Facts

Snapshot

Interim President: Dr. Emily F. Cutrer
Founded: 1961
Mascot: Seawolves
Campus size: 269 acres
Motto: "Lux Mentis, Lux Orbis" (Light of the Mind, Light of the World)
Accreditation: Western Association of Schools and Colleges
Member: Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges
Endowment = $65.2 million
Mid-size campus (5,867 students, 90.5% undergraduates)
62% female to 38% male (Sonoma State University recognizes gender identification beyond the male/female binary, but does not release data for groups with fewer than 10 members)
3,384 residential students, primarily freshmen and sophomores
Top majors (by number of students in a major):
- Business Administration
- Psychology
- Biology
- Nursing
- Kinesiology
64% of students receive some type of financial aid
SSU awards approximately $2.9 million in scholarships per year
More than 2,049 students graduated in 2022-23
68 bachelor's degree programs (counting undergraduate majors with both BA/BS options)
31 master's degree programs (counting master’s degrees with multiple tracks, i.e.: Counseling, Business MBA)
6 credential programs
41 certificate programs (counting all certificate programs that have both undergraduate and postbaccalaureate programs (i.e.: Paralegal, Conflict Resolution, Gerontology)

Accreditation

The WASC Senior College and University Commission fully accredited Sonoma State University.

The University is also a member of the prestigious Council of Public Liberal Arts and Colleges, an association of public colleges and universities whose primary mission is ensuring that fine undergraduate liberal arts and sciences education is available to students in the public systems of higher education. SSU is the only California member of COPLAC.

In addition, individual program accreditations have been granted by:
American Chemical Society
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business
National Association of Schools of Music
National League for Nursing
National Association for Schools of Art and Design
Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs
California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education

Alumni

The SSU Alumni Association is a non-profit corporation designed to support and further the development of SSU. The Association's mission is to provide service to Sonoma State University alumni as well as encourage and enhance their life-long relationship with the university. The Association sponsors alumni programs and events and provides student scholarships. Membership is open to graduates, former students, and friends of SSU.

Total Number of SSU Alumni: 80,000+

Athletics

Sonoma State University Athletics is an NCAA Division II member and part of the California Collegiate Athletic Association. SSU has 11 sponsored sports in the CCAA.
Sonoma State athletics got its start in 1964 with the school's first men's basketball team. Through the years, the Seawolves have had much success including national championships in 1990 (women's soccer), 2002 (men's soccer), and 2009 (men's golf).

Cultural Programs

Each year, SSU sponsors hundreds of seminars, workshops, lectures, conferences, exhibits, and other public programs. In addition, thousands of North Bay residents attend public performances on campus each year, produced or sponsored by the Department of Music and the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance. The University Art Gallery and University Library Gallery are major attractions for local artists, hosting numerous exhibits each year. Additionally, the world-class Green Music Center brings culturally significant artists, lecturers, and workshops to North Bay residents and students each year.

Degrees and Programs

43 academic departments
68 major degree programs bachelor's level
(counting undergraduate majors with both BA/BS options)
56 minors
31 master's degrees
(counting master’s degrees with multiple tracks, i.e.: Counseling, Business MBA)
6 credential programs
(Credential Subplans include Multiple Subject, Single Subject, Administrative Services, Special Education (Mild/Moderate, Moderate/Severe), Autism Spectrum Disorders)
41 certificate programs
SSU offers one of the only Wine Business programs in the country.
Majors, Minors, Graduate Programs, Credentials, and Certificates
General Education

Satellite Centers

SSU offers upper-division BA degree completion programs in Liberal Studies at the Mendocino College campus in Ukiah; the Napa Valley College campus; and the Solano Community College campus in Vallejo.

Extended Education

Extended Education provides access to Sonoma State University’s intellectual, cultural, and educational resources to the community and to international students. In addition to summer and winter intersessions, which provide general education and major courses for earlier graduation, the school offers a variety of coursework for professional development and licensure, along with degree programs designed for working adults. Among its community-based programs are the summer youth enrichment program EXCEL, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute for older adults (with classes at SSU, Oakmont and Healdsburg). International students can acquire the English language skills they need for business or academics at the Sonoma State American Language Institute.

Faculty and Staff

**Number of Employees**
Employee Type	Number	Percentage
Faculty	480	40.5%
Staff	706	59.5%
Total	1,186	100%

**Faculty**
Type of Instructor	Number	Percentage
Permanent	233	48.5%
Temporary	247	51.5%

**Faculty Gender**
Faculty	Number	Percentage
Male	216	45%
Female	264	55%
Total	564	100%*

*Sonoma State University recognizes gender identification beyond the male/female binary, but does not identify some gender identification groups with fewer than 10 members.

**Faculty Ethnicity**
Ethnic Group	Number	Percentage
American Indian/Alaskan Native	1	0.2%
Asian	35	7.3%
Black/African American	4	0.8%
Foreign resident	8	1.7%
Latinx/Hispanic	40	8.3%
Multiracial	10	2.1%
Unknown	84	17.5%
White	298	62.1%
Total	480	100%

Faculty data: December 2021

Financials

**2021-22 Budget**
Operating Budget	Amount	Percentage
Tuition and Student Fees	$30.5 million	22%
State Tax Allocation	$91.0 million	66%
Cost Recovery	$15.6 million	11%
Expenses (by Division)
Academic Affairs	$44.7 million	32%
University-wide	$55.8 million	41%
Administration & Finance	$23.6 million	17%
Student Affairs	$6.1 million	4%
Strategic Enrollment Management	$2.6 million	2%
President's Office	$2.4 million	2%
University Advancement	$1.5 million	1%
Green Music Center	$1.1 million	1%

History

Founded

Sonoma State College was founded in 1961 when Governor Edmund G. Brown signed Senate Bill 43 establishing the college as a member of the California State College system. The college opened in temporary quarters in 1961 under the leadership of founding president Ambrose R. Nichols, Jr. with an enrollment of 265 upper-division students. Most of the faculty and administrators of the Santa Rosa Center of San Francisco State College, which had served the region since 1956, joined the new college. Sonoma State College moved to its present 269-acre site in 1966 when its first two buildings, Stevenson and Darwin Halls, were completed. By then there were more than 1,000 students enrolled. In 1978, University status was granted and the name of the college was changed to Sonoma State University.

University Milestones

Year	Event
1961	SSU Becomes part of the California State College system (now the California State University)
1962	First bachelor of arts degree (elementary education)
1962	First four-year program offered
May 1966	First graduating class
1966	First master's degree offered (biology, psychology)
1978	University status attained
1999	SSU invited to join the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges as sole member from California
2000	The Jean & Charles Schulz Information Center is built
2001	The Lifelong Learning Institute for students over the age of 50 is founded. The Osher Foundation gave a large gift which resulted in the name change to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
2004	The University is gifted its first Endowed Chair. The $1.5 million gift came from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria to fund a teaching position in Native American Studies.
2005	Renovation of Darwin Hall, the University's second original building, begins
2005	The University is gifted a 3,500 acre nature preserve northwest of Cloverdale, CA, called the Galbreath Wildlands Preserve
2005	The newly-constructed Recreation Center receives the Outstanding Sports Facilities Award by the National Intramural Recreational Sports Association for its functional use of space and incorporation of sustainable building techniques.
2006	Darwin Hall re-opens as a 21st century science building
2006	Construction of the Donald & Maureen Green Music Center begins
2007	Green Music Center construction is moving along quickly
2008	Work on Tuscany Village, the newest phase of housing, begins
2008	Music Education Hall in the Green Music Center complex opens
2011	Sonoma State celebrates 50th Anniversary
2012	Green Music Center opens
2013	Student Center opens

Presidents

President	Dates
Ambrose R. Nichols. Jr.	1961-1970
Thomas H. McGrath	1971-1974
Marjorie Downing Wagner	1974-1976
Peter Diamandopoulos	1977-1983
David W. Benson	1984-1992
Ruben Armiñana	1992-2016
Judy K. Sakaki	2016-2022
Ming-Tung "Mike" Lee	2022-24
Emily F. Cutrer	Interim President, 2024-

Housing

Sonoma State is a residential campus, with 90 percent of the first-year class and 37 percent of all undergraduate students choosing to live on campus. Nationally recognized in the Princeton Review for “Dorms Like Palaces,” SSU’s housing goes above and beyond the typical dorm experience by providing suite-style living within six residential villages, totaling 3,100 units. All suites and apartments are fully furnished and carpeted with their living rooms and bathrooms, and all apartments have their kitchens and provide wireless connectivity to the University's computer network.

Library

Holdings

The library has a collection of more than 670,000 volumes, with 8,000 new titles added each year. Current periodical subscriptions number over 35,000 (in both print and electronic formats).

Specialized Collections

North Bay Regional Collection
Extensive children’s book collection
Wine business resources
Jack London collection including first editions, letters, and original serialized stories

Services

Instruction
Research assistance
Innovative study spaces
Extensive computing resources

Circulation

Roughly 275,000 items each year.

Visits

There were more than 630,000 visits by students, faculty, staff, and community users in 2012.

Electronic Resources

From the library web site, students, faculty, and staff have access to the library catalog, more than 160 databases covering all academic subject areas, and a continuously increasing number of full-text journal articles.

Physical Campus

Size and Location

269 acres, located in Rohnert Park at the foot of the Sonoma Mountains. The campus is an hour’s drive north of San Francisco and centrally located between the Pacific Ocean to the west and the wine country to the north and east.

Buildings and Facilities

Facility Name	Square Feet
Stevenson Hall	130,160
Darwin Hall	111,821
Field House	15,826
Ives Hall	48,510
Gymnasium Building	65,985
Ruben Salazar Hall	116,186
Rachel Carson Hall	20,000
Nichols Hall	30,700
Residential Halls	684,560
Commons	18,500
International Hall	17,600
Art Building	46,604
Evert B. Person Theatre	20,655
Schulz Information Center	215,500
Recreation Center	53,442
Environmental Technology Center	3,120
Student Center	130,065
Total *	1,848,059

* Total includes all facilities, not just those listed above.

Students

Fall 2023

**Undergraduate & Graduate**
Students	Number	Percent
Undergraduate	5,307	90.5%
Postbaccalaureate/Graduate	560	9.5%
Total	5,867	100%

**Gender**
Students	Number	Percent
Female	3,638	62%
Male	2,229	38%

**Ethnic Groups**
Ethnicity	Percent
American Indian/Alaskan Native	0.3%
Asian	5.3%
Black/African American	2.6%
Latinx/Hispanic	40.6%
Multiracial	5.5%
Pacific Islander	0.4%
Unknown	3.7%
White	41.6%
Total	100%

**Residency**
Location	Number	Percent
California	5,728	97.6%
Out of State	89	1.5%
International	42	0.7%

**Average Age**
Student Type	Age
Undergraduate	22
Graduate	32
All Students	23

**Undergraduate Degrees Awarded (2022-23)**
School	Number	Percent
Arts & Humanities	376	18.3%
Business & Economics	407	19.9%
Education	115	5.6%
Science & Technology	416	20.3%
Social Sciences	717	35%
Academic programs & university-wide	18	0.9%
Total	2,049	100%

Student Fees

Visit the Registration and Fees page for a full overview of charges and fees per semester for each academic year.