A bright outlook for the year ahead at SFSU

Author: Matt Itelson

August 22, 2025

Seven people smile while posing for a photo with the Alli Gator mascot in the middle pointing their fingers horizontally and with one of the other people flashing a peace sign

Photo Credit: Photos by Juan Montes

Faculty and staff join in community at annual Opening Convocation ceremony

With a new school year about to begin, the outlook at San Francisco State University is bright. Our faculty and staff joined in community on Aug. 21 for the Opening Convocation, a traditional academic ceremony celebrating each new academic year. The event took place in McKenna Theatre and was streamed live.

In his speech, Associated Students President Brandon Foley talked about his appreciation for the dedication of our Gator faculty and staff, encouraging a continued focus on the wellbeing of our students.

“While we continue our advocacy and fight for justice and a better San Francisco State in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., never underestimate the good you can do in a single day right here on campus,” said Foley, a graduate student in Electrical and Computer Engineering. “The extension you give to a student because they’re going through a rough patch in life might be the reason they stay enrolled next semester. That office birthday celebration — which by the way, if you’re thinking of doing it, definitely do it — could be the highlight of someone’s day. The resources you decide to share, even though if it’s not specifically a part of your job, could be someone’s lifeline, for real. These choices you make aren’t just kindness — They’re changing lives one step at a time.”

In SFSU President Lynn Mahoney’s annual address on the state of the University, she discussed opportunities to prepare students for careers that will require skills in artificial intelligence and strategies to boost enrollment.

“We will lean into what makes SFSU distinctive, in ways that the purpose-driven young people of today and tomorrow can relate to,” Mahoney said. “A university that embraces its responsibility for post-collegiate outcomes. A university that transforms lives and promises upward mobility. A university where equity, innovation and community meet.”

Other speakers included California Faculty Association chapter President Brad Erickson, CSU Employees Union chapter President Christine Hintermann, Staff Council President Dylan Mooney and Academic Senate Chair Jackson Wilson. Administrators welcomed the four new tenure-track faculty members joining the Gators this year.

Convocation also featured an awards ceremony honoring our distinguished faculty and staff:

Excellence in Service (Staff): Myla Adeva, senior credential analyst in the Graduate College of Education
Excellence in Teaching (Lecturer): Daniel Ciomek, lecturer faculty in Information Systems
Excellence in Teaching (Tenured): Rama Ali Kased, associate professor of Race and Resistance Studies
Excellence in Professional Achievement (Tenured): Anthony Pahnke, associate professor of International Relations
Excellence in Service (Tenured): Jackson Wilson, professor of Recreation, Parks and Tourism; president of the SFSU Academic Senate

Foley, the Associated Students president, ended his speech with a rallying call to get things going: “Now let’s make it matter. Thank you so much and go Gators!”

Visit the Academic Senate website to learn more about the Opening Convocation.