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Forbes.com Ranks Cal Poly #3 Public in National Compensation Study
Cal Poly has ranked third nationally among public universities in a Forbes.com ranking of college campuses, based on a recent study that looks at earnings of alumni at colleges around the country.Forbes.com says it bases its ratings on the salaries of college degree holders who have 10 to 20 years of work experience. Cal Poly followed only Berkeley and University of Virginia in the public rankings, tying for the third spot with UCLA and UC San Diego.
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Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi Talks Sustainability at Cal Poly
One day after announcing that he will run for Governor of California, Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi came to Cal Poly to speak about the need for California to transition from an energy inefficient state to a state that embraces sustainable practices. Following a speech he gave at the Sustainability Conference, Garamendi hosted a news conference in front of Cal Poly’s award-winning solar decathlon house. Flanked by two alternative fuel vehicles, the Lieutenant Governor spoke to students, faculty, staff and the local media about the importance of changing the way Californians look at sustainable practices and green building.
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Read the Tribune Article
KSBY Covers Event
Cal Poly Receives $10 Million Anonymous Gift
A record-breaking year for fundraising at Cal Poly ended with yet another extraordinarily generous gift from anonymous donors. The most recent gift, a $10-million bequest commitment, brings private support for the fiscal year which ended June 30 to more than $91 million, the highest committed total ever for annual fundraising at Cal Poly. According to the most recent report from the Council of Aid to Education regarding voluntary support of education, Cal Poly ranked third in gifts received and had the largest endowment out of 144 public master’s degree institutions that participated in the ranking.
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CSU Chancellor Says Employees Will be Paid
California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed said that Cal Poly and all CSU employees will continue to receive their regular paychecks. Reed's announcement came In response to Governor Schwarzenegger’s announcement July 24 of his request for for state agencies to cut the pay of state workers to the federal minimum wage until a state budget is passed. While CSU is not under direct executive authority and subject to the governor's requirement, Governor Schwarzenegger has requested that CSU and a number of other state entities assist in the effort to minimize impact on the state General Fund. “We are working to ensure that CSU employees will receive their regular paychecks and can expect their normal compensation until a new budget is signed,” said Reed. “At the same time, we are looking at paying compensation with alternative revenue sources."
More on Chancellor Reed's Response
Alumni
Mustang Alumni Heading to Olympics
in Track, Equestrian Events
Four Cal Poly alums made headlines over the past month in qualifying for the coming Olympics in Beijing. Former Cal Poly Mustang track stars Sharon Day and Stephanie Brown Trafton made the U.S. Olympic Team. Day will compete in the women's high jump event and Brown Trafton in in women's discus. Alumna Gina Miles and her horse McKinlaigh are headed to Beijing to compete in Equestrian events. And former Cal Poly Men's Baseball star athlete Jimmy Van Ostrand will be playing on Canada's Olympic baseball team.
More on the Mustang Olympians
John Sweeney To Lead Cal Poly Alumni Association
John Sweeney, a Cal Poly engineering graduate and founder and CEO of Dairy Procurement Group LLC of California, is the new president of the 14,000-member Cal Poly Alumni Association, the voice of more than 130,000 university alumni. In addition to his B.S. in Civil Engineering from Cal Poly, Sweeney received his MBA from Wharton, and is a Professional Registered Engineer in California. In addition to serving as the 2008-10 president of the 14,000-member Cal Poly Alumni Association, Sweeney currently serves on the College of Engineering’s Dean Advisory Council. He is also is a former Member of the Board of Trustees for the California State University System.
More on New CPAA President John Sweeney
President Baker, Bill Swanson Named
to National Business-Higher Ed Forum
Cal Poly alumnus William "Bill" Swanson has been named vice chairman of the Business-Higher Education Forum. Swanson is Chairman and CEO of Raytheon Company. The Business-Higher Education Forum is a national organization of Fortune 500 CEOs and senior executives, prominent college and university presidents, and foundation leaders. The board is working to advance innovative solutions to U.S. education problems. Cal Poly President Warren J. Baker was also elected to the BHEF board. Both Swanson and Baker will serve through 2010.
More on Swanson and the BHEF
Students
Continuing Education and University Outreach Outstanding Grad is Cynthia Allen
Cynthia Allen was named Outstanding Student for 2008 by Cal Poly’s Continuing Education and University Outreach. The 44-year old single mother graduated Suma Cum Laude with a 3.9 grade point average. She is one of six graduates in the first class of students to receive a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies through Continuing Education and University Outreach. Allen was on Dean’s list four times and has been accepted into the Master's in Public Policy Program at Cal Poly. She came to Cal Poly with four Associates Degrees from Allan Hancock College. She is currently employed by Vandenberg Village Community Services District in Lompoc, Calif.
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Tri Delta Sorority Receives National Honor
A relatively new member of Cal Poly’s Greek system, Delta Delta Delta (Tri Delta), was awarded the national sorority’s House of the Year award at its recent convention in Chicago. The honor is especially significant as it is awarded every two years, and Cal Poly’s chapter is only three years old. The new house was opened only a year ago to host chapter events and house members.
More on the honor for the Tri Delta House
Grad Student Receives Sustainable Energy Fellowship
Sean Kaylor, a materials engineering graduate student, was selected this spring from a highly competitive pool from around the country as a Sustainable Energy Fellow. Kaylor began the year-long fellowship process at an intensive week-long program to explore technologies, policies and economics of sustainable energy at Duke University. Researchers from Arizona State University, Cornell, Duke, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the University of Michigan designed and directed the fellowship.
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Tractor Design Team Takes Award for the "PolyBuilt"
Students from Cal Poly’s BioResource and Agricultural Engineering Department scored a national first place finish in team presentation with the unveiling of their “PolyBuilt” Quarter-Scale Tractor. The competition was sponsored by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). The students were required to use a specified stock engine. From there, they had to design and manufacture their own frame, drivetrain, hitch, clutch, weight brackets and other parts.
More on the Quarter Scale Tractor Team
Faculty & Staff
Erling Smith named Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives and Planning
Cal Poly has strengthened its leadership team once again, naming Erling Smith as vice provost for strategic initiatives and planning. Smith comes to Cal Poly from the University of Connecticut, bringing 12 years of leadership and administration experience and more than 30 years of teaching experience to the vice provost position.
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Learn by Brewing: Professor Cano Unveils Ancient Ale at Tasting
Professor Emeritus Raul Cano and colleagues held special event to unveil Fossil Fuels Beer, brewed using ancient yeast extracted from 26-million-year old amber samples. In 1995, Professor Cano reported in Science magazine that he’d extracted living bacterium from a bee entombed in amber 25-45 million years ago. His research was a key inspiration for the “Jurassic Park” movies. Now, more than a decade later, Cano is playing a key role in the Fossil Fuels brewing venture.
Read more about event with ancient brew
Read the Cal Poly Magazine story about Ancient Ale
College of Engineering Announces Faculty Awards and Outstanding Staff
Cal Poly’s College of Engineering recently announced the recipients of industry-sponsored faculty awards and an endowed professorship, plus 2008 Outstanding Staff Awards. Professor Roya Javadpour won the Northrop Grumman Excellence in Teaching Award. Professor Chris Clark won the Northrop Grumman Excellence in Research and Development Award, and Professor William Murray of Grover Beach won the Raytheon Excellence in Teaching and Applied Research Award. In addition, Professor Rob McDonald received the two-year Lockheed Martin Endowed Professorship award. The college's 2008 Outstanding Staff Awards were given to Kay Kibbe and Kim Marsalek.
More about Engineering Awards
Events
Cal Poly Hosting Graphics Seminar Aug. 14, 15
Top leaders in the graphic arts industry will be speaking at a two-day seminar focusing on the latest trends in flexography standards and practices at Cal Poly August 14-15. The Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly is hosting the seminar on the newly created FIRST 4.0, the fourth edition specification, titled “Flexographic Image Reproduction Specifications and Tolerances.”
Flexography Seminar Details
Alumni Big Band to Be in Full Swing
At Madonna Inn Ballroom Aug. 23
The Cal Poly Collegians Alumni Big Band promises a night of lively music and dancing at its annual concert from 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23, in the Madonna Inn Ballroom. The 20 Cal Poly Collegians – all Cal Poly alumni – bring the best of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman and Les Brown to San Luis Obispo every August.
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