Although many students probably wish they could end their freshman year in college with fireworks and a round of applause, Ruben Garcia got to do just that. The music major at California State University, Dominguez Hills was selected to perform “The Star Spangled Banner” at the start of a Major League Soccer game at the Home Depot Center last May. Marketing the match between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City was an internship program for two business administration students, Melissa Velasco and Robert Aragon. (Click here for story in Dominguez Today.) They created a “Toro Night” event for students and alumni, with special seating and university participation in pre-game ... Read More
CSUDH Campus News Center Archive
CSU Dominguez Hills Awarded Unprecedented Fifth U.S. Department of Education Transition to Teaching Grant
The U.S. Department of Education has awarded $949,430 to California State University, Dominguez Hills–the first-year allotment of a five-year, $5.09 million Transition to Teaching (TTT) grant–to create an online credential program for math and science teachers throughout southern and central California. The university's proposal was one of only 30 funded nationwide, and one of only five in California. This is the fifth such award to be granted to the university, making CSU Dominguez Hills the only institution of higher education to receive five grants from the U.S. Department of Education TTT program over the past 10 years. The grant will fund the creation of a new online ... Read More
Gerardo Torres-Ochoa: Bringing Excellent Customer Service to the Table
As catering service manager for Campus Dining, Gerardo Torres-Ochoa must face the daily ebb and flow of business in the Loker Student Union's (LSU) restaurants, all the while keeping top-drawer customer service and the warmth of hospitality on the menu. The winner of the first ever Excellence in Customer Service Award at last month's inaugural Staff Awards of Excellence, shares his marketing philosophy for for Tully's, Toro Takeout, the DH Sports Bar, and Club 1910. “If you know that someone has a caramel macchiato at Tully's every day, and you have it ready for them, that means a lot because they know you're paying attention,” says Torres-Ochoa. “Or if there's a line, a simple, ... Read More
Transition to Teaching: New Grant Will Prepare STEM Teachers in Rural Communities
For the last 12 years, Kamal Hamdan has had a track record of success in acquiring federal funding for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) teacher preparation programs at California State University, Dominguez Hills that not only prepare individuals with STEM backgrounds to earn their teaching credentials, but also give them valuable classroom teaching experience while doing so, often in the urban school they attended. Last month, the university received notification from the U.S. Department of Education that Hamdan's grant application to develop an online teacher preparation program, had been accepted. With a first-year award of $949,430, a total of $5,085,852 over five ... Read More
Amy Bentley-Smith: Making Headlines For the University
It could be said that with more than 10 years under her belt as a reporter and features editor for the Grunion Gazette in Long Beach, Amy Bentley-Smith, the winner of the Exemplary Achievement Award at this year's inaugural Staff Awards of Excellence, has the pulse on all the news that fit to print–or post –about California State University, Dominguez Hills. “Covering events and city meetings, and writing profiles on local people for the Grunion taught me that it's all about sharing, informing, and helping people feel connected with where they live,” she says. “They want to know about what's going on or read about good things they or their neighbors are doing. In that way, you develop ... Read More