The East County city of Santee will be the new focus of the Sage Project at San Diego State University, which directs student and faculty projects on individual communities, SDSU announced Wednesday.
The partnership with Santee will encompass the 2015-16 academic year.
SDSU just completed a two-year partnership with National City, which involved 55 classes, 35 faculty members and more than 2,000 students across 23 academic subjects.
"Partnerships like this are great for both SDSU and the city partner," said Jessica Barlow, the Sage Project director.
"Students and faculty have the opportunity to tackle real and complex projects that can make a difference for a community," Barlow said. "In the short-term, this directly helps the city advance their goals with innovative approaches."
She said the projects also prepare students to be future community leaders.
Among the proposed projects in Santee, which has a population of around 55,800:
- feasibility studies for a new civic center and athletic complex
- a concept for a pedestrian bridge over the San Diego River that would connect the Town Center Community Park and nearby residential areas
- a walkability study
- branding and a new website for the city
- a marketing plan aimed at attracting a hotel
- river water quality improvements
- a homeless intervention program
Santee, which Barlow said will fund 10 to 20 projects, is a mostly middle-class bedroom community that has a thriving central shopping district, well-used recreational facilities and a trolley line terminus.
