CEENVE Spring 2018 Newsletter
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CIVIL & ENVIRONMENTAL<br />
ENGINEERING<br />
CIVIL & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT | COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING | SPRING <strong>2018</strong><br />
Concrete<br />
Canoe Team<br />
Back-to-Back Champions
INSIDE<br />
4 5<br />
5 6 10 11 12 13<br />
On the cover: Members of the Concrete Canoe Team<br />
compete at the national championship in San Diego<br />
4<br />
Dr. Moss Selected for<br />
Fullbright Specialist Program<br />
Moss will develop engineering curriculum and<br />
faculty education at Chilean universities.<br />
11<br />
Steel Bridge Team<br />
Second in the Nation<br />
Students competed against 41 other schools<br />
from around the world to earn honors.<br />
5<br />
Student Project Will Improve<br />
Water Flow to Village in Nicaragua<br />
Engineers Without Borders are working on a<br />
project to bring clean water to 300 residents.<br />
12<br />
Faculty Spotlights:<br />
Voulgaris, Derbidge, King<br />
How faculty are working beyond the classroom to<br />
improve student learning and our community.<br />
5<br />
Students Win at <strong>2018</strong><br />
WERC Competition<br />
Environmental Engineering students tackle<br />
solutions to environmental challenges.<br />
13<br />
ENVE Celebrates Golden Anniversary<br />
+ Dr. Hal Cota<br />
Brief history of the Environmental Engineering<br />
program and honors founder Dr. Hal Cota.<br />
6<br />
Concrete Canoe Team Wins at<br />
Nationals Second Year in a Row<br />
Dive into the winning design and what makes<br />
the Cal Poly team unstoppable.<br />
14<br />
Transforming the<br />
Future of Industry<br />
CE/ENVE and CAED develop partnership to<br />
better prepare students for the workforce.<br />
8<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> Class of <strong>2018</strong><br />
At a Glance<br />
Farewell and breakdown of the<br />
accomplishments of the class of <strong>2018</strong>.<br />
15<br />
CE/ENVE Student Fund<br />
Where Does the Money Go?<br />
Explore the student opportunities created by<br />
the department fund.<br />
10<br />
Alumni Spotlights:<br />
Katrina Watkins + Thomas Wukadinovich<br />
Look into two of our alumni and how they’ve<br />
used their Cal Poly degrees.<br />
16<br />
Industrial Partnership<br />
Program<br />
Thank you to our Partners!<br />
2 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
FROM THE<br />
DEPARTMENT CHAIR<br />
Charles Chadwell<br />
Alumni, sponsors, industry partners, students, parents and supporters of our department,<br />
What a banner year! This year, we welcomed assistant professor Dr. Carole Voulgaris in transportation<br />
engineering, visiting scholars Gizem Can and Xin Li, and hired 10 new adjunct faculty members. Two<br />
new assistant professors will be starting in the fall quarter: Dr. Hani Alzraiee in the area of construction<br />
engineering and Dr. Amro El Badawy in environmental engineering.<br />
The students this year did what they always do – shined. The student chapter of ITE (Institute of<br />
Transportation Engineers) was named the International Chapter of the Year; SCE (the student chapter of<br />
the American Society of Civil Engineering) was awarded the Robert Ridgway Award for most outstanding<br />
chapter of the year; the student chapter of the Society of Environmental Engineering won awards at the<br />
national WERC completion; our Steel Bridge Team took second place at nationals, breaking the department<br />
record in the process; and Concrete Canoe Team was named national champion for the second consecutive<br />
year.<br />
This year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of Environmental Engineering and paid homage to Dr. Hal<br />
Cota and his tremendous impact on Cal Poly and the environmental engineering profession. In addition,<br />
Civil Engineering received its first endowment in collaboration with Construction Management to create<br />
the Granite Heavy Civil Engineering and Construction Program. The endowment covers, in perpetuity,<br />
the costs of a joint CE and CM director with funding set aside to support scholarships for women and<br />
underrepresented students in construction.<br />
As part of a fundraising campaign to better support our students, labs and clubs, the department<br />
revamped the Industrial Partnership program and welcomed several new companies into our circle. In<br />
addition to Power Engineering and Cannon Corp. sponsored laboratories, next year we will celebrate three<br />
new company-sponsored labs by Chevron, ZFA Structural Engineers and Clark Pacific. On behalf of our<br />
department, faculty, adjuncts and students, I would like to give a big thank you to all our Industrial Platinum<br />
Partners for 2017-18 as well as those already signed up for <strong>2018</strong>-19: Gregg Drilling & Testing, Stantec,<br />
Traylor Bros, Langan and Webcor. As a thank you, we will host our first Partners Dinner on Friday, Dec. 7,<br />
<strong>2018</strong>. During the dinner, we will award department scholarships and give our students the opportunity to<br />
network with our Industry Partners.<br />
Civil and Environmental Engineering continues to produce the best and brightest ready to tackle<br />
tomorrow’s engineering challenges. I wish all the students in the class of <strong>2018</strong> great success in the future.<br />
I want to extend a special thank you to all our alumni for their ongoing support and to the companies that<br />
continue to hire our students.<br />
Wishing you all my very best,<br />
Charles Chadwell<br />
Civil and Environmental Engineering<br />
Department Chair<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 3
Moss Named<br />
to Fulbright<br />
Specialist Program<br />
Civil engineering Professor Robb<br />
Moss, who was selected as a Fulbright<br />
specialist, will work with universities<br />
in Chile over the next three years<br />
developing engineering curriculum<br />
and faculty education. He specializes<br />
in geotechnical, earthquake and risk<br />
engineering.<br />
The Fulbright Specialist Program sends<br />
U.S. faculty and professionals to serve<br />
as expert consultants on curriculum,<br />
faculty development, institutional<br />
planning and related subjects at<br />
academic institutions abroad. Moss’<br />
proposal identified three main areas of<br />
engineering education:<br />
• Soft skills – Ethics, technical<br />
communication, emotional<br />
intelligence, licensure, importance<br />
of continuing education.<br />
• Active learning techniques –<br />
Training for university professors<br />
to implement a Learn by Doing<br />
approach.<br />
• Senior design capstone courses<br />
– Education on structuring senior<br />
design programs to achieve<br />
desired outcomes outlined by<br />
ABET (Accreditation Board for<br />
Engineering and Technology).<br />
Moss will work with faculty and staff<br />
at Chilean universities to develop<br />
curriculum and programs that address<br />
the three areas. Over winter break,<br />
he worked with faculty at Universidad<br />
Adolfo Ibáñez in Santiago for two<br />
weeks. La Pontificia Universidad<br />
Católica de Chile will be Moss’ next<br />
stop and lessons will continue for<br />
as long as the universities need. His<br />
appointment will run through 2020.<br />
Moss will address the difficulty of<br />
teaching engineering ethics. His<br />
curriculum will use Cal Poly’s capstone<br />
classes as models for effective<br />
engineering training. These courses<br />
give young professionals an ethical<br />
basis so that when faced with dilemmas<br />
they can respond accordingly. The<br />
program also stresses the importance<br />
of understanding the social implications<br />
of engineering.<br />
“My goal for this program is to bring<br />
lessons learned from the Cal Poly<br />
capstone classes to other universities<br />
so students are able to Learn by<br />
Doing,” said Moss.<br />
As part of the Fulbright award, Moss is<br />
required to bring learned experiences<br />
in Chile back to Cal Poly. He is hoping<br />
to establish faculty and student<br />
exchanges in the next few years.<br />
“As a college, we want to prepare<br />
engineers for a global workforce.<br />
Knowing how engineering works in<br />
other countries is good because a<br />
lot of our students will go to work for<br />
different organizations,” said Moss.<br />
Professor Robb Moss conducts field investigations<br />
into earthquake-induced flow liquefaction of gold<br />
mine tailings in central Chile.<br />
4 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
Student Project Aims to Improve<br />
Water Flow to Nicaraguan Village<br />
Over winter break, the Cal Poly<br />
Engineers Without Borders (EWB)<br />
team visited the small Nicaraguan<br />
village of La Rinconada to begin<br />
plans for a water purification and<br />
distribution system for the 300<br />
residents.<br />
together to design the water process<br />
system. The final design will take about<br />
six months to complete and will be<br />
approved by a professional engineer.<br />
The water distribution and purification<br />
system will provide clean water for all 87<br />
homes and will completely cut off the old<br />
water source. The students plan to drill<br />
the well in spring <strong>2018</strong> and hope to be<br />
done with the entire pipeline distribution<br />
system by summer 2019.<br />
La Rinconada residents raise their hands in<br />
support of the project during a meeting.<br />
Most of the residents rely on natural<br />
spring water that flows through<br />
a pipe that is subject to cracking<br />
because of its shallow burial. In<br />
addition, the pipeline doesn’t reach<br />
all 87 homes. Some homes have<br />
wells. The water is often polluted by<br />
livestock manure, however. Illnesses<br />
have been attributed to the lack of<br />
clean water in the community.<br />
Cal Poly EWB has been working with<br />
local community leaders and a nongovernmental<br />
organization since<br />
October 2017. More than 30 Cal<br />
Poly students have been working<br />
Students Win<br />
at <strong>2018</strong> WERC<br />
Competition<br />
A group of ENVE students received<br />
two awards at the 28th annual<br />
WERC competition at New Mexico<br />
State University from April 8-11.<br />
The WERC Environmental Design<br />
Contest brings industry, government<br />
and academia together in search for<br />
improved solutions to environmental<br />
and sustainability-related<br />
challenges.<br />
Two of the three Cal Poly<br />
student-led teams won awards<br />
in their respective categories.<br />
The International Space Station<br />
team created a system to remove<br />
methanol and ethanol from water<br />
and took second place in their<br />
combined category and first place in their<br />
specific task. The urine treatment team<br />
created a method of treating urine on<br />
military bases and won the EPA Pollution<br />
Prevention award.<br />
Students worked in teams to conduct<br />
research, test and build solutions for<br />
their tasks. Students learned to create<br />
plans for full-scale implementation that<br />
also took into consideration economic<br />
impacts.<br />
The <strong>2018</strong> WERC competition team.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 5
Concrete Canoe<br />
Team Wins Nationals<br />
Second Year in a Row<br />
Cal Poly was named national<br />
champion at the 31st annual ASCE<br />
Concrete Canoe Competition<br />
in San Diego June 23-25. The<br />
team placed first in the overall<br />
competition, oral presentation,<br />
final product, men’s endurance<br />
race, women’s endurance race,<br />
men’s sprint race, women’s sprint<br />
race and co-ed sprint race.<br />
The 19-1/2 foot canoe named<br />
Van Gogh was inspired by the late<br />
artist and and featured a blue hull<br />
and a dozen accent colors.<br />
<strong>2018</strong> Concrete Canoe Team<br />
Project Manager: Brandon<br />
Friedman<br />
Mix Design Captains: Kyle Aube,<br />
Yingyi Xu, Mason Breipohl,<br />
Michael Romano<br />
Construction Captains: Hailey<br />
Bond, Jacky Loh, Royston Chan,<br />
Jason Johnson, Eleni Korogianos<br />
The team spent more than 4,500<br />
hours designing and building the<br />
canoe over six months. The team<br />
included nine civil engineering<br />
Nine of the 10-member 2017-18<br />
Concrete Canoe Team ready to<br />
defend their title in San DIego.<br />
students and one mechanical<br />
engineering major. In addition, more<br />
than 50 volunteers from Cal Poly’s<br />
ASCE student chapter contributed<br />
to the successful defense of the<br />
national title.<br />
The team began testing designs<br />
in September and a final design<br />
was chosen in November. The final<br />
canoe was cast in January, cured in<br />
February and demolded by March.<br />
With the help of the volunteers, the<br />
team spent March and April sanding<br />
down the canoe.<br />
“My favorite part about working<br />
on this project is the people. If<br />
you have a great team to work<br />
with, all the challenges become<br />
easier,” said Brandon Friedman,<br />
project manager.<br />
6 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
Van Gogh was 19-1/2 feet long.<br />
The team of paddlers selected<br />
in the fall had two-hour<br />
sessions each week at Laguna<br />
Lake to prepare for the racing<br />
components of the competition.<br />
The paddlers were Mason<br />
Breipohl, Eleni Korogianos,<br />
Hailey Bond and Derek Fromm.<br />
In April, the team competed<br />
at the Pacific Southwest<br />
Conference at Northern Arizona<br />
University and won the overall<br />
competition and nearly swept all<br />
other categories to advance to the<br />
finals.<br />
At the national finals hosted by San<br />
Diego State University, Cal Poly<br />
competed against schools from<br />
around the world. The Mustangs<br />
finished with 95 points, surpassing<br />
the University of Florida, Université<br />
Laval and Shanghai’s Tongji<br />
University. Cal Poly ASCE received<br />
a $5,000 scholarship and the “Civil<br />
Engineering Cup” award.<br />
By earning its fifth national title, Cal<br />
Poly’s Concrete Canoe Team is tied<br />
with the University of Wisconsin-<br />
Madison, UC Berkeley, and the<br />
University of Alabama-Huntsville for<br />
most national titles.<br />
The concrete canoe features a<br />
design inspired by Van Gogh.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 7
Cal Poly Civil and Environmental<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> Class At a Glance<br />
B.S. Civil Engineering 127<br />
B.S. Environmental Engineering 36<br />
M.S. Civil and Environmental Engineering 37<br />
CE/ENVE Industrial Advisory Board<br />
Professional Advancement Award<br />
This award is given every year to students who are<br />
making significant strides in their career goals.<br />
This year’s award winners were:<br />
Emily Miller B.S. ENVE ‘18<br />
Delaney Nelson M.S. ‘18<br />
8 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
Engineering <strong>Spring</strong> Class of <strong>2018</strong><br />
ALUMNI CONNECTION<br />
Stay connected with our department<br />
and learn about ways you can get<br />
involved by signing up for our mailing<br />
list. Visit ceenve.calpoly.edu/alumni<br />
to sign up!<br />
Graduates were given<br />
a sea-level bench<br />
mark of the civil<br />
and environmental<br />
engineering department.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 9
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHTS<br />
Katrina Watkins Civil Engineering ‘13<br />
Katrina Watkins, who graduated<br />
in 2013 with a degree in civil<br />
engineering, attributes her<br />
successful career to her Cal Poly<br />
education, involvement on campus<br />
and on-site construction experience.<br />
While a student, she was involved<br />
as a WOW (Week of Welcome)<br />
leader, executive board leader for<br />
the Society of Women Engineers<br />
local chapter, a member of the<br />
Concrete Canoe Team and sat on<br />
the executive board for Chi Epsilon,<br />
the Civil Engineering Honor Society.<br />
Watkins spent three years as<br />
a staff engineer at Langan, an<br />
engineering and environmental<br />
consulting firm in San Francisco,<br />
while training to become a<br />
licensed professional engineer.<br />
At Langan, she worked on construction<br />
sites to make certain contractors<br />
installed items correctly and soil was<br />
being treated properly. She took a<br />
year off to pursue a master’s degree<br />
in civil engineering at UC Berkeley<br />
and graduated in July <strong>2018</strong>. She is<br />
now a senior staff engineer and PE in<br />
Langan’s geotechnical department.<br />
“Getting to work in civil<br />
engineering is so rewarding<br />
because you get to see the fruits<br />
of your labor on the skyline in<br />
the cities that you work in. I love<br />
problem-solving, and getting to<br />
do this on a day-to-day basis is<br />
very rewarding,” said Watkins.<br />
Thomas Wukadinovich Civil Engineering ‘13<br />
Thomas Wukadinovich graduated<br />
in 2013 with a bachelor’s in civil<br />
engineering. A background<br />
in construction management<br />
has given him opportunities<br />
on a wide array of projects.<br />
He works for Long Beachbased<br />
Traylor Bros., one of<br />
the nation’s leading heavy<br />
civil engineering contractors,<br />
as a professional engineer.<br />
Wukadinovich is working on<br />
the Los Angeles MetroRail’s<br />
Purple Line Extension, a fourmile<br />
spur from Beverly Hills to<br />
Westwood. Since August of<br />
2017, he has worked in support<br />
of soil excavation, steel supports<br />
and ventilation for the project.<br />
Because of its proximity to the<br />
La Brea Tar Pits, hydrogen sulfide<br />
gas release is a concern to the<br />
project. To reduce the risk of<br />
explosion, several precautions<br />
have been implemented<br />
including prohibiting electronics<br />
in the tunnel unless protected<br />
by explosion-proof cases. The<br />
project is expected to continue<br />
through the rest of the year.<br />
“Your interest in a subject is<br />
going to make it easier to work<br />
harder. What I do is more of a<br />
lifestyle than it is a profession,<br />
and working in this industry is<br />
fulfilling,” said Wukadinovich.<br />
10 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
Steel Bridge<br />
Team Second<br />
in the Nation<br />
The Cal Poly Steel Bridge Team<br />
finished second in the nation against<br />
41 universities at the University of<br />
Illinois at Urbana-Champagne.<br />
This year’s squad set a school record<br />
for fastest construction time at 2:41.<br />
The senior project team of six civil<br />
engineering seniors devoted more<br />
than 600 hours over seven months<br />
designing and fabricating the bridge<br />
components.<br />
<strong>2018</strong> Steel Bridge Team<br />
Project Manager: Michael Clark<br />
Design Captain: Sarah Shaffer<br />
Machining Captain: Gabriela Pascualy<br />
Welding Captain: Luke Nazaroff<br />
Construction Captain: Allen Lactaoen<br />
Analysis Captain: Michael Choi<br />
The competition rules for the<br />
steel bridge design vary every<br />
year. Time, weight, deflection and<br />
construction speed make up the<br />
final cost and the team with the<br />
lowest cost wins the competition.<br />
During fall quarter, the team<br />
designed 2-D models of potential<br />
bridge designs using SAP and<br />
AutoCAD. They created 3-D<br />
models of their designs and<br />
narrowed them down to three.<br />
After careful research and testing,<br />
the team chose an under truss<br />
bridge because of simplistic<br />
design, quick construction time<br />
and overall cost. The team used<br />
previous steel bridge designs<br />
to analyze both effective and<br />
ineffective design elements to<br />
create their final effort.<br />
During winter quarter, the team<br />
used donated steel from San<br />
Steel Bridge Team members<br />
assemble their bridge at the<br />
regional competition.<br />
Diego-based Century Tubes and<br />
fabricated the 29-piece bridge.<br />
Connections were made on CNC<br />
machines to create easy-sliding<br />
tubes to reduce construction time.<br />
The team spent countless hours<br />
practicing bridge construction to<br />
improve their speed. Only four<br />
team members can assemble<br />
the bridge during the timed<br />
competition. The team took<br />
third in structural efficiency and<br />
construction economy.<br />
The team swept all categories<br />
at the <strong>2018</strong> Pacific Southwest<br />
Competition held at Northern<br />
Arizona University in Flagstaff.<br />
Cal Poly took first against 18<br />
schools in all four categories —<br />
construction speed, lightness,<br />
stiffness and structural efficiency.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 11
FACULTY SPOTLIGHTS<br />
Carole Voulgaris Assistant Professor<br />
Carole Voulgaris joined the department<br />
in January <strong>2018</strong> as an assistant professor<br />
in transportation engineering. She earned<br />
bachelor’s and master’s degrees in<br />
civil engineering from Brigham Young<br />
University. She worked as a transportation<br />
engineer for three years after graduating.<br />
She then received an MBA from Notre<br />
Dame in 2012. She went back to school<br />
to pursue a doctorate in urban planning<br />
at UCLA and graduated in June 2017.<br />
Voulgaris was named “Outstanding<br />
Student of the Year” at the <strong>2018</strong><br />
annual Transportation Research<br />
Board conference for her work at<br />
METRANS during her doctoral studies.<br />
As an assistant professor, Voulgaris’ focus<br />
is on public transportation, intelligent<br />
transportation systems, sustainable mobility<br />
and transportation planning. She hopes to<br />
create opportunities for interdisciplinary<br />
work with other engineering majors<br />
and hands-on experiences for students.<br />
“Engineers can’t work in a vacuum<br />
and need opportunities to work<br />
on real projects to gain experience<br />
working with external factors that<br />
happen in real life,” said Voulgaris.<br />
Faculty Volunteers Work to Improve Pismo Preserve<br />
Cal Poly faculty members Judd King<br />
and Nephi Derbidge are helping The<br />
Land Conservancy of San Luis County<br />
create a parking area and trailhead for<br />
the Pismo Preserve, a nearly 880-acre<br />
property with sweeping views of Pismo<br />
Beach and 11 miles of trails for outdoor<br />
enthusiasts to enjoy.<br />
The Land Conservancy acquired the<br />
Pismo Preserve in September 2014 with<br />
the goal of creating a space for hiking,<br />
biking and equestrian use. It envisioned<br />
a project that provides safe access to<br />
different users while being sensitive<br />
to the surrounding communities. The<br />
Pismo Preserve is the first project of<br />
this magnitude to be developed by<br />
the Land Conservancy. The site will<br />
have restrooms, picnic facilities and a<br />
wheelchair-accessible trail.<br />
While doing initial environmental<br />
studies on the site, it was discovered<br />
that the project location contained<br />
sensitive cultural resources belonging<br />
to the yak tityu tityu yak tilhini (ytt),<br />
Northern Chumash tribe. The Land<br />
Conservancy worked with ytt leaders<br />
on a plan that reduces impacts<br />
to sensitive resources. To mitigate<br />
impact on the site, the project size was<br />
reduced and minimal excavation was<br />
done. These measures ensure sensitive<br />
resources are protected while still<br />
providing safe public access.<br />
The presence of sensitive resources<br />
limits the amount of remedial grading<br />
that can be done in the area. To create<br />
a level parking area, about 12 feet<br />
of soil will be used to fill the sloped<br />
project area and will then be supported<br />
by a retaining wall.<br />
King and Derbidge are donating their<br />
geotechnical engineering and soil<br />
testing services. Derbidge and student<br />
assistant Jack Christy conducted<br />
a soil-testing program to measure<br />
the compressibility and strength<br />
characteristics of the onsite soil.<br />
King was responsible for taking data<br />
generated by Derbidge to assess soil<br />
settlement in the final retaining wall<br />
design.<br />
The Land Conservancy hopes that by<br />
providing this space the general quality<br />
of life will improve for residents and<br />
visitors alike. The Pismo Preserve is<br />
expected to open in late <strong>2018</strong>.<br />
12 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> Jack Christy (environmental and earth soil science;<br />
junior) performs lab testing.
ENVE Celebrates Golden<br />
Anniversary & Dr. Hal Cota<br />
Environmental Engineering<br />
commemorated its 50th anniversary<br />
with a May 4-6 celebration and<br />
renamed the Air Pollution Control<br />
Lab for Professor Emeritus Hal Cota,<br />
one of the founders of the program.<br />
Cota was hired in 1966 and taught<br />
advanced courses in what was<br />
then the Air Conditioning and<br />
Refrigeration Department. Cota<br />
helped spearhead the addition<br />
of the air pollution control<br />
concentration in the department,<br />
which would later become an<br />
important part of the curricula for<br />
the environmental engineering<br />
program. With his help, former<br />
AC&R Department Chair Jim<br />
McGrath and then-university<br />
President Robert Kennedy in 1968<br />
established the Environmental<br />
Engineering Department.<br />
Cota believed that a curriculum<br />
that combined chemical and<br />
environmental engineering was<br />
best for providing students the<br />
training needed to tackle the<br />
nation’s environmental issues.<br />
Fifty years ago, there were no<br />
undergraduate environmental<br />
engineering programs in the<br />
country, making Cal Poly’s one<br />
of the first of its kind. The first<br />
environmental engineering<br />
class of 14 students graduated<br />
The Environmental Engineering Department<br />
assembled for a group photo in 1981.<br />
Dr. Hal Cota is pictured in the third row, far left.<br />
in 1968. Between 1968 and 1982,<br />
environmental engineering was its own<br />
department until civil engineering was<br />
added.<br />
His contributions have made a lasting<br />
impression on generations of students<br />
over the years. In the past 50 years,<br />
more than 1,500 students have<br />
graduated thanks to Cota’s efforts.<br />
College of Engineering officials say<br />
renaming the department lab will keep<br />
his contributions alive for generations<br />
of students to come.<br />
“He had such a big impact on my<br />
life because he created this program<br />
in a way that fits me personally.<br />
He created something unique – a<br />
combination of environmental and<br />
chemical engineering,” said Yarrow<br />
Nelson, a Cal Poly environmental<br />
engineering professor.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 13
Transforming the Future of Industry<br />
Cal Poly’s College of Engineering<br />
and College of Architecture and<br />
Environmental Design have launched<br />
a unique partnership with Granite<br />
Construction to create a more robust<br />
pipeline of diverse Cal Poly graduates<br />
skilled in both construction management<br />
and civil engineering.<br />
“This new partnership creates<br />
a path forward for talented and<br />
motivated students by helping<br />
them overcome financial barriers<br />
with the support of industry leaders<br />
and future thinkers,” said James<br />
Meagher, interim dean of the<br />
College of Engineering. “It will<br />
also bring together two of our<br />
most reputable programs in a way<br />
that will supply distinctively skilled<br />
graduates to the industry.”<br />
The Granite Heavy Civil Engineering<br />
and Construction Program is a unique<br />
cohort program, bringing together<br />
students from both colleges. Under<br />
this program, students in construction<br />
management will have the opportunity<br />
to become more proficient in heavy<br />
civil engineering fundamentals, and<br />
students in heavy civil engineering<br />
will have access to more construction<br />
management classes.<br />
The uniqueness of the program is<br />
furthered by a series of classes that<br />
students in both programs will take<br />
together. Students will complete at least<br />
two internships during the program.<br />
“With a Learn by Doing<br />
atmosphere, coupled with<br />
an excellent curriculum and<br />
high standards for student<br />
participation, Cal Poly has been<br />
able to help place highly qualified<br />
candidates throughout the Granite<br />
organization,” said James Roberts,<br />
president and CEO of Granite<br />
Construction Inc. “We enjoy seeing<br />
bright, energetic, hard-working<br />
graduates coming out of the Cal<br />
Poly programs who have the desire<br />
to build careers and help Granite<br />
succeed.”<br />
Beavers Charitable Trust, having<br />
endowed other professorships at<br />
universities nationwide, joined Granite<br />
by making a substantial gift to support<br />
the Granite program at Cal Poly. Roberts<br />
hopes others will follow Granite’s and<br />
Beavers’ lead.<br />
“This partnership between Granite,<br />
Beavers and Cal Poly can be a<br />
leading opportunity for corporations<br />
and higher education institutions<br />
across the country to partner going<br />
forward as we build America’s<br />
infrastructure,” he said.<br />
Under the program, the Granite<br />
Beavers Heavy Civil Engineering<br />
and Construction Endowed Chair<br />
will support one full-time faculty<br />
chair with academic expertise and<br />
professional background in the heavy<br />
civil construction and engineering<br />
sector. This role will provide leadership<br />
for the program through an innovative<br />
joint appointment to construction<br />
management and heavy civil<br />
engineering departments, and provide<br />
increased mentoring opportunities for<br />
students.<br />
Granite Construction has always sought<br />
to be impactful. Beginning with early<br />
founders and those who built Granite bit<br />
by bit, one theme remained: to impact<br />
the world around them and the people<br />
within it. That is where their support for<br />
student success comes in.<br />
“The idea behind the funds was<br />
based on a couple of principles,”<br />
explained Philip DeCocco, senior<br />
vice president of human resources,<br />
at Granite Construction. “Granite<br />
is an industry leader, and as such,<br />
we believe it is important to lead<br />
by example, similar to the Cal Poly<br />
Learn by Doing motto. It is also<br />
important to us to have Granite’s<br />
name and reputation tied to a topnotch<br />
program like Cal Poly.<br />
“Lastly,” DeCocco added, “Granite<br />
is passionate about creating a<br />
program where we partner with<br />
Cal Poly. We want to ensure that<br />
students who mirror the many<br />
communities we serve across the<br />
country have an opportunity to<br />
succeed in our industry.”<br />
14 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> <strong>CEENVE</strong>.CALPOLY.EDU
CE/ENVE Student Fund<br />
The Civil and Environmental<br />
Engineering student fund<br />
comprises donations from the<br />
Industrial Partnership Program<br />
that support instructional<br />
activities for student groups such<br />
as field trips, student projects,<br />
student research, conferences<br />
and competitions.<br />
Each year, the Civil and<br />
Environmental Engineering<br />
Student Fee Initiative Committee<br />
is charged with apportioning<br />
the funds in this account.<br />
The committee includes the<br />
department chair, six CE/ENVE<br />
students, and two CE/ENVE<br />
faculty members.<br />
The CE/ENVE Industrial<br />
Partnership Program (IPP) was<br />
started in January <strong>2018</strong> to expand<br />
employment opportunities<br />
for civil and environmental<br />
engineering students and<br />
increased funding for<br />
extracurricular student activities.<br />
Since the start of the program,<br />
IPP has welcomed 11 platinum<br />
sponsors, two gold sponsors, and<br />
16 silver and bronze sponsors.<br />
DONATE<br />
2017-18 Student Fund<br />
26% 32% 35%<br />
Student Competitions<br />
WERC Environmental Design Contest<br />
Concrete Canoe Competition<br />
Environmental Challenge International<br />
PSWC Environmental Competition<br />
National GeoWall Competition<br />
Student Conferences<br />
U.S. Green Building Council National Conference<br />
Engineers Without Borders National Conference<br />
ITE Student Leadership Summit<br />
Engineers for a Sustainable World Annual Conference<br />
Perspectives on Global Development Showcase<br />
CalGeo Annual Conference<br />
U.N. Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science and Technology<br />
ITE Western District Annual Meeting<br />
Student Projects<br />
Cal Poly Engineers Without Borders<br />
participated in projects in Malawi, Nicaragua<br />
and Fiji. Students worked on a borehole<br />
project, water filtration system and a coastal<br />
erosion project.<br />
For more information about<br />
donating or becoming part of our<br />
Industrial Partnership Program<br />
visit ceenve.calpoly.edu.<br />
7%<br />
Student Research & Instructional Materials<br />
Students participated in graduate-level and<br />
GeoWall research.<br />
<strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2018</strong> 15
Civil and Environmental Engineering<br />
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo<br />
1 Grand Avenue<br />
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407-0353<br />
Industrial Partnership Program<br />
We would like to give special recognition to this year’s Industrial Partners. We thank you for<br />
your contribution to our department and investment in our students.<br />
Laboratory Sponsors<br />
Platinum Sponsors<br />
Gold Sponsors<br />
Silver and Bronze Sponsors<br />
Econolite<br />
Caltrans<br />
JDS Civil<br />
Rick Engineering Co.<br />
A. Teichert & Son Inc.<br />
Walsh Engineering<br />
DeSilva Gates Construction<br />
Drake Haglan & Associates Inc.<br />
Kiewit Corporation<br />
Carollo<br />
Van Sande Engineering<br />
HMH Engineering<br />
Murphy Structural Engineers<br />
FTF Engineering<br />
GS Bridge Engineers and Contractors<br />
LSC Transportation Consultants Inc.<br />
SUSTAIN THE FUTURE<br />
Make a gift to support Civil and Environmental Engineering labs, student projects and clubs. For more information<br />
about donating or becoming part of our Industrial Partnership Program visit ceenve.calpoly.edu.<br />
Cal Poly College of Engineering | Civil and Environmental Engineering Department | ceenve.calpoly.edu