on Education (ACE) Fellows Program.

Established in 1965, the ACE Fellows Program is designed to strengthen institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing emerging leaders for senior positions in college and university administration.

“It is a dream to get some precious and protected time to immerse myself in a project that will help me grow as a leader and, in the long run, will help CSUN develop in exciting new ways,” Khachikian said. “I will hopefully spend some time at another university that has successfully transformed itself into a more research-intensive institute, while holding on to their core mission to provide access and quality to diverse students.

“Three previous CSUN employees have served as ACE Fellows — Mack Johnson, Juana Mora and Naomi Bishop,” he said. “I am honored to join their ranks and the ranks of the current and all past ACE Fellows, who are truly an amazing group of higher education professionals.”

ACE President Molly Corbett Broad noted that the fellows program is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this academic year, and that over those five decades nearly 2,000 higher education leaders have participated, with more than 300 fellows having served as chief executive officers of colleges or universities and more than 1,300 have served as provosts, vice presidents and deans.

“The ACE Fellows Program enters its second half century committed to further growing and strengthening the nation’s premier higher education leadership development program,” Broad said. “The diverse and talented 2015-16 fellows class embodies why the program has been such a vital contributor to expanding the leadership pipeline for our nation’s colleges and universities.”

The ACE Fellows Program combines retreats, interactive learning opportunities, visits to campuses and other higher education-related organizations, and placement at another higher education institution — to fit years of on-the-job experience and skill development into a single year.

Khachikian has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from UCLA, a master’s degree in civil and environmental engineering from MIT and a doctorate in civil engineering from UCLA. He spent a number of years teaching at California State University, Los Angeles — where he was director of the university’s Center for Energy and Sustainability and director of research in engineering — before moving to CSUN in 2013.

At Northridge, Khachikian serves as associate vice president for research and graduate studies and graduate dean. He also is one of the principle investigators of the $22 million NIH-funded Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) Promoting Opportunities for Diversity in Education and Research (PODER) program, an undergraduate research training program that gives sophomores, juniors and seniors an opportunity to take classes and work directly with professors on research projects that relate to health.

The 17th annual Distinguished Alumni Awards was a celebration of what’s possible with a California State University, Northridge education, as graduates who went on to successful careers in art, entertainment and entrepreneurship were honored on April 18 at the Four Seasons in Westlake Village.

Judy Baca ’69, M.A.’80 (Art), Paul Jennings ’85 (Marketing) and Donald Petrie ’76 (Theatre) joined the ranks of more than 50 people who have been recognized as examples of those who have taken the lessons they learned at CSUN and elevated themselves to great heights.

One of those past honorees was the evening’s Master of Ceremonies Bill Griffeth ’80 (Journalism). The CNBC anchor walked onstage to the strains of U2’s “Beautiful Day,” and in his opening remarks he pointed out that the Irish supergroup’s first concert in the United States was at the Reseda Country Club in 1981, a short distance from CSUN.

Griffeth talked about his longstanding association with the university, setting the tone for the evening with brief introductions for each of the honorees. He also paid homage to those who have worked behind the scenes to put on the event and do so much for the university and its students, a contingent of which were in attendance, serving as a reminder of what is most important to CSUN. Griffeth also had a lighter moment, joining the “selfie” craze by taking photos with the audience to post on social media.

CSUN Alumni Association President Francine Oschin ’84 (Journalism), ’85 (Mass Communication) then took the podium to note that the university has produced more than 300,000 alumni since its establishment in 1958. Oschin said that one in 20 San Fernando Valley residents attended CSUN, and that one in 10 employees throughout the state of California are CSUN alumni, showing the breadth of CSUN’s reach. This year, the 23-campus CSU system will honor its Class of 3 Million, which celebrates the combined number of graduates for all the campuses in the system.

Following Oschin to the stage was CSUN President Dianne F. Harrison, who made a comedic jab at Griffeth for taking those selfies with a Blackberry. Harrison then presented a long list of achievements that have taken place at the university during the past year.

“CSUN is the third-largest university in California, graduating 10,000 new alumni every year and adding nearly $1 billion back into the region and economy annually,” Harrison said. “Each year, we do more with less state support. We are among the most efficient universities in the world, but we can’t do this alone. Support from people like you ensures that we can continue providing life-changing opportunities for so many students each year. By giving to CSUN, you’re not only investing in us – you’re investing in yourself, the region, California and the nation, providing a base for everyone to rise.”

​Then came time for the three honorees who have risen to prominence in their respective fields.

Baca noted that when she first started at what was then called San Fernando Valley State College in the mid 1960s, there was a “Mason-Dixon Line between Pacoima and Northridge,” and that the campus hardly resembled the diverse student population it is today. Yet Baca pursued her passion for art, and it came through in the world’s largest mural The Great Wall of Los Angeles, which she completed in 1976. She did so by working with at-risk youth, and continues to give back to communities through her art while helping young people find a voice and a purpose in their lives.

“The idea that I would actually become an educated person, that I would become a distinguished professor, that I would, in fact, put this education to use that would bring me back to Pacoima, bring me back to the communities and not separate me from them, it’s been a great journey – a great gift of a life,” Baca said. “And I really owe a lot of it to the fact that CSUN made an education possible for a poor kid who had to work herself through school.”

Jennings overcame a learning disability and eventually began to figure out what career he wanted to pursue while taking courses at College of the Canyons and Los Angeles Valley College before coming to CSUN, which he attended at night while working. He would later become a success in business as a founding partner and chief executive officer of telecommunications leader Public Communications Services, Inc. (PCS), and later form PCS Development, an active real estate developer in Southern California. Jennings has also been active CSUN donor for many years.

“Northridge, to me, represents opportunity and accessibility,” Jennings said. “I was working full time; the reason I was able to get a degree was because they had a night school program that really accommodated people who were working. It just intensifies my deep devotion to this school. The idea of giving back and being involved is everything. Northridge is a school that’s accessible to kids who might otherwise not go to school.”

Petrie, who directed major motion pictures like Miss Congeniality, Mystic Pizza and Grumpy Old Men added a lighter tone to the evening, even pratfalling when he stepped on stage to be honored. But he was plenty serious when he talked about how he took the lessons he learned in the theatre department to move to the director’s chair when all he wanted to do was become an actor. This semester he is working with student filmmakers on their senior projects.​

“I get as much out of it as they get out of it,” Petrie said. “Life is constantly changing. It’s not that college ends and we stop learning. I’m learning today, and I’m learning from them. I’m learning about the tastes of my current audience. It’s a two-way street, really.

“The best filmmakers are people who have something to say – those who merely focus on film can only regurgitate other film. They need to get the depth and breadth of the entire universe, which is why I love a college like CSUN. If you’re a film major there, you’re still taking the core classes from all departments and getting those experiences that may not seem like they can help you at the time. But they will, in ways that you can’t imagine.”

Charles “Chuck” Noski was 17 years old in 1969 when he embarked upon what would be a lifelong relationship with California State University, Northridge, which was then known as San Fernando Valley State College.

Working two to three part-time jobs at a time as an undergraduate, Noski earned a bachelor of science degree in business administration in 1973, and a master’s degree in accounting in 1995. He would ultimately be awarded an honorary doctorate in 2007. The lessons he learned at CSUN helped him gain the business acumen that would lead to a brilliant career: Following nearly 20 years with “Big Four” accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, Noski went on to hold senior executive positions at Bank of America, Northrop Grumman Corporation, AT&T and Hughes Electronics.

In recent years, he has also served on the boards of directors of companies such as Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, Avon Products and Priceline. In 2002, the CSUN Alumni Association honored Noski as a Distinguished Alumnus, and in 2011 the CSUN Foundation Board of Directors recognized Noski as an Emeritus Director for life following his many years of service on that board.

When he returned to campus as a Deloitte partner to do recruiting, what he saw at the business college impressed him. “CSUN students were better prepared and had a stronger foundation to go out into the world and pursue their careers,” he said.

Noski and his wife, Lisa, have been actively involved with CSUN for many years, supporting a variety of educational and other initiatives, including the Valley Performing Arts Center. Most recently, they created the Noski Family Scholarship, which will annually grant four accounting students who have a solid grasp on the direction of their future careers the opportunity to pursue their business education at CSUN.

The couple chose accounting majors as their initial focus because of their respective backgrounds — both Chuck and Lisa are CPAs and were the first in their families to graduate from college. “Accounting is really the basis of all business,” Lisa said. “We felt so fortunate to have had the experience and chance to attend college, and we wanted to help other people have that same chance.”

What Noski remembers most about his own education at CSUN’s business college (now the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics) are the relationships he built with his professors.

“They had been out in the real world,” Chuck said. “They could help prepare you for the competition and business environment you’d encounter. They were great teachers — they were not only very adept with the subject matter, but they knew how to communicate it. They really cared about their students, and that showed inside and outside the classroom. To this day I still stay in touch with some of those professors.”

Noski also fondly recalls his time as a saxophonist for CSUN’s marching band, playing at Devonshire Downs where the school’s football team then played its games.

“The music program at CSUN was amazing,” he said. “We came out onto the field like a big rock band. It was like being on a stage — the stage just happened to be green and 100 yards long — and the crowd in the stands loved the contemporary music we played.”

But what he is most grateful for are the opportunities his CSUN education afforded him. “When I think about the chance to give back to CSUN and its students today,” he said, “I really come back to the word ‘opportunity.’ We’re all different. We all have different strengths, different weaknesses and face different challenges. We come from different backgrounds. But what we all deserve, I think, is an opportunity.”

Although the couple has contributed to other causes, they said that gifts to CSUN leave them with an uplifting effect.

“I’ve seen the impact on students. I’ve seen the enthusiasm of professors to have the resources, tools and capabilities to do an even better job of being a teacher,” Chuck said. “For us, we hope this new scholarship will be one of the best returns on investment.

“You can go to classes. You can take notes. You can regurgitate facts on tests, but that’s not learning. My experience both as a student here and later recruiting students from the campus was that the students here understood the material, the theory and the reality of what they were getting into as they began their careers. When I think about my own education and what I’ve been able to accomplish in my career, it really started here.”

California State University, Northridge President Dianne F. Harrison received the Trailblazer Award from Leadership California along with five other CSU female presidents in recognition of their groundbreaking achievements and leadership in academia.

“With higher education in the forefront of state policy issues and as a desired goal of many of California’s people, the opportunity to honor the women leading higher education in our state could not be more relevant and timely,” said Pamela Hemann, executive director of Leadership California.

Initiated in 2010, the Trailblazer Award is given annually to women who are pioneers in their fields. This year marks the first time in Leadership California’s history that six women have been selected to receive the award as a group. The six honorees were recognized at the Legacy of Leadership awards ceremony in Los Angeles, last month. The annual awards celebrate women of influence, who serve as pioneers in their field, exemplify a spirit of exploration, passion and groundbreaking achievement that leads the way for others to innovate and succeed.

Harrison has led CSUN as president since June 2012. She is the third consecutive woman to lead the university, which is the third largest in the state.

“It is a great honor to be selected for this award, an honor that I am delighted to share with five other outstanding women leading CSU campuses,” said Harrison. “It is also wonderful to be part of the legacy of great women who have served as President of CSUN.”

Harrison’s academic and research areas of expertise include HIV prevention among women and minority populations and higher education issues related to social work and university leadership. A prolific researcher and writer, she has published dozens of articles and two books.

Recognized for her leadership and service in higher education and other fields, Harrison has served on more than 80 boards and committees of national, state and local organizations. She currently serves on the executive board for the California Campus Compact, as a member of the Steering Committee of the American College and University President’s Climate Commitment, and as a commissioner on the WASC Senior College and University Commission. In July 2014, she was appointed to the NCAA Division I Board of Directors and the Division I Presidential Advisory Group, and serves as the Chair of the Big West Conference for 2014-15.

She also serves on the NCAA Division I Committee on Institutional Performance and the NCAA Historically Black Colleges and Universities Limited Resource Institutions Academic Advisory Group. Harrison was recently re-appointed by Governor Jerry Brown to serve on the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.

An active civic leader, Harrison serves on the boards of directors for the Los Angeles area Chamber of Commerce, the Valley Industry and Commerce Association (VICA), and Valley Presbyterian Hospital. She is a member of the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator Leadership Council and the Los Angeles Coalition’s Operations Innovation Team Advisory Council. She also serves on the board of governors of the Valley Economic Alliance and the executive committee of the Los Angeles Economic Development Council, and the Advisory Council of BizFed.

Prior to becoming President at CSUN, Harrison served as President of CSU Monterey Bay. She was vice president for academic quality and external programs at Florida State University, where she also served in various other leadership roles, and as a professor, for more than 20 years.

Harrison earned a Ph.D. in social work from Washington University in St. Louis and a master’s in social work and bachelor’s degree in American studies from the University of Alabama.

“The recognition is richly deserved honored for an accomplished group of academic leaders who have dedicated their professional and personal lives to the service of all people in California,” said CSU Chancellor Timothy P. White. “As mentors, CSU’s six women president’s serve as exemplary models for women leaders in higher education and beyond. We, as a system, laud them for their commitment to transforming their campuses, our state and the nation.”