Accolades for CSUSM

Recently several Cal State San Marcos faculty, administrators and programs have received accolades and awards for contributions to the University, the region and beyond.

Professor Nominated for Athena Award

Youwen Ouyang, department chair and professor of computer science and information systems, was among a group of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) educators nominated for an Athena Award for her contributions to STEM education.

Athena Awards recognize those who personify Athena's mission of fostering the personal and professional growth of women through mentoring, education, recognition, and leadership training.

CSUSM students and Professor win International CYPHER Award

Student teams from campus won the top three awards at a CYPHER International competition for creative ideas and projects that are environmentally friendly. CYPHER engages youth to become socially-responsible thinkers, doers and leaders with a vision to empower them to come up with their own creative solutions to the human and environmental impacts of climate change. Each year the company holds a Sustainable Earth Decathlon (SED) to discover climate innovators and entrepreneurs.

Assistant Professor Lucy HG Solomon from the School of Arts concurrently received a Change Maker Award from CYPHER for integrating Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM) into the classroom by pushing students to infuse art into the STEM fields and to visualize environmental challenges in new ways in order to posit solutions. In addition to CYPHER’s Change Maker award, she received the state-wide 2016 Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Best Practices Award for Sustainability in Academics.

Governor Brown Appointments Professor to Delta Stewardship Council

Governor Edmund G. Brown appointed Professor Ken Weinberg, a lecturer with Extended Learning, to the Delta Stewardship Council in May 2016. The Delta Stewardship Council is responsible for providing scientific information for water and environmental decision-making.

Weinberg has also been the principal and owner at Ken Weinberg Water Resources Consulting LLC since 2015.

Administrator Receives Change Award, Selected for NACUBO Fellows Program

Katy Rees, associate vice president of Finance and Administrative Services, was one of four recipients of the Network for Change and Continuous Innovation (NCCI) 2016 Leaders of Change Award. The recognition program identifies leaders of change throughout higher education, recognizes them for their accomplishments, and helps link them with their peers to leverage further the impact of their good work.

Rees was also selected for the inaugural National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) Fellows Program. The NACUBO Fellows Program is a leadership development program for aspiring chief business officers of colleges and universities.

Campus Earns Environmental Health and Safety Award

CSUSM received a national innovation award for the Emerald Energy Program from the Campus Safety, Health, and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA), which supports and educates campus-based environmental health and safety professionals to empower and to improve the EHS profession in campus environments.

The Emerald Energy program is a more sustainable practice compared to the conventional bio-hazardous waste and treatment process. Emerald Energy waste is taken to an incineration facility where the heat produced from the waste is converted into electrical energy. Last year alone, more than 2,000 lbs. of waste was diverted from the landfill, generating more than 11,500 kilowatts of electrical energy.

CSUSM Ranked Among Best Colleges for Quality, Affordability and Access

CSUSM was included in Money magazine’s value ranking of colleges based on educational quality, affordability and graduate earnings. The magazine’s methodology produces pricing estimates and students’ likely earnings after graduation using a unique formula to estimate a college’s added value.

Procurement Department Earns Excellence Award

CSUSM was one of 45 agencies in California to receive the 2016 Annual Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award. The award was established by the National Procurement Institute in 1995 to recognize organizational excellence in public procurement. The criteria are designed to measure innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement and leadership attributes of the procurement organization.