FRESNO (KMJ) — In his first address to staff and faculty in 2018, Fresno State President Joseph Castro said he wants to encourage talent and collaboration, but also express concern for undocumented students facing an uncertain future.
“Before I proceed with today’s assembly, I want to take a minute to acknowledge the recent loss of one of our own undergraduate students,” started President Castro.
“Omar Nemeth, a biochemistry major, died at the young age of 19 on January 3rd.
“Even though we’re a large campus, we experience tremendous sadness whenever we lose a member of our campus community. Especially someone so young.”
The crowd gathered inside the Save Mart Center paused for a moment before Thursday’s speech resumed.
“Our work together is vitally important to the future of the Central Valley and beyond,” continued President Castro.
“We know that talent exists in every single household. One of our goals is to help unleash that talent and prepare a new generation of leaders.
“I cannot imagine a more inspirational call to action than this one.”
Those assembled were asked to step outside their comfort zone to help students succeed.
“The future success of our campus lies in greater collaboration between and among our talented faculty, staff, and students.”
Ongoing discussions in Washington D.C., to establish the future of Dreamers in the United States, was also touched upon.
“In our current political environment our Dreamers are rightly concerned about their future. And so are we.”
Following the speech, President Castro spoke to the assembled media and revealed that there are contingency plans if federal lawmakers fail to come to a decision. He did not detail the plans, but did reveal anything Fresno State did would be part of a wider CSU effort.
“My goal is to make sure that these students graduate. That’s ultimately my job as President is to make sure that each of our 25,000 students get a high quality education and graduate.”
Hear the report from KMJ’s Dominic McAndrew as it aired:
