California State University Turning Tech Into Student Equity, Achievement

The California State University (CSU) has launched the first phase of its California State University Connectivity Contributing to Equity and Student Success (CSUCCESS) initiative.

CSUCCESS is an initiative intended to enhance student achievement and create more equitable opportunities for the CSU community. The initial phase of the initiative will kick off this fall at eight of CSU’s campuses. As part of the initiative, CSU will distribute an iPad Air, Apple Pencil, and Apple Smart Keyboard Folio to all incoming first-year and new transfer students who register to participate in the initiative. Students will have the technology for the entirety of their undergraduate experience at the CSU.

“CSUCCESS will assure that students have immediate access to innovative, new mobile tools they need to support their learning, particularly when faced with the lingering effects of the pandemic,” said CSU Chancellor Joseph Castro. “The new initiative will establish a foundation for their achievement and has the potential to play a key role in eliminating stubborn equity gaps among our talented and diverse students. In addition to truly addressing equity and access, we see iPad Air as a powerful tool to prepare our students for their future careers.”

In a press release, CSU said the CSUCCESS initiative is an “important component” of the school’s efforts to recover from the pandemic and is key to improving student success while eliminating opportunity and achievement gaps as part of its Graduation Initiative 2025.

CSU said that while it plans to offer the majority of instruction in-person for the fall semester, some courses will be offered virtually due to the ongoing challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The school said that the CSUCCESS initiative will help provide students the tools they need to participate in a virtual learning environment.

“I am convinced that true and consistent student success depends on having a modern, and more importantly, reliable, computing device in our students’ possession beginning on day one and continuing throughout their college experience,” added Castro. “We aspire to have additional phases of the initiative that will expand access in the future to more new and current students at other CSU campuses.”

Students at CSU’s Bakersfield, Channel Islands, Fresno, Humboldt, Los Angeles, Maritime Academy, Northridge, and San Marcos campuses will be eligible for the CSUCCESS program.