The California State University Board of Trustees recently launched a graduation initiative that’s expected to raise the system’s graduation rate from 46 to 54 percent in the next six years.

The initiative would also clear the path to graduation for underrepresented students by halving the existing gap in the students’ degree attainment, said Erik Fallis, spokesman for the chancellor’s office.

All 23 campuses will formulate individual plans to increase their respective graduation rates and help underrepresented students graduate from college, according to a CSU press release.

Possible solutions include requiring fewer general education courses, utilizing online technology, advising students early to make sure they take the required courses for graduation, and providing summer bridge programs to prepare incoming freshmen for college-level work before they enter the university.

At Sacramento State, planning for the graduation initiative started in fall 2009, said John Kepley, special assistant to President Alexander Gonzalez.

“In response to the CSU initiative, President Gonzalez convened a group to begin working on the initiative last semester,” Kepley said.

This group includes members of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, the University Budget Advisory Committee, the Strategic Planning Council and members of the president’s Cabinet.

Joseph Sheley, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said Sac State has been asked to pay special attention to groups that have lower graduation rates.

“In this particular context, the underrepresented students that are getting the highest focus are African-American and Hispanic students, primarily because their graduation rates are not quite as high as the student body average,” Sheley said.

According to a 2008 assessment by the Office of Institutional Research, there are 11,465 underrepresented students at Sac State. These include Latinos, African-Americans, American Indians and Asians.

Statistics show that the graduation rates among Sac State Latino, African American and Native American students lag behind those of white and Asian American students.

Brian Ferguson, California Faculty Association spokesman, said that while the CFA believes the graduation initiative is well-intentioned, it seems “gimmicky.”

“At a time when budget cuts are really hindering the quality of education, we find it interesting that the chancellor is trying to increase graduation,” Ferguson said.

Requiring fewer General Education courses, for instance, would “narrow down” the kind of education that students get, Ferguson said.

“We’re going to have to see how it develops,” he said. “We just want to make sure that any initiative like this that’s put forward continues to meet the quality of education.”

Kristine Guerra can be reached at [email protected].