[music]
The Campaign for Fresno State has sought to provide support for key academic areas across
the university.
I got involved with the capital campaign because I had received an athletic scholarship at
university. This is just one small thing that I could do to give back to Fresno State and
the community.
The campaign was for us to try to create a culture of philanthropy here at the university.
Additional scholarships, services, programming, professorships and improved facilities so
that we can give the tools that are necessary for our students to be successful in the future.
Deans and directors of development have created a team structure. They work together as a
team, not particularly caring who gets the credit.
It's our first attempt and yet we had great success. And it's the support through the
campaign that's going to allow us to gain national distinction and to really make the
difference in the lives of the university.
The Table Mountain Rancheria tribe gift has transformed what is an academic library into
a regional gem. The gift itself has allowed us to turn this building into a magnificent
center of art. The Madden Library has achieved excellence almost every day since it's opened.
It provides a space, I think, for students to find whatever it is that they want in terms
of group study, private study, quiet study.
The Madden Library is the academic heart of this university. One way we measure our success
is by the number of people that come through our doors. At any given time there's about
2,000 to 4,000 people in the building using the books, using the computers, using the
study space. And this year that's going to add up to a record of 1.4 million. One of
the most heavily used services that we have is our student laptop service, and last year
we checked out 97,000 laptops for student use. It really benefits most those students
who don't have good computing at home or in their dorms.
I think this new library has really provided the students for the first time on this campus
a sense of home away from home.
I like the library because usually I can find classmates. I actually like going up to the
balcony and it's nice and quiet.
I like the library; it's just a good place to come, hang out.
The Silent Garden endowment allows us here at Fresno State to bring in visiting professorships with a national reputation. And every year they're going to be providing workshops
and trainings at no cost to parents and teachers and interpreters.
My name is Jacqueline Rubalcaba, I have a bachelor of arts in communicative disorders
and deaf studies. I'm excited about the Silent Garden because it's going to receive funding
to further educate the current students. As an alumni, I know that I have a home to go
to and that I can be further educated through master classes and workshops.
Joe Slotnick and Bob Nicol have allowed me to work with them to be able to make the Silent
Garden dream come true for this campus.
I'm Bob Nicol, I'm a recent donor of the Silent Garden at Fresno State. It fulfilled my need
to contribute to the needs of deaf students. And the reason why I contributed is two things:
1) communication 2) education. I think this should be available to all deaf students.
It's been wonderful to have the two of them as role models for over the past forty years
and now that the both of them have committed to our Silent Garden endowment my dream has
come true and we can all share in it.
The Verna Mae Brooks Scholarship Program was started by Dr. Wayne Brooks who is an emeritus
faculty member. He retired in 1995 and unfortunately just a few months after he retired his wife,
Verna Mae, passed away. Wayne decided to take most of his savings, and frankly a good deal
of his retirement, to endow a scholarship that has since provided 23 Fresno State students
with full cost scholarships.
Most of our students, I should say, come from low to moderate income backgrounds. In fact
they're the first in their family to attend college. Without financial assistance of some
kind like scholarships a significant number simply wouldn't be here.
My name is Mykhalo Skitsak, I'm a nursing major and I'm a Verna Mae Brooks Scholarship
recipient. About six years ago my family, four of us, moved to Fresno straight from
Ukraine. My parents always wanted for me and my sister better futures. So they wanted us
to come to the United States to get a better education.
The biggest impact has been the financial impact of the scholarship. When I transferred
to Fresno State I had to quit my job because of the workload of the nursing program.
The campaign, I think, has given us the confidence, the ability and a campus-wide commitment to
go forward with even bigger initiatives in the future.
The success of the capital campaign demonstrates that people really care about Fresno State.
This university and this whole region recognizes the importance of the university. We are the
anchor, and I think that this is really the engine that drives this region.
I'm very excited about the future of Fresno State. I think great things are happening here.
[music]
Gracias. [Pause] Thank you.
Thank you.