Recent News
Q&A with CLA Lead Academic Advisor Sabrina Canady
Oct 12, 2023
By Nicole Troy
Canady has led the CLA’s team of
academic advisors for more than
a decade.
Each year, National Transfer Student Week (NTSW) is recognized across the nation on the third week of October to celebrate transfer students and support them through their academic journey.
In celebration of NTSW, we sat down with Sabrina Canady (Psychology, ‘07; Master of Science in Counseling and Guidance in Higher Education, ‘08), lead advisor for the College of Liberal Arts’ Advising Center.
Canady shared her experience as a transfer student and gave insight into how she is helping the College of Liberal Arts become more transfer-friendly.
Where did your college career begin and how did you find yourself at Cal Poly?
I went to Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria. I grew up in the area, so it was easy to go to a local community college. I was there for five years and after I figured out what I wanted to do as far as a major, I didn’t know how to get to the next step of actually going to university.
For personal reasons, I needed to stay in the area, so Cal Poly was my only option. All I ever heard was how hard it was to get into Cal Poly, so I took every class I possibly could thinking that was going to help my chances of getting in. And initially, I did not get in.
I had to appeal my denial and petition to get in because I literally couldn't go anywhere else. If I wanted to continue my education, it had to be at Cal Poly.
What was your experience like as a transfer student at Cal Poly?
It was lonely. I think that was partly my fault because I was local and working full-time to pay my own bills and pay for my own college; so, I would go to class and go to work. I didn't engage the way I should have.
But also, looking back now, I don't remember Cal Poly really trying to engage me during summer advising or WOW. A lot of what I saw back then was very freshman focused.
Now, there is the onboarding and orientation of new transfer students, the Cal Poly Transfer Center and faculty-staff advisory groups that are working really hard to address the needs of transfer students. I think it’s so much better, but there's still much more room for growth in that area.
How/why did you navigate into a career of working with students?
Honestly, I stumbled into it. My undergraduate major required an internship, so I ended up doing an internship with orientation programs at Cal Poly, particularly the summer advising program. However, I was doing event planning; and while I enjoyed it, that's not what I wanted as a career. But through that experience I got to see academic advising happening.
I should have known what academic advising was by that point, but I just didn't because I was a first-generation student and my family had that “pull yourself up by your bootstraps and figure it out yourself” sort of mentality.
Once I saw academic advising happening, I was like “That is so cool. I want to do that.” I saw the students go in stressed out and uncertain and walk out relieved. And I thought, “How can I make sure more students feel that way?”
Tell us about your work to make the quarter to semester transition more transfer-friendly.
On a college-wide level, we are working to align our semester curriculum to accommodate associate degrees for transfer (ADTs). ADTs allow students to follow a path at a community college to complete their lower division general education courses and complete at least 18 semester units of a major. When the students transfer, the ADT guarantees them admission to a CSU, and they will only have two years remaining — 90 quarter units or 60 semester units.
This is amazing for so many reasons because we're serving more students, we’re serving more California residents and we’re helping students access a clear and concise degree path.
What are some skills you think transfer students have that will lead to success?
Transfer students are amazing, and they come from so many different paths in life and so many different eras of life. We need to appreciate the life skills and the life experiences that they bring to the table. Not that our first years don't have amazing experiences to bring to the table, but transfers have a unique path that they've been able to navigate and learn from. They have tenacity. It’s hard work to get here and it can be very confusing to transfer.
What advice would you give to transfer students at Cal Poly?
Ask questions and ask for help. Ask the advisors, mentors, faculty and counselors that are there to help you. Don’t expect to do it on your own.
Unfortunately, there are far more of them than there are of us. Proactive advising is not always a realistic option, but as faculty and staff we always work to figure out how to develop more opportunities for that. But it really requires the students to engage with us (and read our emails!).
Any final thoughts?
Every transfer student should check out the events hosted by the Cal Poly Transfer Center. Transfer Center Assistant Director Heather Domonoske has done so much for this campus and these students. I admire the work that has been accomplished there and I hope to continue to work with her on ways to make this campus more transfer friendly.
Join the NTSW celebration and check out the Cal Poly Transfer Center’s event schedule.
Read the most recent CLA News stories
Learn by Doing Research Will Be On Display at the 2023 SURP+ Symposium
Sep 28, 2023
Faculty, staff and students are invited to learn about student research within the College of Liberal Arts by engaging with 15 student-faculty research and creative activity projects completed in summer 2023 as part of the CLA's Summer Undergraduate Research Programs (SURPs). The 2023 SURP+ Symposium will feature more than 100 university-wide projects across five colleges.
The event will be held in the Engineering Plaza, between the Advanced Technologies Lab (No. 07), Bonderson and Building 192 on Friday, Oct. 13 from 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Sophia Velasquez presents her poster at
the 2022 SURP+ Symposium.
Poster presenters worked alongside faculty members and community partners throughout the summer, resulting in student-faculty co-authored publications and university-industry-and-community collaborations.
Students will present their research findings during the event that is jointly organized by the Bailey College of Science & Mathematics, the College of Agriculture, Food & Environmental Sciences, the College of Engineering, the College of Liberal Arts, the Orfalea College of Business, and the Office of Student Researchin collaboration with LSAMP B2B California Central Coast Community College Collaborative (C6).
Forty-six community college researchers from C6 campuses, Allan Hancock College, Cabrillo College, Cuesta College, Monterey Peninsula College, Moorpark College, Oxnard College, Santa Barbara City College and Ventura College — will share their research as part of this event.
Additional support is provided by the Division of Research and CSU Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) in STEM Program at Cal Poly.
This event is co-located with a Mini Graduate School and Research Opportunities Resource Fair. Light refreshments will be provided.
Stop by anytime between 1:30-3:30 p.m. to support student research and creative activity at Cal Poly. No RSVP is required.
Learn more about the 11 CLA projects that will be on display below.
Art & Design
LGBTQ+ augmented reality wayfinding and identity system for galleries and art museums
Faculty Advisor: Prof. Linh Dao
Student Researchers: Chenin Gelera (Art and Design); Elise Coatney (Art and Design)
Project Description: A queer augmented reality learning system to enrich visitor experiences in galleries and art museums. The experience consists of an identity and wayfinding system which consists of physical signage and a digital archive in the form of a mobile application or website. The experience blends seamlessly into the physical museum settings as part of the traditional project descriptions prints next to artworks on the gallery wall, suggesting related or similar works created by a queer artist and/or about the queer experience. A range of queer artist identities and queer artworks are available in the archive for wayfinding onsite and offsite exploration, reimagining the gallery and museum space which have remained relatively static and lacking especially for queer audiences or those interested in queer artwork.
Communication Studies
Exploring Learning Quality and Challenges in Virtual vs. In-Person Classrooms
Faculty advisor: Prof. Anuraj Dhillon
Student researcher: Kendall Baebler (Communication Studies)
Project Description: Zoom and similar videoconferencing services have become a common addition to professional and educational processes since their rapid implementation over the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although previous research has determined that students’ report greater satisfaction in virtual learning environments, the prevalence of “Zoom fatigue” and decreases in educational success among students engaging in online education offer a contradicting perspective on the effectiveness of virtual classrooms. Therefore, this project aims to examine the factors that contribute to learning satisfaction in virtual classes and how these compare with that in in-person classes, as well as discover potential factors that negatively impact student satisfaction from learning and academic success.
English
Student Writers' Experiences of the Flow State in Academic Writing
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Krista Sarraf
Student Reseachers: Claire Sakelson (English); Claire Chan (English)
Project Description: Have you ever become deeply immersed in a project and lost track of time? That experience is called the “flow state” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996). When people enter the flow state, they report generating more and better creative (new and unique) ideas. This research project explores if and how student writers engage in the flow state in the writing they compose for school.
Ethnic Studies
Counter-Mapping as Decolonization: Creating an Indigenous Walking Tour of the Cal Poly Campus
Faculty Mentors: Lydia Heberling and Becca Lucas
Student Researchers: Amy Contreras (Ethnic Studies); Sophie Martyrossian (Computer Science)
Project Description: The goal of this project is to produce an Indigenous Walking Tour of the Cal Poly campus that can be used by a diverse range of campus and community groups. Producing an Indigenous tour of the Cal Poly campus expands on the practice of the land acknowledgment by employing the tools of counter-mapping and Indigenous research methods to center Indigenous presence in our everyday lives. An Indigenous Walking Tour would map the Cal Poly campus by places, artworks, plants, names and histories central to the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribe. By creating this walking tour, we will make visible, amplify, and celebrate living Indigenous traditions and knowledges. Counter-mapping is a process of cartography that challenges the dominant views of the world. It can allow for marginalized voices to communicate their stories and reveal histories of their land. Counter-mapping creates multiple ways of knowing places and lands through diverse cartographic practices.
Graphic Communication
Promoting Inclusivity in User Experience: Updating Paso Robles Children’s Museum’s Photographic Contents with Ethnically Diverse Photographic Assets
Faculty Mentor: Hocheol Yang
Student Researchers: Erika DeAnda (Graphic Communication); Meilan Wong (Graphic Communication)
Project Description: The primary objective of this proposal is to undertake an empirical investigation into the psychological impact of incorporating ethnically diverse photographic assets to foster more inclusive and culturally diverse experiences for the local community. Specifically, this study endeavors to establish the effects of inclusive UX design practices on social presence and self-esteem. By conducting this research, it is anticipated that the findings will inform individuals designing interactive communication systems that cater to diverse cultural backgrounds, while also providing support for the Paso Robles, CA community.
Philosophy
Thought Experiments, Introspection, and Modal Intuitions
Faculty Mentor: Eleanor Helms
Student Researcher: Hayden Macklin (Philosophy)
Project Description: What is the ground or basis for taking something to be possible or necessary? We will review existing proposes in the philosophical literature on intuitions for how we gain “modal knowledge.” We will determine to what extent introspection (that is, knowledge of one’s own mental states) or some kind of first-personal placement within a situation matters for modal knowledge. To what extent does knowledge of modalities depend on experiences stored in memory? Can imagination provide knowledge beyond retrieving existing knowledge?
Removing the Mask: Former Undocumented Student Hopes Sharing Her Background Will Help as Coordinator of the Multicultural Business Program
Sep 11, 2023
By Pat Pemberton
Having grown up undocumented in Guadalupe, Calif.,
Yesenia Beas thinks she will be able to relate and
empathize with students as the head of the
Multicultural Business Program. (Photo: Jack Sann)
As an undocumented child in Guadalupe, Calif, Yesenia Beas was afraid to tell friends or school staffers about her status, unsure whom she could trust.
“I don’t even think my teachers in elementary or junior high really understood the level of stress you would feel even trying to open up to them and sharing your story a little,” Beas said. “Because you think, ‘Is this person going to be supportive or not? Are they going to hurt me, or are they going to help me?’”
While she kept her secret until she was in college, Beas, now a resident seeking citizenship, said she is happy to share her experiences with students as a new academic advisor and coordinator of Cal Poly’s Multicultural Business Program (MBP), which provides students with professional support and resources to help them persist toward graduation.
“All of the identities I carry definitely help in terms of being able to relate to a lot of student struggles,” said Beas, noting that each student will have their own unique challenge. “My hope is that I can gain students’ trust so that they too can open up to me and share things that maybe they wouldn’t share with others so that I can help them out.”
Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Beas and her family moved to Guadalupe when she was five years old. Her father worked as a handyman, and her mother cleaned houses.
“I think Guadalupe is very similar to Mexico in the sense that it’s poorly funded and it’s a very small town with very few people,” Beas said, “which is nice because you kind of get to know everyone in the town.”
While her parents didn’t speak English, they would sit at the dinner table with her and try to help her with homework they didn’t understand. Her school staff was supportive, but Beas was always cautious about revealing too much about herself.
“Your parents teach you when you’re very young, ‘Don’t disclose,’” she said. “’Don’t share with anyone unless you really have to – or come talk to me before you say anything.’”
When her seventh grade class visited Washington, D.C., Beas stayed home, fearing she would be discovered as undocumented and deported. And in high school, she didn’t think she could attend college since out-of-state tuition would apply.
Yesenia Beas, at the Matter Belong Persist Conference,
put on by the Multicultural Business Program last spring.
(Photo: Pat Pemberton)
While the 2011 California Dream Act allowed undocumented students to receive financial aid and pay in-state tuition, many high schools lack resources or training to help eligible undocumented students apply for college. As a result, only 14 percent of undocumented students in the state receive any form of financial aid for higher education, according to the California Student Aid Commission.
Eventually, Beas attended Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, where she and three other undocumented students shared similar stories and decided to pursue a dream center that would support students like themselves. Eventually, AIM to Dream, partially modeled after Cal Poly’s Dream Center, would advocate for undocumented students who want to pursue higher education.
After two years at Allan Hancock, Beas transferred to Cal Poly, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in psychology and then a master’s degree in higher education counseling and student affairs.
“My hope is that I can gain students’ trust so that they too can open up to me and share things that maybe they wouldn’t share with others so that I can help them out.”
YESENIA BEAS
As a transfer student, Beas didn’t feel as connected to campus as her peers who had already attended Cal Poly for a couple of years. And she didn’t always feel she fit in.
If white friends asked her what her favorite TV show was, she didn’t tell them about the Spanish shows she regularly watched. Or if her boyfriend (now husband) picked her up while playing Spanish music in the car, she would hide her face.
“Now it’s really funny, but in the moment, I felt a sense of shame, which I had never felt in my entire life,” she said. “Most of my friends at Cal Poly were white, and I had to put on that mask.”
Spending time at Cal Poly’s Dream Center and the Educational Opportunity Program helped her be her authentic self, she said, as did working as a resident advisor. She would also work as a graduate assistant for the Dream Center before joining the Orfalea College of Business as a graduate assistant in the Career Readiness Center.
At the Multicultural Business Program, she replaces Yovani Alexander, who oversaw the program for the three years.
Yesenia Beas, far right, speaks with volunteers
from the Multicultural Business Program.
Pictured with her are, left to right, Ben Reyes,
Vanessa Leigh Gawad, Alan Villanueva, and
Sheenah Jesubalan. (Photo: Jack Sann)
Alexander said Beas’s passion for helping students from different backgrounds – along with her empathy and understanding — make for an excellent fit.
“She is very kind and giving to those around her,” Alexander said. “Her values align with MBP’s mission.”
Alexander has helped maintain MBP’s strong connection with industry while overseeing increased funding for the program itself.
“It has been such a joy to be part of this community, and I know Yesenia will continue to move the MBP forward,” Alexander said.
While it took some effort to end up at Cal Poly – first as a student and now an employee — Beas said the journey was worthwhile.
“Reflecting back on it now, I think I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way,” she said. “Because the path I took to get my degree was a really beautiful one, and I learned a lot along the way.”
Read the original story from the Orfalea College of Business
Political Science Student Selected for 2023 Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program
Aug 24, 2023
By Keegan Koberl
Danielle "Dani" Bello
Danielle “Dani” Bello, a fourth-year political science student from San Carlos, CA, will serve as Cal Poly’s 2023 representative to the Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program.
After a two-week training period at the Panetta Institute at CSU Monterey Bay, Bello will work in the capitol office of a California congressional representative in Washington, D.C., for 11 weeks in the fall.
“Since my first day at Cal Poly I’ve wanted to embody Learn by Doing and pursue hands-on opportunities, especially in the policy sphere,” said Bello. “I’m excited to learn more about the intricacies of public policy and be in the spaces where the important conversations are happening.
“In my time at Cal Poly, I’ve felt encouraged to seek out opportunities and learn beyond the classroom – I’m excited to bring this mindset to Washington.”
Bello previously interned for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the San Luis Obispo Legal Assistance Foundation (SLOLAF) and the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office.
Bello is the 23rd Cal Poly student to participate in the Panetta Institute program since 2001. She will join 24 other students, all nominated by the presidents of California State University campuses, as well as Dominican University of California, Saint Mary’s College of California and Santa Clara University. The program is open to all academic majors and is recognized as one of the leading internship courses in the nation because of the rigorous training it provides.
The Panetta Institute covers program costs, including course registration fees, campus services during orientation, air travel and housing in Washington, D.C. By covering these expenses, the institute can make the program available to interns from all socioeconomic levels. Cal Poly awardees are supported in part through the Ed and Jan Slevin Congressional Internship Endowment.
Read the most recent CLA News stories
Journalism Department to Offer New Concentration in Media Innovation
Aug 16, 2023
Story Courtesy of Cal Poly Journalism Department
The Cal Poly Journalism Department is now one of only a handful of programs in the country offering a concentration in media innovation, allowing students to focus their studies on the intersection of journalism, business and technology.
The department's curriculum committee, led by professors Patrick Howe and Patti Piburn, spent the past few years researching and refining the new concentration to best serve students who are entering a constantly evolving media landscape.
Media innovation students will learn how to develop new storytelling approaches, use analytics to understand audience behavior, foster inclusive civic participation, create innovative media products and experiment with revenue models.
Kim Bisheff, a long-time lecturer in the department who has expertise in everything from entrepreneurship to editing and multimedia production, will take on a new role as an assistant professor overseeing the new concentration.
Bisheff is eager to teach students how to come up with new ideas and solutions for problems facing the media industry related to credibility, polarization, engagement and minority marginalization.
“At a polytechnic university, this is where we should be innovating solutions to the big problems,” Bisheff said.
The media innovation concentration is one of four options students have in the department's redesigned curriculum. Other concentrations are news -- with specialties in either broadcast or print/digital -- a strengthened public relations program that includes a new PR research course, and a new "design-your-own" concentration.
“We believe that this new curriculum, which balances core skills in accuracy, writing and storytelling with a focus on diversity and inclusion, ethics and consumer priorities, will position our graduates to land jobs at the forefront of any industry they choose," department chair Brady Teufel said.
Watch a short video of Professor Bisheff describing the value of the new concentration: https://youtu.be/817IqTkvAnE.
View the new curriculum in its entirety here: https://flowcharts.calpoly.edu/downloads/curric/22-26.Journalism.pdf.
Read the most recent CLA News stories
Beating the Heat: Students Map California Tree Canopy to Cool Cities as Climate Warms
Aug 4, 2023
By Gabby Ferreira | Photos by Joe Johnston
This summer, a group of students are embarking on a groundbreaking project: mapping tree canopy cover in California.
Tree canopies, which provide shade, can offset the heat island effect in cities. The effect is caused by buildings, roads and other human-made infrastructure absorbing and then re-emitting heat. In a warming climate, the heat island effect only intensifies, making cities hotter than ever.
Third-year environmental management and
protection major Ryley Chase speaks during a
presentation about the project.
To offset this, the state of California aims to increase tree canopy cover by 10% in urban areas by the year 2035 — especially in underprivileged areas and areas with few trees. But no open-source data set exists that can provide an accurate baseline estimate. That’s where this project comes in.
The students involved are creating a public, open-source urban tree canopy map using geographic information systems (GIS) and an AI deep-learning model. They’re also writing a research paper to document their methodologies and share their discoveries with the world.
“With our map, city managers can say, ‘OK, here’s where our trees are, here’s where we don’t have trees and here’s where we’ve lost a lot of trees and need to replace them,’” said Cami Pawlak, a graduate advisor on the project who graduated with her master’s degree from Cal Poly in June. “Cities that have good canopy cover can be 10 degrees cooler than cities without it. It has a big impact in terms of stress on people and urban heat.”
At the ground level, students are digitizing images from the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) of hundreds of tree canopies across the state to make an image training library for artificial intelligence. The AI will then use the learning library of images to identify tree canopies in other areas, building a baseline estimate.
A training tile showing an aerial image from the
NAIP database, with trees outlined in green by
Ryley Chase. The image tiles are used for an
AI image training library. Courtesy photo
“It’s something you could never have humans do, but if you train a neural network, it will create decent estimates,” said Andrew Fricker, a geography professor who is advising the project. “Part of the process is refining a model and making it better.”
To start, each student has been assigned 100 training tiles and is digitizing each visible tree. Sara Arnold and Griffen Guizan, both fourth-year anthropology and geography majors, are using the programming language Python to create bar charts that show month, camera type, hour, climate zone, city area and city population for each tile.
“It is eye-opening to see which urban areas of California have lots of tree coverage and which do not,” Arnold said, adding that many of the tiles she has digitized are from wealthy neighborhoods with large trees shading the streets. “These large trees offset the urban heat island effect, making the areas cooler and more livable. However, my tiles that have been situated in highly urbanized areas like cities typically have very little canopy coverage.”
Fricker concurs, adding that tree cover tends to be scarcer in the poorest areas, exacerbating the effects of a warming climate.
“It’s a social and environmental justice issue,” Fricker said. “Part of this is helping to make underserved communities more resilient in the face of a changing climate.”
Students who are working on this research project
include, from left: Sara Arnold, Griffen Guizan,
Ryley Chase and Jessica Baiza.
One of the team members, fifth-year landscape architecture student Jessica Baiza, has worked on parts of this project since January with a particular focus on canopy cover at public schools.
“Children are so vulnerable to extreme temperatures,” she said, adding that the project has led them to a disheartening discovery: most schools, regardless of the community’s income level, don’t have many trees. Instead of green spaces, many schoolyards feature lots of pavement. “This unfortunate reality exacerbates the heat island effect and contributes to flooding issues."
The canopy cover map is just one of the projects under the umbrella of Cal Poly’s Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute, which strives to address the need for improved management of California’s urban trees. The UFEI has interdisciplinary collaborators throughout Cal Poly in areas including computer science, economics and architecture.
“We are passionate about trees and their ability to increase the quality of the lives of people living in California’s urban areas. There are so many opportunities to help people through urban forest science,” said Matt Ritter, a biology professor and director of UFEI.
From left: Professor Andrew Fricker, who is advising
the project; Professor Jenn Yost, who is involved with
UFEI; students Sara Arnold, Griffen Guizan, Ryley Chase
and Jessica Baiza; graduate advisor Cami Pawlak
and Professor Matt Ritter, director of UFEI.
For Baiza, this project has helped her recognize the impact of landscape architecture and nature-based solutions on communities — and how she can be mindful as she pursues her career.
“I am confident that the knowledge and skills I have gained through this experience will guide me in making better informed decisions when designing landscapes not only within California's schoolyards but also in other communities facing similar challenges,” she said.
“I hope that my work in this project can serve as a catalyst for positive change, inspiring others to embrace nature-based solutions and sustainable practices. The well-being of our children and our environment depend on it.”
Read the story from Cal Poly News
Cal Poly Graphic Communication Department Re-Accredited for Six Years
Jul 31, 2023
The department has been accredited
since 1998.
The Cal Poly Graphic Communication Department has been re-accredited for another six-year cycle after a unanimous vote by the Accrediting Council for Collegiate Graphic Communications (ACCGC). The department has been accredited since the ACCGC’s inception in 1998.
“Accreditation is extremely important. The process of going through a self-study and having academic and industry professionals vet your program ensures that what we are teaching to the future leaders of the industry is relevant,” Graphic Communication Department Chair Colleen Twomey said. “Accreditation matters to employers who can be assured that the skills and problem-solving techniques our students are learning enable these graduates to contribute to the industry immediately. This process recognizes that Cal Poly is a top tier school to study graphic communication.”
The accrediting process included a self study — a yearlong examination of curriculum, assessment, laboratory work and faculty research — which was provided to a team of two universities and an industry representative. The team visited campus to observe classes and coursework, speak with students and advisory board members and converse with alumni. Interviews with the College of Liberal Arts Dean’s Office and the Cal Poly Office of the Provost were also conducted.
According to the ACCGC, the purpose of accrediting graphic communication programs is threefold: assuring curricular and instructional relevancy within a system of quality improvement; stimulating the exchange of ideas between academia and industry; and providing internal and external recognition to collegiate programs meeting accreditation standards.
The 15 rigorous standards for accreditation and compliance that were reviewed include:
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Program mission.
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Learning outcomes.
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Program and administrative leadership.
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Financial support.
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Available equipment and facilities.
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Support services.
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Overall curriculum.
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Teaching quality of faculty.
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Industry experiences for students.
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Industry advisory board assistance.
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Academic preparation of faculty.
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Faculty evaluation process.
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Records kept and advisory assistance to students.
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Career placement services.
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Diversity, equity and inclusion within the program.
Cal Poly is one of eight accredited programs in the United States that offer curricula in graphic communication.
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Political science student details internship with LGBTQ+ Victory Institute in Washington, D.C.
Jun 15, 2023
Edwin Madrid
By Alexandra Gregorio
Last fall, fourth-year political science student Edwin Madrid interned with the LBGTQ+ Victory Institute as part of the fall 2022 Victory Congressional Internship cohort. Madrid was one of eight students selected for the 10-week program, working with a member of the LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus or an LGBTQ-friendly member of the U.S. Congress to experience the federal legislative process firsthand.
The first half of the program included a variety of developmental workshops.
“Each Friday was different. One day we were learning about queer history, going to a Smithsonian Museum and learning about the intersectionality of identities. The next, we were listening to and asking panelists questions about their careers, with speakers ranging from campaign managers to White House staffers,” Madrid said.
For the second half of the internship, students applied to work for a member of Congress directly. Congresswoman Diana DeGette of Colorado’s 1st Congressional District, based in Denver, hired Madrid.
“Some of the things I was tasked with were writing constituent response letters regarding issues, answering phones, attending briefings, getting coffee for the congresswoman at times, helping reintroduce and take over bills from retiring members of Congress and more. I had a lot of flexibility to work on issues that I was interested in such as immigration, gun reform and food insecurity,” Madrid said.
Madrid appreciated finding an internship that not only related to his major, but also provided space and community for his queer identity. He was interested in this program because he “wanted a D.C. experience that had a tie to the LGBTQ+ community rather than a regular D.C. internship that simply places you in an office.”
Additionally, he received course credit for the internship by enrolling in POLS 386: Government Internship. This allowed him to remain a full-time student while away.
Because his internship took place during the Midterm elections, Madrid shared concerns with his peers about how the office where he worked might be affected by a changing Congress. He recalls that some of the other members of his fall cohort, “were worried... about how their home states would change, what discriminatory bills would be allowed to be pushed through in a few weeks and if they would be denied certain rights in the following weeks.”
“I have known that queer spaces are important, but moments like this and others throughout the program reminded me how important visibility is, not just for my home state or where I am living at the moment, but throughout the entire country and abroad,” Madrid said.
After graduating this spring, Madrid plans to take a gap year before applying to graduate programs.
“Some of the programs are in Congress, and others in the California State Capitol. People from the office I worked in and people I met while in D.C. have alluded to different job opportunities after I graduate,” Madrid said.
“I have no set plans and I am open to a lot of different opportunities, which is both exciting and terrifying, not knowing what comes next.”
Read the most recent CLA News stories
Disability Alliance Club Leader Recognized as CLA's 2023 'Great Grad'
Jun 13, 2023
M.W. Kaplan
By Jay Thompson
M.W. Kaplan weathered a worldwide pandemic with a compromised immune system and will leave Cal Poly inspired by the potential the future holds.
“My time at Cal Poly was difficult, but it also gave me a lot of opportunities to grow and create change,” said Kaplan, who uses they/them/theirs pronouns.
They graduated in 2019 from the Biomedical and Allied Health STEM program at Glen Burnie High School in a suburb of Baltimore. BMAH allows highly motivated and academically eligible participants to study and explore career opportunities across the spectrum of healthcare professions. The Annapolis, Maryland, resident chose Cal Poly for its engineering and Learn by Doing path and proximity to family in California.
“Through Learn by Doing, I quickly found out mechanical engineering was not really what I wanted to spend my time doing,” Kaplan said. “In the Communications Department, applied projects and activities are what fostered my understanding of the theories I was learning and showed me how much I’ve learned. I’ve come out with the knowledge and confidence to apply what I learned and through Learn by Doing found that I have a passion for health communication that I plan to continue in my post-graduate life.”
Change was Kaplan’s mantra while at Cal Poly, but it wasn’t limited to just the field of study.
“The vast network of changemakers at Cal Poly, particularly the QTBIPOC (Queer and Trans/ Black/Indigenous/People of Color) and disability communities really inspired me to keep pushing boundaries while honoring my own limits,” the 21-year-old said. “Members of the Communications Department and Health Center — who saw a lot of me — were very vocal in their support, and my friends and family never failed to let me know how proud they were of everything I accomplished.”
Kaplan relied on Cal Poly’s Disability Resource Center for assistive technology devices that helped them to become a more successful student. Accessibility on such a hilly and spread-out campus, built over the past 100 years, and health difficulties “were my biggest challenges,” Kaplan said.
Kaplan carries a cane and is immunocompromised, which led to uncertainty and frustration in 2022 as Cal Poly and the world began to move past pandemic restrictions. A musculoskeletal pain disorder makes Kaplan suffer headaches, sore throats, nausea and fatigue almost daily. A steroid helps, which also lowers immunity, making the communication studies major more susceptible to other diseases — including COVID.
As head of the Disability Alliance club, Kaplan raised concerns of immunocompromised students to campus administrators and faculty — and in the process found a calling as an advocate.
“I think my biggest accomplishment was creating the Disability Alliance and getting to make a lot of change with an incredible community,” Kaplan said. “Representing at the club showcase — a dream since my first year — and Culture Fest, creating the ASI Secretary of Accessibility position, meeting internationally recognized disability rights activist Judy Huemann, and getting to lead the first-ever disability-inclusive WOW group are among the most rewarding experiences of my life.”
Kaplan plans to work as a clinical medical assistant while preparing for a graduate nursing program.
“Ultimately, I want to help people, especially those who don’t normally get help,” they said. “I want to become a nurse practitioner to help fill massive healthcare gaps in rural areas and in patients with highly stigmatized mental health conditions.”
The university opened a lot of doors for the graduate-to-be.
“When I first started at Cal Poly, I was still new to understanding and living with my disabilities,” Kaplan said. “I was really worried about being able to manage them while I was a student and didn’t really have support or anyone who understood. Now, I’m very confident. I know how to manage my conditions. I’ve found a direction based around my passions and have built relationships with so many incredible people, it’s hard to believe sometimes!”
Read about this year's other "great grads"
Cal Poly Graphic Communication Student Team Wins First Place at Graphic Arts Conference
May 18, 2023
By Nicole Troy
The TAGA executive board, alongside
faculty advisor Rachel Ma, pose for a
group photo with the Helmut Kipphan Cup.
Cal Poly won the prestigious Helmut Kipphan Cup at the annual conference of the Technical Association of the Graphic Arts (TAGA), held March 12-15 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Cal Poly’s TAGA team, comprised of seven graphic communication students, was awarded first place for its technical journal, a high-quality student-produced publication that involves a wide range of complex printing and binding processes. Scoring is based on technical writing, design, production quality and digital enhancement.
All seven students attended the conference and accepted the award including Cal Poly TAGA President Amber Gourley; Vice President Mary Wood; Communication Coordinator Kailey Latin; Design Coordinator Hailey Honegger; Augmented Reality Coordinator Kendra Roberson; Web Coordinator Annali Jacobs; and Production Coordinator Emily Kovarik.
“I’ve been impressed by a team of hardworking, motivated and committed students,” said TAGA faculty advisor and graphic communication Assistant Professor Rachel Ma. “Producing this award-winning journal has been an empowering experience that bridges Learn by Doing with industry collaborations.”
The students began work on their journal last September, working hard to conceptualize, design, and produce the journal centered on accessibility. This year’s journal, Vol. 40, was inspired by Swiss design tradition — including modernism trends of other countries such as geometric shapes of Russian Constructivism, the notion of form following function in Germany’s Bauhaus and the simplicity of De Stijl in the Netherlands. The final work includes five student research articles, original illustrations, augmented reality experiences and intuitive packaging design.
The team worked with augmented reality software company RealityBLU and Descript to bring the journal to life. Donations from the Printing Industries Association, Inc. and Visual Media Alliance allowed the team to participate in the in-person conference and local printing company Poor Richard's Press shared their production facility with the team to produce custom packaging.
Learn more about TAGA’s award winning journal and view Vol. 40 at calpolytaga.com/journal-archive.