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Alumni
Honored Alumni 2007: Leaders All
Marilyn Hamilton,
best known for inventing the Quickie wheelchair, is just one of the 2007 Cal Poly Honored Alumni. Entrepreneur, inventor and athlete, Hamilton turned a personal crisis into an opportunity that changed the lives of the disabled and revolutionized an industry. Paralyzed from the waist down after a hang gliding accident, she pioneered the ultra-mobile Quickie wheelchair, went on to play competitive sports, and created a company that became an American and international success story.
Read more about Cal Poly's 2007 Honored Alumni | See photos from Homecoming 2007
PolyLink Photo of the Month: Man on the Matterhorn -- the Real One
PolyLink, Cal Poly's Online Community, now has more than 4,000 alumni members. Plenty of them are uploading photos to share with classmates and friends. Matt DuPuy (Computer Engineering 2002) is one of them. DuPuy, a software engineer, is the PolyLink Photo of the Month winner for October, thanks to this shot of him climbing the Matterhorn -- the real peak in Switzerland, not the Disney version. DuPuy says his Cal Poly education has allowed him to finance his reason for living: mountain climbing.
"The picture on the Matterhorn was from August 2005," Matt says. "As you can see by the clouds, it was a terrible, snowy day to climb
but we made it. I took my parents back to Zermatt early this year to
see the mountains I climbed there and go skiing. I also summited the Breithorn there twice." Mt. Denali in Alaska is also on his been- here, done that list; but so far, Everest (the summit) isn't. Cal Poly Alumni can see DuPuy's photos from around the globe in his PolyLink album -- but you have to sign in to do it.
Click Here for PolyLink's Public Photo Galleries | Click here to learn more about PolyLink
Alumni in the News: Tops as CEOs, in Rodeo, and More
Cal Poly engineering alumna Kathleen Holmgren has been named President and CEO at Mendocino Software. Who else was in the news this month? June grad Ted Bert is heading for the Super Bowl of Rodeo next month looking to top $100,000 in earnings;
"The Iceman" Chuck Liddell was hailed as key to the evolution of the sport of Ultimate Fighting; another alum took over as the nation's top printer. More Cal Poly alumni were named to vice president and CEO spots and profiled for their work in winemaking, their communities, and more. Find out if you know any of them.
Read this month's 'Alumni in the News' roundup
Nature or Art Lover on Your Holiday Gift List?
Got a Cal Poly alum, California nature lover or art enthusiast on your gift list? Whether they've been naughty or nice they're sure to love "Quiet Journey," a 176-page chronicle of the artwork of Professor Emeritus Robert Reynolds. The 35 years' worth of paintings and drawings gathered in 'Quiet Journey' focus on the natural beauty of California's Central Coast and the Sierra Nevadas. It's also a collaboration between Reynolds and well-known Journalism Professor Emeritus Jim Hayes, who wrote most of the reflections accompanying Reynolds' pieces. Proceeds benefit the Cal Poly Alumni Association. "Quiet Journey" is currently on sale for $50 -- just in time for the holidays.
Read more about 'Quiet Journey' | Order online
Alumni, Public Invited to Enter Ray Scherr Business Plan Competition
Cal Poly's Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) club is coordinating Fifth Annual Ray Scherr Business Plan Competition. The competition is open to university students, faculty, staff and San Luis Obispo community members. Individuals and groups with prospective business ideas are encouraged to enter the competition. Prizes for the winning business plans include $4,000 for Cal Poly entrants, $3,000 for San Luis Obispo community entrants, $2,000 for the first runner-up, and $1,000 for the second runner-up.
More about the Ray Scherr competition
University
News
Cal Poly Rose Float:
60 Years of New Year's Tradition
As part of a 60-year tradition, Cal Poly students are already working with students from Pomona on the 2008 Cal Poly Rose Float. The Cal Poly float is the only float entry in the parade that is designed, constructed and decorated solely by students and volunteers. This year’s float, titled “Guardians of Harmony,” is a tribute to the mythical tradition of China. The first Cal Poly University Rose Float rolled down the annual Tournament of Roses parade route on January 1, 1949. Cal Poly is celebrating in style with a new lab on campus, a new tool trailer and new logo.
Details on the 2008 Rose Float
See Photos of the 2007 Rose Float
Cal Poly Wine: First Vintage bottled in October
The Cal Poly wine and viticulture program bottled its first vintage of Cal Poly brand wine in October. It marks a milestone for the new program, and the new wines eventually will help fund the expansion of what will be one of the largest viticulture/enology programs in the country. The program, now in its third year, is uniquely structured among three departments in the university: food science and nutrition, agribusiness and crop science. All students in the program will take the wines from vineyard to crush to bottle to market.
Read the SLO Tribune story on the university's first vintage
Recreation Program Now Offers
International Ecotourism Certificate
The Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration program at Cal Poly has joined The International Ecotourism Society. The move allows Cal Poly to offer the prestigious University Consortium Field Certificate. Cal Poly is only the fifth university nationwide to offer its students this certification. The Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration program is an offering of Cal Poly's College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences.
Read more about the Ecotourism Certification
Winter Commencement Set for Dec. 8 in the Rec Center
Cal Poly's 2007 Winter Commencement ceremonies are set for Saturday, Dec. 8, in the Rec Center. Separate ceremony times are: 9 a.m., Orfalea College of Business and College of Engineering; 1 p.m., College of Architecture and Environmental Design and College of Liberal Arts; 4 p.m., College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, College of Education, and College of Science and Mathematics. Each ceremony lasts approximately 2 hours and is followed by a punch and cookie reception held in the fitness room adjacent to the Rec Center.
Details on Winter 2007 Commencement
Legislators, Educators Discuss
the State of Education in California
Teachers are tired of selling candy to buy supplies and nailing plywood to classroom walls for make-shift lab tables, state legislators were told during a hearing held at Cal Poly this week. Sen. Tom Torlakson, chair of the Select Committee on Schools and Community, hosted the informational hearing along with Sen. Abel Maldonado (Crop Science, 1988) and Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee in the Keck Laboratory on campus.Designed to give a voice to classroom teachers, higher education, and business and industry, the hearing focused on creating learning environments for student success.
Read comments from the Oct. 30 hearing | Read the SLO Tribune story | See the KCOY story
Dairy Products Technology Center
Announces 2008 Course Lineup
Anyone interested in learning how to make cheese or frozen dairy desserts will find just what they are looking for at one of Cal Poly’s Dairy Products Technology Center’s 2008 short courses. The center (www.dptc.calpoly.edu) and its courses draw participants from across the nation. DPTC workshop alumni include many leaders in the artisan cheese movement throughout California and the United States. The DPTC's 2008 short course lineup includes workshops on creating artisan cheeses, frozen desserts and more.
Read about the DPTC 2008 Short Courses
Today's
Students
Mustang Daily Takes
Top National Web Award
The Mustang Daily, Cal Poly's student-produced daily newspaper, took another top national award Oct. 27 for its Web site,
mustangdaily.net. The publication earned the prestigious Pacemaker award -- the highest honor given by the Associated Collegiate Press. The ACP gives Pacemakers annually to the best student-run college newspapers, media Web sites, yearbooks and magazines in the nation during its national conference, which took place this year in Washington, D.C.
More on the Mustang Daily award
IT Students Take Top Spots at Packaging Design Challenge in Las Vegas
Cal Poly placed first and second at the third annual Paperboard Packaging Alliance Student Design Challenge in Las Vegas. The teams from Cal Poly beat 23 others. This year, the students’ challenge was to create a promotional carton for a fictitious company that makes on-the-go meals. Poly students Brian Calcagno, Jesse Dundon, Brandt Haener, Angelica Li and Steve Munio designed the first place winner: the “Noodler Pack—The Ultimate Convenience.” The team, led by Industrial Technology Professor Jay Singh, will receive $1,500. Cal Poly’s packaging science program receives $2,500. Cal Poly students Rebecca Giordano, Parker Milhous, Erik Rheinisch and Chris Hamblin developed the second-place winner: the “Gravity Feed Display Box.” That team, also advised by Singh, will receive $1,000. Cal Poly’s packaging program will receive $1,500 for that entry.
Read more about the packaging competition victory
Student Beats Breast Cancer While at Cal Poly
Cal Poly student Cassie Bustos had some quick growing up to do when she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 18. While trying to be a “normal” Cal Poly freshman living in the dorms, she underwent four surgeries to remove and reconstruct her right breast. Her father, Jaime Bustos, works at Cal Poly; Cassie Bustos recently told her story to the SLO Tribune in an effort to make other young women aware the disease can affect them.
Read the SLO Tribune story
A Holiday Tradition:
Specialty Cheese from the Cal Poly Creamery
It’s the busy season of the year at the historic Cal Poly Creamery, where students are wrapping up a wide array of university-made cheeses for holiday gift packs. All are available for order through Dec. 14 at www.calpolycheese.com. The creamery's award-winning cheeses are made and packaged entirely by students, who work closely throughout the year with Dairy Science professor Nana Farkye and Cal Poly Creamery Manager Jerry Mattas. The students involved in the project gain hands-on experience creating, packaging, marketing and shipping the cheeses.
More on Cal Poly Holiday Cheese
Theatre & Dance Department Presents
'Arabian Nights' This Weekend
Cal Poly's Theatre & Dance Department presents "Arabian Nights" Nov. 15-17. Watch imperiled bride Sheherezade spin 1,001 stories to literally save her neck from her new husband, the king. Her powerful and comic renditions subtly instruct the king, soften his heart and enable him to feel emotion once again. “The Arabian Nights” is a testament to the power of storytelling. Tickets are $10 to $12.
More on Arabian Nights ticket info
Tour Cal Poly's Avila Center for
Coastal Marine Studies November 17
On Saturday, Nov. 17, from 9 a.m. to noon, the public is invited to participate in a walking tour of Cal Poly’s Center for Coastal Marine Sciences Pier. Learn about current marine science research at Cal Poly. Close-toed walking shoes are required. Tours begin at the base of the pier. Parking is available in the public lot on First Street in Avila Beach.
Directions and details
on the public tour and open house at the pier
Cal Poly Wind Orchestra Celebrates Bandfest Nov. 17
The internationally-known California Polytechnic State University Wind Orchestra, Wind Ensemble and Pride-of-the-Pacific Mustang Marching Band will present "Bandfest 2007: Out of This World." More than 200 collegiate wind and percussion musicians will perform some of the most powerful wind band compositions ever written in a spectacular season opener. A special addition is a performance by the Pride of the Pacific: the Mustang Marching Band. Decked out in new uniforms, the Mustang Band will fill the hall with dazzling arrangements usually heard in their halftime shows at Spanos Stadium.
More about Bandfest
Nov. 18 Cal Poly Symphony Debut
to Feature Amelia Piano Trio
The Cal Poly Music Department presents the Cal Poly Symphony in its debut Fall Concert Nov. 18, featuring the renowned Amelia Piano Trio. Showtime is 3 p.m. in the Cohan Center. The Cal Poly Symphony is a select ensemble comprised of students pursuing a variety of majors on campus. It performs works by composers from the Baroque through Contemporary periods, with an emphasis on exemplary repertoire for full orchestra. The orchestra performs at least one major concert on campus at the end of each quarter, and tours annually.
More on the Symphony and Amelia Piano Trio
Annual Poinsettia Sale Runs Nov. 26 - Dec. 15
Cal Poly's annual poinsettia sale is still going strong. The plants are grown by students involved in the university's Poinsettia Agriculture Enterprise Project, which begins in the spring of every year. This year's poinsettia project offers 27 varieties and more than 2,500 plants -- an assortment of reds, whites, pinks, and other novelty varieties such as Jingle Bells and Marbles. Plant sizes range from a few inches to four feet tall. Offerings include traditional, centerpiece, and tree-shaped forms. The full array of 27 poinsettia varieties will be on sale at the annual Poly Plant Shop Dec. 1 through Dec. 15.
More on the annual poinsettia sale
Jazz Up the Season with
Cal Poly's Annual Fall Concert November 30
A young, fresh approach to one of America's great art forms – jazz – will be presented by the Cal Poly jazz ensembles at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30, in the Spanos Theatre at Cal Poly. The ensembles, two big bands and a combo, will show how jazz is reinvigorated by the next generation, according to Paul Rinzler, director of jazz studies. Cal Poly student-musicians will perform “Bugle Call Ra,” written by Bill Holman for Doc Severinsen, former trumpeter and leader of the “Tonight Show” band, and “I'm Gonna Live Until I Die,” made popular by jazz vocalist Sarah Vaughan. The groups will also perform “What a Wonderful World,” made famous by Louis Armstrong, and additional jazz bests by contemporary composers.
More on the Nov. 30 Jazz concert
Cal Poly Choirs Ring In the Holidays with Dec. 1 Concert
The Cal Poly Choirs will perform music to celebrate the upcoming holiday season at the annual “A Christmas Celebration” concert Saturday, Dec. 1, at 8 p.m. in Harman Hall of the Performing Arts Center's Cohan Center. The University Singers will open with the “Kyrie” and “Gloria” from Ariel Ramírez’s “Misa Criolla.” These pieces are based on South American folk music, particularly the rhythms and melodies of Argentina. The ensemble will also perform David Dickau’s lively swing arrangement of “God Rest You Merry Gentleman.” PolyPhonics will perform “A Child Is Born” by Leo Nester and “Ding Dong! Merrily On High,” arranged by English composer and conductor David Willcocks.
More on the 'Christmas Celebration' Concert
Faculty
& Staff
Professors Bring Major NASA Research Initiatives to Cal Poly
Two Cal Poly Aerospace Engineering professors have been awarded separate million dollar contracts with NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. David D. Marshall and Rob McDonald submitted the winning proposals, for research related to NASA’s umbrella plan to develop future generation aircraft. “The next two decades are ripe for an aviation renaissance,” said McDonald. “Advanced multidisciplinary physics-based design and analysis capabilities are required to pursue the revolutionary vehicle and technology concepts needed to meet NASA’s aggressive goals.”
Read more about Research Initiatives |
Read the SLO Tribune story about the professors and their work
Cal Poly Economics Prof Reviews Alan Greenspan's Latest Book
Eric Fisher is a professor of economics at the California Polytechnic State University and a book reviewer for the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. His first job was in the Division of International Finance at the Fed. Fisher recently reviewed retired Fed chief Alan Greenspan's latest book, "The Age of Turbulence." In it, Fisher asks: "Is Alan Greenspan the Forrest Gump of economics?"
Read the review in the Cleveland Plain-Dealer
Ag Professor, Students Wage Winged Combat Against Invaders
A Cal Poly horticulture professor and his students are waging war on the great whitefly, a sapsucker that devastates garden plants.
Professor David Headrick -- known around campus as “The Indiana Jones of Bugs” -- is behind a local and statewide response to the invasion of the giant whitefly that entered Southern California from its natural habitat in Mexico. Headrick and his students have tracked down the Whitefly's natural predator -- a stingless wasp the size of a gnat -- and have been releasing them into the wild.
Read the SLO Tribune story
|
Also appears in the Fresno Bee
NPR Interviews Forestry Professor on How to Prevent California Wildfires
Technology can tame wildfires, Cal Poly Forestry and Natural Resources Management Professor Chris Dicus told NPR. In an Oct. 28 interview, Dicus said
advances in technology have made prevention an increasingly crucial and feasible component in fighting large, long-lasting wildfires. Dicus teaches courses on Fire and Fuels Management at Cal Poly.
Hear the NPR interview
Professor's Book Details Paso Robles 'Terroir' and People
Cal Poly Professor Thomas J. Rice and Certified Wine Educator Tracy G. Cervellone have published a book that weaves together human history and facts about the Paso Robles American Viticulture Area (AVA). “Paso Robles: An American Terroir” offers detailed information about the area’s land, climate, people and wines. Four years in the making, the book includes information on the area’s natural environment and the climatic, geologic and soils complexities of the Paso Robles AVA. The book is the result of decades of earth science studies conducted by Professor Rice.
Read more about "Paso Robles: An American Terroir"
Professor Co-Edits Guide to Safe,
Eco-Friendly Guide to Hiking and Backpacking
Cal Poly Professor Marni Goldenberg and Ohio University Professor Bruce Martin have teamed up to produce “Hiking and Backpacking,” a guide to safe and eco-friendly hiking and backpacking. Goldenberg is a faculty member in Cal Poly’s Recreation, Parks, & Tourism Administration program. Goldenberg and co-editor Bruce Martin, a professor at Ohio University, are members of the Wilderness Education Association. Their book, published by Human Kinetics, is intended both as a resource for first-time hikers and backpackers and a textbook for outdoor recreation courses in higher education.
More on the "Hiking and Backpacking" guide
Graphics Professors Write the Book on "Pathway to Success" in Packaging
Cal Poly faculty members Kevin Cooper, a professor of graphic communications, Malcolm G. Keif, an associate professor specializing in flexography, quality management in the graphic arts, and Kenneth L. Macro Jr., an assistant professor specializing in lean manufacturing, print production management, marketing and sales, have teamed up to write "Pathways to Success." The book is an in-depth look at lean manufacturing principals and how to apply them in the graphics and printing fields.
Read the Review in Packaging Essentials online
Coming
Up
Pritzker Architecture Prize Winner Speaks Nov. 16
Friday, Nov. 16, 4 p.m., Business Rotunda, Room 213 – Pritzker Architecture Prize winner Thom Mayne is sending two of his top design and technology associates, Pavel Getov and Marty Doscher, to lecture on the firm’s latest design work. They will be providing extensive insight into the innovative technological practices of their award-winning firm. The free public lectures are made possible through a grant from the Hearst Foundation.
More on Mayne's lecture
Don't Cry for Her:
Cal Poly Arts Adds 'Evita' Performance Nov. 23
Cal Poly Arts announces its latest newly-added Center Stage event: a national tour stop for the dramatic Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd Webber spectacle, “Evita,” to play one night only on Friday, November 23 with a special 7 p.m. curtain at the Cohan Center.
Winner of seven Tony Awards, “Evita” musically brings to life the dynamic, larger-than-life persona of Eva Peron, wife of former Argentine dictator, Juan Peron. The epic story of her rise and fall is told in a sweeping pop opera.
Details on the Evita performance
Cal Poly Arts Presents
'The Producers' Nov. 25
See the Broadway hit "The Producers" Sunday, November 25, at
7 p.m. in Harman Hall in the
Christopher Cohan Center.
It may be “Springtime For Hitler” in the plot of this Mel Brooks play, but this fall is the Central Coast's chance to experience the biggest Tony Award-winner in Broadway history. Directed and choreography by five-time Tony Award-winner Susan Stroman ("Crazy for You," "Contact," "The Music Man"). The New York Times raves, “The Producers is a sublimely ridiculous spectacle that will leave you delirious!”
Details on "The Producers" performance
Cal Poly Arts Family Series: Toy-ing with Science Nov. 29
Garry Krinsky is the showman in "Toy-ing With Science"
Thursday, November 29, at
7 p.m. in the Christopher Cohan Center Pavilion.
Resembling a living cartoon with his animated movement and non-stop energy, Krinsky toys with science in a fast-paced, imaginative exploration of scientific principles and concepts that define the world. Using circus skills, mime and motion, original music, and audience involvement to gently guide the learning, science-based toys come to life as Krinsky and his top hat make the simple simply terrific.
Appropriate for Ages 5 and over.
Read more about Toy-ing with Science
More events & entertainment listings
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