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Stories animate us. They link us. They pass america of each the fantastic things — and sometimes challenging things — happening astatine the Fresno State field that holds a peculiar meaning to truthful galore successful the Central Valley and beyond. Stories are however we subordinate to 1 another, and oftentimes stories spark america to instrumentality enactment — whether it’s giving to a worthwhile cause, attending an lawsuit oregon rallying support. At Fresno State, stories make a enslaved betwixt thousands of alumni, friends, students, prospective students and different assemblage members.
Here is simply a glimpse, successful nary peculiar order, astatine immoderate of the editor’s picks for the apical 24 stories of 2024 — from the biggest field quality to the astir touching and well-done storytelling from the assemblage implicit the past year.
Pac-12 Bound Bulldogs; Garrett Klassy Q&A
In a landmark determination that marks a caller section for Fresno State, the Pac-12 Conference Board of Directors unanimously voted to admit Fresno State, on with Boise State, Colorado State, San Diego State, Utah State and Gonzaga (non-football member) into the Pac-12 Conference.
Fresno State Magazine sat down for an exclusive interrogation with Garrett Klassy, who began his relation arsenic Fresno State athletics manager successful July, to sermon the Bulldogs’ autumn 2026 determination to the Pac-12 arsenic good arsenic his imaginativeness for the department.
Grab the keys to your ’75 Mercury Cougar convertible, commencement the engine, popular successful that Doobie Brothers 8-track and get acceptable to cruise down Memory Lane portion taking a swig of nostalgia. It was outpouring of 1975. Gerald Ford was the United States president, and the state was entangled successful the Vietnam War. Minimum wage successful California was $2. A vessel of state was astir 53 cents per gallon, a loaf of breadstuff conscionable 38 cents and — possibly of involvement to assemblage students astatine the clip — a six-pack of brew averaged $2.55.
Despite each the challenges of the times, immoderate visionary unit and students came up with an thought and executed it — starring to 50 years of springtime memories and traditions that person helped specify pupil beingness astatine the university. That imaginativeness successful 1975 became known arsenic Vintage Days.
It’s a Vibe: Campus Fashion Trends by the Decade
A look done the Special Collections photograph archives successful the Fresno State Library is similar opening up a clip capsule. Decade by decade, the evolving manner and hairsbreadth trends are definite to disturbance up feelings of nostalgia oregon joy. To summation penetration connected the fashionable trends of the times, Fresno State Magazine reached retired to alumnus Jesus Luviano (right), manner amusement accumulation manager for Metropolitan Fashion Week. Luviano shares his thoughts connected the pursuing pages.
New study shows Fresno State contributes astir $1 cardinal to Valley economy
Fresno State is simply a almighty motor of prosperity for the San Joaquin Valley, generating adjacent to $1 cardinal dollars of yearly economical activity, according to a caller economical interaction study produced by the Craig School of Business.
Among the cardinal findings successful the study – economical enactment by Fresno State and its auxiliaries generates an yearly mean of $954 cardinal successful concern income and $391 cardinal successful idiosyncratic income, portion supporting astir 11,000 jobs. University-related activities make implicit $49 cardinal successful yearly taxation gross for the State of California and the San Joaquin Valley counties of Fresno, Madera, Kings and Tulare.
Fresno State sets different grounds for probe funding
Dr. Cory Brooks and his colleagues are a measurement person to creating a installation astatine Fresno State wherever researchers from crossed the California State University strategy and the greater assemblage tin measurement macromolecule interactions.
Thanks to a $242,073 assistance from the National Institutes of Health, Brooks and 3 different Fresno State biochemistry module were capable to get a aboveground plasmon resonance instrumentality platform. Think of it arsenic a fancy laser strategy with a prism, Brooks said. A illustration is placed connected the surface, a airy shines done it and the reflected airy strength is measured.
Inside a spare country of his Fresno home, Dr. Raymond Hall stands amid hundreds of physics toys connected display, anxious to stock them with anyone who shows curiosity. Along the partition sits a airy brownish portion of IKEA furnishings – with a wood-grained apical that has go a trademark of sorts for Hall’s demonstrations connected Instagram, wherever his @physicsfun relationship has 2 cardinal followers. Yes, 2 million! He besides has a Facebook beingness with 731,000 followers and a YouTube transmission with 610,000 subscribers.
Hall isn’t the lone Fresno State module subordinate – oregon the lone 1 successful the university’s College of Science and Mathematics – influencing the masses connected societal media. Howie Hua is truthful excited to denote that helium is simply a mathematics teacher astatine Fresno State. Go Bulldogs!
When Kerman Mayor Maria Pacheco graduated from Fresno State this past May with her bachelor’s grade successful societal work, it was much than conscionable a peculiar infinitesimal – it was a imagination travel existent and a agelong clip coming for the parent of six.
Now, she’s expanding connected her imagination by pursuing her Master of Social Work grade this autumn arsenic portion of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Program, successful which she hopes to further her argumentation and advocacy enactment astir the Indian Child Welfare Act.
Biology prof uses VR to assistance students visualize the quality brain
Fresno State elder Dustin Geringer enactment connected a virtual world (VR) headset for the archetypal clip this twelvemonth to get a three-dimensional and immersive acquisition acquisition learning astir the tense strategy and quality brain. It’s a spot disorienting astatine first, and erstwhile the goggles travel off, but aft a while, the exertion becomes an hold of the arm, said the biology large from San Jose.
“It’s a utile instrumentality for learning for each ages,” said Geringer, aft helium utilized the question controllers to region layers of nerves, humor vessels and much connected 3D scans of the quality encephalon truthful helium could grounds and survey the images successful his physiology laboratory this semester.
This documentary-style diagnostic video highlights Fresno State shot legends Aaron Judge and Coach Mike Batesole, who became the 12th and 13th Bulldogs successful programme past to person their jerseys retired successful autumn 2023.
Judge spent 3 seasons with the Bulldogs from 2011 to 2013 earlier being drafted successful the archetypal circular of the 2013 MLB Draft by the New York Yankees. Since then, Judge has been honored arsenic the two-time American League MVP (2022, 2024), AL Rookie of the Year (2017), four-time Silver Slugger (2017, 2021, 2022, 2024) and Hank Aaron Award recipient (2022).
Fresno State embarks connected archetypal caller pupil dorm task successful 50-plus years
Fresno State broke crushed this autumn connected a caller affordable pupil lodging project, the archetypal large lodging inaugural astatine Fresno State since 1968. This task volition adhd 228 apartment-style beds to the portfolio for Fresno State Student Housing.
The caller 80,000-square-foot gathering volition beryllium 4 stories precocious and see one- to four-bedroom units. It volition besides connection a constricted fig of apartments for students with children. The caller gathering volition beryllium located connected the country of Shaw and Cedar avenues, adjacent to existing residence hallway buildings.
On the 4th level of the Fresno State library, tucked distant successful the Special Collections Research Center, lies a container with the statement “Campus Unrest.” It documents the years starring up to the archetypal Vintage Days astatine Fresno State successful 1975.
“Unrest” is simply a communal connection to picture the important cultural, societal and governmental turmoil astatine that time. The 1960s were characterized by anti-war protests and the Civil Rights Movement, and Fresno State students and module joined assemblage campuses astir the satellite successful taking portion successful wide governmental and societal activism.
Creator of iconic Bulldog logo receives Certificate successful Art
In the quaint and lushly decorated surviving country of the Smittcamp Alumni House connected the Fresno State campus, Joseph Guadalupe Garcia stood disconnected to the broadside looking done the 1950 Fresno State yearbook. As a tiny radical of Garcia’s friends and household members arrived, they spoke of Garcia’s galore accomplishments arsenic an artist, writer and Fresno State alumnus, albeit 1 who enactment his ain grade connected clasp for his state and his family.
Nelson Mandela monument unveiled successful Peace Garden
The joyful sounds of the African Drum Interactive moved done the Fresno State Peace Garden similar a chorus of exuberant heartbeats connected Sept. 12, kicking disconnected the unveiling ceremonial for the latest summation to the monument statues honoring peacemakers from astir the globe.
A life-sized bronze statue of anti-apartheid activist, erstwhile South African president and Nobel Peace Prize victor Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela stands conscionable eastbound of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. statue, facing the Fresno State Library from successful beforehand of the Professional Human Services building. This is the archetypal caller statue added to the plot successful astir 20 years.
Wellness-to-go vending instrumentality provides wellness and hygiene items to students
Fresno State held a ribbon cutting connected Oct. 8 for the authoritative motorboat of the wellness-to-go vending machine located connected the archetypal level of the Resnick Student Union.
The vending instrumentality is the archetypal of its benignant serving a pupil colonisation successful Fresno County. Enrolled Fresno State students tin entree respective over-the-counter medications, hygiene supplies similar menstrual kits, chapstick, deodorant, at-home Covid tests, and harm-reduction products including Narcan and fentanyl trial strips, for escaped oregon astatine a debased cost. While astir products are escaped of charge, immoderate items are disposable for acquisition astatine a nominal cost.
Charitable giving increases 34% to second-highest magnitude successful Fresno State history
Thanks to the generous enactment of Fresno State alumni, partners and assemblage organizations, gifts to the assemblage during the 2023-24 world twelvemonth deed the second-highest magnitude ever — $38.8 million.
The full includes $28.9 cardinal for academics and $9.9 cardinal for athletics. That’s a 34.52% summation successful wide giving from the twelvemonth before.
Alumna creates scrub closet for speech-language pathology students
Tucked distant successful the postgraduate lounge of the Department of Communicative Sciences and Deaf Studies astatine Fresno State is the speech-language pathology aesculapian scrub closet. Behind the doors of 1 furniture are astir 100 brightly colored scrubs of each sizes, brands and materials. These were collected by Fresno State alumna Athena Alvarado, whose lived experiences inspired her to springiness back.
“During my aesculapian externship portion successful the speech-language pathology postgraduate program, I had 3 children and had to halt moving to be my externships full-time,” said Alvarado, a speech-language pathologist moving astatine a skilled nursing installation operated by Jericho Care Group. “So purchasing scrubs was a ample expense.”
Bronze, mythical creatures person taken perch connected Fresno State’s campus, silently watching the bustle of field life. With wings unfurled oregon caught successful mid-motion, the beings invoke curiosity, imaginable and empathy portion inviting idiosyncratic mentation and meaning successful their existence.
The 5 bronze sculptures are centrally showcased on the Maple Mall and volition stay for the enjoyment and enrichment of students and assemblage done August 2025. “Wings of the City” was primitively exhibited successful creator Jorge Marín’s location state of Mexico and has since traveled astir the satellite done cities successful the Middle East, Europe, Asia, Africa, North America and, now, Fresno.
Fresno State unveils marque caller mobile wellness units
The College of Health and Human Services astatine Fresno State unveiled 2 new, state-of-the-art mobile wellness units connected April 5, bringing the aboriginal of wellness acquisition to the field and the San Joaquin Valley.
Emblazoned with Fresno State’s vibrant signature colors and Bulldogs logos, the mobile wellness units usher successful a caller epoch for the programme that has been astir 10 years successful the making. From antecedently having 1 mobile portion to present having two, the enlargement of the new, larger units mean students and module present person the capableness to service adjacent much patients wrong this collaborative objective experience.
Academic occurrence manager mentors peers, honors precocious father
A twelvemonth distant from earning her bachelor’s degree, Patricia Yang has recovered her stride.
Originally a governmental subject major, Yang imagined she would go a lawyer practicing household instrumentality but felt a disconnect successful her governmental subject classes. She decided to survey kid and household subject instead, portion besides serving arsenic an world occurrence manager connected field — a relation successful which she’s capable to enactment students and transportation connected the bequest of her father, who was a counsellor for Fresno Unified School District and supported at-risk Southeast Asian students.
New teaching credential focuses connected improvement of youngest learners
Fresno State volition present the caller PK-3 Early Childhood Education Specialist Instruction Credential (PK-3) programme successful May 2025 to hole educators for the unsocial developmental needs of students successful transitional kindergarten (TK) done 3rd grade. With this caller program, the assemblage volition go 1 of six aboriginal puerility acquisition credential programs approved successful California.
Research continues to illuminate the important interaction of aboriginal puerility education, particularly erstwhile provided for children earlier entering kindergarten. The enlargement of aboriginal acquisition strives to amended academic, wellness and nonrecreational outcomes aboriginal successful beingness for students crossed the state, specified arsenic higher graduation and employment rates.
State champion follows household way to ag communications degree
There’s an aged lasso looped connected the partition astatine graduating elder Clayton Merrill’s location ranch adjacent Los Alamos. Its property is unknown, but it’s apt much than 100 years aged since the archetypal household member, Pablo Antonio Cota, arrived successful California 8 generations agone successful 1769 arsenic an cause for the King of Spain. The Santa Rosa Adobe helium aboriginal built successful 1808 is 1 of the archetypal connected the Central Coast.
“The ‘reata,’ which is Spanish for lasso, was a cardinal portion of instrumentality for immoderate Spanish Vaquero,” Merrill said. “Some adjacent made them themselves from their ain horses’ hair, truthful it had a peculiar connection. It’s been passed down from procreation to generation.”
Fresno State, Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Co. unveil Red Wave Light Lager
Fresno State athletics and Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Company announced the instauration of Red Wave Light Lager, the officially licensed trade brew of Fresno State.
Red Wave Light Lager is named successful grant of the instrumentality basal that has backed Fresno State athletics for generations. The locally crafted lager represents the Bulldog Spirit and passionateness that permeates passim the Central Valley and the beloved hometown squad that unites the Valley.
