The artwork was created by Bonnie Burleson.

    San Francisco State University (SFSU) is part of the California State University (CSU) system, which awards the largest number of undergraduate degrees of any public or private institution in the state of California, typically awarding twice as many baccalaureate degrees as the University of California system each year.  In 1999-00, SFSU awarded 4,149 undergraduate degrees and 1,161 masterís degrees.  The universityís current enrollment is 28,320 students, making it the fourth largest in the CSU system and the 49th largest of all the institutions of higher education in the United States (Chronicle of Higher Education, Vol.  47, No. 1, 9/1/00, p. 24).

    Reflecting the ethnic and cultural composition of the San Francisco Bay Area in which it is situated, SFSU is a comprehensive, urban university serving a diverse student population.  For the 2000-01 academic year, of those who declared their ethnicity, students of color comprised 66% of the undergraduate student body and 40% of the graduate students, with a combined overall demographic breakdown as follows: African American 7.4%, American Indian 0.8%, Asian American 29.6%, Chicano/Mexican-American 7.0%, Filipino 11.2%, Other Latino 7.6%, Pacific Islander 0.8%, White Non-Latino 30.8%, All Other (including biracial) 4.8%.  This diversity is celebrated and embraced in many ways, from the Cesar Chavez Student Union to the Malcolm X mural that stands at its entrance to the scholarly activities of the students and faculty of the nation's only College of Ethnic Studies. SFSU is proud to be officially recognized by the US Department of Education as a Minority Serving Institution (MSI).

    In that regard, SFSU has a distinguished record of not only recruiting and retaining but also graduating minority students.  In the annual report published by Black Issues in Higher Education on degrees awarded to minority students in the United States, SFSU consistently ranks among the top 15 colleges and universities in the country in the numbers of baccalaureates awarded to minorities across all disciplines, based on data gathered by the National Center for Education Statistics.  For the 1999-00 academic year, SFSU was ranked as #13 in the nation in this regard and #38 in the nation in the total number of master's degrees awarded to minorities  (Black Issues in Higher Education, June 7, 2001). Additionally, in the April 2000 issue of Hispanic Magazine, SFSU was ranked 6th in the nation for excellence in recruiting and retaining Latino students, ahead of such universities as UCLA and the University of Texas, and received the highest rating of all the CSU campuses listed.

    The Biology Department considers research and teaching to be complementary activities that lead to the development of outstanding investigators.  The Departmentís success in integrating these two activities is reflected in the report from a recent external review team (ERT).  The report states the Departmentís strengths as the following:  "(1) It ranks first (#1) in the nation of 529 "Masterís Degree granting institutions" in terms of number of graduates going on to higher degrees according to a recent report of the National Science Foundation. (2) With the help of the Dean of Research and Sponsored Programs, it attracted roughly $11 M in external funding in AY 99-00. (3) With the help of the College Dean, it has attracted unusually gifted faculty. (4) The number and level of research projects, graduate research students, and currency of research techniques is approaching that of R1 institutions, a singular achievement for a CSU campus. (5) The faculty showed considerable evidence of dedication to biology and to their students. (6) The established faculty and younger faculty exhibited strong, positive reinforcement and mutual support. (7) The ERT witnessed an unusually good relationship and partnership between department personnel and their College Dean, their Undergraduate Dean, and their Graduate and Sponsored Programs Dean. (8) The involvement of the administration in the program review process, with high levels involved in both entry and exit interviews and ultimately culminating in a MOU signed by the Provost, significantly improves the chances of success in improving department operations. In the judgement of this ERT, the SFSU review process is the best yet encountered in the CSU and should be used as a system-wide model. (9) The curriculum is diverse, attractive to a wide variety of students interested in biology, and does not exhibit significant bottlenecks or numbers of inefficient classes. (10) The product of the department, its graduates, are held in high esteem by professionals in the area, by their prospective employers because of the many lab and field skills they learn from the lab intensive curriculum."