Cal Poly Students Honored by Lawmakers at State Capitol
Twenty Cal Poly students, including three from the College of Liberal Arts, were recognized for their awards and other accomplishments by state lawmakers on the floors of the state Assembly and Senate in Sacramento on Monday, Feb. 13.
“I am so pleased to share with our state leaders the can-do Learn by Doing ethos that this group of dedicated and talented students exemplify,” said university President Jeffrey D. Armstrong, who will accompany the students to both legislative chambers. “These fine young men and women from all six of our colleges will be future leaders in their respective fields.”
The students from the College of Liberal Arts were:
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Naba Ahmed
Naba Ahmed, a journalism major in the College of Liberal Arts, was part of the award-winning Mustang News team that competed at the 2016 Associated Collegiate Press/Media Association’s National Convention. The group received 16 national awards. In addition, Mustang News earned first-place honors for Best Social Media Strategy, Online Infographic, Multimedia Feature Story and Breaking News Photo. The team also collected the ACP Online Pacemaker, which is considered the highest honor in college media, for the best design, ease of navigation, writing and editing, graphics and interactivity of a website. Journalism Department Chair Mary Glick credited the Learn by Doing philosophy for the group’s success: “I think the kind of faculty involvement and student interest really drives excellence in what we produce.” Ahmed’s interest in journalism was fanned in high school as a member of the Mira Costa High School’s award-winning “Hoofprints” yearbook staff. As a member of Mustang News, she worked as the news editor and reporter. -
Cameron Bones
Journalism major Cameron Bones in the College of Liberal Arts received top honors and $2,000 at the Graphic Arts Education and Research Foundation’s 2016 Student Design Competition. More than 400 students from high schools and colleges across the nation submitted entries in the eighth annual contest. They were to challenged to design and create an engaging infographic — a graphic design that presents complex information quickly and clearly — on a topic of their choice. Bones choose coffee consumption in the U.S. and printed her infographic on a coffee mug. She and her instructor, Daria Matza, received a two-day, all-inclusive trip to Orlando, Fla., for GAERF’s EXPO ’16. -
Lindsay Mitchell
Graphic communication major Lindsay Mitchell studies in the College of Liberal Arts and is working on minors in packaging and integrated marketing communications from the Orfalea College of Business. She was part of the eight-member student team that received the Excellence Overall Award in the Phoenix Challenge Flexo Packaging Competition at the Flexographic Technical Association’s 2016 Forum. The yearlong project challenged students to help a local company rebrand and market its business with materials using the flexographic print process — a technique that uses a flexible plate to print on a variety of materials. The Cal Poly team competed with nine other schools in Fort Worth, Texas. Mitchell and her teammates worked alongside B.R.A.T., a pediatrician-recommended diet drink that combines bananas, rice, applesauce and toast into a medicinal beverage for children and adults who are prescribed this type of diet when ill. As part of the competition, the team redesigned packaging graphics and structures, and created a child-size container with a glow-in-the-dark game on the label for kids, a shrink sleeve bottle for adults and a point-of-purchase in-store display. On campus, Mitchell sits on the executive board of University Ambassadors, known as Poly Reps, is one of three students on the Graphic Communication Advisory Board, and was involved in the Technical Association of the Graphic Arts, New Student and Transition Programs and National Society of Collegiate Scholars.