Cal State San Marcos announces key program expansion, impressive rise in rankings in report to the community

SAN MARCOS – Cal State University San Marcos President Ellen Neufeldt delivered her annual “Report to the Community” which highlighted increases in key university indexes and an expansion of their popular engineering program Thursday, Sept. 30. The report, which comes as CSUSM emerges from the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, also stressed the university’s role as a powerful engine for economic empowerment that is expanding student social mobility, local economic growth, and innovation in the region.

The impressive rise in key university ratings included a 19-point rise to #41 in the highly regarded U.S. News and World Report, West rankings and an eight-point rise to #28 in the national social mobility index out of nearly 1,500 colleges.

CSUSM also announced a $5 million, five-year, Hispanic Serving Institution Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math grant. The grant will allow the school to add computer engineering to its engineering program which currently offers electrical and software engineering.

The Engineering program is part of the University’s efforts to support students entering in-demand STEM fields in the region. North County San Diego is projected to need twenty thousand additional skilled professionals by 2030 to fill sought-after jobs in top innovation occupations.

“No other university is as uniquely qualified as we are to address the challenges and opportunities before us by putting students first, building on our strengths of community engagement, partnership, and research, and championing innovation that brings together a diversity of people and ideas that expand knowledge,” said Neufeldt at the event.

More than 500 individuals representing a broad cross section of regional business, nonprofit, education, and government leadership attended the event either virtually or in person.

The CSUSM campus reopened to students and employees in August after instruction took place largely virtually during the 2020-21 school year because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

This was the third Report to the Community for Neufeldt, who started in her position in July 2019. Report to the Community is an annual tradition that CSUSM has hosted since 2005.

Submitted by Cal State University San Marcos.