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Cal Poly Ranks Third in Nation for Students Studying Abroad
According to a recent survey conducted by the Institute of International Education, Cal Poly ranks third in the nation for total study abroad enrollment among peer universities. The Open Doors 2009 Report on International Education Exchange found that Cal Poly sent total of 877 students to study abroad during 2007-08. Cal Poly is ranked in the category of “universities that offer master’s degrees (non-doctoral universities).”
More information about study abroad program
Professor Goes To White House to Support Youth Sports
According to Cal Poly Professor Brian Greenwood, the economic recession has taken its toll on youth sports. That message was delivered by Greenwood and others at a recent White House meeting, titled “The Critical State of Youth Sports in America.” Greenwood was among an influential group of people representing organizations in the sports-based youth development field. The meeting was organized by Up2Us, a national coalition of practitioners and researchers dedicated to sports’ role in the lives of youth.
More on Greenwood's visit
State Agriculture Secretary Kawamura to Speak in December
Cal Poly and California Certified Organic Farmers will host the eighth annual Sustainable Pest Management Conference in San Luis Obispo on Dec. 4 and 5. The conference agenda addresses hot topics in California integrated pest management (IPM) including current insect threats to olives, the leafy greens marketing agreement (LGMA), new certification standards in sustainable vineyards and weed management without synthetic herbicides.
More on Kawamura
It's the Real Thing:
Creamery's Annual Holiday Cheese Sale
The historic Cal Poly Creamery is once again offering gift packs of its student-made cheeses for the holidays. The seven varieties for sale are Gouda, Smoked Gouda, Mustang Cheddar, Smoked Cheddar, Chipotle Jack, San Luis Lace and reduced-fat Lace. The Gouda and San Luis
Lace are award-winning cheeses. All are available for order through Dec. 12 at www.calpolycheese.com.
Read more about the cheese sale
‘Tis the Season for Cal Poly Eggnog
For the first time in nearly 20 years, Cal Poly is producing eggnog for the holiday season. The university will sell the sweet treat at all local Spencer’s Markets and at Campus Market. Dairy Science Department Head Bruce Golden said the Cal Poly Creamery is trying to increase it’s overall dairy sales by offering new consumer products. “We’re looking at creative ways to utilize and capitalize on milk produced by our dairy herd.”
Read more about Cal Poly Holiday Eggnog
Cal Poly Graduation Rates Reach All-Time High
Cal Poly’s graduation rates increased to an all-time high with the graduating class of the spring of 2009, according to Provost Bob Koob. Of the 3,011 Cal Poly students who enrolled in 2003, 74 percent graduated in six years, an all-time high for Cal Poly and the best graduation rate in the California State University system. And of the 3,575 students who enrolled in 2005, more than 30 percent graduated in four years, which is up from a 15 percent four-year graduation rate 10 years ago.
Read more about Cal Poly's Graduation and Retention Rate
Cal Poly, Department of Defense to Collaborate at St. Louis AFB Lab
Cal Poly President Warren J. Baker and Gen. Duncan McNabb, commander of U.S. Transportation Command, are among the dignitaries who will attend a Dec. 1 ceremony at Scott Air Force Base near St. Louis to mark the opening of a new collaborative research center sponsored by the university under a research agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense. The Knowledge Management Laboratory (KML) Center, a nonprofit, hands-on lab outside Scott Air Force Base, opened in September. At the lab, Cal Poly students and faculty, representatives of information technology companies, and government researchers will work on ideas to streamline and improve the process of delivering equipment and supplies to U.S. military around the world.
More on the KML Center and Cal Poly's agreement with the Department of Defense
Poly Named No. 2 in the Nation for Aerospace and Defense Recruitment
Aviation Week & Space Technology recently named Cal Poly second in the nation for industry workforce recruiting. The publication is the largest multimedia information and services provider to the global aviation, aerospace and defense industries. Cal Poly tied for the number two ranking with Purdue and Penn State, while Virginia Tech ranked first.
More on ranking
Alumni
Alumni News
PolyLink Photo of the Month: Fall Colors on the Colorado River
Dale Ouimette (Computer Science, 1973) is the November Photo of the Month winner for his photo of the Grand Canyon's Red Wall Cavern (mile 33), accessible only by boat. Ouimette works in sales for Sun Microsystems and has been in PolyLink since 2007. He returned to the Grand Canyon in 2009 - of his rafting party of 14, 11 were Cal Poly alumni or alumni children. " We were all very active in Cal Poly Outings (now Poly Escapes) and have continued to do adventures together over the last 30 years," Ouimette says. There are now more than 14,000 alumni like Ouimette in PolyLink (www.calpolylink.com), the university's free private social network.
2009 Photo of the Year: Wildflowers Win it By a Landslide
A total of 644 alumni voted in the 2009 PolyLink Photo of the Y ear competition. The winner was Lisa Marrone (B.S., Natural Resources Management, 1980). Her 1998 shot of wildflowers in the Carrizo Plain National Monument on the Central Coast won by a landslide with 341 votes. PolyLink alumni vote every fall on which of the 12 previous PolyLink Photo of the Month winners should get the Photo of the Year title - and a $50 gift card for Cal Poly Gear good at www.elcorralbookstore.com.
Voting closed Oct. 26.
Click here to see a photo slideshow of the PolyLink Alumni Photo of the Year entries
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Brokaw Interviews Ag Alum, Liddell is Out, CNN Says Al is Still Weird
Television anchor Tom Brokaw visited Cal Poly alum Jeff Downs (B.S., Animal Science, 2005) and his wife, Jenika, at their Kinikin Heights Natural Foods Farm in Colorado in October for his documentary show, "Tom Brokaw Presents American Character Along Highway 50." The episode should air in January. Plus, Chuck Liddell is all danced out, but headed for a movie appearance. CNN says 'Weird Al' Yankovic is still weird, but in a good way. And two recent grads are on the team behind a recent iPhone app. Those are just a few of the alumni in headlines recently. Read about them and other alumni in the news -- and see if you know them.
November Alumni in the News
Students
Architecture Student Recognized for Digital Design Excellence
Cal Poly architecture student Sarah Jester was recognized for excellence in digital design recently at the Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture conference in Chicago. Jester’s recognized project, “Inhabitable Book Library for San Francisco,” was undertaken in third-year design studio with Cal Poly Architecture Professor Thomas Fowler.
More on Jester
Society of Women Engineers Makes History
Cal Poly Society of Women Engineers (SWE) has again set the “gold standard” for university SWE chapters across the nation with four first place awards at the SWE National Conference held October 15-17 in Long Beach. Cal Poly brought home the Gold Level Award as the nation’s top Outstanding Collegiate Section, and first for Outstanding Outreach Event/Series.
More on SWE Awards
Finance Major Is 2009 Cal Poly Hearst Scholar
Phong V. Dang, a finance major in Cal Poly's Orfalea College of Business, is the 2009 California Polytechnic State University recipient of the prestigious William Randolph Hearst CSU Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement. The winners, one from each campus in the system, will be honored by the Trustees on Sept. 22 at the CSU Office of the Chancellor in Long Beach. The award is among the highest forms of recognition for student achievement in the CSU.
More on Dang's Hearst Scholar Award
Faculty & Staff
Professors Test Remote 'Drone' Submarine in Avila
Cal Poly professors launched and trained on the use of the REMUS 600 unmanned underwater vehicle Nov. 10 in Avila Beach. Cal Poly is the first academic institution in the U.S. to receive a REMUS 600, which will greatly enhance the university’s ability to do oceanic research for the U.S. Department of Defense. The REMUS 600 deployed off the Cal Poly Pier will have a range suitable to travel to San Francisco Bay or San Diego Bay or return trips to and from Monterey Bay or the Santa Barbara Channel. Cal Poly’s “learn-by-doing” education has included undergraduates in the Unmanned Underwater Vehicle program since 2001. More than 20 students have participated so far.
More on the REMUS Launch
Professor's Book on
California Mission Music Published
Cal Poly Music Professor Craig Russell has written a book, "From Serra to Sancho: Music and Pageantry in the California Missions." The book was released this summer by Oxford University Press. It explores the various styles and traditions of music heard during California's Mission period, and the appendix contains more than100 photos from mission manuscripts as well as a detailed catalogue with tables of contents for the preserved missions' sources. There are also several complete music editions, so that musicians can revive the music of this nearly lost era.
More on Professor Russell and his book
Events & Entertainment
Cal Poly Music Department Presents Annual Bandfest Saturday
Get ready for Bandfest 2009. Set for Saturday, Nov. 21, in the Christopher Cohan Center on campus, "A Whirlwind of Color and Sound" features the Cal Poly Wind Orchestra, Wind Ensemble and Mustang Band. Showtime is 8 p.m. This festive season opener will showcase the diverse styles and brilliant colors of the modern wind band.
More on Bandfest 2009
Cal Poly Symphony Fall Concert Set for Sunday at the PAC
The Cal Poly Symphony will present its fall concert at 3 p.m.On Sunday, Nov. 22, in Harman Hall in the Performing Arts Center’s Christopher Cohan Center. The concert will feature Dvořák's Symphony No. 9, "From the New World," written while the composer was trying to help young composers develop a uniquely American style.
More on the symphony's fall concert
Theatre Department Presents 'Zero to Infinity' This Weekend
The Cal Poly Theatre and Dance Department presents "Zero to Infinity" at 8 p.m. in the Spanos Theatre Nov. 17-19. The plot?
Maxie convinces Zero to campaign for leader of their country. They embark on a whirlwind of fundraising, cover-ups, debates and scams. Inspector Oodles and his assistant assume disguises to discover their true identities.
More on Zero
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