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Office of the President

Pride Points

We are a campus of opportunity, boldly empowering students for success. Here are just a few things we’re proud of at Fresno State:

Education and research

  • High-quality academic programs in 71 bachelor’s, 48 master’s and three doctoral areas prepare students to tackle real-world needs and transform communities in the region and across the world.
  • Our faculty and students continuously conduct pioneering applied research. The Jordan Agricultural Research Center fosters collaboration between some of the brightest minds in agriculture, engineering, science and mathematics. The Library – the largest academic library in California between Los Angeles and San Francisco – opened in January 2009 and is arguably one of the busiest libraries in all of inland California with 1.76 million visitors a year. Through our School of Nursing and Central Valley Health Policy Institute, faculty and students are conducting research to understand and address the special health challenges of Central California.

Fostering diversity and inclusion

  • About 25,000 students attend Fresno State. We nurture cultural competence by celebrating diversity and welcoming all. The Cross Cultural and Gender Center, Veterans Services Office and the University’s new Hmong minor program are just a few programs and initiatives which reflect our tremendous diversity. For more than 50 years, Fresno State has offered enriching ethnic studies programs including Chicano and Latin American studies, Asian American studies, Africana studies, Native American studies, Jewish studies and more. 

Meeting students' essential needs

  • We have focused attention on the essential life necessities that are sometimes taken for granted. Our Student Cupboard – a free food and hygiene pantry for students – averages almost 5,000 visits a month. Comprehensive programs and initiatives such as the Renaissance Scholars Program, the Clothing Closet and the Good Samaritan Fund address the basic needs of underserved students so they can focus on what’s centrally important: reaching their personal, academic and career goals.

We are one with our community

  • Learning by serving is core to who we are as a University. Community service, coordinated by the Jan and Bud Richter Center for Community Engagement and Service-Learning, is a hallmark at Fresno State. Students, faculty and staff have provided more than 10 million hours of community service in the past 13 years.

Academics and athletics rising together

  • Often serving as the “porchlight” of our University, our athletics program is steeped in tradition and draws tens of thousands of alumni and community members to campus each year.  This year, Fresno State athletics kicked off its centennial celebration, marking 100 years of academic and athletic excellence. Our student-athletes are expected to do well in school and act as role-models on and off the field, and, in turn, the University strives to support them in creating championship experiences.

Educating tomorrow’s leaders

  • Eighty percent of our graduates stay in the Central Valley to become the region’s next generation of leaders. Here are just a few centers and institutes at Fresno State that foster leadership:
    • The Maddy Institute at Fresno State provides non-partisan, interdisciplinary and fact-driven analysis of public policy issues impacting our region and state while supporting student internships and real-world experiences.
    • The Kremen School of Education and Human Development prepares 60% of school administrators across the region to do their part in solving key problems faced by Central California schools.
    • The Center for Leadership builds the leadership capacity of students through the development of personal leadership philosophies applied to campus, community and national issues.

Our rise in national rankings