Ladies Who Lasso
The 84th annual Poly Royal Rodeo returned to roaring crowds in Spanos Stadium during the university’s Open House event in April. College rodeo athletes from Cal Poly and all over the West Coast competed for a championship title in events such as barrel racing, saddle bronc riding and breakaway roping.
Finding Purpose with Guardian Scholars
Lead program coordinator Lea Scott, Guardian Scholars intern Bri Frickman Miller and program coordinator Shayna Citrenbaum discuss upcoming events at the center.
When psychology and child development student Bri Frickman Miller arrived at Cal Poly in the fall of 2023, she felt adrift. After spending her teen years in foster care, she had no idea how she was going to make it through the next four years without the support systems many of her peers had. But she found a helping hand in Guardian Scholars, a program that supports students who have experienced foster care, homelessness or other similar circumstances.
“This program is whatever our Guardian Scholars need it to be,” said Shayna Citrenbaum, the program coordinator. “Whether you are in need of support around financial wellness or brainstorming about a future career, or talking through how things are going in classes, or just need a quiet place to study or grab a snack, we are here to meet you wherever you are.”
Frickman Miller, now an intern at the center, said it’s helped her understand what she wants to do after graduation. She hopes to pursue a master’s degree in higher education counseling and student affairs while continuing to help high school and college-aged students.
— Gabby Ferreira
Leaving a Legacy
MLK Legacy Award winners Preston Allen (left) and Adanna Okiwelu.
At a ceremony on campus in January, economics student Adanna Okiwelu and emeritus executive director of University Housing Preston Allen received this year’s MLK Legacy Award for championing justice and equality on campus. Okiwelu was honored for her work in the Multicultural Business Program, Women in Business and the Black Student Union, where she created a board position that connects the club with community partners and alumni. Allen was a founding member of the SLO County Chapter of the NAACP, serves as president of the R.A.C.E. Matters SLO Board of Directors, and helped launch Cal Poly’s Black Legacy Weekend and the Black Alumni Community.
From White Castle to the White House
In February, actor and former White House official Kal Penn spoke to Cal Poly students about the power of civic engagement at a campus event hosted by the Center for Service in Action.
Kal Penn (left) and moderator Denise Isom, chair of the Ethnic Studies Department.
You get all the attention if you go and work for the White House, but people do it at every level of public service and government. And I think there’s a real magic to that which only happens in a vibrant democracy.
Fighting Fire with Floods
Student and faculty researchers at Cal Poly’s Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Fire Institute recently partnered with Texas A&M’s Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center to study a flood mitigation technique used in the eastern U.S. and adapt it for wildfire mitigation in the West. The unique approach integrates with municipal spatial mapping tools that provide key data points that can help city and regional leaders better understand and plan for disaster-related risks.
“Our team spent more than two years developing this plan in an effort to make a direct impact where it is most needed,” said Frank Frievalt, director of the WUI Fire Institute. “This novel approach offers a more holistic approach to the efforts that need to be made in assessing hazard vulnerability.”
— AnnMarie Cornejo
Serving the Community with College Corps
Cal Poly and partner campuses were recently awarded up to $20 million over three years from California Volunteers, Office of the Governor, to continue the impactful CaliforniansForAll College Corps program. The award ensures that hundreds of students in the program can continue volunteering in areas like K-12 education, food insecurity and climate action, all while earning money for college. Take a look at the program’s impact.
Service hours Cal Poly College Corps fellows have logged since 2022.
Partner organizations across the Central Coast where College Corps fellows can serve, including the San Luis Obispo Food Bank, San Luis Coastal Unified School District and the SLO Climate Coalition.
Total amount College Corps fellows can earn for their service.
Back Into Orbit
Students in the lab preparing the latest CubeSat for launch.
Alumnus Victor Glover wasn’t the only Mustang to reach for the stars this spring. Just after 4 a.m. on March 30, Cal Poly’s SAL-E CubeSat mission launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
The satellite, the 13th Cal Poly CubeSat to be launched into space, is about the size of a shoebox and contains two small payloads. Computer Architecture Research Project, or CARP, is a silicon computer chip designed by Cal Poly students using open-source silicon and custom firmware that will be monitored for how it responds to radiation and other stressors in low Earth orbit. The other is Space Quacker Advanced Development, or SQUAD, which will test a long-range radio device in the harsh environment of space, collecting performance data while in orbit.
— Jay Thompson
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