CSU committee reviews civil‑rights program reviews and systemwide reporting as AVC prepares to depart

The Committee on University and Faculty Personnel of the California State University Board of Trustees heard a systemwide update on civil‑rights programming and services and on progress implementing California State Auditor recommendations during a committee meeting. Interim Vice Chancellor Al Liddicott introduced the item and Associate Vice Chancellor Haley Schwarzkopf presented the data and findings; Cal Poly Pomona President Soraya Coley described campus experience with the review process.

The update matters because it establishes a standardized baseline for how the CSU is tracking reports, investigations and outcomes across 23 campuses and because the chancellor’s office will publicly post an aggregated program‑review report and interactive data dashboards to increase transparency. Interim Vice Chancellor Liddicott said the system expects to make the auditor report publicly available in early February and will submit a status report to the California State Auditor in February 2025, with a further update to the board in March.

Associate Vice Chancellor Haley Schwarzkopf framed the work as mission driven and said the civil‑rights program reviews are one method to measure progress: "We accomplish that through our mission of ensuring that our processes are not only fair, effective, and thorough, but also they honor the humanity of all of those involved." Schwarzkopf reported that the annual report survey collected standardized data systemwide showing 4,530 reports that could fall under the CSU nondiscrimination policy. Of those, 725 resulted in a formal complaint and 433 proceeded to an investigation. The CSU also received 2,428 reports that were referred to other campus partners for review or further action.

Schwarzkopf cautioned that the dataset is a baseline because campuses had not previously tracked using common definitions and that additional disaggregation will be possible once the systemwide unified case management system is implemented. "A large number of reports is not a bad thing," she said, adding that robust reporting can signal that campus communities feel comfortable reporting and trust the processes.

President Soraya Coley described Cal Poly Pomona’s experience as one of the first five campuses to undergo the civil‑rights program review. She said Cal Poly Pomona’s civil‑rights office received top‑two rankings in 26 of 30 assessed categories and identified four categories with areas for continued growth. Coley noted the campus has invested in staff (a full‑time prevention and education specialist, an administrative support coordinator, a dedicated intake coordinator/case manager and a recently hired full‑time conflict‑resolution ombudsperson) and monthly cross‑office case reviews involving civil rights, student affairs, university police and faculty affairs.

Coley said the review recommended expanding visibility of the campus support advisers program — currently focused on students — to better serve staff and faculty, and recommended continuing to streamline investigative processes because investigations can take a long time. The committee also heard that Cal Poly Pomona increased its Title IX and DHR training events from 38 in 2023 to 67 in 2024, a 76% increase.

Interim Vice Chancellor Liddicott summarized progress on the California State Auditor’s recommendations: the CSU expects to complete 15 of the 16 recommendations by the stated deadlines, with the remaining item tied to the implementation of a unified case management system. Committee members noted the contract for the case management system was recently signed and discussed a planned completion date cited as July 2026.

Trustees on the committee praised the progress while warning that budget cuts and staff turnover could strain implementation. Several trustees urged continued attention to campus‑level variation, stressing that systemwide aggregates can mask campuses that still need more support. Trustee comments highlighted oversight committee briefings with front‑line Title IX practitioners and noted improvements in clarity and support but acknowledged some ongoing concerns remain.

The committee was also the setting for numerous public expressions of thanks to Associate Vice Chancellor Schwarzkopf; members noted her upcoming departure from the Chancellor’s Office and acknowledged her leadership in building systemwide civil‑rights programming. The item was presented as information; no formal action or vote was taken on the civil‑rights update.