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Alumni
Alum
John Madden Named to Pro Football Hall of Fame
Retired professional football coach and current Monday
Night Football and television sports commentator John
Madden was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Feb. 4. Madden coached the Oakland Raiders for 10
straight seasons, beginning in 1969. He turned the
team into perennial winners and, in 1976, Super Bowl
champions. Madden earned both his bachelor's (PE '59)
and master's degrees (M.A. -- ED & PE '61 ) at
Cal Poly, and played for the Mustangs -- football
and baseball -- in 1957 and 1958. Madden was hired
as head coach of the Oakland Raiders at age 32. Over
the next 10 seasons he compiled a .759 regular season
winning percentage, the highest in NFL history for
any coach with 100 career wins.
Read
the Hall of Fame Story
Read
the San Jose Mercury-News Story
More
Alumni in The News
Cal Poly alumni are rebuilding
Afghanistan as members of military units, heading
new city departments in Southern California and leading
major corporations. Find out who's doing what -- and
if you know them.
Click
here to read more
Travel
to Italy With Cal Poly Alumni
Vacation
for seven days in October in Italy's Chianti region.
Stay in the beautifully restored Villa Tavolese in
the medieval village of Marcialla. Marcialla lies
in the heart of the Chianti region, overlooking the
breathtaking Elsa Valley. Along with fellow alumni
and Cal Poly friends, tour the crystal center of Colle
di Val d'Elsa, the village of San Gimignano with its
stately towers, and the ancient palaces and churches
of charming Lucca. Check out the Leaning Tower In
Pisa and experience the beautiful cities of Florence
and Siena. Tour includes wine tasting and educational
seminars. Book by April for a travel discount!
Details
::
University News
College
of Architecture Programs Again Move Up in National
Rankings
A
national poll of practicing architects and architecture
firms has again ranked Cal Poly’s undergraduate
architecture program as one of the best in the United
States for producing “graduates most prepared
for real-world practice.” In a separate ranking
by landscape architecture firms and public-sector
practitioners, Cal Poly’s undergraduate landscape
architecture program ranked as one of the top 10 in
the United States. The survey, conducted by the architecture
and engineering journal, DesignIntelligence, rated
Cal Poly’s architecture program third in the
nation in a tie with Rice University and up one spot
from last year, among Bachelor of Architecture degree
programs. Cornell University was ranked first, followed
by the University of Texas at Austin.
More
Construction
Begins on New Cal Poly Student Housing Project
Construction
work is beginning on Poly Canyon Village, the nation's
largest on-campus student housing project ever. Construction
of the 2,700-bed project begins with the clearing
and grading of 30 acres of land just north of Brizzolara
Creek and the access road to the new complex. The
first phase of the project is expected to be completed
in fall of 2008 by Clark Construction, headquartered
in Bethesda, MD. Clark has moved construction trailers
to campus as the company prepares for the work to
begin. A formal ground-breaking is being planned for
later in the spring.
More
State
Energy Commission, County Supervisors Commend Solar
Decathlon
The
California Energy Commission has honored Cal Poly’s
Solar Decathlon Team for its commitment to energy
conservation and sustainable building. Meeting Jan.
18 in Sacramento, the commission issued a resolution
commending the Solar Cal Poly team for representing
California and “brilliantly” competing
against 17 universities from the United States, Canada
and Europe at last fall’s Solar Decathlon in
Washington, D.C. Cal Poly finished third in the international
contest to design, build and operate a livable and
energy-efficient solar-powered home.
More
on the Energy Commission recognition
Read
about the SLO County Supervisors' Resolution
Cal
Poly Reopens Search for Provost
President
Warren J. Baker announced that Bill Harris, who had
previously accepted an offer to serve as Provost of
Cal Poly, has withdrawn his acceptance. Currently
the Director General of Science Foundation Ireland,
Harris decided to withdraw after concluding that his
experience and aspirations to be involved with major
research enterprises were ultimately not a good fit
with the provost’s position. Bob Detweiler has
agreed to remain as interim provost and academic vice
president pending the appointment of a new provost.
The university has launched a new recruitment for
the provost's position.
More
Oreggia
Foundation Forges Partnership with Cal Poly College
of Agriculture
The
Oreggia Family Foundation has donated $474,000 to
Cal Poly's College of Agriculture, in addition to
earlier gifts by Arden Oreggia of $425,000. "We
are looking forward to a continuing partnership. This
is not a one-time gift," stressed Oreggia Family
Foundation trustees Robert Taylor and Denny Bertelsman,
before presenting Cal Poly College of Agriculture
Dean David Wehner with a check for $474,000 Jan. 27.
Oreggia, who passed away in late 2005, spent more
than 60 years of his life growing produce on the Oreggia
Ranch near Gonzales and was a pioneer in introducing
asparagus to the Salinas Valley. He served in the
Army during World War II, but did not have the chance
to go to college.
More
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Today's Students
Cal
Poly Students Prepare Tax Returns for Mid-, Low-Income
Folks
The Cal Poly Orfalea College
of Business Accounting
Department is again offering free tax preparation
help. Since late January, accounting seniors have
been preparing tax returns at no charge for individuals
and families making less than $35,000 per year as
part of the annual Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
(VITA) program. Qualifying families and individuals
can get tax return help on Saturdays in the Business
Building's third-floor computer lab through March
11.
More
Industrial
Technology Major Riding in Amgen Tour of California
Bike Race
Lucas Euser is a mild-mannered Industrial
Technology major at Cal Poly, and also a budding professional
cyclist. After competing in Belgium and Germany last
summer, he'll compete in the Amgen Tour of California
later this month -- and ride past Cal Poly on the
Feb. 23 leg of the race.
Read
the Tribune profile of Euser
Photos:
Chinese Students Association Lunar New Year
Celebration
Cal Poly's Chinese Students Association held its 49th
Annual Chinese New Year Banquet Saturday, Jan. 28,
in Chumash Auditorium. The club performed "The
Longevity Lotus," complete with traditional costumes,
as part of the evening.
Click
Here to view The Tribune's photo slide show of the
Club's Performance
Cal
Poly Student Film Shown
At
Santa Barbara International Film Festival
"Leave
it to Chance," a film by Cal Poly alumni and
current student filmmakers, is being screened at the
Santa Barbara International Film Festival's Center
Stage twice during the festival, which runs through
Feb. 12 in Santa Barbara. "Leave it to Chance"
premiered in spring 2005 at the Performing Arts Center
on the Cal Poly campus, and screened at the Chicago
Filipino American Film Festival last fall. The film
was financed, written and produced by Cal Poly students
with a cast comprised entirely of student actors from
the university. Several have graduated, but others
are current Cal Poly students; all were involved with
the Cal Poly Film Club.
More
::
Faculty & Staff
President
Baker Addresses
Business-Higher Education Forum
Cal
Poly President Warren Baker attended the winter ’06
meeting of the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF)
in Scottsdale, Ariz., representing
the CSU at Chancellor Charles Reed’s request.
President Baker joined UC President Robert C. Dynes
and California Council on Science and Technology Executive
Director Susan Hackwood on a panel discussing “Collaborating
to Address the Math and Science Teacher Shortage:
A State-University-Business Partnership.” President
Baker reported on the CSU’s Math and Science
Teacher Initiative and on strategies for engaging
business in support of California’s teachers.
The 23-campus system is working to increase the number
of math and science teachers it prepares each year
from 750 to 1,500.
More
View
the President's Presentation
Faculty
Member Donates $10,000
to Create Latin American Studies Program
Cal Poly Assistant Professor of Geography James Keese
has donated $10,000 to create an educational, nonpartisan
Latin American Studies Program at the university.
Keese is collaborating with Craig Arceneaux in the
Political Science Department to establish this program.
The program is designed to coordinate and support
activities related to Latin America, according to
Keese. "The program recognizes that knowledge
of Latin America and its connections to California
are essential to bridging the peoples and cultures
of the two regions and to the stability and growth
of the state. This knowledge is increasingly important
for careers in education, health care, social services,
agriculture, law enforcement, business and tourism,"
he said.
More
2005
Mardi Gras Messaging Campaign, E-Newsletter Win Awards
The
Cal Poly Public Affairs office recently captured two
awards at the District VII regional conference of
the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education,
the international association of professionals working
to advance educational institutions. In competition
with other public and private universities, colleges
and schools in California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and
Hawaii, the group received a silver award for Best
Public or Government Relations Campaign for its efforts
to promote safety during the 2005 Mardi Gras weekend.
"Cal
Poly Update," the e-newsletter for
university alumni, parents and friends, also won a
CASE regional award.
More
Two
Professors Help Produce Book
for High School English Teachers
Two
Cal Poly faculty members teamed with a consultant
for the San Luis Obispo County Office of Education
to produce a book that addresses the varied instructional
needs of high school English students. Jeannine Richison
in Cal Poly’s College of Liberal Arts and Anita
Hernandez in the College of Education, along with
consultant Marcia Carter from the county’s AVID
(Advancement Via Individual Determination) program,
wrote “Theme-Sets for Secondary Students: How
to Scaffold Core Literature,” which will be
published in February by Heinemann Books.
More
Ethnic
Studies Professor Zulfacar Profiled on NPR
Cal Poly Ethnic Studies Professor Maliha Zulfacar
is making headlines again for her work in Afghanistan.
Zulfacar, a native of Afghanistan and former professor
at Kabul University, fled the country after the Soviet
invasion in 1979. Since the U.S. entry and occupation
of Afghanistan, she's been spending summers and vacations
in that country, working to rebuild the nation's higher
education system and encourage women to return to
Kabul University. She's also coordinated a number
of fund-raising drives, and is now working on an oral
history project, recording Kabul residents' memories
of that city.
Click
Here for the full NPR Interview
::
Coming
Up
College
of Architecture Exhibit On Now
Ornamental details salvaged from historic
buildings, including an auditorium in Memphis where
Elvis often performed, will be on display through
Thursday, Feb. 16, at Cal Poly. The free exhibit offers
the public a rare opportunity to view Architecture
Professor Howard Weisenthal’s personal collection
of hard-to-find brick, cast iron and terra cotta pieces
from the 1890s through 1930. The collection may be
viewed Monday through Friday, 8 a.m-5 p.m. in the
lobby of the College of Architecture and Environmental
Design. Weisenthal will host free public tours at
10 each morning, and students will be on hand throughout
the day to answer questions.
More
'Seven
Ways to Skin an Ocelot' Tour
John Cleese Comes to Cohan Center Feb.
12
As the most visible member of the revolutionary low
farce/high concept 70s comedy collective known as
Monty Python, John Cleese wrote and starred in a cult
hit television series, "Monty Python's Flying
Circus," and several films, including "Monty
Python and the Holy Grail," "Life of Brian,"
and "The Meaning of Life." His more recent
credits as an actor-writer include "Fawlty Towers"
and "A Fish Called Wanda" (for which he
was an Oscar nominee). Part reminiscence, part comic
monologue, his program is likely not a lot about ocelots.
More
Country
Legend George
Jones in Concert at the PAC Feb. 15
George Jones, called "the greatest
living country singer" by the New York Times,
will perform in concert Wednesday, Feb. 15,"
at the Performing Arts Center's Christopher Cohan
Center. In 2005, George Jones celebrated the 50th
anniversary of his first charted record, "Why
Baby Why?" Through the decades, Jones has transcended
country music trends and continued to make his own
brand of traditional country music, which has produced
hits in the last six decades. His classic 1980 rendering
of "He Stopped Loving Her Today" was voted
the Greatest Country Song of All Time in a nationwide
poll of country music radio listeners. His latest
recording is "Hits I Missed - and One I Didn't,"
a collection of songs he wished he had recorded, including
a duet with fellow country icon, Dolly Parton.
More
'A
Night at the Mission' Concert Feb. 18
Benefits Student Music Groups
Cal Poly will host an evening of chamber music Saturday,
Feb. 18, at Old Mission San Luis Obispo beginning
at 8 p.m. Cal Poly's many chamber ensembles will perform
a benefit concert for the combined Wind Ensemble and
Choir's tour to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg,
Lucerne, Interlaken and Munich in July. Performing
ensembles include the Chamber Winds, String Trio,
Clarinet Ensemble, Trombone Choir and Brass Choir.
Tickets are $10 general and $8 students and seniors,
and are available at the Performing Arts Center Ticket
Office at (805) 756-2787, or www.pacslo.org.
April
Cal Poly Wine Festival to benefit Wine and Viticulture
Program
The
Cal Poly Vines to Wines Club will host the fourth
annual Cal Poly Wine Festival, formerly known as "An
Afternoon Amidst the Oaks," on Saturday,
April 29, from 1-4 p.m. The event will be
held at the historic Santa Margarita Ranch in Santa
Margarita. The event will feature wine, food, music
and art from wineries from all over California as
well as local restaurants and caterers. Tickets are
$50 per person or $30 for Cal Poly students, staff
and faculty. Proceeds will benefit the Wine and Viticulture
Program. Last year's festival drew over 500 wine enthusiasts,
Cal Poly students and alumni. They were able to sample
wines from 70 wineries from the Napa, Sonoma, Paso
Robles, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara regions,
along with appetizers from Central Coast restaurants,
Cal Poly cheeses and chocolates, and more.
More
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Cal
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