SF State strengthens academic advising with $3.9M grant from the Stupski Foundation

San Francisco – March 9, 2020 – San Francisco State University announced today a $3.9 million grant from the Stupski Foundation, a nonprofit that funds Bay Area organizations that address postsecondary success and other relevant issues in the community. With this new grant, San Francisco State will strengthen its commitment to predicative analytics, allowing the University to provide a more tailored, holistic and proactive approach to academic advising for its students.

“The University is grateful for the Stupski Foundation’s generosity, which will further support our use of predictive analytics for proactive advising,” said Lori Beth Way, dean of Undergraduate Education and Academic Planning at SF State. “We’re excited to be part of this partnership that will strengthen our advising capacity, especially for first-year students.”

Aligning with the California State University Graduation 2025 Initiative goals, the grant will allow SF State to hire more advisors and staff members over the next three years. This will help SF State maximize its use of the Educational Advisory Board predictive analytics advising system, a technology platform that provides real-time data the University can use to identify students most in need of support. By increasing its use of predictive analytics, the University can better analyze indicators of student success and potential challenges for students on a daily basis and proactively reach out to provide just-in-time guidance to students.

By hiring more advisors, SF State will also significantly reduce its student-to-advisor ratio, especially for first-year students. This is an important endeavor for the University, as it has identified first-year retention and persistence into students’ second year of college as significant priorities. Cutting this ratio will give students more access to an advisor who can guide them early and often, offering support before they encounter challenges that would prevent them from continuing and graduating, such as failing a course or being placed on academic probation.

“San Francisco State University reflects the diversity of the Bay Area and the innovation associated with the city it calls home,” said Jennifer Nguyen, director of postsecondary success at the Stupski Foundation. “We are grateful to work with the visionary and successful leadership team at SF State to ensure that first-year students and beyond have a consistent pathway to graduation.”

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About San Francisco State University

San Francisco State University is a doctoral public university serving students from the San Francisco Bay Area, across California and beyond, with nationally acclaimed programs that span a broad range of disciplines. Nearly 30,000 students enroll at the University each year, and its more than 253,000 graduates have contributed to the economic, cultural and civic fabric of San Francisco and beyond. Through them — and more than 1,700 world-class faculty members — SF State proudly embraces its legacy of academic excellence, community engagement and commitment to social justice. For more information, visit sfsu.edu.

About the Stupski Foundation

The Stupski Foundation is investing all of its assets in the next 10 years to address some of the Bay Area's and Hawaiʻi’s biggest challenges so one day everyone can benefit from the wealth of opportunities and resources in the places we call home. The Stupski Foundation primarily funds organizations in the Bay Area and Hawai‘i that address food security, postsecondary success, early brain development, and serious illness care.