Cal State San Marcos Adds 5 More School Districts To 'The Alliance'

SAN DIEGO, CA — Graduates from five more Southern California school districts will be guaranteed admission to Cal State San Marcos if they meet certain criteria, officials announced Wednesday. They are added to the school's 10 districts already in the Alliance Initiative, designed to create a pathway to college access and success, according to a news release from CUSM.

Added to the guaranteed admission districts are:

• Bonsall Unified School District.
• Guajome Schools.
• Hemet Unified School District.
• Poway Unified School District.
• San Dieguito Union High School District.

Ellen Neufeldt, Cal State San Marcos President, said she would sign a memorandum of understanding with the school districts during the university's annual meeting with local superintendents on March 1.

The new districts join 10 school districts already in "The Alliance," CSUSM's regionally focused initiative "intended to create a comprehensive pathway to college access and success," according to college documents.

The districts with existing guaranteed admission are:

• Carlsbad Unified School District.
• Escondido Union High School District.
• Fallbrook Union High School District.
• Lake Elsinore Unified School District.
• Murrieta Valley Unified School District.
• Oceanside Unified School District.
• San Marcos Unified School District.
• Temecula Valley Unified School District.
• Valley Center/Pauma Unified School District.
• Vista Unified School District.

Under the agreements, students are guaranteed admission if they reach particular standards, and they're also supported by a peer mentoring program in their first year at CSUSM and ongoing assistance through graduation.