Financial Services
Associate Vice President David Valadez
David Valadez was recently named the new associate vice president for Financial Services, a role that he has been serving in an interim capacity since August. Valadez began the role when Angie Kraetsch started as the acting chief financial officer for Cal Poly Solano Campus. Since 2016 he has led Cal Poly’s budget planning and has increased transparency in the process. In his new role Valadez, will lead University Budget and Fiscal Planning, University Accounting and Reporting, Student Financial Services, Accounts Receivable, Trust Accounting, Property, and Financial Reporting in support of the campus's goals and mission.
Office of University Diversity and Inclusion
HSI High-Impact Mini Grant Awardees Announced
The second round of the HSI High-Impact Mini Grant Program saw overwhelming interest, with over 40 applications requesting a total of $92,000. After a competitive selection process, 17 projects were awarded grants, representing a diverse range of initiatives across campus.
The HSI Mini Grant Program is designed to support initiatives that advance Cal Poly’s goals of "servingness" in our efforts to become a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). The selected projects aim to support student success, enhance inclusivity, and promote high-impact learning experiences that center the needs and experiences of the Latinx/e community.
Learn About the Awarded Projects and Their Impact
Science and Technology
Students Practice Physics with Phones and AI
For the first time in a full series of labs at Cal Poly, students are using smartphones and an innovative physics curriculum to collect and record data related to motion, force, energy, pressure, velocity and other physical actions.
Physics Department Chair Jennifer Klay collaborated last fall with David Rakestraw, a senior scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the Bay Area, to launch his Physics with Phones curriculum at Cal Poly.
Take Your Career to New Horizons
Semester at Sea
Looking for a unique and rewarding teaching opportunity? Faculty and staff are invited to join the International Center for the Semester at Sea informational session 3:10-4 p.m. March 13 in Building 52, Room E-46. Semester at Sea allows you to work within a global, immersive environment, teaching on a floating campus that visits 10 countries. You’ll foster connections across borders, integrating higher education with real-world experiences. Discover how you can take your career to new horizons and expand your global impact – without ever having to unpack! Register for the informational session. There is also a zoom link within the registration.
Cal Poly Partners
Lead Cashier - Merrie Kay Sterkel
Cal Poly Partner’s Lead Cashier Merrie Kay Sterkel is retiring after 17 years on campus. A mentor, guide and friend to many, Sterkel started at the Irrigation Training and Research Center in 2008 before taking the lead cashier role in 2011. Since then, she has been the smiling face behind the front desk at the Cal Poly Partners’ headquarters offering a kind greeting and a friendly word to anyone coming in to pick up a paycheck or drop off a payment. Merrie Kay’s last day is March 14. We wish her a retirement filled with joy, adventure and relaxation.
Psychology and Child Development Department
Connie Hanretty
Former Cal Poly lecturer Connie Hanretty, 67, died February 8, 2025, in San Luis Obispo, surrounded by her boys, Nathan and Andrew, and husband David Church. She earned her master’s degree from Cal Poly in 1984 and taught 2007-23 in the Psychology and Child Development Department. Hanretty’s career was diverse and deeply rooted in serving others. As a lecturer, she continued her mission of guiding and uplifting others. She cherished being a professor and working with students. Her work was defined by her kindness and belief in the potential of everyone she encountered. A celebration of life will be held March 30 in Santa Margarita.
Nominations Open
2025 Provost’s Leadership Award for Partnership in Philanthropy
Nominations are now open for the 2025 Provost’s Leadership Award for Partnership in Philanthropy. This award honors current or former faculty members who have made significant contributions to advancing Cal Poly’s mission through fundraising and development efforts. The recipient will be recognized at Fall Convocation. Nominations are due by April 4, 2025.
Submit a Nomination and Learn More
University Housing Monitoring
Volunteers Needed for St. Patrick’s Day Weekend
Volunteers are needed to assist in checking IDs at University Housing check points and monitoring community areas over the St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Volunteers can sign up for three-hour shifts between 6 p.m. Thursday, March 13, and noon Saturday, March 15. Shifts are set up by date, resident community, resident building and time. Those who sign up to assist will be paired with another employee for each shift, and training will be provided. Food will be available, and volunteers will receive a $15 meal voucher to on-campus dining venues for each completed shift. Questions? Email eoc@calpoly.edu.
Cal Poly Recreation Center
Private Group Fitness Classes
Did you know that all fitness classes offered at the Cal Poly Recreation Center can be scheduled as a private class, exclusively for your group? Private group classes are taught by a trained instructor, may be held at the Recreation Center or off-site, and can be one-time or ongoing. The cost per class is $125 for the whole group. Take advantage of this unique opportunity to sweat and connect with your group!
Learn More About Private Group Fitness Classes
Employee and Organization Development
CSU’s Cross Campus Collaboration Workshops
Expand your skills and insights with the CSU’s Cross Campus Collaboration series, featuring engaging workshops designed to support workplace development. Learn how to create interactive e-learning experiences in “Streamlining Workplace Learning,” explore strategies for meaningful employee development in “Developmentally Focused Evaluations,” and gain practical tools for navigating organizational change in “Foundations of Change Management.” Additionally, “Exposing Hidden Bias” will help you recognize and address unconscious bias to foster a more inclusive workplace. Join us in these, and many more workshops, to connect, learn, and grow together!
Cal Poly Choirs – March 15
‘Imperial Echoes: Music for Royal Occasions’
The choirs’ winter concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 15, in the Performing Arts Center. PolyPhonics, ahead of its Carnegie Hall concert in April, will perform two of G.F. Handel’s coronation anthems which have been used for British coronations; Chamber Choir will present Claudio Monteverdi’s “Dixit Dominus secondo,” and Benjamin Britten’s “Choral Dances from the Opera Gloriana”; Cantabile will perform “Arirang,” one of the most well-known Korean folk songs with roots in ancient royal folklore, and “Aia iā 'o Pele i Hawai'i” by Jace Kaholokula Saplan; University Singers will sing gospel selections; and more!
Cal Poly Symphony – March 14
Solo Competition Winners and Music from the Movies
The symphony concert will showcase Solo Competition winners at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 14, in the Performing Arts Center: Emiko Wong and Ayden Gregory, cello; Matthew Anderson, bass clarinet; Ari Maman, saxophone; sopranos Julianna Hornung and Mary Thomas; and composer Srinivas Sundararaman. Music from the movies “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Star Trek: Into Darkness” will also be on the program. The concert is the capstone of the Cal Poly Band and Orchestra Festival with the SLO County Band Directors Association.
Cal Poly Arts – March 29
Margaret Cho: Live and LIVID Tour
Legendary comedian, actor, advocate, and 5x Grammy and Emmy nominee Margaret Cho is coming to PACSLO! As a comedian Margaret has been named one of Rolling Stone magazine's 50 Best Stand-Up Comics of All Time, one of Vogue magazine’s Top 9 Female Comedians of all time, while CNN chose her as one of the 50 People Who Changed American Comedy. Thankfully, Margaret has more stories to tell! Margaret Cho: Live & LIVID is intended for mature audiences. This event has a 20% staff and faculty discount available.
Grammy-Winning Trumpeter – March 28
Chris Botti
Graystone Promotions presents Chris Botti at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 28 in the Performing Arts Center’s Harold Miossi Hall. Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Chris Botti has been among the world’s most popular instrumentalists for nearly three decades. He’s collaborated with some of the planet’s biggest superstars, including Sting, Paul Simon, Barbra Streisand, Lady Gaga, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Yo-Yo Ma, and others. Botti also has topped the jazz charts with numerous albums, earned multiple Gold and Platinum records, and performed with symphony orchestras and on prestigious stages from Carnegie Hall to the Hollywood Bowl to the Sydney Opera House.