Tag: Chico State

Irked Zingg backed off $300,000 art donation

Former Chico State president wanted name removed from campus Recital Hall
by Dave Waddell | Posted July 31, 2024

photo courtesy of Natasha Doron/The Orion
Inside Chico State’s recital hall when, in 2017, feminist activist Gloria Steinem spoke.

After Chico State’s spanking new recital hall was christened in 2016, it came as a shock to some faculty that it was named for retiring university President Paul Zingg and his wife.

But today, what was once the Paul and Yasuko Zingg Recital Hall goes by the stripped-down name of Recital Hall.

Why did the university quietly remove the name of its former president?

The short of it is that Paul Zingg, in 2021, feeling ignored by the university he long led and disrespected by his successor, came to want it that way. He also wanted back the art collection, appraised at more than $300,000, that he had gifted to Chico State’s Janet Turner Print Museum as part of the naming deal. read more

Chico State passes ceasefire resolution

University acts to protect free speech and stop harassment
by Leslie Layton | Posted May 8, 2024

photo by Karen Laslo
Sam Tietz said he attended the May 6 walkout to stand against genocide.

May 9 update: The Chico State Academic Senate approved a revised draft of the ceasefire resolution today, with only three votes in opposition.

The Academic Senate at Chico State University will consider a ceasefire resolution at its May 9 meeting that also supports what it calls “First Amendment Protections” for students opposed to Israel’s war in Gaza and for Jewish students.

The meeting of the Academic Senate – a policy-setting body with 32 voting members representing the university’s various colleges – will come after what is likely to be two days of rallies this week on the lawn in front of Kendall Hall. read more

University Farm director brings global perspective

Orellana's priorities: water, technology, community engagement
by Ken Smith | Posted April 5, 2024

photo by Ken Smith
Ricardo Orellana brings a global perspective to his role as the Chico State University farm director.

Ricardo Orellana grew up against the backdrop of a 12-year civil war in his native El Salvador, but his childhood memories are thankfully dominated by more peaceful recollections — namely, of working with the cows at his grandmother’s farm outside the small town of Usulutá.

“It wasn’t a large farm, just five or six acres with about 25 milking cows and a few other animals,” Orellana said during a recent interview. “She also grew cassavas, tomatoes, beans and corn. It was very rural, and how I fell in love with agriculture.”

In the ensuing decades, that passion has carried Orellana around the world, and most recently to Chico. Orellana was hired as the director of the Chico State University Farm last year, and this month will celebrate one year serving in that capacity. He is the first person of color and the first native Spanish speaker to hold that job, and brings a unique international perspective to the position. read more

CSU faculty reach tentative deal

Strike over as deal ends campus picketing in Chico
by ChicoSol staff | Posted January 23, 2024

photo by Karen Laslo
Photography professor Aaron Draper was among striking faculty Jan. 22.

Picketing at Chico State by striking faculty ended Jan. 22 when the California Faculty Association (CFA) reached a tentative deal with administration.

Faculty have been offered a 5% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023 and a possible 5% salary increase coming on July 1 of this year. In addition, the CSU will raise the salary floor for the lowest-paid instructors.

What turned out to be a one-day strike marked the first time faculty unions at all 23 campuses have coordinated a labor action of this nature, said Assistant Professor Lindsay Briggs, one of the striking faculty members. — Leslie Layton read more

Chico State professors strike, joining a CFA statewide action

Aguilar-McKay's sign: "Si se puede"
by Leslie Layton | Posted January 22, 2024

photo by Karen Laslo
Nora Aguilar-McKay from the School of Education faculty prepares bilingual teachers who will teach multilingual students.

About 150 faculty and their supporters joined the picket line today as Chico State University employees participated in the statewide, five-day action that cancelled many classes in the semester’s first week.

CSU faculty unions statewide — that includes instructors, librarians, coaches and counselors — are asking for a 12 percent salary increase after years of small increases that fail to keep up with inflation, said Associate Professor Lindsay Briggs.

Today’s picketing across the state marks the first time all 23 California State University campuses have coordinated a strike action. read more

Chico State spirals into deep hole

Commentary: "The trust Hutchinson wants to rebuild may be hard won"
by Ariana Powell | Posted January 5, 2023

photo courtesy of Ariana Powell

It’s been two years since the start of Professor David Stachura and Chico State’s spiral into a deep hole. Stachura’s alleged decision to engage in a “consensual” relationship with one of his students started it all. Following that, Chico State decided to keep the investigation, and later reports of violent threats, from its faculty, staff and student population.

Even though I am not a part of the biology department at Chico State, there are multiple aspects surrounding the handling of the Stachura situation that raised red flags for me -– both as a Chico State student and a woman.

When I first became aware of the situation, I was surprised by the school’s secrecy. In a society where the #MeToo movement is well known, and there is growing awareness surrounding sexual harassment, I would have thought that the school would be far more transparent regarding the “consensual” relationship that Stachura is alleged to have had. read more