Return to
  Cover

Policymakers and others are getting to know "Joe and Jane Sacramento" a little better, thanks to a new survey from Sac State's Institute for Social Research.

The first "Annual Survey of Public Opinion and Life Quality in the Sacramento Region" was carried out in March by sociology professor Amy Liu and 20 students. They asked residents of Sacramento, Yolo, Placer and El Dorado counties about government, traffic, housing, taxes, immigration and more.

Some tidbits: More Sacramento Region residents said traffic is a major problem than residents of the Bay Area or Los Angeles. And with the events of September 11, 2001 still fresh on their minds, more than half said government should be able to monitor e-mails and telephone calls of resident non-citizens.

Many of the survey questions were based on statewide surveys by the Public Policy Institute of California. That allows results to be compared with the rest of the state. The new survey, however, focuses on the Sacramento Region on its own rather than as part of the Central Valley.

"The Sacramento Region is often looked at simply as part of the Central Valley, but it is really much different," Liu says. "This is a major metropolitan area, a place much more like Los Angeles, the Bay Area and San Diego than other parts of the Central Valley."

(back to top)

Sac State offers many community service programs that allow students to get professional experience. They're supervised by experienced professors.

Among them is the Life Center, which provides wellness programs for older adults. Classes include meditation and fall prevention, such as the one Frances Sakai (pictured above) takes. There are also individual and group fitness sessions, talks on health and computer classes.

The center is run by the College of Health and Human Services. It is located at the Julia Morgan House and Gardens at 3731 T Street.

(back to top)

(back to top)

• The CSUS Alumni Association is again hosting its popular breakfast talks. The free events–breakfast included–are in the Steven Lee Yamshon Alumni Center.
  
  Upcoming talks include Winnie Comstock, founder of Comstock's Business Magazine, on Dec. 10; Jill Kaiser, executive director of the Metro Chamber of Commerce Arts and Business Council, on April 8; and Martin Tuttle, executive director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments, on May 13.
  
  Seating is limited. For reservations call (916) 278-6295.
  
  
• Black Issues in Higher Education rates Sac State 25th in the nation for most bachelor's degrees to minority students 2000-01 and 16th in the nation in awarding bachelor's degrees to American Indians.
  
  Washington Monthly ranks Sac State 5th in the nation for using federal work-study funds to promote community service .
  
  Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education ranks Sac State 5th in the nation for awarding bachelor's degrees to Hispanic students and 55th in the nation for awarding master's degrees to Hispanic students.
  

(back to top)

Early start on ethnic studies

Students at Sacramento's Hiram Johnson High School are the first to take a new class in ethnic studies this fall. It's one of the few high school classes of its kind.

The course was developed by a team of Sac State students and faculty, along with Hiram Johnson faculty and administrators.

"It could have a statewide effect," says Gregory Mark, chair of the Sac State ethnic studies department. "It could become a model curriculum for an ethnic studies component in all high schools."

Hiram Johnson history teacher James Fabionar leads four sessions of the class for about 100 freshmen. On some days, the class is taught by Sac State ethnic studies students, while throughout the year Sac State faculty members serve as guest speakers. Seniors from Hiram Johnson act as teaching assistants.

Mark says one of the goals of the program is to head off violence by teaching tolerance. It's a message that Fabionar, who earned his teaching credential at Sac State, says is needed.

"There are significant cultural conflicts that occur within groups and between groups at the school," he says. The school's population is 30 percent Asian, 23 percent Hispanic and 14 percent black.

The problem: bright students running out of challenging courses before they run out of high school. The solution: Sac State’s Accelerated College Entrance (ACE) program, which allows students to take university classes while completing high school.

“It’s not designed to replace high school,” explains Terry Thomas, the program’s director. “It’s a way to enrich their high school work.”

About 40 students are enrolled in ACE courses on campus, mostly in music, math and foreign languages, but also in lower-division psychology, sociology and anthropology. Another 400 are enrolled in college-level courses at 17 area high schools.

The students can use the credits they earn toward high school graduation requirements and for university credit.

ACE is open to qualifi ed high school students who meet the prerequisites, and have a 3.0 GPA, high test scores and the consent of their parents and teachers.

Details: (916) 278-7032 or http://edweb.csus.edu/Projects/ACE.

Terry Wanless, who helped make University of North Dakota athletics into one of the best Division II programs in the nation, was named Sac State's new athletics director in the spring.

He replaces Debby Colberg, who served in the position since 1999. Colberg will focus on coaching her highly successful volleyball team.

Wanless was athletics director at North Dakota from 1990 to 1999. During that time, North Dakota won four NCAA national championships and 36 conference championships. Wanless also guided the program to compliance with gender equity guidelines, and student-athlete grade point averages rose from 2.3 to 3.1.

(back to top)

For Nick Trujillo and his dog, California’s coast was a bit more golden this summer. Trujillo, a Sac State communication studies professor, took a five-week trip up the
California coast, studying “dog culture” with his Golden Retriever “Ebbet” (or “Ebbie”).

Trujillo plans to write a book about it titled, The Golden Coast: Up the California Coast with a Golden Retriever.

The two traveled from mid-May through the end of June. Trujillo interviewed hundreds of dog owners, including border guards, police officers and firefighters, Hollywood celebrities, dog trainers, owners of dog businesses, animal shelter workers, fishermen and dozens of campers and residents. He talked with the manager of the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego about famous dogs that have stayed there, and visited the war dog memorial at March Air Force Base in Riverside.

Trujillo and Ebbie also raised more than $3,000 for Homeward Bound, a golden retriever rescue society in Sacramento.

Their exploits were chronicled by numerous media outlets, including Bob Vella's "Pet Talk America," the Sacramento Bee and Capital Public Radio.

(back to top)

Return to
  Cover