John “Jack” O’Neil, a longtime engineering professor who opened his home for nearly three decades to engineering students for a Thanksgiving meal and funded scholarships after retiring, died Feb. 12 after a long illness. O’Neil, a former aerospace engineer for Hughes Aircraft Company, began teaching at Cal Poly Pomona in 1970. The Boston native taught on campus for 33 years. He met the love of his life, his wife Mary (’71, mathematics, ’73 master’s in mathematics), shortly before coming to the university. Professor Emeritus Phil Rosenkrantz worked with O’Neil for 20 years in the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (IME) and knew him and his wife well. He described …

Cable news show Spectrum News 1 aired a feature on Cal Poly Pomona’s Horses for Heroes program on multiple newscasts on Feb. 12. Through the program, 10 student veterans were matched with horses at the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center for the mutual benefit of the horses and the veterans. Jaime Orozco Campos, a senior majoring in electric engineering, worked with an Arabian horse named Sophie to help her get used to people. In turn, working Sophie was therapeutic for Campos, helping him control his stress levels and become more comfortable as a student at Cal Poly Pomona and in his everyday life. More information about the program can be …

Some of the most creative spaces on the Cal Poly Pomona campus, the Student Innovation Idea Labs (SIIL), are celebrating five years of existence in 2020, which also marks the tenth year that the adjoining ESTEAM program has provided students firsthand entrepreneurial experience. Olukemi Sawyerr, Assistant VP of Academic Innovation, and Winny Dong, Faculty Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, helped establish the ESTEAM program and the SIIL, which oversees the iLab, Innovation Orchard, and Maker Studio. “For the engineering students, I wanted them to think about how inventions become actual products,” Dong said of the ESTEAM program. “And perhaps Olukemi (Sawyerr) wanted the business students …

The question and answer session between students and university leaders, including President Soraya M. Coley and ASI President Pasindu Senaratne, covered everything from transportation to campus climate on the evening of Feb. 11. Watch the video as administrators and the presidents answer inquiries about a range of topics. Students who submitted questions that were not answered during the allotted hour for the event will receive responses sent to the email address submitted along with their question. …

f you have authored or edited a book in print or electronic format within the last year, the University Library wants to honor you at this year’s Golden Leaves reception. All faculty, staff, alumni and retirees are encouraged to submit their work by March 31. The 2020 Golden Leaves reception will be April 17. Please contact Kimberly Erickson by email or phone at 909-869-2087.…

California’s March election ballot will include a bond measure to provide funding for the state’s public education system: preschool, K-12 and colleges. If approved, it would provide $15 billion in general obligation bonds to improve seismic safety of buildings, address deferred maintenance issues and expand the physical capacity of facilities to serve California students. Visit the CSU website for more educational information on Prop 13.…

Cal Poly Pomona is partnering with Foothill Transit to embark on several transit initiatives to improve transportation to/from and around campus and reduce vehicle trips to campus. The three initial projects include: 1) introducing a Class Pass program providing free bus rides; 2) piloting a campus stop for the Foothill Transit Silver Streak bus route; and 3) creating a Bronco Mobility Hub. “There is a new realization that the high cost of car ownership and parking is affecting CSU students throughout the state, and it’s affecting their access and ability to get an education,” said History Professor John Lloyd, who chairs the university’s Transportation Alternatives Committee. “Improving transit and creating …

The Department of Music Spring 2020 series of events features student performances, special faculty presentation and appearances by renowned guest artists. Thomas Kotcheff, a Los Angeles based composer and pianist, whose music has been described as truly beautiful and inspired, performs Frederic Rzewski’s “Songs of Insurrection” (2016) a concert length, tour-de-force solo piano work which draws on protest songs from around the world on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 8 p.m. in the music recital hall. Tickets are $15 general admission and $10 student admission. For details visit the Facebook event page: Thomas Kotcheff Piano Recital Drum set specialist and recording artist David Crigger will present a free master class titled …

Cal Poly Pomona students can play a puzzle-solving program to discover how their gaming skills can translate to careers in cyber security and obtain scores that can grant access to additional workshops and improve their qualifications for work opportunities. CyberStart offers educational challenges, tools and games to introduce students to cyber-related careers. Students who score well gain access to CyberStart Essentials, which provides video, audio and lab exercises on the fundamentals of technology and cyber security, preparing them to learn more advanced security skills and participate in hacking challenges. Participants will improve their qualifications for employment as student assistants with cyber faculty and the Division of Information Technology and can …