Palm Desert among cities considered for new CSU campus

The City of Palm Desert is among the locations being considered for a potential 4-year Cal State University campus.

The California State Legislature has contracted an independent team of consultants to analyze all five different locations that are on the shortlist including Stockton, Chula Vista, Concord, Palm Desert, and San Mateo County.

"I think that’s cool. I think it’s great to have more majors and extend our students here," Sophomore Communications major, Lucy Cisneros said.

Cisneros is a student studying at the Cal State San Bernardino extension campus in Palm desert, off Cook Street and Berger Drive. If plans were to move forward, that same location would expand into a full university.

"I think that’s great. I think it’s good for the community," Sophomore Business Management major, Alfredo Orozco said.

"It is a tiny campus and it’s smaller than [College of the Desert], so to gain more people here, I think it would be awesome to have more people graduate from the desert," Cisneros said.

The potentially new campus would be the 24th addition to the existing CSU's throughout the state.

"Nothing comes close to what a college will bring to a town that doesn't have a standalone 4-year college," Coachella Valley Economic Partnership CEO Joe Wallace said.

The organization is one of many vying for a full-fledged CSU Palm Desert campus.

"People that are born here are relatively low-income. To have to drive to San Bernardino or Riverside every day is enough of a financial burden-- it might keep these students who are qualified for college, who want to attend college, they want to have a better life, and if they can't afford the gasoline they can't do it," Wallace said.

Several students have chosen to study locally, because it is a more financially sound option as a student.

"It’s convenient. It’s pretty close, not too far not a big hassle for us," Sophomore Jimmy Andrews said.

"I just thought I’d stay home for a couple years to save me some money," Cisneros said.

Some students are able to finish school at the desert extension campus, but then there are others who aren't so lucky.

I’m probably taking my third quarter at the main campus," Freshman and Computer Engineering major Eric Beltran said.

There are limited resources for Beltran's course track. He says he is trying to get general education classes out of the way, locally. He already has taken some classes at the main campus in San Bernardino.

"It’s 2 hours over there, probably a little bit more back, so probably 5 hours in driving," Beltran said.

He says he plans to eventually move, to avoid having to drive every day.

"If I would have been able to complete my degree here, I would have loved it a lot," Beltran said.

On Friday, a group of city leaders will be meeting with the team of consultants for a round-table discussion on the matter.