[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 10]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 14168]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               50TH ANNIVERSARY OF CSULB EOP CELEBRATION

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                         HON. ALAN S. LOWENTHAL

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 14, 2016

  Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the California 
State University, Long Beach's Educational Opportunity Program which is 
celebrating its 50th Anniversary. Founded in 1967-68 by Dr. Joseph 
White, Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Psychiatry and the first 
Director of the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) at California 
State University, Long Beach (CSULB), it is the first such program 
implemented on a college campus in the State of California.
  The 1960s was a decade of civil unrest throughout the United States. 
In the City of Los Angeles, the 1965 six-day Watts Riot affected a 
number of communities of color. In 1960, The California State Master 
Plan for Higher Education created a three-tiered system to provide 
instruction in the state: University of California, California State 
University, and the Community College Systems. The Master Plan, 
however, resulted in a decline of minority enrollments. As a result, 
African American academicians, civil rights advocates, and community 
activists sought to implement strategies that would increase the number 
of underrepresented students into institutions of higher education and 
develop effective methods to address this imbalance.
  The event celebrated the legacy of Dr. White and his colleagues for 
their blend of scholarship, social activism, and mentoring which 
influenced and increased enrollment of African-American Students along 
with other students of color within the LA County and beyond.
  To honor the individuals and programs that transformed the lives of 
countless African-American students that attended CSULB during the late 
60s and early 70s; and to make this history and research available as 
an integral part of the African-American Legacy within the Long Beach 
Community, Dr. White served as a member of the CSULB faculty from 1962 
to 1968. During his tenure, he became increasingly frustrated by the 
University's low Black student enrollment. He lamented, ``Here we were, 
right at the end of South-Central LA and out of 15,000 students at 
CSULB, only 65 were black. It didn't make any sense.''
  The original pioneers responsible for EOP's implementation on the 
CSULB campus and expansion statewide are as follows: Dr. Joseph White, 
Assemblyman Willie Brown, Dr. Clyde Taylor, and Mr. Ernie Clark. Others 
were invited by Dr. White who also contributed to the implementation of 
EOP and student support services for students of color on CSULB's 
campus include: Dr. George Demos, Congressman Alan Lowenthal, Dr. 
Fernando Hernandez, and deceased contributors Dr. June Cooper, Dr. Ora 
Williams, Dr. Enid Blaylock, and Anthony Wilkins.
  Despite all that has been accomplished over the years, the mission 
and goals still remains an ongoing journey.

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