Student Leadership Awards
The awards ceremony will take place in Spring 2026
The award recipients featured below were honored at the Student Leadership Awards ceremony on May 9th, 2025.
- President's Academic Excellence Award
The graduating senior with the highest cumulative GPA is recognized with the prestigious President's Academic Excellence Award. This exceptional student is presented with an award certificate and an award in the amount of $1,000.
2025 President's Academic Excellence Award recipient: Lindsay Wright
- Glenn Kendall Community Impact Recognition
The Glenn Kendall Community Impact Recognition (formerly the Glenn Kendall Public Service Award) is one of Chico State’s most distinguished and prestigious student acknowledgements presented by the University. It exemplifies the values of our university and the ideals that Chico State President Emeritus Glenn Kendall championed: a commitment to activity and engagement through impactful service.
Faculty, staff, administrators, or community members can nominate/sponsor a student application for this award, and the complete application is to be a collaborative effort between them and the student applicant. An interested student may also nominate themselves for the award, provided that they find a nominator/sponsor to collaborate with. Through their award application, the junior or senior applicant shall demonstrate activity and engagement through impactful service to other person(s) or organizations(s) with support from their nominator/sponsor.
The recipient receives a $1,000 award, as well as an award certificate.
Selection Criteria
- Applicant must be an undergraduate student either entering their senior year (applying as a junior) or continuing as a senior;
- Students of all immigration statuses are welcome to apply;
- Applicant’s materials demonstrate a dedication to the well-being of person(s)/community*;
- Applicants clearly define what “community” their work serves;
- Applicant’s materials demonstrate substantial and continued involvement, adaptability/perseverance, commitment to equity-mindedness, and/or leadership in sustained and intentional improvement in their defined community;
- Applicant must be in compliance with the University’s standards for student conduct**;
- All required components of application are included;
- Applicant has not received this recognition before***.
Additional criteria that may be considered:
- Applicant’s ability to contribute to meaningful solutions to complex issues and working well with others.
* Community may be defined to include (but is not limited to) the Chico State campus community, a town/city community, nonprofit agencies, faith-based organizations, the family group, historically marginalized communities, etc. Community impact can come from anywhere, and we strongly encourage nominations from all departments and disciplines.
** Recipients of this recognition scholarship must be in compliance with the University’s standards for student conduct and are only eligible to receive this recognition scholarship once.
*** Applicants not awarded during their first application cycle are qualified to apply again as long as they continue to meet the eligibility requirements.
The winner will receive a certificate and $1,000.
2025 Glenn Kendall Community Impact Recognition recipient: Lychia Tracy Vue
- Award for Enhancement of Multicultural Understanding
The Award for the Enhancement of Multicultural Understanding is designed to honor students on our campus who have significantly contributed to the development of a positive multicultural environment at California State University, Chico. This award is granted to an individual student or recognized student organization who has demonstrated such in the form of leadership, programs, and events, or other noteworthy activities they were engaged in. The selection committee considered the following criteria:
- The extent to which the activity increased multicultural understanding.
- Enhancing multicultural understanding: creating, developing, or fostering opportunities to educate the campus and/or community about multicultural communities.
- The number of people who were affected.
- The quality of the program activity.
- Demonstrate a sustained ongoing commitment to a project or initiative that increased multicultural understanding.
The winner will receive a certificate and $1,000.
2025 Award for Enhancement of Multicultural Understanding recipient: Karen Contreras
- Chris Hilbert Outstanding Chico State Friend Award
Christopher Edward Hilbert was a well-loved, down-to-earth young man who lived a very full nineteen years. The last few months before he died in 1994 were strongly associated with CSU, Chico. His time here was short, but he quickly appreciated and personified the best aspects of the Chico Experience. He did this through genuine love for the many new friends he made, the faculty who taught him and aided his learning, and the total experience of the University and the community. He expressed this joy to his family by saying, "I'm so happy here that I just smile all the time." His family generously endowed this award to honor Chris' memory by acknowledging a student who exemplifies the qualities of a true friend to fellow students and the entire University.
The recipient of the Chris Hilbert Outstanding Chico State Friend Award receives a $4,400 award and personalized certificate. The selection committee considered the following criteria when making their decision.
- Being consistently reliable for support, understanding, and leadership in a student organization or living group.
- Exhibiting determination in learning and mastering a skill or body of knowledge while overcoming personal obstacles.
- Befriending fellow students and instructors alike, or assisting others to do so in a creative, courageous manner.
- Being that student others turn to in times of need or celebration.
- Displaying other behaviors and characteristics which combine to make an individual an Outstanding Chico State Friend.
2025 Chris Hilbert Outstanding Chico State Friend Award recipient: Lauren Wassam
- Jackie Faris-Rees Student Leadership Award
Chico State Alumna Jackie Faris-Rees was President of Associated Students at Chico State in the late 1970s, a member of the Chico Unified District school board, a participant in the Chamber of Commerce and Butte Community Action Agency, and she dedicated her life to public service and education in many other ways. She was committed to coaching and mentoring students and was a leading advocate for Associated Students. Sadly, Jackie passed away from breast cancer in April 2000. This award was established to honor Jackie and to continue her legacy of developing and acknowledging excellent student leaders. It honors one CSU, Chico undergraduate student who has demonstrated significant and outstanding leadership on campus and in the community.
The recipient of the Jackie Faris-Rees Student Leadership Award receives a $2,500 award, as well as an award certificate.
2025 Jackie Faris-Rees Student Leadership Award recipient: Dev Kachiwala
- Outstanding CAVE Volunteer Award
Each spring a CAVE volunteer is recognized for their outstanding service in a CAVE semester-long program during the previous two semesters. An award of $750 is presented to a deserving recipient.
2025 Outstanding CAVE Volunteer Award recipient: Keia Fujino
- Chico State Outstanding Student Leader Award
Students who are recipients of one of the seven college’s Outstanding Student Leader awards, or any of the winners of the other academic, community service, leadership or extra-curricular awards given at the Student Leadership Awards reception are also eligible to be named as the “Chico State Outstanding Student Leader”. This $500 scholarship, engraved plaque and medal, sponsored by InterWest Insurance Services, LLC, are presented to an individual who has demonstrated significant student leadership and has made a substantial contribution to the enrichment of student life at CSU, Chico.
2025 Chico State Outstanding Student Leader Award recipient: Dev Kachiwala
- Ron Rohde Awards
These awards memorialize two great men, both named Ron Rohde. Initially established by the younger Ron Rohde in memory of his father, the award now honors both men.
The younger Ron completed both Bachelors and Masters degrees at CSU, Chico, and later served as part-time faculty in the Department of Communication Design. Additionally, Ron was actively involved with CAVE where he helped manage and promote the Project Pals Program. These two awards of $1500 each or equivalent are given in the spring to full-time, continuing undergraduate, graduate, or credential students who are active CAVE volunteers who have made significant contributions; CAVE volunteers who have become CAVE staff are eligible for these awards. All applicants must have a 3.0 GPA or higher.
Award Amount: Two awards of $1,500
2025 Ron Rohde Award recipient: Aubrie Norton
2025 Ron Rohde Award recipient: Biridiana Mora Tovar