California State University, Chico is the second-oldest campus in the California State University system. It is located in Chico, California, about ninety miles north of Sacramento. California State University, Chico is commonly known as Chico State or Cal State, Chico .

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History

On March 10, 1887, a legislative act was enacted to create the Northern Branch State Normal School of California. Less than a month later, Chico was chosen as the location. On June 24, 1887, General John Bidwell donated 8 acres (32,000 m²) of land from his cherry orchard. Then on July 4, 1888, the first cornerstone was laid. On September 3, 1889, doors opened for the 90 enrolled students. The library opened on January 11, 1890 with 350 books. On June 20, 1891 the first graduation took place, a class of 15.

In 1910, Annie Bidwell donated an additional two acres (8,000 m²) of land to be used for work with elementary agriculture. The next year Mrs. Bidwell donated an orange orchard lot 55 x as the children's playground, which is connected to the Training School. ^[1] Twenty years later in 1921, legislation was enacted to change the school's name to Chico State Teacher's College. In 1922, Chico State Teacher's College added a junior college curriculum and awarded a certificate after two years. Also in 1922 Bidwell Mansion was turned into a women's dormitory, Bidwell Hall. In 1923 the first college paper, The Collegian was published. In 1924, the state board of education allowed the school to grant baccalaureate degrees. Also in 1924, the wildcat was chosen as the mascot. In 1925 the alumni organization was founded. In 1927 a fire destroyed the Normal Building. That same year a gym was built on the grounds of Bidwell Mansion. In 1929, the corner stone for the new administration building was laid on top of Normal Building's original corner stone. In 1929 the student bookstore was established.

In 1935, Bidwell Hall was turned into a recreation and student center - the first student union. Also in 1935 a legislative act changed the college name from Chico State Teachers College to Chico State College. In 1937 evening classes started on campus and athletic fields were purchased from the Chico Board of Education. In 1939, chimes were installed in library tower. Sororities held a fund drive to raise $600 for them. In 1940 the college offered civilian pilot classes.

In 1948, dorms for 200 male students were set up on west side of Warner Street. The buildings were built during World War II and were used as bachelor quarters for a Marine Hospital in Klamath Falls, Oregon. They were brought to Chico State in sections and reconstructed in the spring of 1948. The two story barrack-like structures had 36 rooms, each occupied by 4 students. North Hall later became a girls dormitory. The speech and debate team was founded by Herbert Rae, Speech & Drama Department Chair.

In 1950, California's governor allowed state colleges to grant Master of Arts degrees. In 1951 the college reorganized from 18 departments into seven divisions with chairmen. Then in 1956 a new flagpost and sign for in front of Kendall Hall was donated by the class of 1956. In the following year, 1957, a new cafeteria was built the rose gardens were planted. In 1958 the first "telecourse" was taught, Psychology 51.

KCSC, a student run radio station launched, broadcasting old-time radio dramas on the campus public address system was launched in 1951.

In 1972, Chico State College became California State University, Chico as a result of legislation passed in 1971.

In 1975, broadcasts of classes through closed circuit TV were used for the first time by residents in Oroville, Marysville and Colusa. Also in 1975, The Orion, the campus student newspaper published its first issue. In 1977, the other campus paper, The Wildcat , changed its name to Chico News and Review and moved off campus to become an independent publication. In 1978 bike riding was restricted on campus.

Chico State's the library was renamed for Ted Meriam in 1981. Notably, the 75th Pioneer Days was held in 1985, but the event was cancelled in 1987, ostensibly because of a riot.

In 1989 The Orion wins the National Pacemaker Award, the first of nine the paper has won. CSU Chico opened its first sub-campus in Redding, affiliated with Shasta College, in 2007.

Currently, there are six on-campus dorms. Whitney, Shasta and Lassen halls are on the main campus, while Esken, Mechoopda and Konkow are near the athletic fields about a block and a half away from the main campus. Whitney, Shasta and Lassen are named after the major mountains in Northern California, and the others are named after Indian tribes which used to inhabit the area. University Village or "UV" is a university-owned dorm about a mile off campus. Currently, the University is building another dormitory, to be named Sutter Hall, between Whitney Hall and Lassen and Shasta Halls.

Chico State is known for academic excellence in engineering, science, computing, business, technology, environmental studies, and communication.

Rankings

Academic

• 6th Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2008)
• 4th Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2007)
• 4th Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2006)
• 3rd Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2005)
• 3rd Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2004)
• 4th Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2003)
• 3rd Best Public Master's Level University in the West (2002)

Other

• Grist.org names Chico State the 8th Most Sustainable College Campus in the World ^[2]
• 2nd Most Sustainable College Campus in the United States of America
• Number 2 party school, Playboy Magazine, Party School Rankings (2002)
• Number 1 party school, Playboy Magazine, Party School Rankings (1987)

School statistics

• Enrollment: 15,025
• Average GPA (admitted students): 3.41
• Average SAT: 1238 (This represents the old SAT scoring system, new SAT statistics have not yet been published.)
• Average GRE:1210 (Old GRE scoring system)
• Average ACT: over 24
• Student to Faculty Ratio: 21:1

Demographics

Male to Female Percentage: Male 46% - Female 54%

• Caucasian 65.8%
• Filipino 0.8%
• Mexican American 8.6%
• Other Latino 3.0%
• Asian American 5.0%
• African American 2.0%
• American Indian 1.1%
• Pacific Islander 0.5%
• Unknown 13.2%

The Orion

The Orion is Chico State's nationally acclaimed school newspaper, and has been named (on several occasions) the number one weekly collegiate publication. ^[4]

Athletics

The school's athletic director is Anita Barker. The school competes in Division II of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. ^[5]

The school sponsors soccer, basketball, cross country, golf, and track and field for both men and women. The school sponsors softball and volleyball for women, and baseball for men. The school finished third in the 2004-2005 NACDA Director's Cup.

CSU Chico won the NCAA Division II national championships in men's swimming and diving in 1973, 1974 and 1976. The program was eliminated several years after the 1976 national championship season.

The baseball team won the NCAA Division II national championship in 1997 and 1999 and has been in contention for the title often.

In 2001 the women's rugby team won a national championship.

Fight Song

Chico State Fight Song

Hail to Chico State
She's our dear old alma mater
Where our teams so great
lead us on to victory
Rah Rah Rah
Where our men are square
and our fair coeds are fairer
Come let us give a cheer
for dear old Chico State

Service

California State University, Chico has once again been designated as a of the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction. This honor, the second in a row for CSU, Chico, highlights the University’s civic engagement activities during 2007.

In 2006, the year the community service honor roll program was launched, CSU, Chico was one of 10 schools to be a finalist for the Higher Education Community Service Award for Excellence in General Community Service.

In 2006-07 CSU, Chico was first among 215 colleges and universities in the U.S. by raising a record $187,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the largest childhood cancer research center in the world. CSU, Chico also set for the highest number of participants writing the highest number of letters on behalf of .

CSU, Chico has set for the number of volunteers taking part to raise money (2,021) and the number of letters sent out requesting support (in excess of 37,000).

Among the civic engagement at CSU, Chico are Community Action Volunteers in Education and Community Legal Information Center . CAVE student volunteers help more than 30,000 clients annually, and CLIC student volunteers provide free referrals and legal information to more than 13,000 clients.

Sustainability

CSU, Chico has received a number of honors for its leadership role in and environmental awareness and education. CSU, Chico’s won the award for Student Energy Efficiency in the CSU in April 2008. In 2007, the University was awarded the by the National Wildlife Federation for efforts to reduce global warming.

The University was on a list of 15 colleges and universities around the world cited for their leadership in sustainability and environmental programs. , a well-known Web-based environmental news and commentary publication, has placed CSU, Chico on its list of “15 Green Colleges and Universities.” , a popular Web site that bills itself as “The consumer’s guide to the green revolution,” has featured in a list of 10 top colleges and universities that includes Harvard University, Duke University, Middlebury College and Oberlin College.

California State University, Chico Professor , shared in the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize as a lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change , and is also Senior Fellow for Climate Change and Biodiversity at the United Nations Environment Program – World Conservation Monitoring Center (UNEP-WCMC).

CSU, Chico University Printing Services has been awarded Forest Stewardship Council] chain-of-custody by Scientific Certification Systems (certificate number SCS-COC-001517), supporting CSU, Chico’s campuswide commitment to sustainability. CSU, Chico is one of the first universities in the country to receive this certification.

CSU, Chico's executive director of the is Scott McNall. Complete information on the University's involvement in sustainable issues is listed on the Web site.

Notable alumni

Name	Known for	Relationship to Chico
Nelson Briles	Former Major League Baseball Player
Don Carlson	Former National Basketball Association player
Raymond Carver	Author
Amanda Detmer	Actress
Clair Engle	United States Senator	BA, 1930
Ken Grossman	Co-founder Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Dominik Jakubek	Goalkeeper for Major League Soccer
Mat Kearney	Columbia Recording Artist
Adnan Khashoggi	Saudi businessman
Sandra Lerner	Co-founder of Cisco Systems
Michael Messner	sociologist, Professor at the University of Southern California	BA, 1974; MA, 1976
Bob Mulholland	Political Strategist
Christopher Hudson	Photographer
Matt Olmstead	Writer and television producer
Maureen O'Toole	Olympic silver medalist
Lubna al Qasimi	Minister for Economy and Planning of the United Arab Emirates
Ed Rollins	Political Strategist	BA, 1968
Carolyn Shoemaker	Astronomer
Mike Thompson	Member of the United States Congress
Bill Wattenburg	Radio host, author, inventor
Chris Wondolowski	Midfielder for Major League Soccer
Don Young	Member of the United States Congress	BA, 1958

School presidents

• - ?, 1889-1893
• Robert F. Pennell, 1893-1897
• Carleton M. Ritter, 1893-1897
• Charles C. Van Liew, 1899-1910
• Allison Ware, 1910-1917
• Elmer Isaiah Miller, 1910, 1917-1918
• Charles Osenbaugh, 1918-1930
• Clarence Knight Studley, 1930-1931
• Rudolph D. Lindquist, 1931-1931
• Aymer Jay Hamilton, 1931-1950
• George Glenn Kendall, 1950-1966
• Robert Eugene Hill, 1966-1970
• Lew Dwight Oliver, 1970-1971
• Stanford Cazier, 1971-1979
• Robert L. Fredenburg, 1979-1980
• Robin Wilson, 1980-1993
• Manuel A. Esteban, 1993-2003
• Scott McNall, 2003-2004
• Paul Zingg, 2004-present

Cultural references

• Chico State mentioned as #1 party school in Seth McFarlane's American Dad! on FOX (episode 12 "Stan of Arabia Pt. 1," aired November 6, 2005)
• 1997 Chico State's party reputation mentioned in King of the Hill, Bobby Hill's girlfriend Connie says, “I want to go to a party school..yeah Chico State!” ^[6]
• In January 1987 Playboy Magazine named Chico State as the #1 Party School in the country.

References

1. University Archives: Chico State Normal School (1887-1921)
2. 15 Green Colleges and Universities | Grist | Main Dish | 10 Aug 2007
3. California State University, Chico
4. About The Orion
5. Wildcat Athletics
6. Chico Pop Culture References