A Cal State Fullerton education is now more accessible than ever for the local community as the university has partnered with Disney Aspire, The Walt Disney Company’s education investment and career development program.

With more than 13,000 enrolled students nationally and with nearly 3,000 graduates to date, Disney Aspire provides eligible employees, or cast members, opportunities through education as an investment in helping them meet their career goals.

The program is available specifically for full-time and part-time hourly cast members across the U.S. For those accepted into the program, 100% of tuition at their chosen college or university is paid for upfront, with additional fees and book expenses reimbursed.

The Disneyland Resort is Orange County’s largest employer, and the Disney Aspire program, along with its facilitating vendor, Guild Education, worked with both CSUF and Fullerton College to establish this new partnership.

“We’re beyond proud to be a neighbor to Disneyland Resort, and even more excited to embark on this adventure together,” Cal State Fullerton President Fram Virjee said in the university’s media release. “This is just the first step in partnering together to help build a better tomorrow for Orange County and our community.”

Fullerton College is CSUF’s top community college feeder school, and through Disney Aspire, the two schools will be able to offer approximately 70 new degree programs and career paths to eligible cast members looking to pursue higher education. Additional graduate and extension programs are being evaluated for future expansion as the partnership evolves.

“We thought it would be a perfect relationship,” said Elva Rubalcava, CSUF’s associate vice president of Government & Community Relations, who is also a former cast member. “There’s a real natural synergy with a lot of opportunities for continued collaboration that we are really excited about.”

CSUF and Fullerton College join Disney Aspire as the program’s first brick-and-mortar locations, as all previously established educational opportunities are through online universities and programs. This will allow local employees the chance to engage in an on-campus college student experience.

“It’s a real alignment for elevating these cast members in offering opportunities for growth and development,” Rubalcava said. “It’s a perfect match.”

As Orange County’s only California State University network school and the system’s largest campus, CSUF currently serves more than 40,000 students. The university was ranked No. 3 by U.S. News & World Report among the most innovative regional universities in the West and comes in at No. 3 among the top 10 universities for student social mobility as ranked by Education Reform Now.

Additionally, CSUF is among the top in California and ranked No. 3 in the nation for baccalaureate degrees awarded to underrepresented students, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education, a reflection of the university’s intentional focus on diversity, equity and inclusion.

Across the Disney Aspire program, more than 50% of currently enrolled students are people of color and more than 60% from that same group identify as female.

“We are a university that is driven and focused with providing our students with every opportunity to not only be the future engineers and teachers and scientists in the area but also to be the future leaders serving on boards and in executive roles,” Rubalcava said. “We are really trying to build that overall, well-rounded citizen who gives back to their community. It’s really in line with the values that Disney holds as well.”

Hourly employees who are interested should apply to Disney Aspire and express their intended educational and career goals. Through Guild Education, applicants are paired with a Student Success Coach who will help guide them through each step of the process.

Those desiring to attend CSUF will complete the Cal State Apply application, and for employees who are accepted into both programs, tuition will be fully prepaid.

It is estimated that there are nearly 30,000 employees in California who are eligible to participate in Disney Aspire and CSUF’s higher education programs, with more than 3,400 who are already Titans. The Disney Aspire program opened at Fullerton College on Aug. 9 and is expected to open at CSUF later this fall.

The CSUF community is looking forward to welcoming new faces to campus from the neighboring Magic Kingdom, as Disney Aspire and CSUF work together to put “dreams within reach” for more members of the Orange County community.

“It was a lot of teamwork with a great number of people involved on all three sides — Cal State Fullerton, Guild Education and the Walt Disney Company — that came together to make this work for the cast members and for our students,” Rubalcava said. “It’s really exciting, and the opportunities are incredible.”

For more information on the Disney Aspire program, visit Aspire.Disney.com.

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