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Thomas A. Parham articulated a bold vision for CSUDH from the start of his presidency and set out to transform the campus into the model urban public university.
Pres. Parham’s determination started with a charge to transform the campus culture—to get Toro students, faculty, administration, and staff to dream about the great possibilities the future holds for CSUDH. At his inauguration, he challenged those present to set aside their preconceived notions of what the university was and refocus on what it could be.
His vision was codified in the university’s new strategic plan, entitled “Going Far Together,” which positions CSUDH as a socially just, equitable, and inclusive university, and serves as its blueprint. Rooted in CSUDH’s historic commitment to social justice and equity, the plan is focused on the themes of Thriving Students, Thriving Educators, Equitable Access, creating and maintaining a Culture of Care, and being a Pillar of the Community. It articulates Pres. Parham’s expectations for the future of CSUDH.
During Pres. Parham’s first five years in office, CSUDH has blossomed—from constructing and opening new campus buildings to creating exciting, impactful new majors and degrees. Pres. Parham is quick to point out, though, that none of the university’s accomplishments are his personal achievements—they are all the result of collaboration with the campus and local communities.
“As a leader, I surround myself with talented people, give them the inspiration and strategic vision to excel, then support them and let them do their thing,” says Parham. “Nothing that this university has accomplished is due to me individually. I have simply asked folks to dream of the possible rather than accept the status quo, then given them the tools and support to help make that happen.”
“Everything happening here at CSUDH is because the Toro community has bought into my vision and is working diligently to bring it to life.” With that in mind, the following are just some of CSUDH’s accomplishments during Pres. Parham’s impactful first five years.
Highlights from President Parham’s first five years
Infrastructure
- Completed and opened two new instructional buildings: the Science & Innovation Building and the Innovation & Instruction Building.
- Completed and opened a new 500-bed student residential hall.
- Completed and opened the Toro Esports Academy, a state-of-the-art esports arena and educational hub located in the University Library.
- Completed a multi-million-dollar renovation and upgrade of the Housing Phase 1 and 2 student housing apartments.
- Received funding for an affordable housing complex on campus.
- Completed an essential light laboratory project for the Physics Department in the Science and Innovation building.
- Changed name of the College of Extended and International Education to the College of Continuing and Professional Education to better reflect the university’s mission and vision.
Academic Excellence
- Elevated three academic programs to departments: Women’s Studies, Asian Pacific Studies, and Labor Studies.
- Created the Center for the African Diaspora Sacred Music and Musicians.
- Launched the university’s first doctoral program (Occupational Therapy), attained approval for two more (Educational Leadership and Nursing).
- Developed and implemented four self-support campus partner master’s degrees: Cyber Security, Systems Engineering, Radiologic and Imaging Sciences, and Accounting.
- CSUDH received the highest possible accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Commission for Universities and Colleges, with a ten-year reaffirmation followed by an interim report that drew zero recommendations.
- The College of Business Administration and Public Policy earned accreditation by AACSB International.
- The journalism program earned a six-year accreditation from the Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.
- Achieved the highest graduate placement rates among the five Southern California CSUs participating in the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program to diversify humanities faculty.
Community Outreach
- Established the Town and Gown Promise agreement with the City of Carson, paving the way for meaningful advancement in the relationship between the university and city.
- Joined Long Beach Housing Promise partnership between the city and local educational institutions in increase housing production in Long Beach.
- Collaborated with the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) to host a series of Future Forums to help define and frame the economic discourse in the region.
- Hosted Vote Centers for the local region on campus during 2020 and 2022 elections, as well as hosted a Vote by Mail drop box.
- Established the Distinguished Presidential Lecture Series to showcase CSUDH as a local center for critical discourse and discussions.
- Formed partnerships with almost 100 local community organizations across the South Bay and Pacific Gateway regions, including the Urban League and Brotherhood Crusade.
- Pres. Parham became a frequent editorial contributor to the Los Angeles Sentinel, writing opinion pieces on current events and education.
- Hosted radio station KJLH’s Mens Empowerment Summit.
- Hosted LAUSD board member Tanya Ortiz Franklin’s College Signing Day event.
- Partnered with California State Senator Steve Bradford for Back-to-School Resource Fairs.
- Hosted California Legislative Black Caucus’ African American Leaders for Tomorrow youth summer program.
- Hosted community forums with California Assemblyman Mike Gipson.
- Hosted EXP Youth Conference for over 2,500 local high school students.
- Presented Business Community Campus Forums with the South Bay Association of Chambers of Commerce, South Bay Cities Council of Governments, Harbor Association of Industry & Commerce, Carson Chamber of Commerce, and Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
- Established the Division of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice, headed by a vice president who has been elevated to the president’s cabinet.
- Hosted the university’s first State of Diversity Address in Spring 2023.
- Hosted the first CSU Juneteenth Symposium during the summer of 2022.
- Created and launched the Black Student Success Committee to address the recruitment, retention, and graduation of Black students and elevate Black excellence throughout the CSU system.
- Opened three new on-campus affinity centers: the Queer Culture & Resource Center, Latinx Cultural Resource Center, and Asian & Pacific Cultural Center.
- Established the Anti-Racism in the Academy Task Force to interrogate CSUDH’s success at creating an anti-racist campus.
- Established the CSUDH Gender Equity Task Forceto assess the implementation of federal, state, and Chancellor’s Office policies for ensuring gender equity in hiring, retention, promotion, pay/raises, and professional development for all faculty, staff, and administration.
- Secured approximately $2 million from the College Futures, ECMC, Angell, and Annenberg Foundations to create and launch the CSU Young Males of Color Consortium.
- Created the Workforce Integration Network (WIN) to highlight career opportunities for CSUDH students.
- WIN won a $5.3 million National Telecommunication and Information Association grant for programs to help bridge the “digital divide” in accessibility and skills development.
- Established the Toro Summer Academy, a pre-college program designed to deliver an expansive college preparation portfolio to high school students from low-income and first-generation backgrounds.
Student Access and Success
- Launched Parent and Family Programs to advance efforts to support parents of our college students and parenting students.
- Re-launched the HUX Program, which focuses on incarcerated students.
- Established Project Rebound to support formerly incarcerated, system-impacted students.
- Redesigned on-campus advising structure to improve support for students and eliminate silos and duplication of effort.
- Secured the CSU5 Bridging the Mental Health Gap for Student Success Grant, which provided $1.8 million to five CSU Campuses.
- Implemented new Federal and State Aid Programs and expanded existing programs, resulting in $180 million being provided to CSUDH students – an increase of $34 million during this period.
- As part of a California for All grant, Toro Dreamers Success Center secured over $200,000 for internships for undocumented students in 2022–23.
- Secured ongoing funding for the Toro Guardian Scholars program, which will now receive $428,000 annually from the state of California.
Enrollment and Admissions
- Established the Once a Toro, Always a Toro program, one of the most successful student re-enrollment operations in the CSU.
- In Fall 2019, enrolled the largest number of new students in the history of the campus.
- International student enrollments are at record highs and rising.
- Saw a marked increase in First-Time Freshman (FTF) four-year graduation rates and record numbers of graduating students.
- Established an Enrollment Planning Advisory Group to develop the framework for a strategic enrollment management plan that aligns with the campus' strategic plan.
- Partnered with Compton Community College District to establish a pipeline for transfer students and position CSUDH to design and implement the Chancellor's Office's upcoming Dual Admissions efforts.
- Partnered with Los Angeles Community College District to create a pipeline of students and focus on increasing the two-year graduation rates of these students.
- Held Discover Dominguez Hills, an interactive event that invited the community to explore the innovation and excitement taking place on campus.
Student Experience
- In 2021, University Housing opened a new 500-bed residential hall.
- Passed a student referendum that approved a new on-campus Health, Wellness, and Recreation Center.
- Established the Office of First and Second Year Experience (OFSYE) with a shared leadership model and partnership between Academic and Student Affairs
- The OFSYE team gathered campus partners from across divisions to re-envision New Student Orientation for first-time, first-year students.
- Reimagined the Visitor's Information Center as the Toro Welcome and Information Center to serve the entire campus and better utilize technology to enhance our response time and meet students' expectations.
- Established the Center for Advocacy, Prevention & Empowerment (CAPE), a stand-alone department to provide confidential support for CSUDH students, staff, and faculty affected by interpersonal harm.
- Established the Esports CSUDH program, which has quickly become one of the top collegiate esports programs in the nation.
- The CSUSH Basic Needs office opened three on-campus food pantries to decrease food insecurity and advance a culture of care.
- Launched First-Year Interest Groups, a collaboration between faculty, staff, and administrators, with the purpose to provide students with a unique and interactive learning community to promote academic success and personal and professional development.
- The Student Health Center received a three-year accreditation from the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC).
- Spearheaded a Student Affairs organizational restructure, elevating the importance of campus-wide health by appointing an Associate Vice President of Health and Well-Being.
- Funded and developed a new department, Campus, Awareness, Response & Education (CARE), to support students in distress and/or those whose behavior is of concern to others before they rise to a crisis.
- Successfully orchestrated a comprehensive alternative consultation process to increase the Student Health Services fee to support health equity and the expansion of quality mental health services.
- Reimagined Athletics, moving it to the Division of Student Affairs, and saw the program flourish, with several teams reaching new heights of success in postseason tournaments.
Communications
- Created new digital version of CSUDH Magazine.
- Expanded social media presence on five important platforms: Instagram (19.8K followers), LinkedIn (75.5K followers), Facebook (27K followers), Twitter (7.7K followers), and TikTok (1.6K followers).
- Developed and released several apps designed to improve the student experience and services: iToros, AskTeddy, and DH Eats.
- Developed several dashboards to inform campus personnel of the enrollment, registration, and graduation funnels.
- Website traffic to the Admissions “explore” web page increased 45% from 2021 to 2022.
- Established the CSUDH Cloud Contact Center, new IT service center, digital concierge, and cloud call centers.
- Launched the Toro Virtual Computer Lab, which allows students to access a virtual Windows 10 desktop from any supported browser, so students can access course software and work from anywhere.
Alumni Engagement
- Established annual university-wide Dodger Night fundraiser in 2019, which has become the most anticipated Toro Alumni event of the year.
- Reimagined Homecoming celebration, expanding it from one day to a week of activities and events.
- In 2019, participated in the first system-wide international alumni events in London, Hong Kong, and Tokyo.
- Established online Toro Connect system to connect CSUDH students with graduates for mentoring and advice.
- Started Dinner with Toros program, which allows alumni to host dinners with current students to share their experience and expertise in their industries.
- Implemented Toro Tuesday Power Hours and Toro Industry Days, connecting alumni with students and facilitate insightful discussions about workplace responsibilities and career strategies.
Faculty Excellence
- Established the university’s first endowed chair, the Lyman G. Chaffee Endowed Chair in Global and Comparative Politics.
- Partnered with the California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute to create the California Black Women’s Think Tank.
- Maintained faculty tenure density as student enrollment grew, with some of the most successful and diverse recruitments in the CSU.
- Significantly increased faculty research and grant activity.
Fundraising
- Apple contributed $5.1 million through the Apple Community Education Initiative to fund the work of the Center for Innovation in STEM Education (CISE), which focuses on enabling transformative and inspiring STEM learning experiences.
- Launched the Tech 4 Every 1 Program, which is dedicated to integrating coding and computer science into public K-16 education in the Los Angeles area.
- Received $5 million from Snap Inc., developer of Snapchat, to create and endow the Snap Inc. Institute for Technology and Education. Housed in the College of Education, the Institute's main purpose is to solve increasing equity gaps in computing education.
- Received $60 million from the state of California for campus improvements, including $20 million for the construction of a new dining hall, $20 million for the Health, Wellness and Recreation Center, and $20 million for a campus power grid upgrade.
- Received $5 million from the state of California for the California Black Women’s Think Tank program.
- Received $5 million from the state of California over five years to fund the Mervyn M. Dymally African American Political and Economic Institute.
- Launched the Dymally International Jazz and Arts Festival as an annual fundraiser for the Dymally Institute.
Sustainability
- Achieved a Gold rating from the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) for sustainability efforts, becoming the fastest-ever CSU school to go from Bronze to Gold.
- Won two Best Practice Awards at the 2020 California Higher Education Sustainability Conference.
- Installed approximately 2,400 solar panels on campus rooftops to increase renewable energy resources and reduce the university’s carbon footprint.
- Received more than $1.18 million in performance payments for successful efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as part of California’s Clean Energy Optimization Pilot.
Pandemic Response
- When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, CSUDH successfully implemented safety procedures and vaccination policies to ensure the health of its community.
- CSUDH provided contact tracing, COVID-19 management, and vaccination compliance to ensure the safety of those returning to campus.
- As a result of its procedures and policies, CSUDH emerged from the pandemic with one of the lowest infection rates among all CSU campuses.
- Successfully coordinated the awarding and release of over $46 million in federal emergency grants to support Toro students during the pandemic.