California State Normal School™

Established in 1862, not "1857"

Defend STATE's Real Traditions

Welcome to California State Normal School™, a place where San Jose students and alumni can "normalize" themselves by learning about their school's original name, real traditions, and authentic identity (California State). This is an identity that has long been suppressed by "San Jose State" revisionists who have renamed the school, changed its year of establishment and even attempted to rewrite history. Why? Because they prefer the provincial "SJSU" name, but have to "adjust" history to make it work.

One of the principal ways the revisionists have tried to alter the University's identity is by changing its date of establishment from 1862 to 1857 to obscure the school's original name. The California State Normal School (now, "SJSU") was founded on May 2, 1862, and not in "1857" as the historical revisionists would have us believe.

Other techniques used by the provincialists to obscure the school's real identity include (1) falsely calling the school the "oldest public university on the West Coast" instead of the oldest in California (the University of Washington - 1861 and Western Oregon University - 1856 were both established as public institutions before San Jose State was), (2) misnaming, or failing to use the California State name in historical accounts; (3) failing to accurately account for the years the schools California State's name was publicly used (1862-1921 & 1972-1974); and (4) failing to recognize the school's historic Eureka Seal.

San Jose's original "California State" name, its authentic 1862 date of establishment, its status as the State of California's oldest institution of higher learning, and its historic Eureka Seal represent the school's oldest and most sacred traditions. But these traditions have been compromised by anti-California alumni and administrators who need to suppress them to maintain the school's failed "San Jose State" identity. This identity has contributed to the decline of the school as a CSU campus, degraded the value of the school's degrees, and contributed to the failure of school institutions like Spartan football.

To help combat these revisionist policies and the erision of the school's prestige, stature and recognition, pro-California alumni and students in San Jose have published this website and now offer a California State commemorative T-shirt that features the school's authentic original name and 1862 year of establishment.

If you care about your school's most authentic traditions, about mazimizing the value of your San Jose CSU degree, and about how your California State tax dollars are being spent in a manner that harms the University, please join us in contacting SJSU's president at sjsupres@sjsu.edu and the CSU Chancellor at creed@calstate.edu. Ask them to restore integrity and honesty to San Jose's identity by requiring: (1) that the school's authentic 1862 date of establishment be used, (2) that the school be identified in all marketing materials as the oldest state institution of higher learning in California (not on the West Coast); (3) that the California State Normal School (1862-1921) and the California State University, San Jose (1972-1974) names be properly identified in all historical accounts in University publications, marketing materials and media; and (4) that the school's historic Eureka Seal be recognized and used as the school official seal.