Founding Sonoma State University was established by the
California State Legislature in 1960 to be part of the California State College system, with significant involvement of the faculty from
San Francisco State University. As with all California State Colleges, Sonoma State later became part of the
California State University system. Sonoma opened for the first time in 1961, with an initial enrollment of 274 students. Classes offered took place in leased buildings in Rohnert Park, where the college offered its first four-year
Bachelor of Arts degree in
Elementary Education. The small first graduating class received their degrees in the parking lot of the temporary campus. With the completion of its two main classroom halls, Stevenson Hall, named for politician
Adlai Stevenson II, and Darwin Hall, named for
Charles Darwin, the college moved to its permanent campus in 1966 where the graduating class became the first to receive their degrees at the new campus.
Early development As enrollment increased, Sonoma State built more on-campus facilities, including Ives Hall for performing arts, The University Commons for dining, a small library, and a gymnasium. These buildings followed the physical master plan of the school which stated that the facilities would be urban in character, defining the use of smooth concrete building
façades with landscaped courtyards. Among the landscaping features added with these facilities were the "Campus Lakes", two small
reservoirs located behind the Commons next to Commencement Lawn, the site of the university's annual commencement ceremonies, as well as one lake near a housing facility, Beaujolais Village; the lakes are home to local
waterfowl. In 1969, the first
master's degrees in biology and psychology were offered. The new cluster school concept, coupled with a more intense focus on the surrounding rural environment, influenced the new physical master plan. The first facility built under the new plan was the Zinfandel residence area. The new Student Health Center used a primarily redwood façade with a landscaped ground cover of wild roses and poppies. Sonoma State was closed from May 7–11, 1970, after
Governor Ronald Reagan ordered that all California colleges and universities shut down due to anti-war protests and rallies after the shootings of four students at
Kent State University. Early development of the modern campus came to a close in 1976 when the Student Union was constructed between the main quad and the lakes. This building continued the use of the physical master plan, using primarily redwood and preceded the similarly built Carson Hall, an art building, a childcare center, additional parking, and a computer center which was added onto the library. In January 2005, the university began the renovation of Darwin Hall, the university's science building, which had been built in 1967. The new building was designed to provide efficient academic classrooms and study areas for faculty and their students. The renovated structure was completed and re-opened in fall 2006 and provided new laboratories and classrooms to support the needs of a modern science curriculum. The new property approved by the board of trustees in 2000 is also the site of the Donald and Maureen Green Music Center, funded by private donors. A component of the Green Music Center, Music Education Hall, was state-funded. The center contains the 1,400-seat Joan and
Sanford I. Weill Hall, which was completed in 2012. Its resident orchestra is the Santa Rosa Symphony. In May 2007, SSU faculty voted no confidence in President Armiñana based upon financial issues surrounding the building of the Green Music Center and faculty allegations that the building of the center took money away from academic programs. The center, originally intended to be a
US$10 million project, grew into a $120 million complex as additional venues and features were added to the original plan. The construction of the center was initially funded by bond measures, loans, and private donations as the use of academic funds for other uses is illegal. The board of trustees continued to support Armiñana despite the vote. In February 2010, the FBI and investigators from the Sonoma County District Attorney's offices raided the campus's administrative and finance offices seizing dozens of boxes from a storage area, and examined computers. The operation focused on an alleged misuse of federal grant money by the California Institute for Human Services (CIHS), a unit closed by SSU in 2007. The two top CIHS administrators were dismissed at that time. A new social center for the university gained approval in April 2011. Students voted to raise their fees by $150 a semester to cover the cost of the $65 million facility. In early 2025, after several years of declining enrollment and increasing costs, the university's leaders announced that the university was facing a $24 million deficit. To address the deficit, they announced plans to eliminate numerous positions on campus and let go of employees, including 46 tenured and adjunct faculty members. They also plan to eliminate about two dozen academic programs and six academic departments.
Presidents The Office of the President began with the university's founding in 1960 when Ambrose R. Nichols Jr. became the founding president of the university. In May 2023, the California State University Board of Trustees appointed Ming-Tung "Mike" Lee as Sonoma State's president. In May 2024, Lee was placed on
administrative leave, following an unauthorized agreement he had made with
campus protestors, and he retired the next day.
Emily Cutrer was appointed interim president while a national search for a new president was conducted. The CSU Board of Trustees appointed Michael E. Spagna to be Sonoma State's eleventh president in November 2025; Spagna, who was previously interim president of
California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, assumed the Sonoma State University presidency on Jan. 20, 2026. == Campus ==