Sonoma State University joins the rest of the the California State University system beginning Aug. 1 in accepting some applications for admission to the 2011 spring term.
However, the enrollment of new students for that term is contingent upon the passing of the state budget and the restoration of funding to the CSU. For complete details, visit the SSU admissions web site at http://www.sonoma.edu/ar/.
"Despite the uncertainty regarding state support for the 2010-2011 academic year, we will move forward with the application process for spring 2011," said CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed.
"The passing of the budget in a timely manner and the restoration of funding proposed by the governor will allow us to serve those students and provide immediate access for students already in the admissions pipeline."
The initial application period for spring 2011 begins on August 1 and runs through August 31. By receiving applications, campuses can begin the eligibility review process and admit qualified students if a restored state budget is passed soon, or alternatively, hold applications pending final passage of a late budget.
The governor's proposed budget includes the restoration of $305 million, as well as an additional $60.6 million that would fund further enrollment expansion.
There will be campuses and programs that may not be able to enroll new students for the spring, and applicants are encouraged to visit the CSUMentor website (http://www.csumentor.edu/) and campus websites for additional information.
Typically, the CSU enrolls more than 35,000 new students during the spring. Last year, as part of an overall strategy to address a $625 million cut in state funding, the CSU closed spring 2010 admissions system-wide.
The governor's proposed budget, with timely approval by the legislature, would allow CSU campuses to reverse course and to provide access in the 2010-2011 academic year to an estimated 29,000 additional students.
From a Sebastopol water tower, to a Guerneville church, a Santa Rosa windmill and a Cotati beer garden, North Bay history since the mid-1800s is now on view online at Sonoma State University's new North Bay Historic Preservation Digital Collection at http://northbaydigital.sonoma.edu/. The historical digital images are freely available to view by students, scholars and the community.
These first 200 digitized images of homes of the 19th and early 20th century, barns, water towers, railway stations, bridges and other historical sites illustrate the setting and background of the area up to 1970.
They are part of a larger 800-plus image gallery that will eventually be compiled as part of the University Library's Regional & Special Collections Department's newest digital collection. Each image includes metadata that describes the location of and any significant historic and architectural information about each site.
Sonoma County communities represented when all images are digitized will include Annapolis; Bodega; Bodega Bay; Camp Meeker; Cloverdale; Cotati; Duncans Mills; Forestville; Freestone; Geyserville; Glen Ellen; Graton; Guerneville; Healdsburg; Kenwood; Monte Rio; Oakmont; Occidental; Penngrove; Petaluma; Santa Rosa; Sea Ranch; Sebastopol; Sonoma; Two Rock; Valley Ford; and Windsor.
An historic preservation program, initiated in 1976 by the SSU History Department, is the foundation for this new digital collection. Project Manager Lynn Prime has been working with the scanning and preserving of mostly black and white photos taken in the mid-1970s by students in the fledgling "Program in Historic Preservation" that was part of an SSU history department program.
One of the courses in the program was "Photography in History," a course that involved collecting old and new photographs of Sonoma County's past and present.
Peter Mellini and Edgar Morse were co-directors of the program, and although it ended in a very few years, the results (photographs, historic resource inventories, student papers, and oral history transcripts) were collected in the University Library's Regional Collection as the Sonoma County Preservation Project and the North Bay Ethnic Archive.
Previously, in 1972, Dr. Timothy Bell, a historic geographer in Sonoma State College's Geography department, worked with the Sonoma County Planning Department to initiate a systematic survey of sites and buildings throughout Sonoma County. Students provided the labor and the County assisted by providing maps and direction.
The result of that survey became a record of more than 300 sites and structures to be considered for historic preservation. The plan was that this survey (called the Sonoma County Site Survey) would form the basis for the Sonoma County Historic Landmarks Commission. This initial effort provided the guidance for the later SSU history course.
The digitizing of the first 200 images in the collection was made possible by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
This digital collection is the first from Sonoma State University that will be featured on the state's Online Archive of California at http://www.oac.cdlib.org/. It will also be featured on Calisphere, the California State Library's link to K-12 digitized primary source materials: http://www.calisphere.universityofcalifornia.edu/.
NOTE: Media are welcome to browse the new site and request high resolution images from the collection for publication. Contact Lynn Prime at (707) 664-4025 or e-mail primel@sonoma.edu for further information.
Dr. Carlos Ayala has been named interim Dean of the School of Education at Sonoma State University, effective August 1, 2010. He assumes this position as Dr. Mary Gendernalik-Cooper becomes the inaugural dean of the College of Education at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
Ayala has been with Sonoma State University since 2002. He is associate professor of Curriculum Studies and Secondary Education as well as Director of Assessment and Accreditation, overseeing preparations for the School of Education's accreditation in 2012. Additionally he is the Director of the Science Mathematics Teacher Recruitment Initiative with a goal of doubling the number of credentials in mathematics and science. As part of this initiative, he brought in large grants including one from the National Science Foundation for almost a million dollars.
Three of the most prominent topics areas on which Ayala's work focuses are preparing a more diverse group of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) teachers; effectively and accurately assessing student learning; and employing assessment data in the continuous improvement of academic programs. "Coupled with the high regard educators throughout our community have for Dr. Ayala, he is distinctly suited to lead the School of Education," said SSU President Ruben Arminana.
Ayala earned his Ph.D. in Curriculum and Teacher Education at Stanford University; his M.A. in Educational Leadership and California Administrative Services Credential at San Diego State University; his Multiple Subject Bilingual Teaching Credential and Single Subject Bilingual Teaching Credential--Physical Science & Chemistry--at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Dr. Lynn Stauffer, Professor of Computer Science, has been named interim Dean of the School of Science and Technology, effective August 1, 2010.
"Dr. Stauffer is an excellent instructor and leader as recognized by her peers and students," said SSU President Ruben Armiñana. "Please join me in congratulating Dr. Stauffer on this appointment."
She assumes the position of interim Dean of the School, as former Dean Saeid Rahimi becomes the interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Stauffer is the recipient of the Excellence in Teaching Award and has played a strong leadership role in the School of Science and Technology, serving as its Director of Academic Resources and Planning since 2008.
She is currently professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science. She was the first female faculty member in the department (hired as a lecturer in Fall 1994, tenure track Fall 1995) and formed the Women in Computer Science group at SSU. Stauffer was also the founding faculty advisor to the SSU Student Chapter of the Association of Computing Machinery.
Her background and experience includes her service as the Chair of the School Curriculum Committee and her role as coordinator of the School of Science and Technology/Sonoma County Office of Education Summer High School Internship Program.
Stauffer earned her Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine, 1994 as well as her M.S. (Computer Science, 1990); B.S. (Computer Science--Summa Cum Laude, 1986), and B.S. (Mathematics, 1986) from the University of California, Irvine.
