- Giving Day Raises Nearly $460KCal State San Marcos raised $459,638 in just 24 hours as part of Giving Day on Nov. 28. “We are deeply grateful for everyone who helped make Giving Day such a resounding success, one that will have an immediate and lasting impact on our campus community,” said Jessica Berger, vice president for University Advancement. Now in its ninth year at CSUSM, Giving Day is part of Giving Tuesday, an international day focused on philanthropy. Giving Day contributions were made by 2,410 donors and came from a wide swath of supporters, including alumni, employees, students, parents, friends and sponsors. Berger noted that this support is “a true testament to the strength of a dedicated community that collectively showed up together in such a big way.” The Giving Day highlights include: Meeting a variety of impressive matches, including a $15,000 employee match from SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union and a $25,000 power hour made possible by North City; 52 ambassadors helped spread the word, bringing in a collective 339 gifts; 377 students donated; and One in five gifts were made by alumni. Did you miss your chance to donate on Giving Day? You can still make a meaningful impact on the program you love. Give today! Know a CSUSM project that needs funding? Connect with the Office of Annual Giving to launch a Cougar Crowdfunding project. Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Campus Community Creates New Art for Innovation HubCal State San Marcos’ Innovation Hub has welcomed a creative addition to its space with the unveiling of a new mural and interactive art installation. The mural portrays a coastal live oak, a tree that is representative of the San Marcos region. By incorporating industrial features and a striking array of bold color, the art piece emulates the cycle of the seasons. Elements of innovation and nature come together to create an illuminating showpiece that connects all academic disciplines and produces an inclusive environment open to every major. “When we compare nature’s cycle with the world of innovation and entrepreneurship, it becomes clear that both of these processes are very iterative and there's a lot of parallels between them,” said Scott Gross, associate vice president of industry partnerships and head of the Innovation Hub. “The Innovation Hub is pretty industrial with hard lines, and we wanted something to kind of soften it and bring in more colors, making it gentler. Plus, I just love how the tree branches off into the circuitry and connects nature and technology.” Adjacent to the mural is the interactive art installation, where students can place a ball into a winding suction tube and watch as it is transported throughout the five stages of the innovation process: problem defining, ideation, design and prototyping, testing, and implementing. Illustrating the journey of turning an idea into reality can help generate a sense of motivation throughout the dynamic space and spark student imagination. Members of the campus community collaborated to bring these works to fruition. Lucy HG Solomon, professor of art, media and design, worked alongside muralist Tim Topalov and Kodie Gerritsen, an alumnus who leads the makerspace in Kellogg Library. Topalov initially was connected to CSUSM through his mother, Rosalina Christova, a longtime university fellow who directed the California Primary Algae Laboratory. To further highlight student voices and creativity, the trio invited students onto their team. Aidelen Montoya, Evie Reese, Emma Reheis and Melissa Lugtu contributed to the mural development. Getting involved in a campus project gives students the opportunity to express their artistry, gain hands-on experience and make connections with fellow members of the campus community. It is this type of inventiveness and enthusiasm that can be found throughout the Innovation Hub, as students now have space to ideate their inspirations. “If people interact with the vacuum-powered idea pipeline and consider the majesty of the colorful oak tree, hopefully they will think this place is not just for traditional innovations; it’s about stretching the brain and imagination to consider new ways to engage with the world,” HG Solomon said. Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Giving Day Raises Nearly $460KCal State San Marcos raised $459,638 in just 24 hours as part of Giving Day on Nov. 28. “We are deeply grateful for everyone who helped make Giving Day such a resounding success, one that will have an immediate and lasting impact on our campus community,” said Jessica Berger, vice president for University Advancement. Now in its ninth year at CSUSM, Giving Day is part of Giving Tuesday, an international day focused on philanthropy. Giving Day contributions were made by 2,410 donors and came from a wide swath of supporters, including alumni, employees, students, parents, friends and sponsors. Berger noted that this support is “a true testament to the strength of a dedicated community that collectively showed up together in such a big way.” The Giving Day highlights include: Meeting a variety of impressive matches, including a $15,000 employee match from SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union and a $25,000 power hour made possible by North City; 52 ambassadors helped spread the word, bringing in a collective 339 gifts; 377 students donated; and One in five gifts were made by alumni. Did you miss your chance to donate on Giving Day? You can still make a meaningful impact on the program you love. Give today! Know a CSUSM project that needs funding? Connect with the Office of Annual Giving to launch a Cougar Crowdfunding project. Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Campus Community Creates New Art for Innovation HubCal State San Marcos’ Innovation Hub has welcomed a creative addition to its space with the unveiling of a new mural and interactive art installation. The mural portrays a coastal live oak, a tree that is representative of the San Marcos region. By incorporating industrial features and a striking array of bold color, the art piece emulates the cycle of the seasons. Elements of innovation and nature come together to create an illuminating showpiece that connects all academic disciplines and produces an inclusive environment open to every major. “When we compare nature’s cycle with the world of innovation and entrepreneurship, it becomes clear that both of these processes are very iterative and there's a lot of parallels between them,” said Scott Gross, associate vice president of industry partnerships and head of the Innovation Hub. “The Innovation Hub is pretty industrial with hard lines, and we wanted something to kind of soften it and bring in more colors, making it gentler. Plus, I just love how the tree branches off into the circuitry and connects nature and technology.” Adjacent to the mural is the interactive art installation, where students can place a ball into a winding suction tube and watch as it is transported throughout the five stages of the innovation process: problem defining, ideation, design and prototyping, testing, and implementing. Illustrating the journey of turning an idea into reality can help generate a sense of motivation throughout the dynamic space and spark student imagination. Members of the campus community collaborated to bring these works to fruition. Lucy HG Solomon, professor of art, media and design, worked alongside muralist Tim Topalov and Kodie Gerritsen, an alumnus who leads the makerspace in Kellogg Library. Topalov initially was connected to CSUSM through his mother, Rosalina Christova, a longtime university fellow who directed the California Primary Algae Laboratory. To further highlight student voices and creativity, the trio invited students onto their team. Aidelen Montoya, Evie Reese, Emma Reheis and Melissa Lugtu contributed to the mural development. Getting involved in a campus project gives students the opportunity to express their artistry, gain hands-on experience and make connections with fellow members of the campus community. It is this type of inventiveness and enthusiasm that can be found throughout the Innovation Hub, as students now have space to ideate their inspirations. “If people interact with the vacuum-powered idea pipeline and consider the majesty of the colorful oak tree, hopefully they will think this place is not just for traditional innovations; it’s about stretching the brain and imagination to consider new ways to engage with the world,” HG Solomon said. Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Professor and Alumni Publish Manuscript on Genetic DiseaseTen Cal State San Marcos alumni recently published a research project with biological sciences professor Jane Kim. The manuscript “Massive contractions of Myotonic Dystrophy Type 2-associated CCTG tetranucleotide repeats occur via double strand break repair with distinct requirements for DNA helicases” was published by Oxford University Press in the scientific journal G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics in early November. The research analyzed the disease myotonic dystrophy type 2, which is a genetic condition that causes progressive muscle weakness. To conduct the study, Kim and her students used yeast to investigate the CCTG DNA repeats that are responsible for the disease. Yeast is commonly used by biologists and geneticists because the cells replicate their DNA similarly to human cells. “Even though DNA repeats associated with human disease have been studied for 20-plus years, this was the first study that investigated CCTG DNA repeats in a system that mimics the human situation where the repeats are on a chromosome,” Kim said. “I think what's exciting is that this was the first comprehensive genetic analysis of these CCTG repeats. And we were able to pinpoint genes that are involved in contractions. Then we were also able to show that these repeats, when they're long, are actually more susceptible to breaking.” Kim started the research in 2017 while doing postdoctoral work at Tufts University in Boston and brought it to CSUSM when she became a professor. “The pandemic definitely slowed things down a lot,” Kim said. “In 2020, we were at peak productivity. It felt like we were just a few months away from publishing at that point. Then the labs were basically shut down completely from March to about November.” The amount of time that Kim and the students could be in the lab was limited, but the research started picking up once pandemic restrictions were lifted. The project took a total of five years to finish. “It feels like such an accomplishment,” Kim said. “I'm just so proud of the work scientifically and also the student contributions to the work. When I see the author list, I'm just very proud that each name represents an individual academic journey.” Kim’s former students involved in the project are David Papp, Luis Hernandez, Theresa Mai, Terrance Haanen, Meghan O’Donnell, Ariel Duran, Sophia Hernandez, Jenni Narvanto, Berenice Arguello and Marvin O. Onwukwe. Media Contact Bri Phillips, Communications Specialist bphillips@csusm.edu
- Student Veteran Shows Resilience Throughout Academic JourneyDavid King came to Cal State San Marcos in 2017 feeling lost. Being a first-generation college student meant that King didn’t have anyone at home to help him figure out financial aid or other college resources. A month into his first semester at CSUSM, King left to try community college instead. But he decided that wasn’t for him, either. “College felt pretty difficult because I come from a single-parent family household,” King said. “But I’m glad I came back. I was just very confused at the time. I didn't understand how financial aid worked. I didn't have structure in my life. I didn't really have any guidance during that time. I was all over the place. I didn't feel good about coming to school because I didn't see the resources that were available to me.” King joined the Marine Corps in 2018 to find the structure he desired. While serving at Twentynine Palms in Southern California’s High Desert, he attended Marine Corps Communication Electronics school to become a telephone systems personal computer repairer. “I was coming back from Twentynine Palms, and I was trying to figure out what my next step would be," he said. “Do I want to do the job that I'm doing in the Marines outside of the Marines? And after looking at it, it wasn't really what I wanted to do. I was more interested in finding a way to help other people.” King decided the best way to do that was to return to college and focus on a career helping veterans while maintaining a close connection to the military by joining the Marine Corps Reserve. That plan is coming to fruition, as he graduates this month from CSUSM with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. King thrived in his return to higher education. He earned his associate degree in psychology at MiraCosta in 2021 before transferring back to CSUSM. King built a community at the Epstein Family Veterans Center, where he has met other students who have faced similar challenges. As a reservist, King often has had to put his classes on hold. “There have been times where I’ve been called to do training and I’ll have to be gone for maybe almost a month,” King said. “Then I’ll think about the exams and school I have to miss, so I have to email my professors to try to figure out something.” King is the undergraduate peer advising case management intern for Veterans to Energy Careers (VTEC), which is a grant-funded program from the Office of Naval Research, under the Department of the Navy. This national program based at CSUSM helps student veterans translate their military experience into sustainable energy careers through internships and professional development. King helps student veterans with their resumes, career planning and coaching. One of the mentors he worked closely with during his internship is Joshua Loop, the VTEC technical programs manager. “David's passion and curiosity for the military-affiliated community was obvious from the moment he walked into the Veterans Center, and the students that are easiest to mentor are those who are passionate and curious," Loop said. “We are excited to watch him grow and make an impact in his community.” King has certainly shown resilience throughout his academic journey. He plans to pursue a master’s degree in social work at CSUSM next fall and continue working for VTEC. “I would give student veterans the advice of coming down to the Veterans Center and learning about all the resources that are available to them,” King said. “I never really set foot in the Veterans Center until I started working here. But there's so much that they can do, so many programs, so many clubs and things that they can do to help them out with their professional development.” Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Professor's Podcast Unites Music With Latin American HistoryHistory is everywhere, and if you look closely enough, aspects of it can be found in the most unlikely places. This is a theme that surfaces throughout history professor Citlali Sosa-Riddell’s life — from diving into historical aspects of Marvel movies to filling her reading list with mystery novels that take place in the past. It is Sosa-Riddell’s passion for history that brought her to Cal State San Marcos this fall. Choosing a career pathway can be intimidating for any young adult trying to map out their life. There is such a wide variety of fields and factors to consider. When it came time for Sosa-Riddell to make her big decision, she had one condition: “I just couldn’t imagine being in a small office where there’s not a lot of people to talk to or an outlet for my individuality,” Sosa-Riddell said. “I knew I needed to follow my interests, and it led to me following in my mom’s footsteps.” Sosa-Riddell’s mother was a professor at UC Davis. Growing up in academia, Sosa-Riddell saw firsthand the dynamic nature of teaching. The idea of engaging with students in the classroom and leading large-scale creative projects felt like a thrill to her. After years of hard work, Sosa-Riddell earned her Ph.D. in American history from UCLA and is now an experienced Latinx and Latin American history professor. She is living out her teaching aspirations and continues to find new ways to think outside the box when approaching historical analysis. Her current passion project is co-hosting a podcast with longtime friend Jorge Leal, an assistant professor of history at UC Riverside. “The Discursive Power of Rock en Español and the Desire for Democracy” is a podcast that traces past social movements in Latin America. Sosa-Riddell’s key focus is examining the role that Spanish rock music has played in challenging dictatorships and advocating for the rights of immigrants. Sosa-Riddell recently got to interview one of her student’s aunts. Her interviewee lived in a country under a dictatorship. Once the dictatorship was lifted, she reminisced on how people were terrified but also filled with excitement as some handed out their mixtapes and flyers for band performances to celebrate the end of tyranny. “I think her story really struck me because she connected music to that joy of freedom,” Sosa-Riddell said. “Usually when we think about dictatorships, we only think about the mundane horribleness and the trauma. I found her connection to be really interesting, and I think that’s why I wanted to find a way to do something that would be more joyful for listeners to think about: How do people fight back? I like that about music.” Sosa-Riddell was in college when Spanish rock music heavily came onto the scene. It was not exactly love at first listen. “I was amazed by this new sound, but I was also partially on the team of dismissing it as lame,” she said. “Everybody else was really into it and talking about it. I remember my friend pointing out how it feels like the kids born in the United States are starting to view immigrants and Mexican Americans in a new way — as cool. It felt like an interesting shift with Americans looking to Latin America for music instead of vice versa.” Nowadays, Sosa-Riddell finds herself listening to a variety of musical genres. She loves anything she can sing along to, whether that be reggaeton, her favorite Latin alternative group Café Tacvba or upbeat pop musicians such as Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo. With a mix of modern and traditional, Sosa-Riddell’s podcast covers it all. And she is not just talking about music. Sosa-Riddell is digging even deeper and exploring the iconic venues of band performances, clothing styles and the gender roles and expectations surrounding fans of the Spanish rock genre. By fusing her interests of Spanish music and Latin American history, she is hoping to generate a unique and educational dialogue for her audience. Sosa-Riddell and Leal released the first season of their podcast last summer. It is continuing to take off, having received over 2,000 downloads. These co-host historians are showing no signs of slowing down. They are working on Season 2 and expect it to be complete this spring. The podcast is available on Apple Music and Spotify. “I am not a musicologist or anything,” Sosa-Riddell said. “But I have learned so much about music through recording and researching for this podcast, and I am very excited for our next season.” Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- 'Chill' No More, Men's Lacrosse Carrying Banner for Sport Clubs at CSUSMVeterans of the Cal State San Marcos men’s club lacrosse program remember well how things used to be only a few years ago. The word that perhaps best defined the team was “chill.” The roster size was modest. Practices weren’t all that frequent or intense. Games attracted few spectators beyond family members. The highlight of the season was the spring break trip, but the appeal was more the destination than the competition. What a stark contrast it was, then, when CSUSM hosted UC San Diego at Mangrum Track and Field last April. A crowd pushing 500 people lined the field as the Cougars faced a local opponent that had become a fierce rival in short order. Among those in attendance were dozens of players from youth clubs around North County who were drawn by the excitement and the prospect of themselves suiting up for CSUSM someday. On the field, the Cougars displayed grit and fortitude in rallying from a halftime deficit to win 15-11 for their 12th victory in a row (the streak would ultimately stretch to 15). “That was an incredible game. It’s probably one of my favorite memories of being at CSUSM,” said Austin Contreras, a fifth-year senior who will be playing his final season this spring. “There’s been a total flip in mentality. Before, it was just, ‘Let’s chill out, have some fun, play lacrosse.’ But we’re here to compete. We want to solidify our name as a program to be afraid of.” The men’s lacrosse team is practicing four times a week as it gears up for a spring season in which expectations, both internal and external, have never been higher. Coming off a campaign in which they went 16-2 and reached the semifinals of the national tournament for the first time, the Cougars top the preseason poll of Division II of the Southwestern Lacrosse Conference and are among the favorites to claim the title when the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association holds its annual championships in May. The roster has almost doubled in two years to 33 players, and the talent pipeline is stronger than ever. In September, CSUSM organized its first prospect camp to introduce local high school players to the program. More than 50 kids turned out. “Since the pandemic, our program has made tremendous strides to change the team culture and camaraderie," said Wyatt Ehrhardt, who was hired as an assistant coach in 2018 and took over the head coaching duties two years ago. “We had to go to tournaments to reach out to players and get contact information, have tours on campus to intrigue players to join the team. But due to recent success, I get probably three to four emails a day from players all over the country who want to play for us.” In many ways, from competition level to time commitment to on-field performance, the men’s lacrosse team resembles one of CSUSM’s NCAA Division II programs. Instead, it’s among 12 sport clubs at the university. Housed under Campus Recreation rather than the athletics department, the sport clubs program originated 20 years ago and now includes women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s volleyball, baseball, swimming, surfing, powerlifting, dance and e-sports. The dozen clubs consist of 354 members, more than the number of athletes in CSUSM’s 13 NCAA programs, as well as 28 coaches (14 part-time employees and 14 volunteers). And there is a desire among students for expansion of sport clubs at CSUSM. In the last 18 months, Campus Rec has received inquiries about starting clubs for rugby, field hockey, tennis, wrestling, cross country, track and pickleball. “Sport clubs are a huge part of the college experience for students all over the country,” said Ryan Groth, assistant director of Campus Rec. “They are competitive, student-run organizations. The members may not be on scholarship or have the five days a week of practice that NCAA student-athletes do, but you could argue that sport clubs can help provide a better balance for students who are trying to maintain grades and a social life, as well as utilizing the clubs as their competitive outlet in a sport they are passionate about and talented in. The time, effort and work these students put into their craft is truly incredible.” Campus Rec contributes some money to the sport clubs, but the vast majority of their operational funding comes from dues and fundraising. The total amount spent by the 12 clubs this academic year is expected to approach $330,000. Men’s lacrosse makes up almost half of that at $150,000, and dues of $3,000 per player mean that fundraising must cover the shortfall of more than $50,000. That’s why campaigns like Giving Day and Cougar Crowdfunding are so important to men’s lacrosse, and all the sport clubs. Last year, men’s lacrosse brought in about $11,000 between those two initiatives. (You can give to men’s lacrosse, one of the 11 other clubs or Campus Rec in general at the Giving Day website.) “Giving Day is huge for us,” Contreras said. A business management major, Contreras has been the treasurer of the club for four years. He says the team’s budget has more than doubled during that time, in proportion to its ambition. A hefty chunk of the expenses this season is for travel to out-of-state tournaments that will better challenge a team that last year feasted on regional foes by gaudy margins like 26-9 (University of San Diego), 30-4 (Long Beach State), 32-0 (UC Irvine) and 21-1 (Cal State Fullerton). Contreras stays in constant contact with team manager Charity Jones, who has kept close to the program even after her son’s graduation from CSUSM. “I have the budget pinned on my computer desktop, and we look at it every single day,” said Contreras, who was collecting money for a Krispy Kreme doughnut fundraiser before a practice this month. The focus and drive that Contreras brings to his role as treasurer is mirrored by all the players once they take the field at Mangrum – or “the Mang,” as the team affectionately calls it. There's nothing laid-back about this program anymore. “We’ve become known as a school for lacrosse,” Contreras said. “It’s a combination of players who have strong drive and coaches who aspire to the highest level of play. We have a single goal in mind, and that’s for this program to be one that wins that national championship.” Media Contact Brian Hiro, Communications Specialist bhiro@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7306
- Nuclear State Exhibit Closes Out Fall Arts & Lectures SeriesThe signature Fall Arts & Lectures event features SWANS, a collective of six women artists – Nancy Buchanan, Judith Dancoff, Jane C. Mi, Hillary Mushkin, Sheila Pinkel and Elin O'Hara Slavick – who mine their personal connections to nuclear physics in artworks that challenge the nuclear state. The legacy of over 2,000 nuclear weapon tests and the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan has had profound global effects. The group explores the past and future of nuclear proliferation, with explosive visuals that interrogate the legacy of the bomb, nuclear power and uranium mining. Since 1945, atomic bombs have altered global politics, ecosystems and even our biology. Can art alter those landscapes? The event will begin with an informal coffee and tea at 10 a.m. on Nov. 29 in the Kellogg Library Reading Room, followed by a workshop at 10:30 (RSVP required) and the artist panel at noon (Eventbrite ticket) that will be moderated by arts professor Lucy HG Solomon. CSUSM’s Arts & Lectures series offers a diverse lineup of artistic, cultural and scholarly events every semester based on input and proposals from students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members. Attendees can reserve tickets online via the Arts & Lectures website. What: Arts & Lectures event “SWANS: Slow War Against the Nuclear State” Who: SWANS, a collective of six women artists When: Wednesday, Nov. 29 10 a.m.: Informal coffee and tea/introductions 10:30 a.m.: Workshop (email RSVP required) Noon: Artist panel (Eventbrite ticket) Where: Kellogg Library Reading Room Cost: Free for CSUSM students; $5 for faculty, staff and alumni; $10 for community members Tickets: Register online Information: Arts and Lectures website Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Environmental Studies Student Takes Garden to New HeightsTucked away on the east side of campus behind the Center for Children and Families, Cal State San Marcos’ garden commonly goes unnoticed by most students. “When I came to San Marcos, I was shocked when I found out there was a 7,000-square-foot garden space,” said Hali Scott, an environmental studies student. Scott was introduced to CSUSM’s garden in 2021. At the time, there were few plants due to the pandemic. With 15 years of gardening experience and knowledge of holistic medicine, Scott knew she could help revitalize the space into something great for students to enjoy. “I remember I would work in the garden for eight hours and I would not see one person come in,” she said. “My goal is to have more students know about the garden. I want them to feel comfortable stopping by. I've worked in other community gardens before and seen spaces just completely transformed, and that’s what I wanted to do at CSUSM.” Scott has helped bring the garden back to life, and now there’s more produce than she knows what to do with. “During the summer, I was basically throwing zucchinis in people's cars because the garden grew so much,” Scott said. Since January 2022, Scott has been a garden manager, working to ensure that the space is engaging and educational for the campus community. She has worked hand in hand with the Environmental Stewards Association (ESA) to help rebuild the garden since the pandemic. There are about 30 members in the association, and students participate in weekly meetings during U-hour. The ESA has built a close-knit community of students who care for and work to improve the garden. “I’ve seen Hali put 110 percent of herself into this garden,” said Raul Ricardez, a history student who is an ESA member and runs the garden’s native pollinator section. “It’s been great working together with her to build the ESA community and bounce ideas off each other.” Ricardez is one of many students in the ESA who have a special connection to the garden. It has become an outlet for Ricardez to honor his father, who died during the pandemic. “My dad always had a connection with the land and plants, and I didn't know that he was planting those seeds in me,” Ricardez said. “That’s what got me started with gardening, and Hali taught me a lot more.” Ricardez, Scott and the ESA have worked together to be resourceful about supplying for the garden. Scott asks local nurseries for small donations and hopes to create more fundraising opportunities for the garden before she graduates in December. “It has been so cool to find a community that cares about gardening as much as I do,” Scott said. “It’s so rewarding to say that I can feed people. “'I’m 30, and I've had 15 years to be able to learn about plants. I’ve been trying to find my path in life. I thought I wanted to be a sustainability consultant after I graduated. But now I'm thinking I have to do something with gardening and plants.” Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
- Alumna Has Told Stories of Military Courage for Three DecadesAmy Forsythe doesn’t fit the traditional definition of historian. She didn’t major in history as a student at Cal State San Marcos in the mid-2000s (her degree was in communication). She doesn’t teach history or speak at history conferences or write about historical eras or figures. Yet there Forsythe was last March, on stage at San Diego State’s Joan B. Kroc Theatre, being inducted into the San Diego Women’s Hall of Fame with six other trailblazing women. Her category: historian. The honor was one that first surprised her, since she has served as a military journalist in two branches of the U.S. armed forces for three decades. Upon reflection, though, as she sat on the stage, it overwhelmed her to be recognized for documenting the stories of service members and their families for so many years, most notably on five combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. “Sharing the courage it takes to wear a uniform and fight and risk everything is a great source of pride for me,” Forsythe said. “I was very honored to be a part of that wonderful, diverse group, and being considered a historian takes it to another level I never even imagined.” Forsythe is nearing the end of her decorated military career, but she’s not done sharing stories of valor. In May 2022, she self-published a book titled “Heroes Live Here: A Tribute to Camp Pendleton Marines Since 9/11.” It takes readers on a journey through the vast training base in Oceanside – where Forsythe served as an enlisted Marine for almost six years leading up to Sept. 11 and where she still works as a civilian public affairs officer – and provides insights behind more than a dozen tributes and monuments on base that pay homage to brave Marines. In her research for the book, Forsythe learned that more Marines from Camp Pendleton were killed in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars than from any other base or station in the United States. “That was a really heavy burden for the community of Oceanside and North County,” she said. “I don’t think a lot of people know the legacy of this base that marked its 80th anniversary last year, so I wanted to shine a light on that.” Last spring, Forsythe visited the Special Collections department of the CSUSM library to contribute a signed copy of her book (anyone can purchase their own inscribed copy by going to heroeslivehere.com). It was just one of several recent examples of her becoming reconnected with her alma mater. Those include meetings with campus and Veterans Services leadership, a speaking gig for the College of Business Administration series “In the Executive’s Chair” and a role as emcee when the San Diego Military Advisory Council gave its Lifetime Achievement Award to Maj. Gen. Tony Jackson, the former chair of CSUSM’s Foundation Board. “In the past, I tried to attend one alumni event a year, but then I realized that there are more opportunities for partnerships,” Forsythe said. “I like finding ways to make connection points and trying to be the glue between Camp Pendleton and the university.” A Santa Rosa native, Forsythe enlisted in the Marines in 1993, five years after she finished high school. She received just the assignment she was seeking by being dispatched to Defense Information School, the U.S. Department of Defense’s version of journalism school, where she learned all aspects of being a public affairs professional in the military – from print, broadcast and radio journalism to community engagement and media relations. After initially being stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, she got orders to go to Camp Pendleton in 1995. Over the next several years, she wore multiple hats, including content producer for the base TV show and reporter for the base newspaper, the Scout. Forsythe left active duty in 2000 to enroll at Palomar College, but everything about her planned life path changed the following year after 9/11 happened. Though she managed to complete her higher education, earning a bachelor’s degree from CSUSM in 2005 and a master’s in global leadership from the University of San Diego in 2009, her status as a combat correspondent came to be dominated by three tours of duty in Afghanistan and two in Iraq over a period of 16 years. As a staff sergeant who gave herself the title of visual information chief, Forsythe led a staff of troops whose task was to collect video footage, interview Marines and assist the media in their reporting. In 2006, for example, she was in charge of the satellite dish that would be transported to Iraqi war zones like Fallujah and Ramadi and be used to connect military leaders with news outlets in America, or to link Marines with the TV stations in their hometowns. It was a great experience for Forsythe, knowing that she was helping to craft the narrative that was being beamed back to the U.S. But it was also a profoundly dangerous one. In December 2006, Megan McClung, a public affairs officer and Forsythe’s boss at the time, was killed when the Humvee in which she was escorting journalists around Ramadi was blown up by an IED. McClung became the first female Marine Corps officer to die in combat during the Iraq War. “I wasn't on the convoy that she was with, but we had been at the same camp,” Forsythe said. “It could have been me, it could have been any one of us. Her death really changed the dynamic, especially about women and public affairs. It's not just the infantry who’s at risk anymore. It's not just young, enlisted combat troops. It's everybody.” After another deployment to the exact same location in 2008, Forsythe left the Marines and accepted an officer commission in the Navy Reserve. (“It was the best decision I ever made,” she said. “I love the Marine Corps, but the opportunities in the Navy are so much wider.”) With the Navy, she was sent to Afghanistan two more times, but she also went to such diverse places as Romania (where she met her husband), Poland, Germany, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Guam. For her final stint in the Middle East, in 2018, she served as the public affairs officer for an Army Special Forces (think Rangers and Green Berets) task force that was charged with training and doing missions with Afghan commandos. “That was a great mission, the height of anything I could have asked for,” she said. “It was surreal for me.” Throughout her illustrious career, whether on dusty battlefields thousands of miles from home or the relative safety of Camp Pendleton, Forsythe has been guided by wisdom best summarized by a colonel she worked under at the peak of the fighting in Iraq in 2006. When communicating to the public about what’s happening in the military, he said, don’t focus on the technology or the equipment or the weapons. Focus on the bravery. “It's pretty scary to step foot in Iraq and Afghanistan, not knowing what's going to happen,” Forsythe said. “It takes a bit of courage that other people don't have, so zero in on those aspects of storytelling. When I’m at a loss for what's unique about a story, I remind myself to find and share the courage. People can relate to that.” Media Contact Brian Hiro, Communications Specialist bhiro@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7306
- EOP Hosts Inspiring Conference for High School StudentsThe Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) welcomed ninth-grade girls from 14 high schools throughout San Diego County for the 28th annual Sisters Gonna Work It Out conference at Cal State San Marcos on Nov. 3. “I've been hosting this conference for 28 years because you are my future,” Michael Lewis, EOP special coordinator/transitional counseling, told attendees. “Today begins a relationship with all of us. When you go to college, we are your resources.” This Thursday, EOP will host the Brothers Gonna Work It Out conference for high school boys. The conference series provides support and strategies to African American, Latinx, Samoan and American Indian high school students who are at risk of facing environmental challenges in school and at home. The Sisters Gonna Work It Out conference included a panel of four professional women who have succeeded in their careers and have compelling personal stories. Althea Williams, founder of She Vets It, a podcast hosted by women veterans that explore topics related to entrepreneurship and career, was the first speaker. Williams flew from Texas to share her experience serving in Afghanistan and Germany, and how she took her path to becoming a business owner. “Everything is possible,” Williams said. “You need to write it down and make a plan and connect with people that have the ability to translate that into something. I'm not just saying that because I was a single mom who had a child at 18. I went through a long journey. But guess what? I ended up getting my MBA. I worked for the chamber of commerce. I was in the military. It doesn't matter what your background is, no matter where you come from. The sky's the limit if you really believe in yourself.” Sharon Whitehurst-Payne, who serves as a trustee for the San Diego Unified School District, reflected on when she was in eighth grade and there were still Jim Crow laws in Virginia. “I know I don't look that old, but I grew up in a segregated South,” Whitehurst-Payne said. “But my family decided that we were going to go to college.” Whitehurst-Payne became a math teacher when she was 21. In college, she was selected to explore a career path in engineering and computer science at Virginia Tech. “Exploring another field helped me decide what I wanted to do, and that was teaching,” Whitehurst-Payne told attendees. “I'm encouraging you right now. You're here today and you see the university. This is a wonderful place. I remember when it was located at the furniture store. This university did not exist. It was a vision, it was a dream in someone's mind. Don't let the world define who you are and what you're going to be. You decide that and you can do it.” Another speaker, Guadalupe Gonzalez, a San Diego County Office of Education board member and CSUSM alumna, worked as a faculty member at San Diego Mesa College for over 20 years. Gonzalez is the youngest of 11 siblings, and her father died when she was only a year old. To help provide for the family, Gonzalez and her siblings would pick cotton after school until it was dark. “Out of the 11 kids, I was the only one that went to college,” Gonzalez said. “Because I surrounded myself with people that told me I could do it. I grew up being told that all I had to do was learn how to cook and clean. I skipped a grade and graduated high school at 16. But what did I do at 17? I got married because that's what I was raised to do. I got pregnant at 17 years old. But guess what? He was not a great guy. He ended up being an abuser.” While raising four children, Gonzalez took college classes when she could. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree at 38 years old and obtained her master’s from San Diego State when she was 40. “You may not graduate from college when you're 22,” Gonzalez said. “You may not even do it at 38 like I did, but the point is that you can do it.” CSUSM President Ellen Neufeldt completed the panel by sharing her personal path to higher education. Neufeldt encouraged the audience to consider becoming a college president one day. “It's really important that more females do this job, especially more females of color because that's how we're going to change the system to make sure that more and more people are finding their way in,” Neufeldt said. Media Contact Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314
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