University News

Orfalea College of Business Again Named
to Bloomberg BusinessWeek’s List of Top Schools

For the third consecutive year, Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business has been named to Bloomberg BusinessWeek magazine’s list of the nation’s top undergraduate business colleges. This year, Cal Poly was ranked No. 73 and was one of only three public universities in California to be included on the list. Only six California business colleges made the cut for 2011. Bloomberg BusinessWeek bases its rankings on student survey scores, recruiter survey scores, median starting salaries for graduates, the number of grads admitted to 35 top MBA programs, and an academic quality formula.
Details on Cal Poly's Bloomberg ranking
Watch a video on student experiences in the college

You're Invited to Cal Poly's 18th Annual Open House on April 16

The public is invited to experience Cal Poly on Saturday, April 16, at the Campus Showcase, part of the university’s 18th annual Open House. Open House gives admitted and current students, their supporters, alumni and the San Luis Obispo community the opportunity to visit and learn about the university. The Campus Showcase will begin at 9 a.m. with the Poly Royal Parade. Activities following Opening Ceremonies include a Kids’ Fair, live music, the Cal Poly Tractor Pull, the Cal Poly Rodeo, robot wars, the Open House Concert and many other events. More than 200 student clubs and organizations will offer educational, informational and concession booths from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For the full schedule, visit the Open House Web site | See photos from Open House 2010

Coming to Campus for Open House?
Download Guided Tour Apps For iPhones, Androids

The Cal Poly Admissions Office has developed two apps for smart phones that offer guided tours and information about campus. The "GoExplore Cal Poly" application is now available from the Android Market. The app has been upgraded to ensure that it will work on different types of Android phones including the Droid, Droid X and Galaxy S.
Find out more about the GoExplore Cal Poly app in the Android Market
Find out more about Cal Poly's iPhone app

President Armstrong Addresses State Budget Cuts

President Jeffrey D. Armstrong says the anticipated cut of $20 million in state funding to Cal Poly for the 2011-12 academic year will be harsh but manageable. “We’ve been carefully preparing for a cut that size. The really difficult challenge will be if Gov. Brown’s proposed tax extensions do not go through,” Armstrong said in prepared remarks for a speech to the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce. This is the latest in several years of budget hits for public higher education in California, including Cal Poly. Four years ago, Cal Poly received about $150 million in state support. Under the governor’s current proposal – assuming the tax extensions are approved – the university will likely receive $99 million next fiscal year. “We are dealing with dramatic cuts in state funding,” Armstrong said. “But we remain focused on student success and on preserving our Learn by Doing programs.
More on the budget

Oberhelman Is New Cal Poly Athletics Director

Donald J. Oberhelman became Cal Poly’s new director of athletics April 4. “Don Oberhelman brings great personal integrity and genuine respect for Cal Poly’s traditions and values,” said President Jeffrey D. Armstrong in making the appointment. “Don believes in Cal Poly’s focus on academic excellence and sees athletics as consistent with and complementary to our Learn by Doing philosophy." Oberhelman, 40, comes to Cal Poly from San Diego State University, where he was the chief operating officer and senior associate athletic director. In that role, he was responsible for the daily operations of the SDSU intercollegiate athletics program – among them budget planning, hiring and evaluation of coaches, facilities and event management. He also worked closely with the fundraising team.
More on Oberhelman | Video Interview with Oberhelman

Cal Poly Announces $1 Million Gift for Waste Management Research

Cal Poly this month confirmed a multi-year, $700,000 commitment to the Global Waste Research Institute from Waste Connections, Inc. When paired with a previous donation, brings the company’s total gift to $1 million. The Global Waste Research Institute (GWRI) represents the first collaborative effort between a public university and industry to promote the development of sustainable waste and byproduct management technologies and advance current global practices in resource management.
Details on the donation

Cal Poly Ethics Group Joins Military Technology Consortium

The Ethics + Emerging Sciences Group at Cal Poly has announced it is now an institutional member of the Consortium for Emerging Technologies, Military Operations and National Security (CETMONS). CETMONS focuses on military and national security issues arising in this era of unprecedented and complex technological evolution. Some of the technologies of interest include nanotechnology, neurotechnology, human enhancements, robotics, cyberweapons and non-lethal weapons. Patrick Lin, director of the Ethics + Emerging Sciences Group, will join the consortium’s executive board, which has responsibility for CETMONS programs and activities such as research, teaching, outreach, public service and policy development. Lin has been active in CETMONS as a group associate since 2009, as an ethics fellow at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Details on the group and the consortium

Robert E. Kennedy Library Celebrates 30 Years

Cal Poly’s Robert E. Kennedy Library marked its 30th anniversary with a rededication ceremony and reception April 8 that included special tours. Michael D. Miller, dean of Library Services, reaffirmed the library’s commitment to helping Cal Poly students of all ages in their quest for knowledge. “It is remarkable,” Miller said, “how in a digital age the Kennedy Library is more important than ever in supporting student success through discovery, collaboration, research and instruction – and by creating an environment that is both enriching and welcoming.”  The five-story building replaced the older and smaller Dexter Library, which was in service from 1949-1980. The new library was named after Cal Poly President Emeritus Robert E. Kennedy, who spearheaded the effort to bring a new library to campus.
Visit the library’s web site at www.lib.calpoly.edu

University Union Turns 40

Cal Poly's Julian A. McPhee University Union celebrated its 40th "Birthday" April 7 with performances by the Cal Poly Marching Band and Take it SLO a capella group, plus entertainment, cupcakes and prizes. The UU Plaza now features a more open layout, new stage area and seating thanks to a 2009-10 renovation. As part of the project, South Perimeter Road was closed to through traffic between Grand Avenue and Cuesta Avenue, and a pedestrian plaza now links the University Union with the Performing Arts Center and Mott Gym. The renovation incorporated many design elements from Cal Poly Architecture students and was financed by reserve funds that were saved over time for the purpose of renovation and remodeling projects.

Kennedy Library's Digital Commons Surpasses 10,000 Items

The DigitalCommons@CalPoly is the university’s digital archive, providing open access to faculty and student research, scholarship and creative works, as well as relevant documents created by administrative offices, departments and programs at Cal Poly. The latest submission by Philosophy Professor Joseph Lynch and the editors of the journal "Between the Spices" brought the DigitalCommons archive past the 10,000 item mark.
Browse the archive online at: http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu.
Read more about Digital Commons

Today's Students

Seventh Annual PolyCultural Weekend Draws 280 Newly Admitted Students

Cal Poly hosted its seventh PolyCultural Weekend April 8-10 for 280 newly admitted students and their families. The event is organized and run by 23 multicultural student clubs and sponsored by the university's Student Life and Leadership Division. Invited students were from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. PolyCultural Weekend events included meetings with department advisers, cultural clubs, a tour of downtown San Luis Obispo, and separate events for students and parents. Students enjoyed a show in Chumash Auditorium with numbers from the 23 participating clubs, followed by dinner and a Saturday evening full of social events. President Jeffrey D. Armstrong spoke to both parents and students and was greeted enthusiastically by both crowds. The weekend ended with a barbecue in Cuesta Park April 10.
Photos by Kenneth Morgan
See more photos from PolyCultural Weekend

Civil Engineers Bring Home Six First Place Awards

Cal Poly’s Society of Civil Engineers (SCE) brought home the gold — lots of it — from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Pacific Southwest Regional Conference held March 23-26. The group earned six first-place awards and was named the overall conference champion for the 15th time since 1995. SCE brought 90 members to the conference hosted by CSU Los Angeles. Nearly 1,000 students from 18 universities attended this four-day event. Cal Poly competed in 22 events against rivals that included UCLA, Cal Poly Pomona, and UCSD. The Cal Poly group won first in the Concrete, Steel Bridge, MSE Wall, Technical Paper and Presentation, Geotechnical Competition, Impromptu Design and Balsa Wood Bridge Design. Cal Poly also scored third place in Surveying, Environmental Competition, Dog House Design and Construction and "Can-struction."
Read more about the conference and the Cal Poly teams

Technical, Traditional Forestry Skills Displayed at Western Conclave

Cal Poly hosted the nation’s premier lumberjack competition, the STIHL Timbersports Series, as part of the 72nd annual Association of Western Forestry Clubs conclave March 23-25 on campus. The three-day forestry conclave featured the region’s top collegiate and professional lumberjacks in a variety of technical and physical lumberjack disciplines. More than 250 students from 10 regional colleges and universities including Colorado State University, Humboldt State University, Modesto Junior College, UC Berkeley, University of Idaho and University of Nevada-Reno converged on the Cal Poly campus for the event. The Timbersports competition segment will be broadcast on ESPN later this year. Central Coast news crews covered the event.
See KSBY-TV video | Read more about the competition

Students Put On Successful Wine Festival Benefit

Wine industry professionals came out en force to support the 2011 Cal Poly Wine Festival on April 8 and 9 at Margarita Vineyards in Santa Margarita, Calif., just north of San Luis Obispo. This student-run, two-day festival benefits the Cal Poly Wine and Viticulture Program, the largest program of its kind in the nation. On April 8, the festival put on seminars about trends and terroir in wine today. The event included panels by celebrity bloggers Gary Vaynerchuk (Wine Library TV) and Leah Hennessy (Millennier), as well as industry professionals Kris O’Connor (Central Coast Vineyard Team), Steve Lohr (J.Lohr), John Ewan (Pacific Energy Company), Mike Sinor (Ancient Peaks Winery) and Justin Smith (Saxum Vineyards).
Visit the Cal Poly Wine Fest Website

Faculty & Staff

Cal Poly Researchers Studying South Pacific Currents and Islands

Researchers from Cal Poly’s Center for Coastal Marine Science spent most of March in the Western Equatorial Pacific studying ocean currents and how they interact with coral reef islands as part of a $370,000 grant from the Office of Naval Research. Marine Biology Professor Mark Moline and Senior Research Scientist Ian Robbins used remotely operated mini-submarines and placed sensor equipment on the ocean floor off Palau, an island republic near the Philippines. The equipment is gathering data on what happens when ocean currents meet and flow around coral reefs. The underwater current mixing affects sonar capabilities, one of the reasons the Navy is interested in the research.
More on the research | See photos and posts on the Marine Science Remote Adventures Blog

Advancement Officer Named Rising Star

Adam Jarman of the Cal Poly College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences was named "Rising Star of 2011" by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Jarman is the sixth recipient of this prestigious award and the first from the California State University system. Jarman has worked at Cal Poly since 2004 in a variety of advancement capacities, including stewardship coordinator, assistant director of planned giving and endowments, as well as associate director of advancement, and currently as director of major gifts for the college. He received both his bachelor’s degree in journalism (2002) and master’s degree in public policy (2007) from Cal Poly. After graduation, Jarman spent two years as a reporter for The Tribune in San Luis Obispo.
More on Jarman

Passings: Landscape Architecture Professor Dan Panetta

Professor Daniel Lee Panetta, 58, architect, landscape architect, teacher and scholar, died Monday, March 7, 2011, in San Luis Obispo. He was the first in his family to have earned a degree (Cal Poly, 1976, with a degree in Landscape Architecture, then master's from UC Berkeley, 1986). He joined the Department of Architecture faculty at Cal Poly in 1986. He was a talented artist and rarely left home without his sketching journal, and he inspired his students to do the same. He also encouraged his students to be of service, most recently having coached winning teams of interdisciplinary students in statewide low-income housing challenge competitions. He was instrumental in developing a minor in Sustainable Environments and was a founding member of the Sustainable Environments Education (SEE) Group on campus.
Visit his Cal Poly memorial page and leave messages

Alumni News

Alum Speaks on Bionic Advances for Soldiers, Paraplegics April 15

Alumnus Russ Angold (B.S., BRAE ’00) will speak on campus April 15 about his company's advances in bionic engineering. Angold is co-founder and chief technical officer of Berkeley Bionics (www.berkeleybionics.com). The company develops and manufactures wearable, artificially intelligent bionic devices called exoskeletons for military, civilian and medical uses that augment human strength, endurance and mobility and help prevent injury. In 2008, Berkeley Bionics introduced HULC™ (Human Universal Load Carrier), an untethered exoskeleton that allows people to carry up to 200 pounds for hours. In 2010, the company unveiled eLEGS, a wearable, artificially intelligent, bionic device for paraplegics that allows them to stand and walk. TIME Magazine named eLEGS one of the best 50 inventions of 2010. Angold, a member of the BioResource and Agricultural Engineering Industry Advisory Council, will present his story, “Bionics: Merging Man and Machine,” at 3 p.m. April 15 in the Kennedy Library’s Second Floor Café Lounge
More on Angold

Alumni in the News:
Human Powered Helicopter Designers, Winemakers and More

Neal Saiki (B.S., Aerospace Engineering, 1990; M.S., Aerospace Engineering, 1993), co-founder of Zero Motorcycles, is leaving his day-to-day operational duties at the company to try his hand at designing and building the first human-powered helicopter. Saiki will re-enter the Igor I. Sikorsky Human Powered Helicopter Competition, which offers a $250,000 prize. Creating a human powered helicopter that meets all the design requirements is a feat that has eluded many since the competition was launched in 1980. Saiki first took part in the competition while studying at Cal Poly. Other alumni made headlines this month, too.
Read about alumni in the news

This Month's Alumni Chapter Events

San Diego Creek to Bay Cleanup
April 30
Join Cal Poly Alumni and I Love a Clean San Diego for the ninth annual Creek to Bay Cleanup on April 30th. This year Cal Poly
Alumni are participating in the cleanup of South Shores on Mission Bay.

Bay Area Green Technology Symposium and Networking
May 4
Join the San Francisco/San Jose Alumni Chapter as they host a Green Tech Panel and Networking event for Bay Area Cal Poly alumni.

Special Olympics Volunteering with SLO Alumni
May 6
Volunteer with fellow Cal Poly alumni at the annual San Luis Obispo County Special Olympics.

Central Valley Golf Tournament
May 13
Join members of the Tulare-Kings Alumni Chapter for the Central Valley Golf Tournament (also known as the Rita B. Hill Tournament) on May 13. This tournament has raised more than $100,000 for student scholarships in the past few years.

Horseshoe Tournament and BBQ in San Francisco
May 14
Join Cal Poly Alumni in San Francisco for the Inaugural Horseshoe Tournament and BBQ at the newly restored Golden Gate Park Horseshoe Courts.

Travel to Italy with Alumni This Fall

Explore two of Italy's most beloved regions: Chianti and the Italian Riviera. Discover the vestiges of Tuscany's epic history, stay in romantic Sestri Levante, and immerse yourself in the incomparable ambience of Florence. You'll spend four nights at the Villa Borgo di Cortefreda and four nights in Sestri Levante at the deluxe Hotel Vis a Vis. Trip dates are Sept. 22 - Oct. 1.
More Italy Details on the Alumni Web

Coming Up

Tour the Cal Poly Pier in Avila Beach April 23

The Cal Poly Pier in Avila Beach will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 23. The event is free, and the community is invited to come learn more about marine research going on at the Cal Poly Center for Coastal Marine Sciences. Bring the kids and enjoy special touch tanks full of marine creatures. Learn more about Cal Poly professors and students and their ongoing research into Morro Bay's ecosystem, sustaining local fisheries, mapping ocean currents on the Central Coast and more
Get Details | Print out a flyer

Visit the Cal Poly Events & Entertainment Calendar