Welcome to the March newsletter updating you on everything going on in the College of Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering.

Transform your future: CSUB hosts Engineering Day

High school students visiting CSUB were encouraged to transform their future as part of Engineering Day, an annual event put on by CSUB’s College of Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering (NSME).

Around 460 students came to campus for the Feb. 20 event, where they learned more about engineering as a whole and CSUB’s engineering programs, heard about engineering careers from CSUB alumni and met with representatives from local employers in the industry.

The university’s annual Engineering Day coincides with National Engineers Week, a celebration of everything engineering. NSME Dean Dr. Jane Dong spoke about this year’s “Transform Your Future” theme.

“We’re engineers — we don’t wait for the future to happen, we build it,” she told the students. “We design solutions and we turn ideas into reality. Engineering is not just about mathematics and science. It’s about creativity. It’s about teamwork. It’s about persistence. It’s about solving real problems that impact people’s lives.”

Read more about Engineering Day!

California Energy Research Center to hold expanded conference

The California Energy Research Center (CERC) at California State University, Bakersfield is holding its annual conference this April, and attendees will notice a few significant changes that set it apart from past events, starting with the name itself.

The Carbon Management Symposium has been renamed as the California Energy Research Conference. The April 9 event now features two tracks, one focused on subsurface topics such as critical minerals, well management and carbon storage and the other on power and energy topics, including infrastructure, microgrids and grid resiliency.

The dual tracks are part of a new effort by the university to expand the reach and appeal of the conference, which brings together industry professionals, policy makers, academics and students to explore challenges and advances in the energy industry through research presentations, panel discussions, exhibits and other programming.

Read more about the conference!

Science, empathy and action

Earlier this semester, we shared our NSME “The Future Starts Here” video. Now, we share a video on our health programs, the first of three additional videos focusing on specific NSME departments. Check out the new video to learn more about our departments of Nursing and Public Health and our new pre-med advising pathway! Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to be among the first to know when we post new videos!

NSME welcomes prospective students at Future `Runner Day

Prospective students and their families made NSME part of their Future `Runner Day last weekend! We met so many future scientists, nurses, doctors, engineers, public health professionals and more. For so many of them, their journey will start right here at California State University, Bakersfield. We can't wait to see them here again soon! 

See more photos!

Updates from the Mathematics Department 

On March 14, Mathematics Department chair Dr. Maureen Rush participated in the 2026 California Mathematics Council Central Symposium at the Mechanics Bank Convention Center, where experts offered more than 40 workshops on teaching math. The department also recently hosted high school students for its annual Lee Webb Math Field Day on the CSUB campus.

NSME IN THE NEWS

Earlier this month, student veterans learned how to scuba dive at the CSUB Aquatics Center. The training sessions were a partnership between the CSUB Veterans Success Center and Aqua-Vets, a nonprofit founded by NSME's own Dr. Todd McBride. Check out The Bakersfield Californian’s story and photos and watch a great video from CSUB’s marketing team!

NSME EVENTS

Kern Medical outreach event

Wednesday, April 8 from 10 a.m. to noon

Student Union Patio

Interested in pursuing medical school? Meet with Kern Medical representatives to learn about research programs. 

 

California Energy Research Conference

April 8-9

More information

 

Morehouse School of Medicine information session

Thursday, April 16 from 11 a.m. to noon

Dezember Leadership Center, 402D

Learn about the pre-med partnership with CSUB and admission requirements!

RSVP

 

MESA at CSUB Center Debut

Friday, April 17 at 9:30 a.m.

Engineering Complex III

"What's New at NSME" is a monthly newsletter produced by the College of Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering at California State University, Bakersfield. This newsletter will go out every month during the regular school year to highlight the work our students and faculty are doing both on campus and off. If you have any questions or entry submissions, please contact Kelly Ardis at kardis@csub.edu.