Aztec Parents Association

SDSU Aztec Parents Collaborate for Student Success

The San Diego State University Aztec Parents Association is a dynamic volunteer organization dedicated to keeping parents involved in their student’s education, and to supporting quality programs and services for all SDSU students.  The San Diego State University Library has a well-established relationship with the Aztec Parents dating back to June 1997, when the Parents participated in the Centennial Circle paver campaign.  As a result of their $1,000 donation to the paver project, the Association’s name is inscribed in the “Inner Circle” walkway surrounding the domed entrance of the Library. The following year, the SDSU Aztec Parents Association gave the Library a gift of $2,500 to support the purchase of a computer workstation to be used to download information from microfiche and microfilm.

In 1998/99, the SDSU Aztec Parents again supported the Library with a gift of $5,000 to purchase a Geographic Information System.  This state-of-the-art software and equipment is located in the Government Publications & Maps Division, where it was used for a local data project.  This system provides access to hard-to-locate information about people and business in specific geographic areas, needed by students studying business, the sciences, and the social sciences.  The database is available on a workstation in the Library, as well as over the Internet.

In 1999/2000, the Aztec Parents Association made another gift designed to benefit all students by donating $5,000 to purchase of state-of-the-art video editing equipment for the Library Media Center.  This sophisticated equipment will provide Library users with the ability to meet the demand for production of more advanced classroom presentations in all fields of study.  Students enrolled in the School of Communication as well as those preparing videos for classroom presentations will find this equipment particularly useful.  The purchase of this new equipment supports the Library’s goal of increasing patron’s access to new technology, as it provides a means to create high-quality video productions to meet the demands of the current curriculum.

In 2000/2001, another $5,000 gift was made by the Parents. Thanks to their generosity, the Library now offers a "wired" multi-media presentation room where students can work together to create group projects and presentations. Students are now able to create, edit and review digital format productions in a group environment. Students can use e-journals, full-text databases, Internet applications, and software in the creation of high-tech presentations. The Library anticipates a great interest in the "wired" presentation room, and we are pleased to be able to offer this innovative technological addition thanks to the gift of the Aztec Parents' Association.

The Aztec Parents Association has once more come through for the students by supporting the goals of the Library. In 2001/2002 the Parents made a gift to the San Diego State University Library for the purchase of equipment that has enabled the Library to digitize portions of our media collection in support of the curriculum. The equipment has enabled us to record, copy, mix, digitize and save audio tracks as WAV or MP3 files.

The new multimedia presentation room, which opened in 2002/2003, offers students the space and equipment to create presentations, videotape them, and practice either by themselves or with classmates. The new multimedia room, located in the Reserve Book Room, was made possible by a gift from the Aztec Parents Association, whose past generosity has enabled the library to purchase cutting-edge equipment for the Media Center.

Over the years, the cumulative total of Aztec Parents’ gifts to the Library has exceeded $10,000, which qualifies them to be listed on the carved crystal Donor Honor Wall.  This Honor Wall is a one-of-a-kind work commissioned from the artist, and is located in the “zig-zag” corridor connecting the new Library Addition with the Malcolm A. Love Library building.  Today, we proudly display their name on this wall along with the names of our other committed supporters.

We are very proud of our relationship with the Aztec Parents Association, and look forward to continued collaboration in support of the SDSU student community.