Sac State Leads Way As Model For Black-Serving Institutions

By Williamena Kwapo | OBSERVER Staff WriterIn September, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1348, creating the nation’s first official designation for Black-serving institutions. The historic legislation recognizes colleges and universities that actively invest in the success of their Black students.This past summer, before the governor signed the bill, the Assembly recognized Sacramento State as California’s first Black-serving institution. With more than 2,000 Black students, the most of any CSU campus, Sac State has embraced its role as a trailblazer.To qualify as a Black-serving institution, a school must have at least 10% Black student enrollment, or a minimum of 1,500 Black students, and demonstrate dedicated resources and programs tailored to their academic achievement and well-being.Under President Dr. Luke Wood, the university has launched a range of initiatives to attract and support Black students. “We meet every morning to strategize how we market to Black students,” Dr. Wood said. “We have a pretty significant marketing campaign that we’ve been doing for a year now focused on Black students in both high schools and community colleges.”Authored by outgoing Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena), SB 1348 establishes a status for identifying institutions with strong programs and a track record of fostering Black student success.“We...