PASSWORDMANAGEMENT
´ó·¢'s Journey towards the Seal of Excelencia
´ó·¢ earned the in October 2024. Awarded by , the Seal recognizes institutions that meet rigorous standards for demonstrating the impact of their programs and services in supporting Latinx student success across six key areas:
1. Enrollment of Latinx students
2. Retention of Latinx students
3. Transfer in of Latinx students
4. Financial support for Latinx students
5. Latinx representation in faculty, administration, and staff
6. Degree completion of Latinx students
Seal Action Team
Under the leadership of Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Viridiana Diaz, a Seal Action Team was formed to gain familiarity with the Seal of Excelencia framework and develop an inventory of promising practices at ´ó·¢ that informed the institutional Seal application. The Seal Action Team members included:
- Dr. Erik Ramirez, Director, Student Affairs Initiatives and Partnerships
- Cameron Stevenson, Sr. Director, Institutional Planning and Analysis
- Alan Brian, Director, Student Affairs Planning and Assessment
- Norma Larios, AVP, Student Affairs Divisional Operations
- Christiana Moen, Director, New Student and Family Programs
- April Ibarra Siqueiros, User Experience Librarian
Seal Advisory Team
The application was also guided by the expertise and support of the Seal Advisory Team, which included:
- Dr. Patricia Prado-Olmos, Chief Community Engagement Officer
- Dr. Ronald Ramirez, Dean College, Business Administration
- Miguel De Jesus, Director, Business Development College of Business Administration
- Dr. Carmen Nava, Associate Dean, Curriculum, Academic Programs and Student Success CHABSS
- Dr. Rebecca Lush, Faculty Center Director
Technical Assistance Institutes
To inform and guide their work, the ´ó·¢ Seal Action Team participated in four technical assistance institutes offered by Excelencia in Education during the 2023-2024 academic year:
- Leveraging Data to Intentionally Serve Latinx Students Institute
- Implementing Evidence-Based Practices Institute
- Aligning Data, Practice and Leadership Institute
- Faculty Development Institute
Serving Institutional Transformation Assessment
The Seal Action Team also participated in ·¡³æ³¦±ð±ô±ð²Ô³¦¾±²¹â€™s Seal Serving Institutional Transformation Assessment (SSITA) fall cohort. The SSITA is a tool to help prepare institutions for their journey to serve Latinx students and build campus support among faculty, staff, and administrative leaders more intentionally. SSITA facilitates institutional opportunities to:
- Identify preliminary data, evidence-based practices, and leadership efforts that can inform a more student-centered approach to Latinx student success.
- Conduct a self-analysis to identify institutional successes, challenges, and gaps to intentionally serve Latinx students.
- Initiate a preliminary plan of action for further development of institutional resources, commitment, and strategies as part of a community of common cause for Latinx student success.
HSI Summit: Journey to "Servingness" & Excelencia
The Seal Action Team also partnered with the HSI Summit Planning Committee to embed the Excelencia framework as the central theme in the Fall 2023 ´ó·¢ HSI Summit to help build awareness among our campus’ faculty and staff.
Selected Strategies
The following practices were included in our Seal of Excelencia application to demonstrate our institutional commitment to serving Latinx students in alignment with ·¡³æ³¦±ð±ô±ð²Ô³¦¾±²¹â€™s criteria. The selection of practices was based on their demonstrated impact on Latinx student success, supported by data provided by ´ó·¢ Institutional Planning & Analysis and the program leads who collaborated by providing details about their programs and evidence of effectiveness listed below. These chosen practices advance our strategies in the following areas:
- Enrollment of Latinx students
- The Alliance to Accelerate Excellence in Education
- Scott Hagg, Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Services
- Talent Search and Upward Bound Pre-College Programs
- Lia Mauga, Director TRIO Pre-College Programs
- College Assistance Migrant Program
- Maria Venegas Escobedo, Director, College Assistance Migrant Program
-
Melissa Mejia Cantoran, Administrative Assistant, College Assistance Migrant Program
- The Alliance to Accelerate Excellence in Education
- Retention of Latinx students
- Success Coaching
- Jennie Ruiz, Interim Director, Success Coaching
- Academic Recovery Course (UNIV 100A)
- Dr. Adam Petersen, Assistant Dean, Office of Undergraduate Studies
- Marnie Eldridge, Director, First-Year & University Programs
- Dr. Ashley Gragido, UNIV Recovery & Resiliency Faculty Coordinator
- Cougar Care Network
- Donna Davis, Director, Cougar Care Network
- Antonio Hernandez Rodriguez, Student Service Specialist
- Success Coaching
- Transfer in and out of Latinx students
- Transfer Student Success Course
- Dr. Matthew Atherton, Associate Professor Sociology
- Educational Opportunity Program Transfer Bridge
- Marylou Gonzalez, EOP Retention Counselor
- Norma Larios, Interim EOP Director
- Tau Sigma Transfer Student Honor Society
- Christiana Moen, Director, New Student & Family Programs
- Transfer Student Success Course
- Financial support for Latinx students
- State University Grant
- Julie Lindenmeier, Director, Financial Aid
- Brenden Brisker, Associate Director, Financial Aid Systems
- ASI Student Emergency Fund
- Ashley Fennell, ASI Associate Executive Director
- Annie Macias, ASI Executive Director
- Addressing Basic Needs
- Antonio Hernandez Rodriquez, Student Service Specialist
- Donna Davis, Director, Cougar Care Network
- Patty Diaz, Student Outreach & Referral Coordinator
- State University Grant
- Latinx representation in faculty, administration, and staff
- Inclusive Hiring Practices
- Lisa McLean, Senior Director, Human Resources
- Michelle Hunt, Associate Vice President, Faculty Affairs
- Jessica Halsey, Faculty Personnel Coordinator
- Cluster Hires
- Dr. Rebecca Lush, Faculty Center Director
- Cheryl Landin, Director, Strategic Initiatives
- Ariel Stevenson, Deputy Chief Diversity Officer
- National Latino Research Center
- Dr. Konane Martinez, Faculty Director
- Inclusive Hiring Practices
- Degree completion of Latinx students
- Faculty Mentoring Program
- Dr. Rebecca Lush, Faculty Center Director
- Sonia Perez, Faculty Mentor Program Coordinator
- Dr. Cynthia Melendrez, Faculty Mentoring Program Fellow
- First-Year Experience Seminar (GEL 101)
- Marnie Eldridge, Director, First-Year & University Programs
- Dr. Ashley Gragido, UNIV Recovery & Resiliency Faculty Coordinator
- Degree Planner
- Scott Hagg, Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Services
- Faculty Mentoring Program
Additional Programs & Initiatives
The following programs and initiatives were highlighted in our Seal of Excelencia application for their significant contributions to Latinx student success. The details provided by program leads helped illustrate ´ó·¢â€™s dedication to serving Latinx students:
- College is For Me Conference
Justin Lewis, Director, Readiness and Success Services
- College of Business Administration Senior Experience Seminar
Roger Herzler, Director, Business Community Project Operations
- College of Business Professional Development Program
Michelle Tillman, Director, Student Success in College of Business Administration
- Cub Tours & Tailored Campus Tours
Elizabeth Wright, Campus Visits Coordinator
- Innovation Hub
Scott Gross, Associate Vice President, Industry Partnerships
- Latinx Center
Jacky Villalobos, Assistant Director, Latinx Center
- Summer Scholars Program
Dr. Jackie Trischman, CSTEM Dean
- TRIO Student Support Services
Heather Northway, Director, TRIO SSS
Timeline
The timeline for the Seal of Excelencia Project included the following milestones:
- Fall 2022Seal Action Team identified through campus-wide call for interested parties.
- Spring 2023Seal Advisory Team identified and onboarded.
- Spring 2023 - Fall 2023Seal Action Team participated in Excelencia in Education’s technical assistance institutes to gain familiarity with their framework.
- Summer 2023 - Fall 2023Inventory of promising practices from across the campus were developed in partnership with ´ó·¢ Seal Advisory Team.
- Fall 2023Seal Action Team participated in ·¡³æ³¦±ð±ô±ð²Ô³¦¾±²¹â€™s Seal Serving Institutional Transformation Assessment (SSITA) as a first step towards application development.
- Fall 2023 - Spring 2024Seal Action Team drafts institutional application.
- Spring 2024Draft application reviewed by ´ó·¢ leadership for feedback.
- Summer 2024´ó·¢ Seal of Excelencia application submitted to Excelencia in Education.
- Fall 2024´ó·¢ awarded Seal of Excelencia.