SSU's Tariq named CSU Trustees’ Scholar
A fourth-year SSU psychology student who works two jobs to support her family, volunteers as a research assistant, and is an English tutor and parrot rescuer has earned a coveted Trustees Scholar recognition from The California State University Board of Trustees.
A fourth-year SSU psychology student who works two jobs to support her family, volunteers as a research assistant, and is an English tutor and parrot rescuer has earned a coveted Trustees Scholar recognition from The California State University Board of Trustees.
Khansa Tariq, a first-generation student and fourth-year Psychology major on track to graduate in spring 2026, was one of 23 CSU students to receive the 2025 CSU Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement, announced on Monday, September 8. Tariq’s specific scholar title is CSU Foundation Board Member Ron and Mitzi Barhorst Scholar.
“Winning this award was truly unexpected,” Tariq said. “I set out to challenge myself and pursue an opportunity that felt ambitious, perhaps even out of reach. To now be recognized in this way is incredibly surreal.”
The Trustees’ Award recognizes students for superior academic performance, personal accomplishments, and remarkable resilience in the face of challenges. The awardees will be celebrated during a special ceremony at the CSU Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, September 9, 2025.
“I am honored to recognize the extraordinary accomplishments and perseverance of this year’s Trustees’ Scholars,” said CSU Chancellor Mildred García. “Each of these students has overcome significant personal and educational challenges in pursuit of academic excellence, and it is with great pride that we celebrate their achievements. We are also deeply grateful to our generous donors, whose support makes it possible to empower and uplift these exceptional scholars.”
Tariq maintains a 4.0 GPA, holds down two jobs, and volunteers as an undergraduate research assistant in Dr. H. Wenwen Ni’s Social Psychology Investigation Lab. She has also volunteered as an online English tutor for Ukrainian students during the height of the war, and she rescues and rehabilitates parrots that others have abandoned.
A transfer student from Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC), where she earned associate degrees in Psychology and Social & Behavioral Sciences, Khansa is lauded by faculty and her peers for her perseverance, compassion, quiet determination, work ethic, and intelligence. Her passion for academic and mental health support began as a peer coach at SRJC, which sparked her interest in academic advising, which she hopes to pursue professionally. After earning her bachelor’s degree, she plans to pursue a master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling, and eventually a Ph.D. in Psychology.
The CSU Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement is the highest student distinction within the university and grants scholarships based on academic achievements, financial need, excellence in community service and personal hardship. Since the program’s inception in 1984, more than 500 CSU students have been honored with the Trustees’ Award.
This year’s class of awardees will receive more than $200,000 in scholarships collectively, thanks to contributions from past and present CSU trustees and other donors.