Developing Campus Partnerships to Support Justice-Impacted Students 

In the second blog in the series, Breaunna Alexander, Research Manager at the Education Insights Center (EdInsights), summarizes conversations with CSU personnel offering or supporting in-prison bachelor's degree programs. CSU personnel frequently described the central role that relationships play in these programs. Multifaceted and layered collaboration and coordination within and across postsecondary and carceral institutions are essential for designing, implementing, and sustaining these academic programs. Moreover, leveraging existing relationships within one's campus across departments and divisions is necessary for recruiting faculty to teach inside prisons and ensuring there are staff who are equipped and willing to navigate the administrative barriers that currently incarcerated students encounter. Commitment, passion, and sacrifice from university and prison leadership, and across campus staff and faculty are what fuel and drive these programs forward.  

More Than an Enrollment Strategy 

The Network is resharing a 2024 memo by Samantha Raynor, Ed.D., former Assistant Vice Provost for Strategic Student Success Initiatives at UNC Greensboro. This memo discusses key findings from literature exploring equitable approaches to supporting returning students and offers reflection questions for institutions seeking to not only increase the number of students they re-enroll but ensure their success. Higher education in the U.S. has received a fair amount of critique for low graduation rates. Colleges and universities are increasingly including re-enrollment as a strategy to stabilize declining enrollments. As students return to campus for the 2026-27 academic year, we invite you to read this blog to see how your campus can determine its readiness and tailor experiences for returning students.  

Join the CSU Student Success Network Advisory Board 

Are you, or do you know someone who is, a student centered and equity minded staff member, faculty member, or administrator? We invite you to consider joining the CSU Student Success Network Advisory Board or to nominate a colleague who would be a great fit! 

The Advisory Board brings together passionate CSU colleagues committed to advancing equitable opportunities and outcomes for students. Members help shape Network programming and activities, strengthen connections across campuses, and encourage participation in professional development and scholarly inquiry opportunities. 

Ideal candidates: 

• have previously attended a Network event; 
• understand their campus and its needs and data; and 
• are comfortable sharing with their campus our opportunities for professional development and scholarly inquiry.  

We are accepting member applications from these campuses, and prioritizing the campuses in bold: Bakersfield, East Bay, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Maritime, Monterey Bay, San Diego, San Jose, San Luis Obispo, and Stanislaus. 

Advisory Board members serve a minimum three year term and must receive endorsement from their supervisor. 

Deadline is Sunday, August 30!

Equity in Action (EIA) Grant Highlight

Expanding Paid Internship Pathways at Cal Poly Pomona 

The CSU Student Success Network is excited to support Cal Poly Pomona’s pilot program, Equitable Paid Internship Pathways in Physics and Astronomy, through the Equity in Action Grant. 

Led by Dr. Nina Abramzon, the initiative will pilot an equity centered, paid pre internship pathway designed to expand access to meaningful experiential learning for Physics and Astronomy students who face financial and structural barriers to traditional internships. 

Rather than requiring students to secure an internship on their own, the pilot will connect students with approximately 40 hours of paid, career aligned micro internship experiences coordinated through faculty and industry partners. Students will also engage in career preparation focused on resume development, networking, and professional communication. 

The $20,000 pilot grant will support approximately 15 to 20 students, with the majority of funding going directly to students. At the heart of the project is an important equity goal: ensuring that access to career building experiences does not depend on a student’s ability to independently navigate internship opportunities or participate without compensation. The pilot represents an important first step toward developing a scalable and sustainable model that expands equitable access to high impact experiential learning. 



We look forward to learning alongside Dr. Abramzon and the Cal Poly Pomona team as they put Equity in Action!