Timothy P. White, chancellor of the 23-campus California State University, visited Cal State San Bernardino in early October to discuss the university’s vital role in the region.

Speaking to students, faculty and staff at the Santos Manuel Student Union and on a live-stream feed online, White said CSUSB may be one of the campuses “that simply has so much more opportunity, and more challenges, and importance because of the way California is evolving in the next 10, 15, 20 years.”

Currently with a population of 42 million, the state is projected to grow to 50 million people by 2030.

“They’re not going to live in Santa Monica,” he said. “They’re going to live in San Bernardino, and Hemet, Riverside, out in the Coachella Valley. And education is going to be at the core of success — socially, economically and environmentally — for that kind of growth. So the stakes are getting higher for this wonderful campus.”

White, who spent five years as chancellor of UC Riverside, recalled his experience in the Inland Empire, and said, “The opportunity and the need here is so amazingly powerful, and quite frankly, alluring to so many of us.”

White, along with trustees Jane Carney and Steven Stepanek, also met with student leaders, the faculty senate and the newly formed staff council, as well as with university President Tomás D. Morales and his cabinet.