Cal State LA has received a $370,000 state grant to develop a new program focused on Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) student achievement efforts. The award is part of a $8 million appropriation directed by Assembly Bill (AB) 190 to the California State University to enhance culturally responsive support for underserved students, including Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander populations across the CSU campuses.

Cal State LA’s new Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Student Achievement Program addresses the support that AANHPI transfer students need to achieve two-year graduation outcomes. This program also aims to improve retention rates for first-year first-time AANHPI students during their first two years at the university, slow and reverse the trend of declining enrollment, and increase outreach and recruitment.

“Cal State LA is committed to serving our AANHPI students and community,” said Amy Bippus, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at Cal State LA. “We look forward to working with the CSU Chancellor’s Office and the statewide central office on the AANHPI Student Achievement Program. We are developing new initiatives while enhancing our existing programming.”

The grant will go toward developing cross-campus collaboration as well as professional development for professors and staff members through Faculty Learning Communities, workshops, and awareness programs. Student Learning Communities will also be implemented to improve student retention and sense of belonging by sharing academic and cultural knowledge and skills, as well as increasing connections with peers and other campus community members.

“To ensure that the AANHPI students succeed at equitable rates, we will raise awareness of and offer support to subgroups within the AANHPI community without viewing them as one monolithic group,” said Andre Ellis, associate vice president for diversity, equity, and inclusion and principal investigator on the grant.

The funding will also provide support to student affairs programming and AANHPI-focused entities on campus, including the Asian Pacific Islander Student Resource Center (APISRC), the Department of Asian and Asian American Studies, and the AAPI Faculty and Staff Affinity Group.

The APISRC is one of the four identity-based centers within the Cross Cultural Centers at the University-Student Union. The APISRC was established in 1993 to address the growing needs and concerns of the Asian, Pacific Islander, and Desi American student population while enriching and raising social awareness for the entire campus community.

The Department of Asian and Asian American Studies is an interdisciplinary program housed within the College of Ethnic Studies that emphasizes the connections between Asian Studies and Asian American Studies. The program is built on the foundation of languages, literature, cultures, and histories of Asia and the experience of Asians and Pacific Islanders as a racial minority in the U.S.

The AAPI Faculty and Staff Affinity Group was formed in 2023 at Cal State LA, coinciding with the development of the university’s first community calendar honoring AAPI Heritage Month. The group was established by the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging in an effort to support the campus community and increase sense of belonging.

“Cal State LA is a proud Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution,” said Patrick K. Day, vice president for student affairs and enrollment management. “We are deeply appreciative of this new opportunity to better serve this incredibly vibrant and diverse population of students and advance their levels of success at the university and beyond.”

Cal State LA has federal designations as a Minority-Serving Institution, and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution.

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California State University, Los Angeles is the premier comprehensive public university in the heart of Los Angeles. Cal State LA is ranked number one in the United States for the upward mobility of its students. Cal State LA is dedicated to engagement, service, and the public good, offering nationally recognized programs in science, the arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education, and the humanities. Founded in 1947, the University serves more than 26,000 students and has more than 250,000 distinguished alumni.

Cal State LA is home to the critically-acclaimed Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs, Hertzberg-Davis Forensic Science Center, Hydrogen Research and Fueling Facility, Billie Jean King Sports Complex and the TV, Film and Media Center. For more information, visit www.CalStateLA.edu.