Cal Poly Update
The E-Newsletter for University Friends and Alumni

:: Alumni :: University News :: Today's Students :: Faculty & Staff ::Coming Up

Alumni
Heaven? No, It's Italy's Lake District --
See It this Fall with CPAA
Cruise the Great Lakes of Italy, Maggiore and Como, by private boat this fall -- without breaking the (piggy) bank. Through the Cal Poly Alumni Association travel program, you can explore the beautiful Borromean Islands: Isola Bella, Isola Madre, and Isola Pescatori; cruise Lake Orta and the legendary island of San Giulio, and stroll through some of Lake Como’s most charming cities and villages. Accommodations are at the Lido Palace Hotel in Baveno, with a panoramic view of Lake Maggiore. Trip dates are Sept. 25-Oct. 3, and cost is $3,495 per person -- airfare, hotels, excursions and meals included -- if you book before March 13. A "land only" package, minus airfare, is also available. For complete details, e-mail your name, address, telephone number and e-mail information to Rosey Parks, associate director of Alumni Relations, at rparks@calpoly.edu.
Read more on the Italian Lake District and trip

Got Golf? Get in the Game with CPAA Northern California Tournaments
If you're a golfer (or if you just want to have some fun) make sure you don’t miss the Ninth Annual Cal Poly NorCal Golf Tournament at Roddy Ranch Golf Club in Antioch on Saturday, June 23. The annual event has raised more than $54,000 for scholarships for Cal Poly students over the past eight years. Entry costs run from $150 for a single golfer to $5,000 for premiere title sponsorships. Act fast -- the tournament always has a full field. The day begins at 8:30 a.m. with registration and a shotgun start and ends with a silent auction and dinner. Details will be available in March on other CPAA golf events this spring, including the Modesto Golf Tournament April 27; Rita B. Hill Tournament May 11; and GrC Alumni Tournament May 19. For more information on Roddy Ranch tourney or other alumni golf adventures, contact Alumni Relations at 1-888-Cal Poly.
Click Here for more details

Alumni in the News: in Hollywood, Sundance and Honolulu
Legendary football coach, sports broadcaster and Cal Poly alum John Madden (B.S., PE '59, M.A. ED & PE '61) has been chosen to receive a prestigious award from the Associated Press Television Radio Association. Other Cal Poly alumni made headlines over the past month by moving into military command positions, pioneering extreme surfing, writing books, heading mega-construction projects, and more. Find out who they are -- and if you know them.
Click Here to read about Cal Poly Alumni in the News

University News
Cal Poly in Top 50 of Kiplinger's
'Best Values in Public Colleges' List
Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine has ranked Cal Poly No. 41 on its national list of "Best Values in Public Colleges." In its article in the February 2007 issue, Kiplinger's examined 500 public colleges and universities in the U.S. and ranked the top 100 based on academic quality, cost and financial aid. Cal Poly is one of only nine public California universities on Kiplinger's Top 100 list -- and at No. 41, topped UC Davis, UC Santa Cruz and UC Riverside. The California schools and their rankings are: UC San Diego (8), UC Berkeley (11), UCLA (14), UC Irvine (17), UC Santa Barbara (28), California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (41), UC Davis (45), UC Santa Cruz (49) and UC Riverside (100). The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill topped the list.
Read the Kiplinger's Personal Finance article | See the Kiplinger's Top 100 list

Cal Poly: A Top School for Urban Planners
Cal Poly’s Master of City and Regional Planning program ranked highly in the Planetizen 2007 Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs. The guide includes rankings of the top programs by region and specialty, in addition to the top 25 overall programs. Cal Poly’s Master’s in City and Regional Planning (MCRP) program was ranked 25th in the nation overall, and 8th in the West. Nationally the program ranked No. 1 in zoning administration; No. 6 for land use planning; No. 9 in the technology area; and 19th for reputation.
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Football: Shotwell Shines in Shrine Game, Takes Tillman Award
Cal Poly football player Kyle Shotwell was one of the standouts in the collegiate football Shrine Game in January. The senior the only Division I-AA players on the West squad, and the third Cal Poly player in the past three years to play in the prestigious game. In the 82nd annual East-West Shrine Game Jan. 20, the Mustang linebacker led all players with seven tackles (five solo). He was also voted by the all-star game's coaches and selection committee as the Pat Tillman Award winner, recognized for his character and work ethic.
Read the Cal Poly Athletics Write-up | Read the Mustang Daily story

Basketball:
Mustangs Beat Gauchos in Their Own Thunderdome
In a sweetly savored victory in Men's Basketball this past month, Cal Poly won at UC Santa Barbara for only the second time since 1959, beating the Gauchos 71-61 in a Big West Conference men’s basketball game Jan. 20. The Saturday night game took place before 3,748 fans at the Thunderdome. Before the Jan. 20 game, Cal Poly had beaten UC Santa Barbara only once in the last 48 years in Santa Barbara: at a 68-66 win on Jan. 22, 1998. Mustang Maniacs (otherwise known as basketball fans) can watch the team on TV Feb. 24. The men’s basketball game at Cal State Fullerton will be televised by Fox Sports Net Prime Ticket that afternoon. Tip-off has been set for 1:05 pm to accommodate a live telecast.
Read the Cal Poly Athletics Write-up on GoPoly.com
Read the Mustang Daily story

Cal Poly Sets 2007 Cheese Courses, Workshops
There's still time to sign up for many of the 2007 Cal Poly cheese making and artisan cheese short courses and workshops -- where many of the state's noted farmstead and artisan cheese makers have gotten their start.The cheese courses are offered through Cal Poly’s Dairy Products Technology Center, part of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. Courses still open include workshops on frozen foods, dairy ingredient processing, and the popular artisan cheese making classes.
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ASI Brings New York Times Environmental Reporter To Campus
Award-winning New York Times reporter Andy Revkin, environment writer for the newspaper since 1995, spoke on campus as part of a two-day event sponsored by Associated Students, Inc. Part of a series of ASI events intended to educate students about the future of the world and the environment, Revkin's talk was free, open to the off-campus public, and well attended. The New York Times reporter spearheaded a three-part Times series and one-hour documentary in 2006 on the transforming Arctic. He has won various awards for his reporting and photojournalism, including an Investigative Reporters & Editors Award and is a two-time winner of the Science Journalism Award of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Read the Coverage in the SLO Tribune

Today's Students
Orfalea Business Students Raise Money for African Relief
Orfalea College of Business students held a fund-raiser in late January to aid Africa. A “Container of Hope” will help send needed supplies to Zambia, one of the neediest areas of Africa. The shipment of equipment and tools is headed for several Zambian villages in dire need of clean water, housing and other basic needs. Drill rigs, sand filters and a brick-making press are among its cargo. The event was part of an ongoing industry-education partnership between the Orfalea College of Business club Students in Free Enterprise and Seeds of Hope International Partnerships.
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New Mock Trial Club to Travel to USC for Regional Competition
The newly formed Mock Trial Club of Cal Poly will be competing in its first American Mock Trial Association regional competition at the University of Southern California Feb. 17-18. Mock Trial competitions provide opportunities for college students to argue a fictitious legal case before real judges, as a way to gain experience for law school and legal careers, said club coach, Matthew J. Moore, assistant professor of political science. If the team does well at the regional competition, it may advance to national competitions later this year.
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New Journal Highlights Research
of Joint Doctoral Program Grads
Five Cal Poly alums who made history last year as the university’s first doctoral graduates are making history again – as contributors to a new journal. The innovative research of the first graduating class of the UC Santa Barbara/Cal Poly Joint Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership is the subject matter of the inaugural issue of the Central California Instructional Leadership Forum. The journal is the first of its kind – a periodic compilation of the latest research specifically relevant to educational leaders on the Central Coast and across Central California.
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Freshman Works to Publicize Humanitarian Crisis in Darfur
Cal Poly freshman Jeremy Riddell-Kaufman is working to publicize the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Africa. He's created a web site and is working with 180 colleges and high schools around the world -- including Cal Poly -- to exhibit photos on April 28 representing all those killed in Darfur. His efforts were profiled recently in the San Luis Obispo Tribune.
Read the Tribune story

Accounting Students Offer Free Help with Tax Returns Through March
Accounting seniors from Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business are volunteering to prepare tax returns at no charge for individuals and families with incomes less than $40,000 year. The effort is part of the annual Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program.
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Faculty & Staff
First Professors, Families Move Into University Housing
The first professors and their families are moving into Bella Montana, the university's faculty and staff housing project at the corner of Highway 1 and Highland Drive in San Luis Obispo. Families moved into the first completed phase of the three-part project. "I love its proximity to campus and town, and that we can still drive to the ocean. It's also big enough for the whole family," Chris Clark, a computer science professor teaching his first quarter at Cal Poly, told the Mustang Daily. The housing is a project of the nonprofit, university-affiliated Cal Poly Housing Corporation (CPHC).
Read the Mustang Daily article

Communication Professor Writes About 'Do-Overs' and 'Growing Young'
Cal Poly Speech Communication Adjunct Professor Ronda Beaman and her new book were profiled recently in the Arizona Republic in an article that was widely reprinted in national newspapers. The characteristics that keep humans young - curiosity, wonder, play, acting silly - get subverted as we age, writes Beaman, 53, mother of two and the author of "You're Only Young Twice: 10 Do-Overs to Reawaken Your Spirit." Beaman's inspiration for the book was her study of anthropologist Ashley Montagu's 1988 book "Growing Young."
Read the Story in The Coloradoan

Coming Up
See 'Dancing on the Edge' in February Orchesis Concerts
Award-winning guest artists from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco join Cal Poly students and faculty to present the Orchesis Dance Company's 37th annual concert, "Dancing on the Edge." Under the direction of Professor Maria Junco, "Dancing on the Edge" traverses the physical, psychological, emotional and cultural boundaries of dance, and features works in a variety of styles, including aerial dance, ballet, modern, jazz, tap, ballroom, Filipino and Mexican traditional dance. Evening performances are scheduled at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 8-10. 
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'Night at the Mission' Concert February 10
Benefits University Music Programs
On Saturday, Feb. 10, the Cal Poly Music Department presents "A Night at the Mission," a benefit chamber concert at 8 p.m., Old Mission Church, San Luis Obispo. “A Night at the Mission” has become a popular traditional concert in the department's annual series of performances. Once again Cal Poly invites alumni and the community to a beautiful evening of music performed by its chamber ensembles in the Old Mission Church. Performing at this event will be the Early Music Ensemble, String Quartet, Wind Quintet, Saxophone Quartet, Horn Ensemble, Trombone Choir and Brass Choir. Tickets are $10 general and $8 seniors and students.
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Spanish Harlem Orchestra Plays 'Salsa Dura' February 11
Cal Poly Arts presents the Spanish Harlem Orchestra in concert Sunday, Feb. 11, in Harman Hall in the Christopher Cohan Center at 7 p.m. Come see music director Oscar Hernandez and the hottest salsa band in the world. Rounding up 13 seasoned sidemen, the creative force behind such legends as Ruben Blades, Tito Puente, and Celia Cruz has formed the salsa super group Spanish Harlem Orchestra, a glorious throwback to the 60s and 70s and the heyday of New York salsa. Their first album, the sweltering, horn-heavy Un Gran Dia en El Barrio, won a Grammy and returned salsa to its exuberant, energetic roots.
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Author Maxine Hong Kingston
Speaks at Cal Poly February 14
Maxine Hong Kingston is widely regarded as one of the major authors of contemporary American literature. On Wednesday, February 14, from 8-10 p.m., she will discuss her newest book in in Cal Poly's Philips Hall (Bldg. 06, Rm. 124). The book is "Veterans of War, Veterans of Peace." For more than 23 years, the National Book Award-winning author has led writing and meditation workshops for veterans and their families. The contributors to this volume are combat veterans, medics, and others who served in war; gang members, drug users, and victims of domestic violence; draft resisters, deserters, and peace activists. Sponsored by Cal Poly Women's Studies.
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Les Ballets Trockadero
Performs All-Male Ballet February 16
Cal Poly Arts presents Les Ballets Trockadero Friday, Feb. 16, at 8 p.m. in Harman Hall in the Christopher Cohan Center. The Trocks, as they are affectionately known, dance the fine line between high art and high camp. Combining a devoted respect for classical dance with a wicked comic sensibility, the 16- member, all-male “Clown Princes of Ballet” perform parodies of 19th and 20th Century classics like "Swan Lake" and "Giselle" with impressive technique and more than a bit of diva attitude. Can ballet be funny? Can men dance en pointe? And can they really get away with it? Find out.
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Cal Poly Animal Science Brings 23rd Annual Western Bonanza
Junior Livestock Show to Paso Robles Event Center February 16-18
Hundreds of young exhibitors and their families will put their cattle, swine, sheep and goats on display at Cal Poly's 23rd Annual Western Bonanza Junior Livestock Show Feb. 16-18 at the Paso Robles Event Center. Youth livestock exhibitors from throughout California gather on the Central Coast every year over the President's Day weekend for the livestock show to compete for top honors. More than 500 entrants, all between the ages of nine and 21, are expected at this year's show. They will be competing for more than $30,000 in cash and $40,000 in goods and awards from show sponsors. The event also includes a trade show featuring everything from furniture to jewelry. Admission and parking are free.
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'Just Jazz' Concert
is February 24 in Cohan Center
On Saturday, Feb. 24, the University Jazz Bands' Just Jazz Concert will begin at 8 p.m. in the Christopher Cohan Center. An eclectic mix of jazz standards and modern compositions will be performed by the University Jazz Bands No. 1 and No. 2 and the Cal Poly Jazz Combo. The concert will also feature a surprise guest artist. Tickets are $12 & 15 general, $10 & 13 seniors and Jazz Federation members, $6 & $10 students.
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'Town & Gown Extravaganza' Winter Concert is February 25
The Cal Poly Music Department presents its annual Winter Concert, a “Town & Gown” Musical Extravaganza at 3 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Clark Center in Arroyo Grande. The Cal Poly Wind Orchestra has been invited to team up with the San Luis Obispo Wind Orchestra at the Clark Center in Arroyo Grande for a wonderful afternoon of “boisterous brass, windy woodwinds and powerful percussion.” The Cal Poly Wind Orchestra will include works by James Barnes (Symphonic Fanfare), Alfred Reed (Armenian Dances Part II), Eric Ewazen: (Southern Landscapes), John Philip Sousa: (The Thunderer), and more. Tickets are available from the Clark Center online at http://www.clarkcenter.org.
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