These efforts are not only about university outreach to groups that have traditionally been underserved in higher education; they are a critical element of our stewardship to a region that introduced the world to the personal computer, the silicon chip, the iPod and countless breakthroughs in the health and environmental sciences. In order to meet Cal State East Bay’s pledge to become a leader in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education, we are working with industries, K-12 school districts, county offices of education and community college partners to provide seamless pathways to a university degree.
Universities, by their very nature, are cradles of hope to the families they serve and to a society that depends on the optimism and entrepreneurial spirit of college graduates to provide solutions to the problems and challenges facing our nation and the world. The most powerful stimulus package that could be provided to this country would be for our universities to continue to send tens of thousands of innovative and technologically fluent graduates into the work force, representing the whole spectrum of American ethnicity. The future of our nation depends on it. We must act now!
— Dr. Mohammad H. Qayoumi is president of California State University, East Bay.
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