[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 43 (Thursday, April 6, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E542]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E542]]
 CELEBRATING THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SAN 
                               BERNARDINO

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JERRY LEWIS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 6, 2006

  Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I would like today to 
congratulate the faculty, staff, students and alumni of California 
State University, San Bernardino for 40 years of success in providing 
top-quality education for one of the most diverse student bodies in the 
nation.
  I was a proud new member of my hometown school board in 1965 when 
state officials recognized the need for higher education in the Inland 
Empire and opened California State College at San Bernardino with 293 
students and 93 faculty and staff members. The coverage area for the 
college was 27,000 square miles, taking in San Bernardino and Riverside 
counties. The first graduating class in 1967 was 59 students.
  Since that quiet start, our local college has become one of the 
fastest-growing in the state. More than 16,400 students now attend and 
3,500 graduate each year--more than 55,000 over the past 40 years. The 
college became California State University, San Bernardino in 1984.
  California's higher education system is still considered one of the 
finest in the world, and the state university system produces 51 
percent of all bachelor's degrees awarded by all public and private 
institutions in the state. The university system has calculated that 
the increased education level and earning power brought to our economy 
by these graduates is $25 billion a year. CSUSB alone is calculated to 
provide $500 million in expenditures annually and supports 10,000 jobs 
in our region through the ripple effects of salaries, construction, 
purchases and student spending.
  The university now has five academic colleges, offering more than 70 
degrees and certificates. The College of Education consistently ranks 
among the top CSU campuses that produce credentialed teachers, and many 
programs have gained national recognition. The university's Inland 
Empire Center for Entrepreneurship has been recognized among the 
nation's best by Entrepreneur Magazine.
  CSUSB has had three dynamic presidents: John Pfau, Anthony Evans and 
Albert Karnig, the current president. I have enjoyed working closely 
with Presidents Evans and Karnig during my time in Washington. The 
university has utilized a number of small federal investments to create 
many successful programs, including the Water Resources Institute, the 
entrepreneurship center and a wide-ranging distance-learning program 
for the Department of Defense.
  The university has been especially successful in partnering with 
local governments and community groups to improve the quality of life 
in San Bernardino County, and its student body is considered one of the 
most diverse in the state system--in fact, there is no majority ethnic 
group on campus.
  In recent years, there have been many signs of a rapidly maturing 
educational institution: Robert V. Fullerton Art Museum has a regional 
reputation for cultural contribution; Coussoulis Arena is the largest 
facility of its kind in the Inland Empire; and a permanent branch 
campus has been established in the rapidly-growing Coachella Valley.
  Mr. Speaker, there is no question that in the past 40 years, 
California State University, San Bernardino has become one of the most 
important institutions in the Inland Empire, and a huge contributor to 
our state's economic future. Please join me in congratulating its 
faculty, staff and students for their past and future success.

                          ____________________