May 24, 2004 :: No. 256

A Pair of Honors for a Cal State Fullerton Leader

In salute to his contributions to education, Silas H. Abrego, associate vice president for student affairs at Cal State Fullerton, was honored this spring with two awards — a 2004 Estrella Award from the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Orange County and a 2004 Hispanic Influential Award from the Orange County United Way.

Associate vice president since 1998, Abrego oversees eight university programs, including Student Academic Services, International Education and Exchange, the Women’s Center/Adult Re-entry, the University Learning Center and the Career Planning and Placement Center. He also oversees several educational enhancement programs, including GEAR UP Anaheim, Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, Upward Bound-Norwalk/Whittier, Upward Bound-Santa Ana and Upward Bound-Math/Science.

Previously, he served as director of the university’s Student Academic Services and University Outreach and was responsible for integrating student retention and outreach strategies into the academic environment. Prior to joining Cal State Fullerton, Abrego was state coordinator of the National Education Policy Fellowship Program.

Abrego, who has a master’s degree and a doctorate from USC, has previously been honored by the Hispanic Bar Association of Orange County, Hispanic Outreach Taskforce and Western Association of Educational Opportunity Personnel.