Welcome Wednesday, the kick-off program for Fresno State's new FresWoW! Weeks of Welcome 2014 campaign, was designed to convey a strong sense of school spirit and belonging and provide easily accessible resources to students prior to the start of classes.  Held the day before classes on August 20 at Maple Mall from 3-7pm, the event   provided new and returning students – residential and commuter, undergraduate and graduate – a convenient opportunity to complete processes and tasks in a celebratory environment.  The resource fair held outside Joyal Administration Building allowed students to print out their course schedule, get a classroom tour, complete the required online new student alcohol awareness survey, purchase their parking hang tag, pay their tuition   bill, complete financial aid business, get assistance with their Fresno State email, pick up their ID card and planner, sign up for intramurals, and purchase their football season tickets.

The atmosphere of fun and welcome was accomplished through a free barbeque dinner and free Fresno State t-shirt for everyone, pep band performance, DJ, giveaways and inflatable games. As many offices, individuals and divisions were involved in the planning, marketing and implementation of Welcome Wednesday, the campus response was tremendous: 2000 students attended the event and the meal check-in recorded 1257 individual student IDs. Athletics sold out 200 season passes for football within the first 45 minutes of the event; ASI distributed more than 800 planners, the Cashier's Office sold over 200 parking passes, 237 ID cards were distributed, and we had lines at the course schedule printing stations throughout the duration of the event. The student band enhanced the celebratory atmosphere and the sense of campus community and school spirit was really wonderful. The success of this event set a great tone for student life, engagement and connection for the academic year.

In Spring 2015, 70 student leaders from Fresno State's fraternities and sororities participated and completed the North American Interfraternity Conference IMPACT program. The two and a half day curriculum/program emphasized leadership development, problem solving, values based decision making, effective communication, and community development. The purpose of this retreat was to build unity and enable positive change within Fresno State's Greek community. During the retreat, student leaders received hands on experimental activities, along with group  reflection time to address any individual concerns.

Finals Cram Jam is a morning and evening event that supports Fresno State students during the stressful week of finals. It takes place once during the fall and spring semester with morning events taking place Monday- Thursday and evening events taking place Monday- Wednesday.  In the mornings, Finals Fuel Stations are made available for students to stop by and grab a quick snack, drink, scantron, blue book and pencil on the way to their exam. In the evenings, USU Productions provided a stress free zone for students in the USU lounge. Students were welcomed to enjoy food, snacks and drinks to give them the strength to continue to study through the night. Stress free activities such as board games and crafts were available to provide students a break from their studying. This year Finals Cram Jams served approximately 9550 students.

Leadership Programs launched the Graduate Student Leadership Institute (GSLI) in Spring 2015 to work specifically with graduate students and their leadership development. The program was created based on need demonstrated by graduate students applying to be participants of programs that were geared for other populations (Emerging Leaders Retreat for new students, Co-Curricular Leadership Certificate for juniors/seniors) and wanting to ensure that we were meeting their needs with a program designed for them. The inaugural GSLI had 14 graduate students in attendance for a 2-day workshop that took place on-campus. The two days consisted of faculty and staff speakers, group work time, as well as experiential learning on the E.D.G.E. Ropes Course. Feedback from the workshops was extremely positive and provided suggestions for improvement for the next time the program is done in Spring 2016.

Two groups of Fresno State students participated in the seventh annual Alternative Spring Break program over spring break from March 30-April 2nd. These students gave up four days of their spring break to be bold and make a difference in the community. The two groups worked together with Grid Alternatives Central Valley and the Every Neighborhood Partnership. While working with these local organizations, the students initiated a sports camp, beautified a neighborhood, and constructed renewable energy sources for two low income families in Fresno. The two teams (30 students) completed 1090 hours of service altogether. The students were able to build relationships with community members and children and gain an unforgettable experience in serving their local community. This year our program and projects received the most press and media coverage than ever before. The coverage highlighted the service our students did throughout the four days in the community. The projects were featured on:

•     KSEE 24 Morning Show, Central Valley Today Show
•     KGPE Channel 47
•     ABC 30
•     The Fresno Bee – Front Page, Video Story, Thumbs Up section
•     Y101 Radio Station – Tell Me Something Good Morning Segment
•     The Collegian
•     Fresno State Focus
•     Fresno State Magazine

Along with receiving media coverage, our program participated in the President’s Showcase of Excellence where they were able to present their recent work in the community.

A campus tradition for 41 years,  Fresno State Vintage Days 2015 welcomed approximately 75,000 people to campus, with (50+) student organizations fundraising over $50,000, and providing the opportunity to showcase university programs, departments, students, and culture through food, fun, performances, and campus resources. A team of 15 students and 9 advisors spent the entire year meeting on a weekly basis planning Fresno State's largest event.