Student Revolutionizes the Poly Canyon Experience Through New App
Photo caption for above image: An aerial view of Poly Canyon during Design Village in 2024. Photo by Dylan Head.
When Parker Jones first set foot in Poly Canyon during Week of Welcome, he was captivated.
“I was very fascinated that a place like that could exist so close to campus,” said Jones, now a second-year software engineering major. “It sort of had this ... secretive appeal. [Poly Canyon] is something you sort of discovered on your own.”
Jones began regularly hiking, stargazing and exploring the area, but quickly realized that most Poly Canyon maps he consulted contained inaccuracies.
"It really bothered me that there wasn't an up-to-date map,” said Jones, adding that the maps often had misleading labels and improperly scaled paths.
To solve the problem, Jones created the Poly Canyon app, which is now available to download in both the Apple App and Google Play stores.
“An app is a very low-barrier way to get technology into people's hands," Jones said. He started developing the app with the intention of people using it to navigate the canyon, but quickly realized it could be so much more.
"When I found out the history behind the area, I thought ... that's the missing piece," he said.
Jones reached out to the Kennedy Library and worked with students from the College of Architecture and Environmental Design to develop app features centered around Poly Canyon's storied history as an experimental project lab for architecture students. The app now gives users the ability to track which sites they've visited and take virtual tours.
“[The app] has definitely evolved to be more of an educational thing,” Jones said.
Poly Canyon was first established in 1964 by George Hasslein, the first dean of the College of Architecture and Environmental Design. Hasslein envisioned the stunning landscape as a laboratory for project experimentation.
Today, Poly Canyon houses 30 permanent, student-built structures over nine acres and hosts the legendary Design Village competition each spring. Its legacy of student innovation and hands-on learning sets Cal Poly apart from other schools.
In working with architecture students to add historical context to his app, "I made a lot of friends," Jones said.
“We had this shared goal of researching and preserving the history of the canyon," he added. "They were super accepting and kind.”
Jones said the app has already been downloaded a few hundred times, and his ultimate goal is to implement the app for widespread use as an accessible tool for students to learn about the canyon as an iconic part of the school’s history.
“Someone’s got to take care of such an amazing place,” Jones said.
Want more Learn by Doing stories in your life? Sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Cal Poly News Recap!
