Cal Poly Update - November 2009
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
Brokaw Interviews Ag Alum, Liddell is Danced Out, CNN Says Al is Still Weird, and More
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
Click Here to See Cal Poly Homecoming 2009 Photos
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Couldn't Get to Homecoming 2009?
See the Photo Slideshow
More than 10,000 alumni, parents, friends and fans came to campus Oct. 17 for Homecoming 2009. The weekend also included the presentation of the university's annual Honored Alumni awards. Honored alumni for 2009 are: Ed Boutonnet (CRSC ’62); Wallace B. Gordon (ARCH ’79, ’80); Darran S. Littlefield (BUS ’85); Arlene Chandler, (EDUC ’63); Jon Monett (ENG, ’64); Paul L. Cousineau (GRC ’85); and Robert H. Davis (MATH ’65). Manfred Sander (ASCI ’53) received the Distinguished Service Award.
Details on the 2009 Honored Alumni
On the plaza in Delft with the
CPAA cruise through Holland
and Belgium in 2008
Champagne Travel, but No Champagne Prices: CPAA 2010 Trips
All alumni, parents, university friends and the community are invited to join the Cal Poly Alumni Association on 2010 trips. The CPAA travel program is proving increasingly popular, and CPAA hosts two to three trips annually in partnership with Cal Poly Continuing Education. CPAA's Travel Program includes a cruise down the Dneieper River through the Ukraine (July 3-15, ) a tour of the Amalfi Coast in Italy's Campania region (Sept. 29-Oct. 7), and a bike tour through Puglia (Oct. 4-9) - the "heel" of Italy's boot.
Learn more about the Alumni Travel Program
Get Specifics on the 2010 CPAA Trips, Dates and Itineraries
See Photo Albums from previous CPAA trips
University News
Know a December (Or June) Grad? Get 'Em a Grad Pack
Know a graduate? Cal Poly's next commencement is set for Saturday, Dec. 12, in Mott Gym. Graduation ceremonies are set for 9 a.m. and 1 and 4 p.m. In June, Cal Poly will return to holding all commencement ceremonies on the same day: Sunday, June 12. Ceremonies are set for 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., both in Alex G. Spanos Stadium. Just in time for December graduation, Cal Poly Alumni Association Grad Packs are available online. Grad Packs include a one-year Alumni Association membership, benefits packet and a Cal Poly Alumni chrome license plate frame -- all for the special rate of $20.09.
Details on December 2009 commencement ceremonies
Details on June 2010 commencement ceremonies
Click here to order a Grad Pack now on the CPAA Web site
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 No. 2 spot with Purdue and Penn State, while Virginia Tech ranked first.
More on aerospace ranking
Video: University Helping to Restore The Central Coast's Guadalupe Dunes
Cal Poly students are an integral part of a program to remediate the Guadalupe Oil Fields on the Central Coast. More more than 8.5 million gallons of diesel fuel leaked into the environment over a 20- year period. The students develop and test systems for biodegrading the hydrocarbons in the subsurface. Their work is part of project-based learning program that provides hands-on experiences through research, design, testing and implementation of real -orld applications.
Watch the video on the Cal Poly YouTube Channel
Zipcar Auto Sharing Program
Comes to Campus
Cal Poly welcomed Zipcar, the world’s largest car-sharing service, to campus Oct. 22. The program will help the university on its path to reduce traffic congestion and demand for parking. The addition fits Cal Poly’s commitment to sustainability while offering students and faculty a convenient, economical and environmentally-friendly alternative to owning a car. Four self-service Zipcars – two Toyota Priuses and two Scion XBs – are now on campus and available for use 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The cars are located in reserved spaces in the A-1 parking lot and the H-2 parking lot. Faculty, staff and students 18 and older can use them through the Zipcar program.
Read more about Zipcar
Today's Students
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 Oct. 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
2010 Cal Poly Rose Float Safely in Southland - Teams Ready for Parade
Cal Poly's 2010 float, “Jungle Cuts,” headed for Pasadena on Oct. 24 to get ready for the annual Rose Parade on New Year’s Day. The Cal Poly float is the only entry in the annual Tournament of Roses Parade that is designed, built and decorated solely by students and volunteers – a tradition that dates to 1949. Students in the Rose Float clubs Cal Poly and sister campus Pomona build half of the float every year. Every November, the Mustangs' half is trucked to Pomona. Students from both Rose Float teams work on weekends to join the two halves together. The weekend before New Year's, the whole float is moved to Colorado Boulevard in Pasedena. Students, parents, alumni and volunteers from each campus put on the finishing touches – including flowers – during "Deco Week'" in December every year.
More on the 2010 Cal Poly Rose Float
Freshman is Youngest Beef Ambassador Ever
Freshman Malorie Bankhead of Livermore recently became one of the youngest cattle industry spokeswomen in the country. The 18-year-old earned a spot in October on a five-member National Beef Ambassador team. Its job it is to travel around the country and promote beef. A fourth-generation member of the Bankhead ranching family, she has been around cattle all her life.
Read the story in the Contra Costa Times
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
Faculty & Staff
What Helps Keep the Weight Off?
Kinesiology Professor's Study Finds Out
Cal Poly Kinesiology Professor Suzanne Phelan teamed up with professors from other universities to find the difference between obese dieters who can't lose weight and successful dieters who lose weight and keep it off. The study results are published in the October edition of The Annals of Behavioral Medicine. One finding: successful weight losers have more exercise equipment and fewer TVs in their houses than obese people.
More on Professor Phelan's study, including keys to weight-loss success
Food Science Professor's Summer Mission? Teaching in Iraq
Food Science Professor Hany Khalil spent the summer in Iraq working with Balad Canning Factory, the country's second largest food processing plant. In an effort to quell sectarian violence, U.S. and coalition forces are stepping up development work. Khalil was implementing an agribusiness development project for the United States Agency for International Development. The focus of the project was on revitalizing tomato paste production to pre-war level to provide a market for farmers and employment for the community.
More on Professor Khalil's trip to Iraq
Vanishing School Sports
Add Up to Youth Obesity, Violence
A new report co-authored by a Cal Poly professor says cuts to school-based sports and physical education programs are contributing to a range of problems afflicting the nation's youth, including obesity, violence and academic failure. The report estimates that school districts around the nation have cut after-school sports and school physical education programs by $2 billion over recent years. Cal Poly Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration Professor Brian Greenwood is one of the authors of the report, presented this week in Washington, D.C. "Youth sports are in serious decline in this country," Greenwood told The Washington Post.
More on the report Greenwood helped write
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
Retired Professors Die in Traffic Accident
Shirlene Ann Soto, 62, and her husband, Walter Elliott, 81, died in a car accident Oct. 23 in Kern County. Professor Soto taught at several universities in addition to Cal Poly. They included the University of New Mexico, College of the Canyons, UCLA and University of Northridge. Professor Elliot served in the military during World War II and taught physics at Cal Poly in his early days.
Read the SLO Tribune obituary on retired professors Soto and Elliott
Coming Up
Theatre Department Presents 'Zero to Infinity' in November
The Cal Poly Theatre and Dance Department presents "Zero to Infinity" at 8 p.m. in the Spanos Theatre Nov. 12-14 and Nov. 17-19.
More on 'Zero to Infinity'
Lakota Sioux Dance Theatre Performs Nov. 16 in Cohan Center
Cal Poly Student Affairs presents The Lakota Sioux Dance Theatre in performance at 8 p.m. Nov. 16 in the Cohan Center. The Lakota Sioux Dance Theatre was founded at the Rosebud reservation in South Dakota. Set against the backdrop of spectacular video imagery accompanied by live traditional, sacred, and courting songs, narratives and creation stories are woven into the fabric of the performance.
More on the Lakota Sioux Dancers
Author Kozol to Speak on 'Shame of the Nation' Nov. 17
Jonathan Kozol – a teacher, author and advocate for social justice – will speak as part of Cal Poly's Provocative Perspectives series Tuesday, Nov. 17. The talk is free and open to the public. Kozol’s lecture is titled “The Shame of the Nation: Killing Off the College Options for the Children of the Poor from the Day They Enter Public School.”
More on Kozol's visit and Provocative Perspectives
Darwin Bicentennial Talk Set for Nov. 17
The Research Scholars in Residence Program will sponsor a seminar by Bob Field on “Darwin in the Garden: The Evolution of Land Plants.” The seminar is set for Tuesday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. in Room 510-B of Kennedy Library. The talk is free and open to the public. Field will use a visit to a Mediterranean garden to illustrate how the Earth and its biosphere have been evolving for billions of years. The presentation will explore the relationships among plants, animals, algae, fungi and bacteria.
Native American Music,
Dance Showcased Nov. 18
Cal Poly Arts presents "The Nammys On Tour" Nov. 18. This showcase of artistic expression pays homage to the rich legacy of Native American culture. The celebration features Native American Music Association’s (NAMMY) Lifetime Achievement Award winners singer/ songwriter Joanne Shenandoah and flutist R. Carlos Nakai. With special guests, the Yellowbird Dancers.
More on the NAMMY Tour
Cal Poly Music Department Presents Annual Bandfest Nov. 21
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 Nov. 22 at the PAC
The Cal Poly Symphony will present its fall concert at 3 p.m. 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
University Jazz Bands in Concert Dec. 4
Enjoy the annual Fall Quarter Jazz Concert at 8 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Spanos Theatre. This concert will feature an eclectic mix of jazz standards and modern compositions performed by the University Jazz Bands No. 1 and No. 2 and the Cal Poly Jazz Combos.
More on the UJazz bands' concert
'All is Calm' in Mission SLO Dec. 4
Cal Poly Arts presents Cantus in a special concert in Mission San Luis Obispo on Friday, Dec. 4. "All is Calm" is an homage to the remarkable Christmas Truce of WWI – a day when both sides laid down their arms to embrace peace with a cease-fire. It features the stirring a cappella voices of the Cantus men’s choir and Theater Latté Da. It's a holiday celebration to inspire the human spirit, performed in the acoustically-stunning sanctuary of the Old Mission.
More on Cantus and 'Calm' concert
Cal Poly Choirs' 'Christmas Celebration' is Dec. 5
Be sure to get your tickets early for this popular opening to the holiday season set for Saturday, Dec. 5. The Cal Poly Choirs' "A Christmas Celebration: Of Voices, Pipes and Brass!" begins at 8 p.m. in the Cohan Center. Campus organist Paul Woodring will be featured on the Forbes Pipe Organ along with the Cal Poly Brass Ensemble conducted by Christopher J. Woodruff. PolyPhonics, The University Singers, The Cal Poly Early Music Ensemble and Barbershop Quartets. The event includes an audience carol sing-along.
More on the Christmas Celebration concert
More campus events & entertainment