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CSUF president praises the value of higher education on ‘Super Sunday’

March 11, 2025

Speaking in front of the congregation at the Second Baptist Church in Santa Ana — the oldest African American church in Orange County — Cal State Fullerton President Ronald Rochon emphasized the importance of higher education for opening doors and creating higher earnings possibilities.

Statistics support the president’s assertions.

Widely cited studies have shown that a college degree has an average lifetime value of $2.8 million, that degree holders have better access to health insurance and retirement plans and have lower rates of unemployment.

But it was Rochon’s own personal journey that seemed to have greater impact on the 300 congregants.

Rochon, who was delivering his first Super Sunday address since becoming president at CSUF in July, was among administrators from all 23 Cal State Universities sharing with congregations at nearly 50 Black churches on Feb. 25.

The initiative is known as “Super Sunday.”

Ivan S. Pitts, Second Baptist Church senior pastor, who himself earned a bachelor’s degree from San Diego State University, said the CSU leaders are providing “powerful examples of leadership.”

Speaking from the podium, Rochon talked about being the first in his family to attend college, earning a degree from Tuskegee University, ranked among the top Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the nation.

Recalling the first time he witnessed Tuskegee’s commencement ceremony, Rochon said he was awed by the pageantry and grandeur of the event.

“And I remember vividly these African American men and women walking across the stage at the beginning of the commencement, and they had these beautiful gowns on, and they were adorned with these stripes on their shoulders and their sleeves,” Rochon said. “I know those are called chevrons. These people were receiving their PhDs in engineering, in literature, in business, and I had no idea what was happening. And I called my mother and said, ‘Mama, I don’t know what I saw, but I want one.’ ”

Before Rochon shared with the congregation, CSUF third-year student Seyi Alli stepped to the podium to share her CSUF experiences with the congregation.

Alli, who is serving in her second term as president of the Black Student Union, acknowledged being a bit worried her first semester because she hadn’t seen any Black people on campus.

Then she learned about the African American Resource Center on campus, which provides resources, services, programs and events that “focus on the total integration and success of African American students.”

From there, the business major got involved with the Black Student Union, where she formed friendships, tapped into the group’s resources and made inroads into possible careers.

Alli said she felt the need to pass the torch “by talking about the ways that Black Student Union has enhanced” her academic journey.

“And I just am very grateful because BSU’s given me so many opportunities to grow as a person and a leader and being involved has given me so much purpose in life,” Alli said. “I’m very passionate about the things I’m doing, and I also just want to share the good experiences I’ve had. It’s a good school but people aren’t really aware of what we have, and I’m just trying to make sure it’s as visible as possible.”

Following the service, outreach directors and staff manned a table in the patio with information about the CSU application and admission process, as well as financial aid scholarships available to Cal State students.

Jordan Hunter, a junior at Long Beach’s Woodrow Wilson High School and a member of the Second Baptist Church youth ministry, said that until heard Alli and Rochon share, he hadn’t been aware of the resources available to African American Students at CSUF.

Hunter said he started high school as a below-average student, skipped class and wasn’t interested in school.

“You won’t fall alone at the campus,” he said. “You have a group of your own. You always have someone to lean on when times get hard. You don’t have to feel alone while you’re on this journey.”

He has since upped his GPA to 3.6.

“All it took for me was to be in class and to want to learn,” he said.

CSUF sophomore Joyce Folorunso, vice president of the Black Student Union, learned about the campus group from Alli.

She was attending events organized by the Black Student Union posted on the group’s Instagram page even before attending CSUF.

“That sense of community is really nice because if I didn’t have this, I honestly don’t know if I would have made it as far,” Folorunso said. “Being with people that are like you and being with people that are around you, even if they’re not like you, it’s just knowing that you have that sense of community at our school.”

Orange County Register

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CSUF president praises the value of higher education on ‘Super Sunday’

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