CSSA President Artur Gafurov Advocates for Students Across the CSU

This past June, Artur Gafurov, '27 Operations and Supply Chain Management, began his one-year term as the new Cal State Student Association (CSSA) president.

"I feel like I'm able to resonate with so many students from so many different backgrounds," he says. "Because I've been in their shoes."

Growing up, he had never concerned himself with political matters. But when Gafurov started his first year at SJSU, he saw an opportunity.

"I realized that there was so much that I could do," says Gafurov. "I could advocate for my needs and my voice could be heard. I saw that there was an impact that I could have on so many students and on myself. It was mind-blowing to me. I realized I could make change and step out of my comfort zone."

As a first-year student, he immersed himself in all the opportunities he could find within Associated Students (A.S.). He started working at the front desk as a student assistant for A.S., which completely opened the door to a whole other world. He saw the executive directors and members of the team doing awe-inspiring work through lobbying and impacting policy. He saw his fellow students cosponsoring and writing bills with the state legislature. And it inspired him to no end.

He began serving on various committees, such as finance, operations, internal affairs and co-curricular affairs.

"Student government became my passion project," he says.

Student government journey

At the end of his freshman year, he ran for the position of A.S. controller, which is now known as the vice president of finance. He lost the election, but that did nothing to deter him.

Some students he knew started encouraging him to run another race - this time for the vice president of finance position at the CSSA , a student-run organization that represents 482,000 students across the CSU's 22 campuses. Without hesitation, Gafurov decided to give it a shot - and went on to win the election.

However, he had to resign soon after to prioritize his own well-being and family.

"I think that sometimes those of us who are Gen Z … we push ourselves so much because expectations are so high. And in that moment, I realized it was time for me to prioritize myself and well-being over service. I wanted to take care of myself," he says.

During this period, Gafurov remained part of Associated Students. And then, a year later, he ran again for the CSSA's vice president of finance position; and he won for a second time.

This time, he felt ready to take on the position.

"I took care of myself and therefore could represent the students I was serving," says Gafurov. "I feel like I was so much better prepared and ready. I could pour all my efforts into the passion I had for it."

This is a story that he likes to tell other students to encourage them to put themselves first, no matter what.

"I tell them that you can always come back to things later on, as long as you prioritize yourself," he says.

During his time as vice president of finance for the CSSA, Gafurov had the opportunity to work on budget reallocations for CSSA and play a role in working to reduce costs for students attending conferences and plenaries. He and the other executive officers also worked on advocating for students and bringing their perspective to the table during the formation of policies and a strategic plan.

During this time, he also served on the California Student Aid Commission , where he advocated to make college more affordable and accessible to students. Gafurov proposed solutions to the wording of applications and advocated for more funding. Many students had emigrated from other countries and were undocumented, just as Gafurov had been when he first came to the United States from Ukraine with his family nearly a decade ago.

Gafurov has always felt like he could identify with different groups of students, which enables him to advocate and be a voice for so many. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, he also understands the importance of having leaders who advocate for students whose experiences and needs are often overlooked.

After serving for that first year on the CSSA, Gafurov started feeling the call of taking on a greater leadership role. He began setting his sights on the role of president. Fellow students around him were encouraging him to go for it.

"I think that if I was a young kid and I knew that there was a 21-year-old who was out there, advocating for my needs without knowing me, it would've made me feel really good," he says. "And I wanted to be that for other people. It almost felt like it was my turn to step in and do advocacy work for students."

He was officially elected to serve as president in April 2026.

Priorities

One of his biggest priorities as president is to work with his executive team on ensuring students have access to mental healthcare on all CSU campuses 24/7. As someone who has struggled with mental health issues in the past, Gafurov knows how essential it is for students to be given the support that they need without having to wait around and jump through hoops to get it.

"Another priority of mine is workforce readiness, especially with AI," he says. "We want more policies with AI, and we want students to be prepared for the workforce."

Gafurov is also going to be advocating for bringing basic needs, such as affordable housing, into the upcoming year's CSU budget.

"We've always been advocating for basic needs, like affordable housing," he says. "And we really are focusing now on defining what basic needs are and what it looks like across the CSU."

When Gafurov graduates in spring 2027, he hopes to look for a corporate job. But during these last few years, he has also fallen in love with higher education - and so he's not ruling out work in this area, especially when it comes to policy.

When asked what advice he has for other students, Gafurov mentioned that students should embrace failure and act on the things that inspire them.

"I feel like I've gotten to learn so much through my failure. It has taught me such a good lesson. Enjoy failure, especially at this age. It's almost a privilege to be able to fail at something," he says. "Also, if even for one second, you get the thought of 'should I?,' then you should. Life is moving fast. I feel like if I had said 'no' during those times when I had the thought, I would not have been here today. Every student who has passion for something should go for it. You don't want to regret things you didn't do 30 years later."