Recent News
Outstanding CLA Graduate Ready to Embrace a Future Shaped from Learn by Doing
Jun 7, 2022
Nikki Trucco won her department's
Outstanding Senior Award as well
as the University Award for
Contributions to the Objectives and
Public Image of the University at the
2022 CLA Student Awards.
By Jay Thompson
When Nikki Trucco considered a college to attend, the student-athlete knew it would need to fulfill dual priorities.
“It was tremendously important for me to find a school that was a good fit both academically and athletically,” said the women’s soccer forward. “I found Cal Poly to be a perfect match as it offered a D1 soccer program and high level of academic prestige. I also fell in love with Cal Poly’s coaching staff and heard nothing but great things about the faculty and staff.”
And in the past three years, despite the COVID-cancellation of the 2020 season, the child development major succeeded as an athlete and a scholar — balancing soccer, school and a social life.
“I would be lying if I pretended like being a student-athlete in college has been easy for me all the time,” she said. “Collegiate academics and athletics are highly demanding, and juggling both requires a great deal of time-management. All that being said, being a student-athlete is extremely rewarding and I truly wouldn’t trade my experience for the world.”
The San Ramon, California, native finished as the Big West's third-leading scorer in 2021 with 10 goals. Both a 2021 United Soccer Coaches All-West Region second-team selection and All-Big West Conference first-team honoree, she finished third among conference players with three game-winning goals and fourth with 21 points and 47 shot attempts.
The team notched a tie with UC Irvine in the conference title standings. In helping Cal Poly to a share of the 2021 Big West regular season title — the program’s first in eight years — Trucco started 20 of 21 matches and averaged a goal every 142.2 minutes.
“It was so incredible to be a part of earning such a special accomplishment,” Trucco said. “Our team worked tremendously hard during the COVID season, so it was an indescribable feeling to see all our hard work pay off.”
Her coach also described her as a leader off the pitch, and it’s in the classroom where the buoyant 21-year-old shined even brighter.
“My biggest accomplishment is being able to graduate a year early, while still achieving success in both the academic and athletic environments at Cal Poly,” she said.
Trucco earned straight As every quarter and received the College of Liberal Arts’ Outstanding Senior University Contribution Award. In addition, she was named Cal Poly’s 2022 Big West Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year for achievements in and out of the classroom.
She succeeded in part because of extraordinary organizational skills and a team of supporters that included her parents (her “biggest inspiration”), twin sister Lexi on UC Davis’s soccer team, and campus mentor Professor Jennifer Jipson, chair of the Psychology and Child Development Department.
Jipson steered her to a research internship “where I was able to provide assistance on a wide variety of child development projects,” she said. “Through this I was able to connect with and impress The Goddard School, which hired me as a research consultant to continue supporting them on their projects.
“As a result of my experiences here, my passion for child development and early education have further grown, and I am more than eager to begin a career within the field. Through various internships, I have been able to develop skills that will be valuable in my future career and have been introduced to an array of opportunities that exist within the child development field.”
This fall she’ll begin work on a multiple-subject teaching credential and then start her journey as an elementary school teacher. But first, she can contrast the teen who arrived in fall 2019 and the mature young woman who will graduate Sunday, June 12.
“Coming into college, I was unsure of what to expect and how the transition would go,” she said. “I was unconfident in my ability to succeed on the field and in the classroom in the way I did in high school. Additionally, I was splitting up from my twin sister and was nervous about being alone socially for the first time.
“The freshman me would be proud of how independent and strong I am now. I have pushed myself to new limits and endured many challenges these past few years. Through this, I have learned so much about myself and about life itself. I am more sure of who I am and my abilities, and I feel empowered to take on the opportunities that lie ahead of me.”
Read about this year's other "great grads"
Renowned Rapper Ruby Ibarra Performs Free Concert for APIDA Heritage Month
May 31, 2022
By: Nicole Troy
Ruby Ibarra performing at the University Union
Stage on May 12.
On May 12, renowned rapper, producer and spoken word artist Ruby Ibarra took the Cal Poly University Union Stage in an open-air concert that was attended by the campus and local community.
Ibarra was invited to come to Cal Poly in celebration of Asian, Pacific Islander and Desi American (APIDA) Heritage Month.
"I invited Ruby to come to our campus to celebrate [APIDA Heritage Month] with us, especially since she is an important voice in the Filipinx community,” Assistant Professor of Ethnic Studies Ryan Buyco said. “I also invited her because I am Filipino American, and — as I have been told — am one of the first Filipino American tenure track faculty at Cal Poly. I invited Ruby Ibarra not only for APIDA Heritage Month, but also to acknowledge and celebrate the Filipinx community here on this campus."
Before Ibarra performed, she guest spoke at a meeting with members of the Pilipino Cultural Exchange (PCE) club. According to PCE President Halle Gotico, Ibarra shared a presentation with the group where she connected with students.
"Both Ruby Ibarra's closed talk and concert at the University Union allowed me to feel more connected to my Filipina heritage, as her music unpacks experiences that I had similarly gone through,” Gotico said. “Representation really does matter. To have Ruby, a strong, talented Pinay visit Cal Poly was important and needed as she helped provide a space for students to process their identities and gain a better understanding of themselves and their culture."
See photos below of Ibarra performing for an audience of both campus and community attendees on the University Union Stage.
Photo Credit: Izzy Pascua (PCE club member and CLA Student Photographer)
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Sociology Professor Sheds a Light on Racial and Sexual Minorities' Experiences
May 27, 2022
By Cara King
Jess Lee
Assistant Professor of Sociology Jess Lee joined the College of Liberal Arts in the fall of 2020. She studies the intersection of race and sexual orientation and how social structures impact minorities’ identity-based group membership. Her recent work examines how Asian Americans make sense of their group identity within a heterogenous population from over 20 national origin groups.
Lee says she was originally inspired to research Asian Americans and queer people of color by comedian/actress Margaret Cho, “Because she was literally the only person in the popular media who I saw and thought ‘she's kind of just like me,’” Lee said. “But she was making a living and it showed me that there was a future for me. I just happen to be a nerd, so I embarked on this academic path rather than entertainment like her.”
Lee was drawn to Cal Poly’s integration of hands-on learning into undergraduate education through senior projects and the departments’ strengths in interdisciplinary work. She found an active community of collaboration between the social sciences and ethnic studies departments, where she continues studying racial and sexual minorities. She also enjoys working with students who frequently add minors to combine their interests across fields.
Lee teaches SOC 216: US Race and Ethnic Relations, which explores racial minorities’ experiences across various social issues.
“I get to introduce how race intersects with ten different aspects across society, given that we’re on a 10-week course schedule.” Lee said. “I structure my classes so that we talk about race and class one week and then race and education, race and gender, race and sexuality, race and immigration, etc. I like teaching this topic because I can see students getting more excited about learning it as the weeks progress. Once the basics are established, and especially after I touch upon how this entire class is about intersectionality, I see the switch happen for some students. I really enjoy that moment.”
Next year, Lee is looking forward to connecting more with students both inside and outside the classroom. She hopes to continue sharing the lessons she has learned through her own life experiences.
“I wish that the students could acknowledge that whatever they embark on right now until, say their early 30s, probably will not go the way they planned,” Lee said. “Because a lot of times, students assume I am younger than I am, and that I've been on this very ‘model minority’ path of school, grad school, and Ph.D. to professor. But that's not what happened at all. I didn't realize that I like to be paid when I nerd out until I was around 28. So that's something that I try to tell all my senior project students too. Things are going to get weird at this point, and even the people you look up to and respect right now all went through those weird periods. So don't take it too seriously and don't take these professors, including myself, too seriously.”
Lee’s research has been published in Sociology Compass, Journal of Homosexuality, the Sociology Quarterly, and the Russell Sage Foundation Journal of Social Sciences. She earned a Pd.D. and a Master of Arts degree in sociology from UC Irvine, a Master of Arts degree in liberal studies from the City University of New York Graduate Center, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in gender studies from Mount Holyoke College.
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Political Science Professor Gives Expert Witness Testimony in Ohio Supreme Court Gerrymandering Case
May 12, 2022
By Sophia Lincoln
Michael Latner
While multiple stories from local news organizations discuss the new San Luis Obispo County redistricting map, political science Associate Professor Michael Latner is playing a key role in the redistricting of Ohio.
As an expert witness with the Brennan Center of Justice, Latner has been charged with analyzing the redistricting maps for Ohio, after which he must decide whether the maps favor one political party over another. So far, Latner has reviewed and analyzed four different sets of maps put forth by the Ohio Redistricting Commission, all of which he found to be biased. Additionally, he has analyzed maps proposed by third parties and other political scientists.
Gerrymandering refers to the biased redrawing of district lines to favor a certain political party or class. According to Latner, the Ohio Redistricting Commission itself is unbalanced in terms of party representation, with seven Republicans and just two Democrats.
“The guidelines for the commission have pretty clear restrictions on partisan bias,” Latner said. “And so, there are two things in particular: there’s a proportionality requirement – that is that the map should mirror the preferences of the voters of Ohio in terms of the seats being allocated – and that no adopted plan should favor one party over another.”
Latner said that the Commission’s maps heavily favor Republicans, which resulted in them being rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court. The Redistricting Commission has been given multiple chances to produce unbiased maps. Latner extended his analysis and also testified in federal court when the state’s Republican leadership attempted to overturn the Ohio Supreme Court’s decisions.
“What looks to be the GOP strategy is basically to try to force the courts to adopt biased maps in time for the election, because candidates are going to start filing for election in March for the November elections for the primaries. So, they’re basically trying to run out the clock,” Latner said.
If Latner finds this last set of maps to be biased, it is unclear what the next step will be. Latner said it is possible the court will select a “special master” to draw new maps, or they may choose from several other maps submitted by other members of the public that have also been analyzed and determined to be less biased.
“It really does show the power and the capacity for citizens to design and choose their own maps,” Latner said. “I think it would certainly be a just alternative for the courts to select one of those maps, but that’s going to be up to the court.”
For a battleground state like Ohio, the outcome of this case is very important, as it could have a large impact on the upcoming presidential election.
“With a very closely divided country, even slight changes in districting plans and slight advantages in one state can have huge [impacts] in terms of the composition of Congress, and can determine which party controls Congress,” Latner said.
In addition to teaching at Cal Poly, over the last several years, Latner’s scientific research has focused on redistricting and gerrymandering. He has co-authored two books on congressional gerrymandering and state legislative gerrymandering, and he has served as an expert witness for a few other redistricting cases as well.
Latner was also involved in the recent San Luis Obispo redistricting hearings. “Given that this was also happening in my backyard, I felt like I had an obligation to serve and make my services available,” he said.
Unlike the state of Ohio, San Luis Obispo County does not have its own redistricting commission. This means that the Board of Supervisors chooses their own districts.
Latner said that the map chosen by a majority vote from the three republican members of the board is biased to favor the Republican Party. “It was very clear that the goal of the board majority was to select a biased map,” he said.
After the board chose this map, Latner agreed to serve as an expert witness to file an injunction. But despite Latner’s analysis, the judge reviewing this case let the map go forward on procedural grounds. “She didn’t want to be responsible for putting an injunction on a map that didn’t have a full analysis by a court on the merits of the case,” Latner said. “She even indicated that the available evidence suggested that there might be a violation of the Fair Maps Act.”
While the map was upheld this time, independent parties may still challenge the decision in court.
Much of Latner’s work is done at the Union of Concerned Scientists Center for Science and Democracy, where he researches voting rights and redistricting, as well as the structural reforms necessary to help prevent gerrymandering from happening in the first place.
“It’s become very clear that we ought not to be allowing legislators to draw their own district plans,” Latner said. “Now, we have to move beyond that, because even commissions are being hijacked by partisans, and the level of precision that the people trying to draw biased maps has increased so much with the computational power and with the extra data, that gerrymanders are becoming more subtle.”
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CLA honored alumnus Mike Griffith officially completes his degree after nearly 40 years
May 10, 2022
Mike Griffith will walk the stage and
officially receive his diploma on
June 12, 2022.
By Nicole Troy
In 1983, history student and theatre aficionado Mike Griffith was wrapping up his final year at Cal Poly before a “perfect” job opportunity fell into his lap. The position with local lighting company Teatronics was not something Griffith could pass up, as he and his wife were working multiple part-time jobs to support their family, so he “dropped everything and took the job.” Soon after, Griffith became one of the top executives at Electronic Theatre Controls, Inc. (ETC), one of the preeminent theatrical lighting companies in the world.
After a whirlwind career that took him around the world, Griffith retired in 2015. Since then, he has spent his retirement doing what he calls “wrapping up loose ends,” including completing his final quarter of college and graduating from Cal Poly after nearly 40 years.
“It feels really gratifying to come back to San Luis Obispo,” Griffith said. “I had compartmentalized [graduation] in my brain and just knew that it’s something that’s out there — it never inhibited my career. But I knew that if I was going to graduate, it would be from here.”
The COVID-19 pandemic proved beneficial in this instance for Griffith as he was able to finish his final class remotely from his home in Wisconsin.
“I always knew I was close [to completing my degree], but last summer in June 2021 I spoke with Dr. Kate Murphy and she told me that I only needed one class, HIST 303: Research and Writing Seminar in History, and it was offered in Fall 2021 on Zoom,” Griffith said.
In the spirit of “wrapping up loose ends,” the decision to enroll once again at Cal Poly was an easy one.
Advised by Dr. Molly Loberg, Griffith wanted to make his final project special. He chose to write his research paper on one of his favorite songwriters, legendary singer Townes Van Zandt. Van Zandt is best known for writing songs popularized by other artists including Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. Griffith’s paper, titled “For the Sake of the Song,” detailed research on Van Zandt’s battle with addiction and how it may have informed his songwriting.
Upon nearing the completion of his project, Loberg suggested he use his senior project paper to craft the culminating stage of his project in the form of a concert.
Mike Griffith, donning a Cal Poly t-shirt,
performing with his band.
Similar to Van Zandt, Griffith is an avid singer and guitarist, playing in bands based out of Los Angeles. He would put together a concert led behind the scenes by Spanos Theatre Technical Director, and one of Griffith’s best friends from Cal Poly, David Beals.
Beals and Griffith first met at Cal Poly in the early 1980s, performed together in a production of the musical ‘Godspell’ and the rest is history.
“Mike called me up told me about this cool idea of doing a concert around his final paper and he said he wanted me to be the technical director,” Beals said. "I figured it would be fun to surprise him.”
Beals took the honor to direct his friend’s senior project concert as an opportunity to decorate the stage with lighting equipment that Griffith had either hung himself as a production assistant in the 1980s, or generously donated when he was working at ETC.
“It was something I wanted to make fun and personal to him,” Beals said.
Mike Griffith (second from left) performing
live with guest musicians including
Louie Ortega (third from left).
The intimate senior project concert took place on March 16 in Spanos Theatre and featured Griffith’s bandmates from The Sons of Sunset, Mary Sue Gee and The Sons of the Caballeros, led by local Grammy Award-winning artist Louie Ortega.
Griffith narrated his way through the program as the bands, and Griffith himself, played some of Van Zandt’s greatest hits in front of an audience of family, friends, colleagues and music enthusiasts.
Griffith, who was named CLA’s honored alumnus in 2011, finished his coursework in March 2022 and can now officially call himself a Cal Poly graduate.
Griffith plans to walk the stage during the College of Liberal Arts’ commencement ceremony on June 12 at 70-years-young.
Watch video from the concert below:
Credit: Mike Griffith & Family
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Cal Poly Professor Publishes Groundbreaking Study on the History of Gay Pornography
May 10, 2022
Ruszczycky joined the English
Departmentas part of the CLA's
2017 DEI-Focused Cluster Hire.
Cal Poly Assistant Professor of English Steven Ruszczycky published a groundbreaking book “Vulgar Genres: On Gay Pornographic Writing and Contemporary Fiction” with the University of Chicago Press.
In the book, Ruszczycky asserts that many in the United States have long misunderstood pornography as either a frivolous pleasure or an obscenity requiring censorship. Through detailed investigation of gay print culture, Ruszczycky shows how that framing prevents our appreciation of pornography’s diverse forms, meanings, and uses. In fact, his book argues, pornography often has had a positive influence on many areas of modern life, including gay culture and classic works of LGBT literature.
The cover of Ruszczycky's book, "Vulgar Genres:
On Gay Pornographic Writing and
Contemporary Fiction.
“For better or worse, pornography has become a ubiquitous feature of modern life. I wrote this book to come to terms with that fact, but my point is not that we should appreciate pornography like we appreciate art or literature. Rather, it’s that even trashy culture can teach us important lessons about ourselves, our past, and the world we live in today,” Ruszczycky said.
Ruszczycky has been with Cal Poly since 2014. He earned his Ph.D. in 2014 from the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. He was hired as an assistant professor to the department of English in 2017 as a part of the college’s first DEI-focused cluster hire. At Cal Poly he offers courses in LGBT literature and culture for both the department of English and the department of Women’s, Gender, and Queer Studies.
Ruszczycky is also the co-editor of “Porn Archives,” published by Duke University Press in 2014, and a co-director of the Central Coast Queer Archive Project, a local documentary project seeking to preserve the history of LGBT+ life on the Central Coast.
“Vulgar Genres: On Gay Pornographic Writing and Contemporary Fiction” is available in multiple formats from the University of Chicago Press.
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Q&A with the California Cybersecurity Institute’s Danielle Borrelli
May 10, 2022
Danielle Borrelli works as the
Operations Coordinator for the
California Cybersecurity Institute.
By Nicole Troy
Danielle Borrelli (Political Science ’11, Master of Public Policy ’17) is helping lead the charge to address our nation’s national cybersecurity crisis as the Operations Coordinator for the California Cybersecurity Institute (CCI). Partnering with the tech community, private corporations, public agencies, and academia, Borrelli and the CCI work to craft a novel workforce prepared to combat the ever-growing online threat landscape.
In a seemingly technology-dominated field, Borrelli uses her expansive liberal arts background to spearhead national and international anti-human trafficking work, coordinate trainings for law enforcement officers and the public, and conduct research.
Borrelli recently sat down with us to discuss the paths that led her to the CCI and her thoughts on some of her greatest career achievements.
Borrelli at her master's graduation
ceremony in 2017.
You earned your Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and your Master of Public Policy from Cal Poly. What were the most impactful classes you took during that time?
The most profound undergraduate class I remember was POLS 381: Peace and War with Craig Arceneaux. It opened my eyes to the dynamics at play in the world in a way that wasn't judgmental or stereotypical. I liked having space for that dialogue and for that thought leadership, if you will, to understand the world in a new way.
My favorite graduate class was POLS 515: Public Policy with Elizabeth Lowham, who is the most amazing person I've ever met in my entire life. The class brought a deeper understanding to not just politics, but how policies form, all the aspects around different stakeholder groups that inform policy, and different types of events that frame policy movements or policy changes.
It was really challenging, but I loved every bit of it because it helped to lay a good foundation for the rest of my education. I still quote and use things from that class to this day, and I worked with her for a long time on projects as they related to the CCI.
What did life look like for you during your college years?
During my undergraduate years, I put myself through school as a computer technician, working about 25 hours per week. During my master’s program I worked 40 hours per week and then had my coursework which added another 30 hours. In my first year in the MPP program, I was also running a safe house, so it felt like I had no sleep for close to a year.
You ran a safe house? How did that begin?
I learned about human trafficking in an undergraduate class with Shanruo Ning Zhang and then did my senior project on it. After I graduated in 2011 and began working fulltime, all my free time was basically spent doing anti-human trafficking work. At the beginning, that involved raising funds, coordinating fundraising events for nonprofits and gathering locals in the community to start a group we called the Mountainbrook Abolitionists.
We hosted one of the first regional anti-human trafficking conferences in the area and were part of the launch of the SLO County District Attorney’s Human Trafficking Task Force. After some time, we went to Brazil and did some anti-human trafficking work there during the World Cup. When we came back, we realized that we are seriously lacking services for survivors in the United States, so we endeavored to start a safe house.
How did this lead into your work with the California Cybersecurity Institute?
I did internships with both Polaris and Amazon Web Services (AWS) for my master’s program. Back then, AWS was launching what they call the Digital Transformation Hub out of the Cal Poly Technology Park. Part of my internship was to help set that up, as well as to work with Polaris to deliver a hands-on, immersive training for all their trainees across the nation. Polaris came to the Digital Transformation Hub and CCI for consulting on immersive training and I helped to organize the entire simulation.
Four years ago, after my internship, I was offered a position as the operations coordinator at the CCI. The cool thing about my job is that I am able to marry my IT background and my passion for human trafficking. I do a lot more than just human trafficking work at the CCI, but that is the core.
Borrelli (right) speaking at the University
of California Cybersecurity Summit.
What does your role at the CCI entail?
As operations coordinator, I oversee most of the things that happen at the CCI which include programs like training and certifications, awareness and education, and research and development.
With the awareness and education part, I organize most of the competitions we put on for middle schoolers, high schoolers and a few other programs. Other job duties include financial analysis, policy analysis, research, project management, event coordination and HR analysis.
If I’m being honest, there's absolutely no consistency to my day-to-day and it varies depending upon what the need is that day. I think of each day as, “What skill sets do I get to use today to get the job done?”
How did your political science and liberal arts background set you up for success in a tech heavy industry?
Political science gives you a very broad skillset that is applicable in a lot of different professions and fields. Through political science, I learned that by researching, opening up your mind to understand an issue, looking at the different angles and learning about the stakeholders, you can become almost a micro expert in any subject matter. So, I applied that idea towards technology and cybersecurity.
How can students apply their various liberal arts backgrounds similarly to you?
You don't need to be a genius to work in cybersecurity. Beyond the technical aspects, we need people to understand the policy and how it affects the privacy and the security of people's data. There's so much data on each human being around the globe and the technical people are not going to be as effective at making sense of that to the average layperson.
It’s important for someone with an understanding of cybersecurity — and the technical aspects of cybersecurity — to be able to translate that information to the average person in a way that empowers them to make decisions. That is where the CLA and majors like psychology, political science and English come into play. Engineers play an important role, but so do the rest of us.
What’s next for you?
*laughs* Honestly, I laugh because 10 years ago I had this solid plan of what it was all going to be like, and then none of that happened. I like to dream and hope for the future, and then just be flexible about what is going to happen. I think it‘s important to have one or two ultimate goals. I know it’s super cliché, but I would love to start a family.
As for work, at least for the CCI’s Trafficking Investigations Hub, I really want to finish the virtual reality simulation that we've been developing for the training of law enforcement and other service providers. It feels like almost a necessity to get that done in the next year or two.
Any parting thoughts?
I am just really thankful to Cal Poly and its Learn by Doing pedagogy because you don’t get that very many places. I am also grateful to the CLA for working as hard as they do to deliver opportunities to students. I encourage students to take every opportunity that Cal Poly offers you seriously and to apply yourself to it. If you fail at something, don't worry about it, just continue to try hard and you will get there.
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Cal Poly Journalism Department granted full accreditation status
May 6, 2022
The Journalism Department joins 117
other programs around the world to
receive such validation.
The Cal Poly Journalism Department has received full accreditation, joining 117 other programs around the world to receive such validation. The Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC), the agency responsible for the evaluation of professional journalism and mass communications programs in colleges and universities, voted 18-0 at its April 29 meeting in Chicago in favor of the Journalism Department receiving full accreditation.
“This accomplishment represents years of hard work by the faculty and staff to meet the rigorous demands of the accrediting process,” department chair Brady Teufel said. “In recognizing Cal Poly as one of the best universities to learn journalism and public relations, the council affirmed that we’re succeeding in our mission to provide students with an education that covers fundamental skills and concepts along with problem solving, critical thinking and innovation.”
The accrediting process involved an external site-review team visiting classes, interviewing faculty and staff, meeting with students and administrators, scrutinizing facilities and equipment and digging into data regarding admissions, class sizes, demographics, learning objectives and more.
Former department chair Mary Glick led the effort over the past five years and was on hand when the council made their recent decision.
“I'm so proud of the way our department came together to accomplish this,” Glick said. “Faculty, staff and students all played a role, supported by a group of dedicated alumni."
The nine standards and competencies that were reviewed include:
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Mission, governance and administration.
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Curriculum and instruction.
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Diversity and inclusiveness.
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Full-time and part-time faculty.
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Scholarship (research, creative and professional activity).
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Student services.
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Resources, facilities and equipment.
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Professional and public service.
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Assessment of learning outcomes.
Cal Poly is now one of eight journalism programs in the California State University system to be fully accredited by ACEJMC. Accredited programs, which are reviewed on a six-year cycle, are eligible for external funding and are more attractive to both students and industry partners. Of the roughly 500 journalism and mass communications programs in the United States, less than one-fourth are fully accredited.
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Cal Poly’s Mustang Media Group Wins Best Newspaper Along With 16 Other Awards at National Journalism Conference
Apr 27, 2022
By Sophia Lincoln
Mustang Media Group Wins 17 Awards
Cal Poly’s student-run news source, Mustang Media Group, won 17 awards at this year’s Associate Collegiate Press (ACP) Conference in Long Beach, California. Mustang Media Group (MMG) includes the print and digital newspaper, Mustang News, as well as the student-run FM radio station, KCPR, and the TV broadcast team, MNTV.
For the ACP’s Best of Show Awards, MMG won First Place for Best Broadcast News Program for four-year universities, as well as Second Place for Best Newspaper for four-year universities with more than 10,000 students, and Fifth Place for Best Website for four-year universities with more than 10,000 students.
For the California College Media Association (CCMA) Awards, which recognizes various California college media organizations, Mustang News won First Place for Best Newspaper ahead of San Jose State and University of California Los Angeles. The student-run organization also won First Place for Best Social Media Reporting and First Place for Best News Series. This was the first time in recent history that the student-run newspaper earned such recognition.
"Being recognized as the best university newspaper in California speaks to the talent level and dedication of the many students who contribute time, effort and creativity to keeping readers informed and engaged,” Journalism Department Chair and Professor Brady Teufel said. “The judge’s specific recognition of the newspaper’s COVID-19 coverage and articles in Spanish is a testament to the important role that Mustang News fills in the campus and local community.”
During the 2021-22 academic year, Mustang News reporters tackled challenging topics including the Kristin Smart case, COVID-19 and remote learning with what judges from the California College Media Association described as a “thoughtful” combination of reporting and editing.
"All of the content teams for Mustang Media Group have done an amazing job this past year,” MMG General Manager Jon Schlitt said. “From getting up early in the morning to bag and deliver papers during the pandemic to covering how the pandemic has affected all aspects of student life at Cal Poly, their work has been absolutely extraordinary. I'm thrilled to see that work recognized as the best in the state as well as, in some cases, in the entire nation."
MMG Editor-in-Chief and journalism senior Tessa Hughes was one of a handful of students from MMG to attend the conference.
“I am so beyond proud of my team and all that they have accomplished this year,” said Hughes. “The awards won at ACP and CCMA exemplify that they 100 percent deserved the recognition. I am still in shock at the win and couldn’t be more excited. My time at Mustang Media Group has been my favorite part at college.”
The entire list of awards that Mustang Media Group received at the conference are listed below.
California College Media Awards:
First Place: Best Newspaper - Tessa Hughes, Cameryn Oakes, Sabrina Pascua, Stephanie Zappelli
First Place: Best Headline Portfoilo - Omar Rashad
First Place: Best Newspaper Inside Page/Spread Design - Zara Iqbal, Nicole Herhusky
First Place: Best News Series - Catherine Allen, Lauren Boyer, Madison Bellah, Abigail O'Branovich, Fuave Kootnz, Ava Kershner
First Place: Best Social Media Reporting: Von Balanon, Sydney Ozawa, Catherine Allen, Harrison Kirk, Mason Ogden
First Place: Best Sports Photograph - Kyle Calzia
Second Place: Best Photo Illustration - Kayla Stuart, Marta Lukomska
Second Place: Best Editorial Cartoon - Zara Iqbal
Second Place: Best Non-Breaking News Story - Maureen McNamara, Omar Rashad
Third Place: Best Feature Photograph - Fenn Bruns
Third Place: Best News Photograph - Kyle Calzia
Third Place: Best Newspaper Website - Tessa Hughes, Sabrina Pascua, Cameryn Oakes, Stephanie Zappelli, Adam Birder
Third Place: Best Online Advertisement - Elaine Do
Third Place: Best Overall Newspaper Design - Marta Lukomska, Solena Aguilar, Von Balanon
Associated Collegiate Press: Best of Show awards
First Place - Best Broadcast News Program (Four Year Campus)
Second Place - Best Newspaper/ Four Year Campus, more than 10,000 students
Fifth Place - Best Website/Four Year Campus, more than 10,000 students
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A Pair of Married CLA Faculty Members to Pursue Fulbright Scholarships in Poland
Apr 27, 2022
By Sophia Lincoln
Gregory Domber
In 2003, Cal Poly faculty members Gregory Domber and Mira Rosenthal met in Poland while pursuing Student Fulbright Scholarships as graduate students. Later this year, the now-married couple will return to the country where they met as Fulbright U.S. Scholars for the 2022-23 academic year.
Domber, lecturer in the History Department, will be teaching and conducting research at the Jagiellonian University Institute for American Studies and the Polish Diaspora. His research will examine effect of international programs, like the Fulbright exchange, on Poland’s recent political history. Rosenthal, associate professor of English, will be teaching and conducting research at the Center for Translation Studies, also with the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland. Her work will include translating the works of Polish-Jewish poet Zuzanna Ginczanka.
Mira Rosenthal
Rosenthal plans to publish her translations of Ginczanka’s work into a book of poetry while teaching a class on contemporary American poetry. Similarly, Domber hopes his findings will lead him to publishing another book or a book-length project while teaching a class on U.S.-Polish relations in the 20th Century.
“Particularly given the war in Ukraine right now, it’ll be a fascinating time to teach Polish students and get their feedback about their understanding of this process,” Domber said.
According to Domber’s research proposal, his project seeks to trace the development of American exchange programs back to the early 1950s and test whether international exchanges had direct or indirect effects on Poland’s democratic revolution in 1989.
The proposal states that his research “will also provide evidence of the importance of person-to-person connections in shaping more free societies and the importance of allies working together toward the idealistic goals of promoting democracy, whether that is against common foes – like Aleksander Lukashenko or Vladimir Putin – or internal political machinations.”
In addition to having the unique perspective of conducting his research in Poland while history is unfolding in Ukraine, Domber also has personal ties to the communities affected by the war on Ukraine.
Rosenthal and Domber have friends that live in Poland that are working to help Ukrainian refugees. “It’s been difficult to be so far away, knowing what so many of our friends are going through right now,” Rosenthal said.
In addition to furthering their research within their respective fields of study, the couple also hopes to have a more direct opportunity to help Ukrainians and other Eastern Europeans in this “unsettling time,” Rosenthal said. “It will be great to be back regardless of – or in part because of – the crisis in the region right now,” Domber added.
According to an email from Deputy Assistant Secretary for Academic Programs of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Ethan Rosenzweig, “Fulbright Scholar Awards are prestigious and competitive fellowships that provide unique opportunities for scholars to teach and conduct research abroad.”
The Fulbright Program has provided more than 400,000 participants with the opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to challenges facing our communities and our world for more than 75 years.
Fulbright scholars also play a critical role in U.S. public diplomacy, establishing long-term relationships between people and nations, according to Rosenzweig.