PolySpring/Summer 2007 MAGAZINETrends
expanding terrain PolyTrends MAGAZINE
Vol. 17, No. 2 table of CONTENTS
http://polycentric.csupomona.edu Keep up with Feature Stories university news, announcements, 8 Expanding Terrain photos and events through 17 Cal Poly Pomona’s Chain Reaction online magazine! 20 A Rare Breed Departments
2 Dr. J. Michael Ortiz President, Cal Poly Pomona University News
Scott C. Warrington Vice President for University Advancement 7 Dr. Ronald H. Fremont Campus Perspective Associate Vice President for University Relations Paying Attention OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT Editor Aida Morad Graphic Designer Ani Markarian 14 News Editor Lisa McPheron Photo Editor Tom Zasadzinski Events Calendar Contributing Editor Uyen Mai Copy Editor The Word Wizard Contributing Writers Julie Bos, Paul Helms Laurie McLaughlin 24 Web Site Michelle Magcalas Distribution and Support Tambra Williams Alumni News Running Against the Odds PUBLIC AFFAIRS (909) 869-3342 [email protected] Field of Dreams ALUMNI AFFAIRS (909) 869-2963 [email protected] The Secret Life of Transplants university development (909) 869-4996 [email protected]
PolyTrends is published by California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and is distributed to friends of the university. Opinions expressed in PolyTrends do not necessarily represent the views of the university. Letters should be sent to: PolyTrends Editor, Office of Public Affairs, Cal Poly Pomona, 3801 W. Temple Ave., Pomona, CA 91768. www.csupomona.edu PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 1 Not printed at state expense / Printed on recycled paper news university Stories by Lisa McPheron, Uyen Mai Photos by Tom Zasadzinski
Honors Program Expands
Many exceptional students already have a Blazing Some strong passion for learning. But what if that passion can be harnessed and taken up a Happy Trails notch? That’s the goal behind the Keith & Jean Kellogg Honors College. The university’s Hunt Seat Designed for ambitious, goal-oriented and Western horse teams have students who love to learn and share jumped, trotted and galloped to ideas in a close-knit academic community, become 2007 Regional Champions the program began in 2003 with just 60 in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, beating the likes of top students. Enrollment reached 270 students schools, such as USC, UCLA, UC San last fall, when the program was renamed Diego, the Claremont Colleges and after a generous bequest from the W. Keith University of Arizona. Kellogg II Trust. “This has been our best season in Honors students experience smaller about six years,” says Hunt Seat team classes, special mentoring relationships “This award says co-captain Carolyn LaPrade, an urban with faculty, summer research opportunities what I’ve been doing my whole life has & regional planning major. In Concrete Terms and involvement in community service. mattered,” says award The teams attract students from Additional advising is also provided to The Cal Poly Pomona American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Concrete Canoe Team winner Judith Jacobs. a variety of disciplines and require those students who wish to compete will make a splash at the 20th Annual ASCE National Concrete Canoe Competition in a year-round commitment to care for national academic recognition and Seattle this summer after earning a spot in the prestigious contest when the team finished for the horses, which are boarded fellowships, such as Fulbright, Truman, second in regionals. National Award Adds Up for Jacobs at the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Marshall and Rhodes scholarships. Constructing the canoe is only half the battle. Each entry is also evaluated on its Center. It’s typically an expensive To lead the growing program is Suketu design, speed, floating ability and overall performance. Math Professor Judith Jacobs has been awarded the National Council of sport to participate in; however, Cal P. Bhavsar, named the new director who Poly Pomona students have figured out “The concrete canoe competition is the most demanding and intense event at the Teachers of Mathematics’ Lifetime Achievement Medal, placing her in the company will begin this summer. He will also teach ways to keep their costs low. ASCE regional conference,” says Michael Thompson, concrete canoe team co-captain. of “extraordinary math educators and national leaders in math education,” says in Cal Poly Pomona’s physics department. “We do all of the work to care “Success in the competition takes dedication, team work and determination.” College of Science Dean Donald Straney. Currently director of the honors program at for the horses, which makes it really More than 200 teams nationwide vie for a spot in the annual event, with only the top Jacobs, director of the Center for Education and Equity in Mathematics, the University of Kentucky, Bhavsar earned Science, and Technology (CEEMaST), is the second math professor from Cal Poly affordable,” LaPrade says. contenders in each conference qualifying for nationals. one of his master’s degrees and a Ph.D. in Pomona to earn this top honor. Professor Emeritus Jack Price, who received the In 2005, the Cal Poly Pomona team won the regional competition for the second year astrophysics at Princeton University. award a few years ago, surprised Jacobs by nominating her for the award. in a row and placed in the national competition. Once there, the team earned its highest “An honors program is more than an The self-described “New York Jewish liberal feminist” has focused her ranking at the national level after finishing eighth. organization for students who are already research throughout the years exploring gender issues in mathematics. She excellent,” he says. “It is a program and searches for answers and solutions as to why fewer women study advanced In Neutral Gear place where exceptional students are mathematics and pursue careers in mathematics. created. Honors is for students for whom “Women consistently choose not to go on in mathematics and math-related courses,” she says. “It’s much better now than in 1973 when I did my dissertation, learning is or could become a passion.” Cal Poly Pomona is taking a stand on global warming, starting by addressing but it still happens.” its own impact on the environment. President Ortiz has joined more than 200 Jean Kellogg and President Ortiz at the Through CEEMaST, an educational community service presidents and chancellors of colleges and universities across the country by ribbon-cutting ceremony. offered by the College of Science, Jacobs works with pledging his support to the President’s Climate Commitment Leadership Circle. local school districts to develop and conduct professional Ortiz is one of three CSU presidents to sign this agreement. development training for teachers. “This requires Cal Poly Pomona to develop a comprehensive plan of action “Before people can teach mathematics, they need to know that will lead to climate neutrality and increase the critical education and research mathematics. So I start there,” she says. “Mathematics has to necessary for society to re-stabilize the world’s climate,” Ortiz says. “The urgency make sense. It can’t just be a set of rules to remember.” for dealing with global warming is well documented.” In the past 20 years, Jacobs has been instrumental in The task force will begin this process by completing an inventory of the bringing more than $6 million in grants for Cal Poly Pomona university’s greenhouse gas emissions (including emissions from electricity, programs and partnership programs with area school districts. heating and commuting) and update the inventory every other year thereafter. “This award says what I’ve been doing my whole life Within two years, this group will develop an institutional plan for becoming has mattered and made a contribution to the education of all climate neutral. children,” she says. “This is a daunting task but one that must be addressed,” Ortiz says.
2 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 3 Thespian Lessons A Capital Decision
Peer pressure isn’t usually a It’s been nearly four decades since Bob positive thing. But in this case, it is. Balzer attended classes at Cal Poly Pomona, The Pomona Peer Theatre program but the former student’s career is coming full is a joint effort between the university circle this summer. The group publisher and CEO and Pomona-area teens to write, of the San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily produce, and stage plays focusing on Bulletin and Redlands Daily Facts will begin his service in July as the executive director of the current social problems faced by teens “I now can direct 100 percent in today’s fast-paced culture. of my time to my true passion: university’s upcoming capital campaign. The program is based at the Cal education,” says Bob Balzer, “This is a great moment in my career as Poly Pomona Downtown Center and who will lead an upcoming I now can direct 100 percent of my time to my features university and high school fundraising campaign. true passion: education,” says Balzer, who will students working side by side to explore lead Cal Poly Pomona through an ambitious difficult issues — sexual assault, teen multi-million dollar fundraising campaign to support new facilities, equipment, pregnancy, gang influences, drugs or scholarships, endowments and research opportunities in the coming years. racism — and tackle them in a creative During the past four decades, Balzer had made a positive impact on the region as United in Grief and safe environment. a respected publisher and community member. He’s held many leadership positions The innovative program received with various news organizations, including MediaNews Group, Los Angeles Blacksburg, Va., may be 2,389 miles from Pomona, Calif., but that did not prevent the Cal a seal of approval when it became Newspaper Group, Gannett and the Los Angeles Times. He began his newspaper Poly Pomona community from coming together to support its fellow polytechnic university. the only university/school district career in 1969 at the Progress Bulletin while attending classes at Cal Poly Pomona. When news first broke about the shootings at Virginia Tech on April 16, Cal Poly partnership of its kind to receive Balzer’s commitment to education is evident through his support of various Pomona students huddled around televisions on campus, hanging on every word. It quickly a $10,000 grant last year from the fundraising efforts in the region, as well as service to nonprofit, civic and educational organizations. He hosted an event last year that brought in $175,000 became apparent that there was a need to come together in an effort to process the National Endowment for the Arts. for Cal State San Bernardino’s new College of Education building, led the Chaffey nation’s deadliest single-perpetrator shooting in U.S. history. “The most amazing thing about College Foundation board as president to help raise more than $1 million, and “When unexpected tragedies occur, such as what happened at Virginia Tech, it’s community- and youth-based theatre Billy Bronco is the growth that the high school served on Cal Poly Pomona’s University Educational Trust. important for communities to offer spaces for mourning and grieving and assist in making students go through during the two to “Acquiring someone like Bob Balzer is an extraordinary coup,” says President Makes TV Debut some meaning of something that seems so senseless,” says Sunny Lee, interim director of three years they are in the program,” Ortiz. “His reputation in the community is the result of his strong character and the Office of Student Life and Cultural Centers. says Bernardo Solano, professor of integrity. Bob will use those resources to create opportunities and access that will Billy Bronco knows how to party Hundreds of students, along with some faculty and staff, gathered for a Rose Garden theatre. “Students who came in as prove invaluable to the campaign.” hearty during March Madness. But he vigil on April 18 to pay homage to the lives lost and to the people left to heal in the shy ninth-graders become outspoken never loses his big hairy head in the aftermath. Many signed posters and cards that were sent to Virginia Tech. Additionally, leaders and seasoned performers and process. two open dialogues were held to address issues of campus safety, emotional well-being, writers by the time they are seniors.” Supporting Future Teachers Cal Poly Pomona’s spunky stereotyping and most importantly, to share resources available for the campus community, These types of experiences are mascot joined his fuzzy brethren for Lee says. crucial to motivating high school If it takes a village to raise a child, the same can probably be said for training teachers. a 30-second television ad that aired students to consider a future in higher Participating in a teaching credential can be as time-consuming as a full-time job. throughout March Madness. The TV ad education. This one just happens to Student-teachers are often in the classroom four to five days a week, plus they have reports encouraged college hoop fans to have produce dramatic results. and papers due. Despite these demands, many aspiring teachers try to stay financially a fun, safe time during the upcoming NCAA basketball tournament. The Peer Theatre program was the only university/ solvent by working part or full time. Billy Bronco was joined by Cal school district program of its kind to receive a grant Cal Poly Pomona is fortunate to have a community of allies through Partners State Fullerton’s Tuffy the Elephant, from the National Endowment for the Arts last year. in Education (PIE) to actively support the strenuous development of future teachers. Prospector Pete from Cal State Long This advocacy group collaborates with schools, families and communities to provide Beach and other university mascots. opportunities to those in the teaching profession. The “Good, Clean Fun” ad was part This past winter, President Ortiz and wife, Betty, joined members of PIE to award of a campaign with the National $5,000 scholarships to three teaching credential students. The scholarships are intended to Association of State Universities help students financially so they can focus more time on their studies. and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC), “As a superintendent at Savannah School District in Anaheim, I know how critical the need which have partnered with Anheuser- is for educators who are passionate about teaching, who want to make a difference in their Busch Co. to promote responsible students’ lives, and who really care about students and alcohol consumption. the profession,” says Sue Johnson, director of PIE. “Our Although Billy focus is to celebrate three very special students who Bronco’s screen time we hope will become exceptional teachers.” was a mere three Credential students Andrian Chavez, Joanna seconds, it was three Hall and AnaLisa Manlic were each granted a seconds viewed by scholarship based on academic achievements and hundreds of thousands of hoop fans. aspirations to enter the teaching profession.
Aspiring teacher AnaLisa Manlic receives a PIE scholarship, presented by Dean Barbara Way and President Ortiz. PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 5 4 PolyTrends | spring 2007 Under the direction of professors Margie Jones and Bob Small, the wine competition provided students with a first-hand judging experience. perspective campus Competition Ripens
The Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition returned to Fairplex in Pomona, where 3,788 wines and 53 tequilas were whiffed, sipped and spit by 76 judges, all under the leadership of Bob Small, professor of hospitality management. Additionally, 396 olive oils crossed the palates of 20 judges during the three-day competition in May. The massive wine competition, formerly called the L.A. County Fair Wines of the World competition, is in its 68th year. “If you get a gold medal here, you will basically The Struggles of a sell all your wine,” says Small, chairman of the competition. “This is all about selling wine.” Student with ADD About 20 Cal Poly Pomona students helped manage the ebb and flow of wine, spirits and olive oil under the direction of Small and Margie Jones, a wine education professor. Several students also sat with the panels of judges collecting their critiques and gaining first-hand experience observing the judges in action. The judges, who are a highly accomplished group of wine connoisseurs, include paying master sommeliers, winemakers and buyers, food and wine writers, restaurateurs and more. The winning wines will be featured during the L.A. County Fair in September at the fair’s newly designated Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Attention Marketplace. By Andrew Brody
To most people, I’m just a typical college student. I’m usually rushing between Along the way, I still faced challenges classes, juggling school and personal calendars, playing Frisbee football with my in college, one of which was reading fraternity buddies, cramming for exams and lacking sleep. What is not so apparent is comprehension. When I started college, that I struggle each day with learning difficulties. I would have to read twice as much as a I have what is known as Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder (Inattentive ADD). This Civil Engineering Lands Donation “Minimizing the typical student in order to understand the environmental impact” is a neuro-cognitive disorder where one has trouble focusing on the task at hand, including reading assignment. Since I never had the Civil engineering students will have more opportunities than ever to learn about environmentally friendly during land development is reading comprehension, remembering short-term tasks or paying attention in a conversation. time to read every chapter twice, I often land development design practices in the new Sustainable Land Development Laboratory. one of the benefits of the I was diagnosed with Inattentive ADD when I was in the second grade. The first neglected the assignment and focused on The specialized computer lab, which is completely funded by donations, will support a range of courses, innovative lab, according sign was when my reading level was not up to par with the rest of my class. After my those that were not covered in the lecture. including Engineering Hydrology, Subdivision Design, Highway to chair Don Coduto. diagnosis, I began to see a special tutor and continued through eighth grade. This helped I picked up concepts a lot better while Design, Environmental Resource Systems and senior projects. me cope with my learning problems, and by the time I was in high school, I had found attending lectures. “The focus of the lab is on developing or redeveloping ways to succeed despite the challenges. I ended up doing well throughout school in Along with academic land in a way that serves present needs, while minimizing the college-prep courses. challenges, I also had social environmental impact,” says Donald Coduto, professor and chair of When I came to college, however, I tried to get by on my own but found it much more issues to contend with. civil engineering. difficult than I thought. The things I did to cope in high school were not going to work in People with Inattentive “It is really the support of industry that helps us stay current,” college. I joined the Disability Resource Center (DRC) and received support through the ADD tend to keep President Ortiz said during the lab dedication in March. “This lab is a Achievement Retention & Commitment to Higher Education Success (ARCHES) program. The to themselves real testament to industry’s support of engineering education.” DRC helped me receive accommodations, such as extra time on tests, textbooks on tape and and lack self- Irvine-based RBF Consulting is the lab’s biggest donor. The having the help of a note-taker, while ARCHES provided free tutoring, organizational help and expression. (Perspective cont. on page 23) civil engineering firm regularly hires Cal Poly Pomona graduates, advising. Having these accommodations combined with my coping mechanisms have helped with nearly 60 alumni working for the company. make college workable. ”The entire engineering community benefits from well- prepared graduates,” says Doug Abramson, RBF Consulting senior vice president. Andrew Brody is an industrial engineering senior with a minor in mathematics. He is diagnosed with Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder (Inattentive ADD).
6 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 7 Story cover e x p a n d i n g Landscape Architecture Celebrates 50 Years and Counting By Laurie McLaughlin
Douglas Findlay is working on two projects on opposite sides of the globe. The first is the World Trade Center Memorial terrainproject in Manhattan, and the second is the U.S. Embassy in China. “It’s interesting that when the United States built an embassy, the pattern was to put a few shrubs around some buildings and that was it,” says Findlay, president of PWP Landscape Architecture in Berkeley and a 1980 alumnus of Cal Poly Pomona’s landscape architecture program. The lack of exterior design at the embassies was for security purposes. “Now, security measures require new embassies be built at least 100 feet from the street. And in this case in China, we’re making American-designed gardens within that zone for visitors and the people who work there.” Architect Michael Arad learned that his proposal for the World Trade Center Memorial was among entry finalists in the largest competition of its kind in the The World Trade Center Memorial landscape design, led by alumnus world; however, it required rethinking and Douglas Findlay ’80, features a line of trees as a series of colonnades.
collaboration with a landscape architect to t Color rendering courtesy of PWP Landscape Architecture
8 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 9 garner approval. Arad selected PWP, and with the help of Findlay’s for a garden to cost up to $5 million an acre,” says Truskowski, landscape design team, the revised plan was chosen as winner. who earned his landscape architecture degree in 1970 and was Located at the site where the towers fell on Sept. 11, 2001, the 16- included in the Robb Report’s 2005 Best of the Best list of landscape acre, multi-use development will include office buildings and a park. architects. “When I did Mick Jagger’s house on Mustique, we had “Our primary goal is for it to function like any other beautiful to put in a desalination plant and bring plants over on the weekly park but simultaneously be a place that commemorates what banana boat,” he says. happened,” says Findlay in a phone call from New York while Truskowski also created a shark lagoon in Saudi Arabia. “It was working on the project, scheduled to be completed in 2010. a couple of acres of sharks and other sea life, and the landscape was “We’re doing it with emptiness, trees, water and stone purchased in various parts of the world. We chartered the top floor pavement. People can come here to grieve, but at the same time they of a container ship and moved full-grown trees from Florida to the are in the midst of a ‘life-goes-on’ experience, and office workers Middle East.” are having lunch, laughing and living their lives.” In spite of all of his success, and the extravagant projects he “There’s a therapeutic quality to glass,” says Andy works on, Truskowski personally subscribes to an environmentally Cao ’84, whose stylized landscapes have been conscious lifestyle and focuses on more than just the success of featured in hotels, residences, stores and museums. the estates’ lavish landscapes. “During our projects, we train local people and give them skills,” he says, “because it’s important to leave Stephen Jerrom knowledge behind to help people to improve their status in life.” 50 Years of Practice TRANSLUCENT DESIGNS t
Findlay credits the practical education he received at Cal Decidedly against the grain, alumnus Poly Pomona for launching his career. “When I was in college, my PICO TO THE PACIFIC Andy Cao cultivates translucent landscapes professors focused on how to get things done, and when I graduated, with recycled glass instead of flora and has I was really prepared to go to work,” says Findlay. “It’s a very Many of us know the point where Pico established an international reputation for his strong program, and it’s amazing how many people I bump into, Boulevard ends — it’s an enticing dining locale work in creating private landscapes. “There’s even outside California, who are from Cal Poly Pomona’s landscape at either the trendy Shutters on the Beach or a therapeutic quality to glass,” says Cao, architecture program.” historic Casa Del Mar Hotel. It’s also the site who earned his degree in landscape This year, the university’s landscape architecture program of the “California Wash: Pico to the Pacific” architecture in 1984. His experience at is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and along with the industry, landscape architecture project, and it won a the university, he says, “helped me the program has grown in both number of students and breadth of national competition for environmental artwork. realign my focus and gave me the knowledge. Bob Perry, emeritus professor, served as one of courage to realize I could find my “Back then, the program developed a reputation for teaching the landscape architects on the project, which is own niche.” In 2001, he received the design and technical abilities,” says Karen C. Hanna, FSLA, FCELA, located where the storied boulevard meets the prestigious Rome Prize Fellowship dean of the College of Environmental Design, which houses the sand between the two hotels. The small “park” in Landscape Architecture, and department. “Technical capabilities in the beginning meant was created to heighten awareness of Los Angeles’ he founded the Cao/Perrot Studio. understanding construction, and today it also means digital abilities canyon watersheds draining into the Pacific with His work has been featured in and environmental considerations, and we are still known for our representational use of walkways and native plants. dozens of magazines, books and strength in those areas. It’s a discipline that requires both the left and television programs, and he designs right sides of the brain.” his stylized landscapes for hotels, A combination of creativity and residences, stores and museums around The landscape architecture at practicality are required no matter the the globe. The Crossings at Corona project, from recreational areas and was designed by Robert highway beautification projects Cardoza ’64 and his to office parks and housing firm, Nuvis. developments. For alumnus Robert Truskowski, his landscape architecture career has “My classes at Cal Poly Pomona rated very taken him around the world where he’s specialized in a niche market for extremely highly against the classes at Harvard,” says high-end residential clients, including Mick Jagger, alumnus Robert Truskowski (above), whose firm om Zasadzinski om
Quincy Jones and a number T of business leaders on the Forbes list of richest people. has offices in Laguna Beach and Florida. “I
“I have a lot of projects by Photos where it’s not unusual have graduates from many universities all over
Among alumnus Robert Truskowski’s the country, and those from Cal Poly Pomona are projects is a palatial garden in Montecito, complete with swans. really premium employees.” PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 11 Professor Joan Hirschman Woodward touts students’ designs for the City of Industry’s redevelopment along the 60 Freeway and other 606 Studio projects.
what those outside the profession may assume fall into the realm CAMPUS LANDMARKS of landscape architecture, including social, political and economic factors within a particular community. This past spring, the 18 FATHER The work of both landscape architecture students in the studio class worked on three other projects. In students and faculty has created a number of OF THE San Diego, the students are working with a nonprofit organization experiential sites on campus that are not only to revitalize Chollas Creek. In South Los Angeles, students have WHERE attractive but educational: approached the Community Redevelopment Agency to re-envision The Rain Bird Ethnobotany Learning Center FACTOR public space, which may include parks and affordable housing. In was designed by Gerald O. Taylor, ASLA, Riverside, students will present a plan advocating effective, high- assistant professor of landscape architecture. He’s so famous density urban planning within the city in order to avoid continued The one-acre oasis emphasizes the relationship he has his own entry suburban sprawl and destruction of the surrounding natural habitat. in Wikipedia. He’s Jack between the Gabrielino-Tongva, the indigenous Dangermond, a 1967 landscape people of the Los Angeles basin, and their natural Field Test for Students architecture alumnus, and his geographic environment with both water and native plant life. A pond and re-creation of a ceremonial Several months ago, Gary Neely information system (GIS) technology software is gathering area within the small park serves as an from State Assemblyman Bob Huff’s used in the OnStar road navigation system and helps outdoor classroom. office contacted the department manage the Metropolitan Water District pipeline Growth Creates Opportunity system and Caltrans roads. Companies, such as to see if Cal Poly Pomona Cal Poly Pomona is the only university in California with both MapQuest, Thomas Bros., National Geographic and students would be interested in an accredited undergraduate and graduate landscape architecture Realtor.com, use it to create new maps each day. participating in a redevelopment program, and with that popularity comes an overwhelming interest He founded the Environmental Systems Research project along the 60 Freeway. The from prospective students. Institute (ESRI) in 1969, and it’s now the leading students seized the opportunity “In this region particularly, there has been a tremendous amount developer of GIS software for both the world of and created a comprehensive of development in the last decade that has increased the awareness academia and the private sector. In 2005, he was landscape design for the Fairway of landscape architecture,” says Philip N. Pregill, professor and awarded an honorary doctorate from Cal Poly Drive interchange that straddles the City chair of landscape architecture. “Our program has consistently Pomona. Of his innovation, he says, “We couldn’t of Industry and Rowland Heights. grown over the past decade from 200 to 300 students, and we are at see into the future, but we knew when we first “They spent a month creating enormous models, capacity in terms of accommodating enrollment demands.” discovered GIS that we were working with very paintings and designs and presented them to the City of Industry’s The program’s high profile in the industry has brought important technology.” mayor and a blue ribbon panel,” says Joan Hirschman Woodward, experienced faculty to the university, especially with a real-world FASLA, landscape architecture professor and graduate coordinator. laboratory as large as the region’s metropolitan area. “We have no “The students presented suggestions with landscaping that would L.A. DESIGNS L.A. problem attracting quality faculty. Part of the draw, of play a functional role in not just aesthetics, but also pollution control course, is that we are near Los Angeles,” adds The Grand Avenue Intervention project has and irrigation.” Their presentation was successful, and the students Pregill. “The department’s theme for its been working to solicit civic engagement and The George and Sakaye Aratani Japanese have been invited to examine three other freeway interchanges in 50th anniversary, Re-generating L.A., ideas for the design of a 16-acre park in the heart Garden fosters an appreciation of nature and the area, she says. “This has been very exciting because students has been an effective way to convey of downtown Los Angeles amid the rapid re- Japanese culture and reflects the university’s are helping with tangible change right here near the university.” the focus of the program to both development and revitalization of the area with interest in international education. Adjacent Last fall, five landscape architecture students in the graduate- faculty and students.” new skyscrapers, loft developments and shopping. to the Classroom/Laboratory/Administration level 606 Studio class did their research and decided to approach Success also has its Cal Poly Pomona professors Sarah Lorenzen and Building, the 1.3-acre garden features traditional government leaders in the city of Buena Ventura on the Pacific Coast challenges, such as the Andrew Wilcox incorporated the Grand Asian flora, a reflection pond, waterfall, bridges about its future. Their plan reaches forward to 2050 and evaluates need for larger facilities Avenue project, part of the city’s and a small amphitheater and was designed by the state of the region if peak oil consumption is met and affordable in order to grow. It’s a much-publicized master plan, into Takeo Uesugi, professor emeritus of landscape fuel is no longer available. good problem to have, their studio classes. Wilcox’s architecture. “The students have looked at what happens to an urban area says Hanna, but there senior level students planned when people have to find alternatives to living with cheap oil,” are a few hurdles and designed a new urban says Hirschman Woodward. “This not only affects travel but also in the way. “The park that reflects the urban is relevant to everyday activities including heating, cooling and in (Continued on page 16) particular food because much of it is flown into this region.” district’s history, cultural and The students’ plan, which calls for localizing food production social diversity, and changing and consumption, evaluates what the city has to accomplish in community demands of order to transition from an urban to agricultural environment. “The downtown L.A. One of students made the proposal to the Buena Ventura city council, and the questions he put to the council members were impressed and wanted to see more, his students in the class so they are working on projections for 2015, 2025 and 2050,” says syllabus was “What does Hirschman Woodward. “The plans show both how the city could ‘park’ mean today?” evolve with change and what may happen without change.” A student photographs The 606 Studio is a consortium of faculty and graduate students her installation for a who apply advanced methods of analysis and design to projects landscape architecture emphasizing preservation and restoration of sensitive natural construction class. systems. The research involved considers dynamics well beyond
12 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 Calendar noteworthy events The following performances will take place in the Music Recital Hall. Showtime is 8 p.m., and admission is $7. To purchase tickets online, visit www.ZapTix.com. october For a complete list of performances, visit www.class.csupomona.edu/mu or call (909) 869-3554. Oct. through May 20 Arabian Horse Show Cal Poly Pomona Golf Scramble Oct. 20 First Sunday of the month Local qualifier for national Bass Recital Janine Riveire, faculty artist 2 p.m. • (909) 869-4988 scramble tournament, hosted by Associated Students Inc.
Nov. 2 Oct. through June Diamond Bar Golf Course Charles Lindsley Memorial Kellogg House Pomona Open House Vocal Scholarship Fundraiser First Sunday of the month 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. • (909) 869-2088 Directed by Susan Burns and featuring music Noon to 2 p.m. • (909) 869-2272 students, faculty, staff and alumni 20 and 21 4 Pumpkin Festival & Nov. 16 Graduate & Professional Day Insect Fair Phillip Clarke Memorial University Quad College of Agriculture Piano Scholarship Fundraiser 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. • (909) 869-2341 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Directed by Nadia Shpachenko (909) 869-2200 and featuring music students, 5 faculty, staff and alumni Alumni Association Golf Tournament 25 Events and artists are subject to change. Student scholarship fundraiser Annual Wellness and Coyote Hills Golf Course, Fullerton Cyber Security Fair 8 a.m. • (866) CPP-ALUM Learn about personal and september 6 computer health Matthew Myers 5K Memorial Run/Walk Bronco Student Center Scholarship fundraiser in student’s honor 10 a.m. to noon 7 to 29 (909) 869-5309 or (909) 869-2808 Southern California Shakespeare Festival Across campus 8 a.m. • (909) 869-4852 • www.mattsrun.com Presenting “The Merry Wives of Windsor” 29 to 31 Studio Theatre (909) 869-3954 18 “Visual Voices Against Violence” Career Day An exhibit of art by survivors of domestic violence University Quad W. Keith and Janet Kellogg University Art Gallery 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. • (909) 869-2341 (909) 869-3102
november 4 14th Annual Harvest Auction Pacific Palms Resort, Industry Hills 17 to Oct. 20 Late afternoon • (909) 869-6910 Faculty Show New artwork, from the traditional to the Nov. 15 to Dec. 15 experimental, by Cal Poly Pomona faculty “East In Eden” W. Keith and Janet Kellogg University Art Gallery The Pomona Valley is the inspiration for this exhibit. (909) 869-4301 W. Keith and Janet Kellogg University Art Gallery 19 (909) 869-4301 BroncoFusion Open house for new students Bronco Student Center 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. • (909) 869-3642 december theatre 20 15 2007-08 Plays Start of Fall Quarter 2007 Rose Float 60th Anniversary For production schedule and Celebration & Banquet more information, visit www.class.csupomona.edu/th or Rose Float Lab and Kellogg West call (909) 869-3800. Call (909) 869-4997 to receive an invitation. bronco athletics Fall ProductionS 29 to 31 Main Stage Below is a select listing of upcoming fall events. For Cal Poly Universities Rose Float Deco Week information on these or other host games, call “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (909) 869-2812, or visit www.broncoathletics.com. Brookside Pavilion, Pasadena (909) 869-3642 Studio Theatre “Homebody Kabul” Volleyball 7 p.m. Winter Production vs. Sonoma State sept. 7 Main Stage vs. Cal State Los Angeles oct. 27 january “Top Girls” vs. Cal State San Bernardino oct. 31 1 Studio Theatre Tournament of Roses Parade “Laundry and Bourbon & Lone Star” Soccer Cal Poly Universities’ Rose Float, vs. Dominguez Hills sept. 7 (M) 4:30 p.m. (W) 7 p.m. vs. ucsd sept. 9 (M) 12:30 p.m. (W) 3 p.m. Pasadena vs. Sonoma State sept. 28 (W) 4:30 p.m. (M) 7 p.m.
www.csupomona.edu THE BLUE LAGOON Examining native plants and the environment is not what most people describe as a good time, Chain but for Woody Smeck, it R e a c t i o n is his life’s passion. This landscape architecture alumnus (‘85 and ‘91) has fought to preserve major parks in the Mediterranean Coast Network through Michelle Landis and Joel his innovative ideas and PRESERVATION, Shafor were challenged environmental programs, to work on a project which include a research learning PRESERVATION, that helped improve center and fire management plan. the health of an under- As superintendent of the Santa Monica PRESERVATION served community. Mountains National Recreation Area, the world’s largest urban national park, Smeck helped restore Taking on the challenge of preserving the last remaining Navigating the Zuma Lagoon in Santa Monica. With debris removed wetland environment in the port city of Wilmington, landscape and native plants restored, the living wetland features architecture students Michelle Landis and Joel Shafor worked 108 species of birds and colorful wildflowers thanks to with residents and government officials during their thorough his leadership. Last year, the National Park Services research of the area at the mouth of the Dominguez Channel, Supply Chain Industry named Smeck the Superintendent of the Year for which empties into Los Angeles Harbor. Gerald O. Taylor, Natural Resource Stewardship. ASLA, assistant professor, challenged his class to select By Lisa McPheron projects that would improve the health of the residents living in an under-served community. In recognition of their efforts, the duo received a prestigious award from the American If you’ve recently purchased anything made in Asia, it likely Society of Landscape Architects 2006 Student Awards came through the ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach competition. “Through our work with the bound for a distribution center in the Inland Empire before community, we gave the residents something being placed on a store shelf. to rally behind,” says Landis, who Cal Poly Pomona is physically located along this graduated in 2006, along with Shafor. river of cargo, which flows daily through Southland “Nothing can match that feeling.” freeways and railroads. Given its centrality, it is a natural fit for the university to steer students to be leaders in this growing industry. (Cover Story cont. from page 13) Between 1990 and 2003, the transportation and logistics industry in Southern California gained nearly next freshman class will have about 73,000 new jobs, amounting to a 23 percent increase, 100 students in it, and we have room according to the California Transportation and Logistics for about 60. We just desperately Institute. By 2030, the institute predicts 350,000 more jobs need more space,” she says. For 10 will be needed to maintain the growth. years, the university administration “Many of these positions will be well-paid technical has been lobbying for a new landscape jobs,” says Lynn Turner, professor of management & human architecture facility. “My hope is that we resources in the College of Business Administration. “We will be high enough on the California State University list to be funded by the 2008 bond act,” want our students to be prepared for these jobs and our adds Hanna, and in the meantime, she’s working to faculty to conduct research that will influence the future of raise funds from alumni and firms who hire graduates in this industry.” Preserving natural habitats is not just a job, order to augment the department’s case for being at the top of the Technological innovation, globalization and e-commerce but a passion for Woody Smeck ‘85, ‘91. CSU list. It is evident that alumni and community support is chief among impact the strategies, operations and complexity of today’s the elements necessary for consideration. business supply chain. As the industry evolves, Cal Poly Pomona’s emphasis on its supply chain and logistics For more information on the landscape architecture program, contact Carrie program will as well. Geurts, director of development for the College of Environmental Design, at Business alumnus Michael Entzminger ‘76 is CEO and (909) 869-4468 or [email protected]. founder of Mach 1 Air Services Inc., one of the world’s
16 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 17 “We called it trucks and buses. Now it is an extremely complex program,” says Michael Entzminger ’76, CEO of one of the world’s fastest-growing transportation and logistics companies.
Benitez was introduced to recruiters from Flour at an Association of Technology and Operations Management Students (ATOMS) meeting before she graduated. She was offered a job before completing her last final and has been promoted in less than a year. “The emphasis placed on the supply Students get an inside look at the Smart & Final distribution center. A senior operations manager at chain definitely prepared me to be a PETCO, Genaro Bugarin ’95 stays buyer,” she says. “I understand how fastest-growing transportation and Hua Chang, a 2005 graduate who now works for UPS, developed an inventory connected by mentoring students and manufacturing works, so it gives me an analytical tool for his senior project, Bugarin says. logistic services companies. He attended advising on industry trends. edge working with manufacturers.” Cal Poly Pomona before there was a “That tool is going to save us six figures,” he says. “The students have just been Alumni have gone on to be leaders fantastic.” comprehensive program in that field. educational upper edge through exposure to in this field. Some like Entzminger and “We called it trucks and buses, and it In total, the TOM department estimates that senior projects have saved companies business trends, partnerships with industry Genaro Bugarin, a 1995 alumnus, maintain more than $2 million through intuitive and creative work by students. Both Entzminger was considered an easy ‘A,’” Entzminger have also greatly benefitted the program. To their ties with the university by lending recalls. “Now it is an extremely complex and Bugarin agree that staying current with technology is vital to staying competitive in jump-start an enhanced lab focusing on the supply their expertise in advisory roles. the global marketplace. They see Cal Poly Pomona fulfilling an important role in preparing program.” chain industry, the department received a $315,000 Bugarin, who is senior manager The technology & operations students to use these technologies once they graduate. gift last December from the City of Industry’s Industry of Operations Planning at PETCO, has Entzminger’s business, Mach 1 Air Services, provides a complete supply chain management (TOM) department exposes Manufacturers Council and Kent R. Valley of Majestic stayed connected to the TOM department students to the complexity of today’s and logistics package for companies. Essentially, Mach 1 will pick up a product from a Realty. The contribution will help develop the Supply Chain & throughout his career. Bugarin mentors manufacturer anywhere in the world, ship it, monitor inventory and distribute it to the businesses, helping them develop the skills Logistics Technology Laboratory and will increase students’ exposure senior projects, serves on a TOM advisory needed to properly manage the business customer or store. to new and emerging developments in RFID and other state-of-the art changes in supply board and has hired Cal Poly Pomona “Technology has made us more efficient,” Entzminger says. “It’s a supply chain, according to chair Hassan chain management technologies, Halati says. professors as contract analysts. Halati. Faculty members are also active in hands-on business. The hands-on polytechnic practices at Cal Poly “Technology is changing the face of business,” he says. “The modern business “Just a few years ago, we were Pomona prepare students well for this business before they even hit monitoring industry trends and innovations, student needs to be more informed about this emerging field.” recruiting people mostly from Midwestern such as Radio Frequency Identification the workforce.” RFID, the Internet (EPCglobal Network), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), or Southern schools where they have Just as in a seamless chain, consumers can continue to (RFID) tracking. Through RFID, objects are Warehouse Management Systems (WMS), transportation system planning, global strong supply chain programs,” he says. tagged with tiny devices that allow large purchase products thanks to this business technology. And Cal positioning, and global data synchronization technologies have significant impact on “However in the past few years, the TOM Poly Pomona is a key link. retailers and delivery companies to track businesses. The lab will provide firsthand experience and demonstrate the inner workings department has begun offering more the movement of their goods. of these state-of-the-art developments in supply chain management technology. supply chain classes, fulfilling the needs of In addition to Students will learn the strategic implications of RFID mandates in the industry.” maintaining an commercial and government sectors; acquire firsthand knowledge of the Bugarin has mentored three TOM technology’s applications and engage in the practical study of end- students working on their senior projects. to-end RFID solutions implemented for real-world application. Over the course of a quarter, the students A Strong Link It is this type of hands-on learning that often helps work on various tasks and develop graduating seniors land top jobs before their diplomas business solutions. The student assigned A $315,000 gift from the City of Industry’s Industry are delivered in the mail. to reduce shipping costs, for example, may Manufacturers Council and Kent R. Valley of Majestic Realty “The program is very comprehensive,” says realize that the products’ boxes are too will help develop the Supply Chain & Logistics Technology Susan Benitez, a 2006 TOM alumna, who is a big and essentially waste space during Laboratory at Cal Poly Pomona. The lab will provide firsthand materials manager for Fluor Corporation. “The shipping, Bugarin says. experience and demonstrate the inner workings of state-of-the-art professors have a lot of experience, and in developments in supply chain management technology including: every class, they tried to bring in experts from the real world, so we are exposed to Radio Frequency Identification Tracking the business.” EPCglobal Network Enterprise Resource Planning Warehouse Management Systems
Transportation System Planning PolyTrends | spring Global Positioning PolyTrends | spring | summer2007 2007 9 19 PolyTrends | spring 2007 21 Global Data Synchronization Technologies a Rare Breed Kellogg’s Arabian Horse Heritage to Be Preserved in New Library
W.K. Kellogg would have been proud to know that more than 70 percent of the domestic Arabian bloodstock in this country traces its lineage to his original breeding program.
By Lisa McPheron
In pursuing his boyhood dream of a having a stable full of Arabian horses, flew the Spirit of St. Louis over the property to huge fanfare in 1927 to help Kellogg cereal magnate W.K. Kellogg created one of the most visited tourist attractions in dedicate a small air strip that is now long gone. Southern California during the 1920 and 1930s. In doing so, he established a legacy “This was the place to be,” says Melissa Paul, librarian for the W.K. Kellogg that is preserved today in more ways than one at Cal Poly Pomona. Arabian Horse Library, which is temporarily located in three retrofitted stalls in Kellogg’s 813-acre summer ranch, which would later become the heart of the the original stables on campus. “Thousands of people used to watch the horse Cal Poly Pomona campus, was a watering hole for some of the biggest movers and shows. It didn’t hurt that Kellogg gave every guest free Cornflakes during the Great shakers in California. Silver screen star Rudolph Valentino made headlines when Depression.” he requested that Jadaan, a prized Kellogg Arabian stud, be featured in his 1926 Celebrity and politician visits certainly brought attention to the ranch in its blockbuster, The Son of the Sheik. early days. However, it has ultimately been the commitment to breeding, training The ranch’s location, a scant 32 miles from Los Angeles, ensured a regular and studying Arabian horses that has cemented the unique heritage of the center, flow of Hollywood celebrities, boosting the popularity of the horse ranch. and the university as well. Numerous starlets and their leading men, governors and news reporters, as well When Kellogg deeded his 813-acre ranch to the state of California in 1949, as animators from Walt Disney Studios flocked to the grounds for the exquisite he did so with the stipulation of maintaining the horse shows and continuing collection of Arabian horses. Large crowds of everyday people followed, attending the breeding and training of the domesticated animals. More than 70 percent of the free Sunday horse shows that began in 1926. Aviation legend Charles Lindberg the domestic Arabian bloodstock in this country traces its lineage to Kellogg’s The $6 million Arabian horse (Perspective continued from page 7) “People with Inattentive ADD library will be funded largely by tend to keep to themselves and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. I coped with this by joining the lack self-expression. I coped On an Equal Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity. When with this by joining the Sigma I first joined, I had a lot of great Phi Epsilon Fraternity.” original breeding program, a statistic ideas but was hesitant to speak up. Footing that would have made him proud. He Older members started to discuss also wanted the horses to be utilized my ideas but would not fully in equine science education, which is explain them, forcing me to step up More than half of the students registered being accomplished through Cal Poly heights with the upcoming construction of the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Library. and become more vocal. This went with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at Pomona’s comprehensive educational Cal Poly Pomona have invisible disabilities, The new 5,600 square-foot facility, which will be prominently located on the on until I figured how to do it on program. This includes instruction at similar to Andrew Brody’s. Whether they grounds of the 38-acre horse center, will help preserve Kellogg’s love for Arabian my own. the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center, struggle with impairments to mobility, horses and his dedication to philanthropy, as well as a multitude of rare and One of my fraternity brothers monthly Sunday exhibition shows that historical materials dedicated to the horse breed. sight or hearing; chronic health conditions; run from October to May, the Equine gave me a quote when I was a or attention, learning, neurological or The $6 million structure will largely be made possible by the W.K. Kellogg new member. I still remember it Research Center established in 1980, Foundation, based in Battle Creek, Mich. Earlier this year, the foundation granted psychological disorders, receiving the to this day: “If you’re shy, you’ll go as well as clinics offered to horse $5 million to the horse center, which marks the third largest grant ever given to support they need can make or break their hungry.” I took this quote to heart, enthusiasts. the university. The grant allocates $2 million for the construction of the new W.K. college experience. Today, the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Kellogg Arabian Horse Library, with $3 million earmarked for an endowment fund which comes in handy when I share The DRC verifies disabilities and Horse Center is home to 110 world- for the future care of the center. a pizza with three hungry fraternity prescribes specific accommodations that famous Kellogg Arabians from the “This funding will be crucial to us,” says Bill brothers. This quote has also given enable students with disabilities to compete original Kellogg herd. It continues Hughes, director of the horse center. “This will help me the courage to run for student academically on an equal basis with their to thrive in many ways. There were us complete deferred maintenance and improve our government and the Greek council. non-disabled peers. Students can take 13 expecting mares this spring, and facilities.” I also think about this quote when advantage of various services at the DRC, student equestrian teams recently won Although the $2 million gift will provide the funding my instinct is to hold back on whether they need textbooks in alternative regional championships. Preservation impetus to build the library, additional sources of something I want to do, whether it’s media, note-takers for classes, increased test of the legacy is also reaching new support are being explored. for a class project or an organization time or use of the assistive technology center. To supplement the DRC’s academic The library collection preserves all I’m involved with. support, students also benefit from the types of Arabian horse information in Another challenge I had was Achievement, Retention, and Commitment multiple formats including newspapers, in carrying on a conversation, which magazines, art work, brochures, to Higher Education Success (ARCHES) requires me to focus. I usually end program. Established in 1997 to provide newsletters, videotapes, photographs, up missing things in a conversation letters and manuscripts, as well as academic advising, study skills development and often ask people to repeat rare books. The collection is intended and tutoring, as well as financial aid and themselves. I felt bad annoying to be used as a research facility by the scholarship assistance, ARCHES is funded university and community at large. people by constantly asking them by a grant from the U.S. Department of “We have many materials that to repeat things. So I decided to try focusing only on the one person Education TRIO Programs. TRIO programs promote are in storage,” says Michelle Moyer, I’m speaking with. It seemed to work well in class, and I also tried it educational equity for students who are traditionally the College of Agriculture’s director outside of class. Now when I’m in a conversation, I typically do not underrepresented in higher education — students who of development. “The new library will look around, so I can stay focused. are in the first-generation of their families to attend provide a much improved setting to The last challenge is the tendency to forget things in my short-term college and who are low-income, and/or are disabled. display these items and help preserve the memory. At home, I would be asked to get four items from the kitchen, For more information about the Disability legacy of the horse center.” and I usually would come back with three of the four items. This hap- Resource Center, visit www.dsa.csupomona.edu/drc Throughout the year, roughly 35,000 pened frequently until I started working at Sears Auto Center. When I or call (909) 869-3333. people visit the horse center, so there sell a set of tires, I have to go downstairs to get them. The technician will be a steady stream of visitors who keeps the paperwork while I get the tires. To avoid forgetting the tire Cal Poly Pomona likely would be interested in the library’s numbers, I started taking a copy of the paperwork down with me to Student Disabilities collection, according to Hughes. make sure I got the right tire. Eventually, I would memorize the last three “This way, people can go to the library digits of the part number without needing the paperwork. and look at all the historical materials, then Learning 31% It’s been a long struggle, but I’ve found ways to overcome these walk a little bit farther and see the live challenges and enjoy my college experience. I’m currently a fifth- Attention 30% show,” Hughes says. year industrial engineering major with a minor in mathematics, and I Physical 11% For more information about the will be graduating in fall of 2008. W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center, visit Psychological 10% www.csupomona.edu/~equine/Kellogg. Neurological 7% htm or call (909) 869-2224. “When I started college, I would have to read twice as much as a typical student in order to Low Vision/Blind 4% understand the reading assignment.” Deaf/Hard of Hearing 4% Mobility 3%
PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 23 p i S otl n ig m h u t l news A alumni Sports Entrepreneur Bobby Brett ’73 Hits it Big
p i S otl n ig m h u t l A Running Against U na M orris ’70 a Role the odds Field of dreams Model to Minority Youth
By Julie Bos
Diagnostic radiologist. Olympic athlete. County/University of Southern California Entrepreneur. Motivational speaker. Medical Center and continues to spend Each of these titles represents a rare her free time motivating the next accomplishment on its own. To have them generation of scientists. all describe the same person is even Considering her love of science, more phenomenal. And yet, that’s exactly it’s no surprise to learn she supports the case with Dr. Una Morris, who has Cal Poly Pomona’s Science Educational repeatedly overcome the odds to achieve Enhancement Services (SEES) program, extraordinary success. which promotes diversity among science Born and raised in Kingston, students. In fact, she gives not only her Jamaica, Morris lost her mother to illness time but also financial support annually, when she was 10. At 17, she moved including a $3,000 gift this past April. to California to finish high school and “I often meet with students to pursue a career in science. encourage them to overcome their “Before my mom died, she made personal struggles in order to achieve their me promise her I would pursue my goals,” she explains. “When I was their education,” she says. “And even though age, I wished I had someone to encourage I knew it was a very difficult road, I Tom Zasadzinski me to reach my dreams. Many of these decided to become a physician.” students are already highly motivated, After graduating from Cal Poly but sometimes they need a little extra
Pomona in 1970 with a degree in zoology, encouragement.” Photo by Nikki Johnson/Moxie Photography Morris went on to the University of “When I was their age, I wished I had someone to Based on a lifelong history of By Paul Helms California, San Francisco to earn her encourage me to reach my dreams. Many of these students overcoming odds, Morris’ advice to young medical degree. She invested another people is always the same. “I tell them, are already highly motivated, but sometimes they need a In the annals of baseball, the Bretts are one of the sport’s most recognizable three years to become a diagnostic ‘There’s nothing you can’t accomplish families. Brothers John, Ken, Bobby and George all played professionally, with radiologist and has been practicing in little extra encouragement.” if you persevere and really believe in Ken pitching 13 years in the major leagues and George enjoying a 20-year career the Pasadena area for the past 32 years. yourself. Nothing should ever prevent you with the Kansas City Royals that earned him a place in the National Baseball Hall Because the percentage of minority from reaching your goals.’” of Fame. women in the medical field is quite low, While Bobby Brett didn’t attain the on-field acclaim his big-league siblings Morris finds herself a role model to talent and eventually competed in a number of track events — with very impressive results. enjoyed, he has never let that overshadow his own career. Now living in Spokane, minority youth everywhere. Her laser focus and commitment to hard work helped her compete in the 1964, Wash., he is owner of both the Spokane Indians minor league baseball team “I love the field of radiology because 1968 and 1972 Olympics, earning fourth place in the 200-meter race in the 1964 Tokyo and the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League. He helped develop Brett it’s continually changing and adapting to Olympics. She also earned the gold medal in the 200-meter and 4x100-meter relay in Sports and Entertainment, as well as the Spokane Shadow Soccer Club, and is new technology,” she says. “Plus, this the 1966 Caribbean games; a gold medal in the 200-meter race in the 1967 USA Indoor also involved with the Brett Brothers Bat Company. career choice has been very conducive to Championship; and a silver medal, along with numerous others. His surname and skills notwithstanding, Brett believes the foundation for being a wife and a mother of three.” In addition, she was named Sportswoman of the Year in 1964 and 1965; held the all his personal and professional achievements is grounded in those things he Her love of science, however, is only world record for the 300-meter track event in 1966 and 1967; and held Jamaican records in learned nearly 1,400 miles away on the baseball field at Cal Poly Pomona. “To this day, I talk to him at least once a year,” Brett says of legendary Broncos one of her passions. the 200-, 400-, 800-meter and Pentathlon events. baseball coach John Scolinos. “You learned all about life lessons from John About the time her mother died, During the course of her life, Morris has also pursued a variety of other interests. Scolinos. I look back on the role he played in my life, and I learned so much from Morris discovered another skill: running. She owned and operated a Jamaican restaurant in the Pasadena area for many years, him. He is as fine a human being as I’ve ever been around.” For the next decade, she honed her natural has invested in real estate, served as assistant professor of radiology at Los Angeles t
24 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 PolyTrends | spring | summer 2007 25 p i S otl n ig m h u t l “I was the only one of the four brothers to finish A With the Research college, so I was like the knight in shining of Charles Hewitt armor to go to college and get my degree.” The Secret life ’80, Mythology A first-team All-California Collegiate Athletic Association of Transplants outfielder his senior season, Brett graduated from Cal Poly Becomes Reality Pomona in 1973 with a degree in kinesiology and signed with the Kansas City Royals. After a few seasons playing professionally, he tried his hand at coaching, serving as head coach at Inglewood High School during the 1974-75 season. Brett decided to switch careers and focus on real estate, where he made such a big hit that he considered the possibility of By Laurie McLaughlin team ownership. Brett put together a group of close friends and family members and purchased the Spokane Indians in 1985. He In Christian mythology, there is the story of brothers the Food and Drug Administration would later purchase the Chiefs ice hockey team, and these days, Cosmos and Damien, the patron saints of twins, doctors approved the use of cyclosporine, a he is also associated with the High Desert Mavericks and Tri-City and organ donors. Nearly 2000 years ago in Arabia, drug that revolutionized transplant Dust Devils baseball clubs. they were known for practicing medicine and miracles. surgery because it suppresses the “With four teams, it’s always fun. If you like sports, there’s They were martyred for their Christian beliefs, but the T-cells that reject foreign tissue after nothing better,” Brett says. “You always have the best seat, and I stories that grew after their death included a legend a transplant without suppressing the guess I can get a free hot dog if I’d like.” since depicted in numerous paintings. To cure a patient cells that fight infection. Brett says he enjoys watching young ballplayers pursuing of an ailing limb, the twins grafted the leg of a recently “Cyclosporine changed the whole their dreams of becoming Major Leaguers. One of Spokane’s deceased Ethiopian to a white man’s body. The man with face of surgery, and things began to best prospects was a 17-year-old named Carlos Beltran, who the new leg was immediately healed and shared the happen quickly,” says Hewitt, who started his professional career with the Chiefs and is now one of news of the miracle. was working at UCI, where his focus baseball’s best outfielders and plays with the New York Mets. At the University of California, Irvine, in the was on burn patients, while earning Of course, Brett knows a thing or two about professional 1980s, Charles W. Hewitt and his colleague, Kirby S. his doctoral degree at USC. success stories. His older brother, Ken, was a first-round draft pick Black, replicated that scenario on a lab rat. Now that rejection was more out of high school and reached the majors by age 18. A pitcher, he “It just so happens our first limb transplant was manageable, Hewitt’s continued played for 10 teams during a 14-year career, appearing in 349 games a white rat who received a black leg,” says Hewitt, research into transplantation of multi- with a lifetime 3.93 earned run average. Younger brother, George, currently a professor of surgery for the Robert part organs, such as limbs, skin and was a second-round pick out of high school. He became one of Wood Johnson Medical School at the University of bone marrow, was breaking ground major league baseball’s elite players and was the first ever to win Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Camden. “It around the world. batting titles in three different decades (1976, ’80 and ’90). wasn’t intentional, but it was poetic.” “We’d assert in our talks that Still, Bobby Brett realized one accomplishment that his Hewitt, who earned his master’s in biology at Cal severely burned patients needed to brothers never achieved. Poly Pomona in 1980, is one of the nation’s leading have composite tissue transplants “I was the only one of the four brothers to finish college,” he researchers in the field of transplantation. Three for the face because there are no says proudly. “So I was like the knight in shining armor to go to decades ago, Hewitt and Black introduced the field subcutaneous tissues that make the college and get my degree.” to what they termed “composite tissue transplants,” face look normal, and the patient Brett’s success has not been a surprise to Scolinos, who still which focus on the transplantation of limbs, skin and would always be disfigured,” says refers to him as one of his favorite players. bone marrow. Conventional transplantation focused Hewitt. “And, people with limbs, yes, “He had a great attitude and he hustled all the time,” Scolinos mainly on internal organs, such as kidneys, livers that’s an obvious application. But says. “He had ability, like all the Bretts did. I was very fortunate and hearts, which have relatively homogenous vein there are all kinds of uses in the areas to have had him play for us. He was great for our ballclub. He was and muscle systems allowing their placement into of plastic and reconstructive surgery always helping the other ballplayers, going out of his way to make a new body. However, the transplantation of more because you can’t reconstruct an ear them better.” complicated physiological systems, such as arms, was or other features. The whole idea is Brett is proud of his collegiate career and still thinks fondly of in the procedure’s infancy and fraught with challenges. that you can transplant these parts. his days as a Bronco. “These transplantations had various “There used to be a lot of ethics “When I was at Cal Poly Pomona, I was always treated like musculoskeletal components, such as skin, muscles, debate about this, that it’s not a life- family. They truly cared about my success and helped me achieve nerves, veins, connective tissue, bones and bone threatening situation, so it had to be my goals,” he says. “Coach Scolinos made sure all of us grew up marrow. We saw these operations as a package argued that it was a quality-of-life and knew the right way to do things. I always remember him telling of very disparate and distinct tissues, which is issue, which is as important as life us, ‘you hang out with donkeys — you’re going to be a donkey.’ ‘composite tissue,’ and it turns out that they were very itself,” adds Hewitt. “There is not Tom Zasadzinski “While the budget wasn’t always as big as some of the teams different from transplanting an organ.” much debate about that now.” we played, we were never lacking anything. There was a lot of Even with their progress in connecting these Since the first such surgery, a limbs and skin. One of the most recent and remarkable transplants was a partial pride in our program.” multiple vascular, bone and muscle systems, the main 1995 hand transplant in France, there face transplant in 2005. problem with the innovative science was that the host have been about two dozen similar Hewitt credits his time at Cal Poly Pomona under the tutelage of Jill Adler- Charles Bentley also contributed to the story. body would reject the new limb. Fortunately, in 1983, composite tissue transplants including Moore, professor of biology, and a simultaneous job with a urologist doing kidney
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Share your “There are all kinds of uses Experience and in the areas of plastic and reconstructive surgery because Knowledge. you can’t reconstruct an ear or other features. The Make a difference whole idea is that you can transplant these parts.” in the life of a student. Your transplants, with inspiring him. When he started work at UCI, he says, “I was able to run a lab without a Ph.D. Support because of my strong Cal Poly Pomona education, and when I got started Makes a Difference on my doctorate, I had written more papers than most of my professors had at USC.” Today, Hewitt focuses mainly on bone marrow transplants, which has been his specialty for the last 15 years, and the far-reaching advancements in immunology the procedure will The Bronco Mentoring provide. He’s still in the laboratory working on perfecting the science, Program is designed to give publishing articles and writing books. “Bone marrow transplants are students the opportunity complicated right now,” he says. “You have to take out all of the patient’s blood, to obtain practical career and the patient is radiated; the whole advice from our most precious time the patient is at risk because he or she doesn’t have any blood.” resource...our alumni! Hewitt’s bone marrow transplants would take healthy bone marrow from a donor, surgically attach the marrow and all its parts (cells, all Students can search for With your help, we can provide a wealth of learning. the substructures, the supporting mentors by major, occupation structures, everything that goes with the supporting microenvironment or special interest. in bone marrow, in addition to the Your gift to Cal Poly Pomona marrow itself) and eliminate the risk of draining a patient’s blood. can make a difference in the following ways: “You are actually transplanting Sign up today Most people ● Student scholarships the immune system itself into the don’t realize that while ● patient,” he says, which allows the www.cal polypomonaalumni.com Cal Poly Pomona is a state university, New labs, equipment and facilities patient to fight infections — fungal, it is not fully state supported but rather ● Enhanced technology bacterial, viral and more. state assisted. ● His nationally recognized bone One of every three dollars budgeted must Community-outreach programs marrow transplant discoveries are a be generated from off-campus resources ● Faculty and student research few years away from practicality, but if the university is to meet its mission of Hewitt continues to enthusiastically providing lifelong learning to students. Making your tax-deductible gift is easy. lead the medical community into this Online: www.give2cpp.com new frontier — changing mythology It takes caring individuals E-mail: [email protected] into reality with his research. like you to fill that gap and Call: (909) 869-4231
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