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Posted: 1-6-12

LA Majors/Alum Are Key Contributors to Cal Poly's 2012 Rose Float

Fifth year LA student Sabrina Wise was Rose Float President for the 13-month effort that led to Cal Poly's entry in the 2012 Tournament of Roses parade. Fifth year LA student Kelsey Christoffels submitted the winning idea for the float. Her concept was selected from over 100 entries in the annual contest held by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Cal Poly Pomona in which members of both universities' Rose Float organizations vote on submitted concept ideas. Department alum Brandon Schmiedeberg (2010) drew the official rendering, pictured at left.

The float, "To the Rescue," features a trio of superheroes saving a city from three disastrous situations. While one catches an out-of-control helicopter falling from the sky, another props up a collapsing building and the third prevents a runaway train from sliding off a replica of the Golden Gate Bridge. While the entry failed to bring home a judges' trophy this year, it did earn Los Angeles-area TV station KTLA's Viewer's Choice award.

Posted: 12.27.11

Fifth Year Fall 2011 Show and Recognition Awards

Fourteen LA students finishing their two-quarter capstone experience during Fall term showcased their senior projects in the Berg Gallery on the Cal Poly campus Friday, December 2, 2011. The students were guided in the development and execution of their designs by Prof. Omar Faruque.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards. Awards for best design process, design excellence, best senior project, and service to the department were based on faculty nominations and votes. Academic excellence was based on overall GPA.

Best Design Process - Jane Theobald

Design Excellence - Jane Theobald

Best Senior Project - Nancy Schultz and Brandon Taylor

Service to the Department - Nancy Schultz

Academic Excellence/Achievement - Nancy Schultz

An award was also made to a student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need. This award, the "Golden Eagle," was based on the votes of the fifth year class.

Golden Eagle Award - Nancy Schultz

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Fall term.

Posted: 11-18-11

Fifth Year Student Awarded Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship

LA major and Cal Poly women’s volleyball team member Sarah Cawrse was one of two students selected out of 72 clubs by the Rotary District 5240 Scholarship Committee to receive an Ambassadorial Scholarship grant of $27,000. Sarah’s candidacy for the scholarship was put forth by the Rotary Club of San Luis Obispo. This grant will allow Sarah to pursue graduate studies in Europe during 2012-2013.

The purpose of the Ambassadorial Scholarships program is to further international understanding and friendly relations among people of different countries and geographical areas. The program sponsors academic year scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students as well as for qualified professionals pursuing vocational studies. Selection is based upon an interview and application competition.

While abroad, scholars serve as goodwill ambassadors to the host country and give presentations about their homelands to Rotary clubs and other groups. Upon returning home, scholars share with Rotarians and others the experiences that led to a greater understanding of their host country.

Rotary District 5240 encompasses all of Ventura, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Kern Counties, as well as a small portion of Los Angeles County.

Posted: 11-7-11

Grant Union High School's GEO Academy Juniors Visit LA Program

The LA Department welcomed 14 juniors from Grant Union High School 's GEO Environmental Science and Design Academy, along with their landscape architecture teacher, Daniela Tavares, and program leader, Ker Cha, during their trip to Cal Poly November 3-4, 2011. The students traveled from Sacramento to San Luis Obispo to learn more about Cal Poly, our BLA program, and the landscape architecture profession. Asst. Professor Beverly Bass serves on the Academy's Advisory Committee.

During their visit, the group learned about Cal Poly's Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), shopped at El Corral, toured the CAED, visited the Dexter LA studios, listened to an Admissions presentation, and lunched with faculty, staff, and student reps.

The GEO Academy is one of the California Partnership Academies - a three-year program structured as a school-within-a-school. The program provides a specialized curriculum within the core high school curriculum that allows at-risk students to be exposed to career and educational options that are not typically part of the high school experience. The Academy has a Landscape Architecture focus.

Updated: 11.16.11

DesignIntelligence Ranks Cal Poly LA Program Third in the Nation

Cal Poly’s BLA program was ranked third in the nation by hiring firms, tied with Purdue University and Texas A&M University, in the 2012 DesignIntelligence survey, which ranks public and private degree programs. In the thirteen-state western region, Cal Poly ranked first.

Cal Poly has made the Top 15 list every year since 2005, when the DesignIntelligence survey first started ranking landscape architecture programs. Among college programs that hiring firms deem strongest in educating students for cross-disciplinary teamwork, Cal Poly also ranked first.

The DesignIntelligence rankings have become a tool for students choosing academic programs that will launch their design careers. DesignIntelligence is a bi-monthly journal published by the Design Futures Council, a Washington, D.C. think tank that explores trends and opportunities in design, architecture, engineering and building technology.

To read the Cal Poly press release, click here.

Updated: 11.8.11

LADAC Hosts Alumni Reception / Cal Poly Exhibits at ASLA Expo

The Landscape Architecture Department Advisory Council (LADAC) hosted a reception for LA Department alumni on Sunday, October 30, in San Diego, in conjunction with the ASLA 2011 Annual Meeting and Expo. Over 100 alumni, faculty, and sponsor representatives attended this sold-out event.

Special thanks to our Advisory Council, Acker-Stone, American Hydrotech, CXT, Netafim USA, Park West Landscape, Rain Bird, Restroom Facilities, The Toro Company, USA Shade and Fabric Structures, and ValleyCrest for making this reception such an outstanding success.

ASLA Annual Meeting attendees were invited to stop by the Cal Poly booth in the Expo, pictured at left. The booth showcased student work and offered visitors an opportunity to meet recent graduates and talk with the department head and current faculty. Creative and financial support for the booth was provided by LADAC members Christina Ahlers, René Bihan, Kevin Conger, Ann Cutner, Vicki Estrada, Pam Edmiston, Jeff Ferber, Paul Marcillac, and Frederika Moller.

Updated: 10.28.11

Christy O'Hara Presents Research at Nat'l Preservation Conference

Asst. Prof. Christy O'Hara presented her on-going research on October 22 at the 2011 National Preservation Conference in Buffalo, NY. The conference was sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

During the conference, the National Association for Olmsted Parks held a special session to highlight their current research and publications. One of these research projects, funded by the Washington State Transportation Enhancement Program, is a pilot program called Olmsted Online in which geo-referencing data will be linked to historic Olmsted plans in order to assess the remains of the Olmsted-designed parks, parkways, and boulevards in the Puget Sound area. Christy's research is focused on the Olmsted firms' work in California and the presentation demonstrated how her work will add to that in Washington to ultimately become a national database of Olmsted projects.

Christy has digitized firm project drawings from San Luis Obispo to San Diego (currently housed in The Olmsted Archives in Brookline, MA) and digitized correspondence for the same jobs (currently found on microfilm at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC), consolidating the data for the first time. Both projects' values include landscape education and preservation and will be useful to the public for advocacy, tourism to the sites, and public online access to information.

Updated: 10.10.11

SWA President, Gerdo Aquino, Speaks at Cal Poly

Gerdo P. Aquino, President, SWA Group, and Ying-Yu Hung, Managing Principal in SWA's Los Angeles office, spoke at Cal Poly October 7th as part of the CAED's Fall 2011 Hearst Lecture series.

In 2007, Aquino and Hung redefined the Los Angeles studio as the Infrastructure Research Initiative at SWA to explore and research the practical application of infrastructure as landscape. Through examples of landscape infrastructure from SWA's body of work and other notable infrastructure projects from around the world, Aquino and Hung outlined the concepts of the movement and examined how an infrastructure overlay reveals opportunities for greater connectivity, alternative transportation, recreation, and open space by enhancing existing single purpose/underused infrastructure corridors.

Aquino and Hung are two of the authors of the recently-released book, Landscape Infrastructure: Case Studies by SWA (Birkhauser).

Updated: 9.26.11

City Repair Founder Mark Lakeman Lectures in Berg

The Landscape Architecture Department sponsored a lecture by Make Lakeman and Marisha Auerbach September 23rd in the Berg Gallery, with refreshments hosted by the City and Regional Planning Department.

Lakeman is the founder of the City Repair Project, among other world-changing initiatives. Auerbach is a practitioner and lecturer on permaculture who has collaborated with the City Repair Project.

City Repair is an organization composed mostly of volunteers, whose mission is to educate and inspire people to "build community by creatively transforming public space into neighborhood gathering places."

The organization is best known for its community interventions, or "intersection repair" happenings, which are events that work to reclaim, for one day, residential street intersections as public plazas and gathering spaces. These efforts were born out of a desire to create stronger community ties in neighborhoods and highlight the lack of public spaces that are available within our physical environment. These events, which started with one intersection in Portland, Oregon, are now a nationwide and even international phenomenon.

For more information on City Repair, click here.

Posted: 7.26.11

Fourth Year Student Receives ASLA Council of Fellows Scholarship

Fourth year student Emmanuel Gomez has been awarded a 2011 ASLA Council of Fellows Scholarship. In addition to the $4,000 scholarship award, Gomez received a one-year student ASLA membership, general registration fees for the ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO in San Diego, CA, and a travel stipend to attend the meeting.

The scholarship was established by the ASLA Council of Fellows in 2004, and has as one of its purposes enriching the profession of landscape architecture by encouraging diversity among students and practitioners. To read about Gomez's future goal as a landscape architect, click here.

Posted: 7.8.11

Christy O'Hara Speaks on Moorish Lessons in Planting Design

Assistant Prof. Christine (Christy) Edstrom O'Hara was one of the speakers at "Gift of Persia: Exotic Gardens for California," presented by the Garden Conservancy and the Ruth Bancroft Garden.

This full-day horticultural and design history seminar took place Friday, July 15, at the Gardens at Heather Farms in Walnut Creek, CA. The seminar brought together a design writer, a historian, two landscape architects (including O'Hara), an interior/garden designer, and several horticulturists to discuss the Moorish, Mughal, and Mediterranean influence on California gardens.

To read an article about this seminar, click here.

Posted: 6.13.11

LA Class of 2011 Honored at Spring Commencement

On June 11, 2011, the department and the campus said farewell to the landscape architecture Class of 2011. 58 new LA program graduates were recognized at Cal Poly's 70th Spring Commencement. Candidates awarded their BLA degree with honors included:

Magna Cum Laude - Christian Boehr.

Cum Laude - Katherine Blair, Ariel Carlson, Janessa Farr, Amanda Hui, Daniel Perlin.

Honors Program - Rebecca Vanni.

Several of those who graduated with honors were also recognized by the LA department faculty and students for other achievements. Christian Boehr was recognized at the 5th Year Spring Show for Academic Excellence, as was Ariel Carlson for Design Excellence. Katherine Blair was recognized at the 5th Year Winter Show for Academic Excellence, Service to the Department, and as her classmates' Golden Eagle. Daniel Perlin was recognized at the Winter Show both for Academic Excellence and Design Excellence.

Updated: 6.6.11

Fifth Year Spring 2011 Show and Recognition Awards

Twenty-one LA students finishing their two-quarter capstone experience during Spring term (pictured above without their instructor, Assoc. Prof. Joseph Ragsdale) showcased their senior design projects in the Simpson Strong-Tie Demonstration Lab on the Cal Poly campus Friday, June 3, 2011.

The show, "(_________) scape," included a range of projects, including death and memory, trekking across America, playing in the wild, urban dwelling, resort development, community engagement, building techniques, parking parks, bridging, learning, restoring, healing, and more.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards. Recognition for best design process, design excellence, best senior project, and service to the department was based on faculty nominations and votes. An Award was also made for academic excellence:

Best Design Process - Bryan Agbayani

Design Excellence - Ariel Carlson

Best Senior Project - Matthew Romero

Service to the Department - Michael Shadle

Academic Excellence/Achievement - Christian Boehr

The golden eagle award was based on the votes of the fifth year class. This award is made to a graduating student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need.

Golden Eagle Award - Michael Shadle

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Spring term.

Posted: 5.23.11

BofA Low-Income Housing Contest Has LA Majors on Winning Team

The Cal Poly Housing Collaborative, including LA majors Andy Nowak and Yesenia Fernandez (pictured above: top row, 1st and 2nd from left), took first place in Bank of America's 2011 Low-Income Housing Challenge, beating out master's degree students from UC Berkeley and UC Irvine in the final round.

The team partnered with developer Madonna Enterprises to create "Entrada Ranch." The proposed site features a 135-unit affordable living community in San Luis Obispo, adjacent to services and transportation. The project design includes a community center, community garden, recreational and exercise facility, connection to local trails, bike paths, a variety of open spaces and a daycare center.

The project supports healthy living through site design and sustainable building, and programs that foster community, such as a cooperative garden that will grow organic produce and serve as a gathering place for residents.

The team was comprised of 10 undergraduate and two graduate students: six from city and regional planning, three from business and finance, two from landscape architecture, and one from construction management. The proposal included detailed plans, video and a web site. The team will present their project to San Luis Obispo's Planning Commission May 25.

The BofA competition requires student teams to develop concepts, designs, community support and financing for housing projects that are affordable for low-income households. The proposals are evaluated on concept and design as well as financial feasibility. BofA sponsors the competition to encourage emerging leaders in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, business and city planning to pursue careers in affordable housing.

To read the Cal Poly press release, click here. To read a San Francisco Chronicle article about the competition, click here.

Posted: 5.23.11

Torres-Bustamante Presents Research at Vancouver Conference

Asst. Professor Cesar Torres-Bustamante presented a paper titled "Figural Regions: Representing Landscapes through Ambiguity" at the 2011 British Columbia Society of Landscape Architects "Re:Evolution" Conference. His paper proposes alternative methods for constructing - and visualization - of poché maps based on shifting from a literal outlining and delineation of landscape's surface phenomena into a constitution of ambiguous figures (and ground) that allows perception of multiple visual organizations.

The conference took place in North Vancouver, B.C. May 12-14, and focused on mapping out the foreseeable transformations that landscape architecture faces as a profession, the changes regarding how design is approached and how this will guide the management and development of the places that landscape architects create.

Posted: 5.19.11

Astrid Reeves and Louise Schiller Present Poster at NYC Symposium

Lecturers Astrid Reeves and Louise Schiller presented student work from a Spring 2010 joint studio on the topic of SLO City Farm at the 2nd Erasing Boundaries Symposium on April 30, 2011 in New York City. Their research was titled: “Snapshots from the Fields, Farms to Schools for Healthier Communities through Service Learning." The symposium gathered Landscape Architects, Planners and Urban Designers from around the country to discuss projects that brought students directly into local communities where they worked on “real world” issues with local citizens and other professionals to improve social conditions. Erasing Boundaries encourages progressive ideas for problem solving by design professionals.

Posted: 5.6.11

Six from Class of 2010-11 Receive ASLA Honor and Merit Awards

A jury from the ASLA Southern California Chapter selected six students from the class of 2010-11 for the 2011 ASLA Student Honor and Merit Awards.

Josephine "Kalie" Brown, Serena Conti, and David DuBois were awarded an ASLA Certificate of Honor. Certificates of Merit were awarded to Katie Blair, Christian Boehr, and Ariel Carlson.

Students considered for the awards were nominated by program faculty based on the following criteria: 1) minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA; 2) in their final two years of study; 3) considered truly outstanding as measured by the program's long-term standards of excellence; 4) demonstrating the highest level of academic scholarship and of accomplishments in skills related to the art and technology of landscape architecture; and 5) demonstrating personal qualities and skills of responsiveness and willingness to work with others, self-motivation and responsibility, and design abilities: exploration, discovery, synthesis and representation of landscape architecture design.

Gere Smith, Professor Emeritus and ASLA Fellow; Roger Osbaldeston, Professor Emeritus; Bianca Koenig, Landscape Architect with the Wallace Group; and Dennis Reeves, Senior Landscape Architect with CalTrans, were the jury members.

The students will receive their awards at the College Student Awards Ceremony on May 21, 2011. Kim Rhodes, the ASLA Student Liaison Representative from the Southern California Chapter of ASLA, will present the Award Certificates.

Updated: 5.23.11

LA Faculty/MCRP Student Team Up to Win International Competition

A team formed by Asst. Professor Cesar Torres-Bustamante, Lecturer Louise Schiller, and CRP graduate student Schani Siong won first place in the international competition "Design for Post-Earthquake Resilience of Cities."

Their proposal, "City Map," used Acapulco, Mexico as the site to test a low-budget, easily implemented strategy that focused on assigning new uses to existing transport infrastructure after an earthquake hits. The city transforms into a "map of itself", using streets as a canvas to connect nodes through painted paths, similar to the lines on hospital floors that guide patients to particular sections in a hospital. These paths indicate evacuation routes and locations of shelters, hospitals, food supplies and more.

The project assigns new uses to infrastructure: majors streets will be closed to vehicular traffic and will be used instead as landing strips for aircrafts that bring supplies; two-way streets will reduce to one-way streets to accommodate temporary housing, workshops, markets and schools; street parking will be removed on alternate blocks to provide space to grow food.

The competition, organized by the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering, sought proposals to increase the resiliency of cities and communities affected by earthquakes and tsunamis, with a focus on aiding recovery and social regeneration in affected areas. The competition was open to all design disciplines, including architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, and associated engineering and sociological disciplines.

The first place award came with a cash prize of NZ$2,000.

To read the Cal Poly press release, click here. For more information about the competition, click here.

Posted: 4.7.11

3rd Year Student's Project Showcased at Community Event

Third year student Rachael Haacke was invited to display her project and discuss her findings regarding water quality issues in Los Osos with community leaders and the general public on April 6, 2011, at the South Bay Community Center in Los Osos.

During Winter quarter 2011, Haacke and her classmates in the LA 403 focus studio led by Asst. Prof. Beverly Bass were asked by Dan Gilmore, General Manager of the Los Osos Community Services District (CSD), to take on the daunting challenge of addressing the community's water drainage, flooding, and stormwater runoff issues. After reviewing the projects, Gilmore selected Haacke to represent Cal Poly and her natural environments design studio at the event.

The workshop was sponsored by the SLO Green Build Appropriate Technology Coalition and hosted by San Luis Obispo County, the Natural Estuary Program, and the Los Osos CSD.

Updated: 5.9.11

LA Faculty Present Papers at 2011 CELA Conference

The following LA department faculty members presented research papers and posters at the 2011 Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA) conference, which took place March 30 - April 2 in Los Angeles:

Asst. Prof. Beverly Bass: Creating a Walkable Town Center: A Grass Roots Movement to Implement Walkability and Walking into the Middle Ages: 3 Dutch Water Towns and Clues to a Walkable Future.

Prof. Gary Clay (co-presenter): Collaborative Teaching and Learning: Applying an Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) Model in Design Education.

Asst. Prof. Jun-Hyun Kim (co-presenter): School's Spatial Centrality and Walkability: Revisiting Perry's Neighborhood Unit Plan; Campus Environments, Diet, and Activity; and The Role of Sidewalk Vegetation in Creating a Pleasant Microclimate for Walking and Cycling.

Asst. Prof. Christy O'Hara: From Rose Gardens to Watersheds: A Survey of Ecological Designs by the Olmsted Brothers in Southern California.

Assoc. Prof. Joseph Ragsdale: Tectonics in the Modern Landscape: Sigurd Lewerentz and the Landscape Medium of Topography, Planted Form and Built Form.

Asst. Prof. Cesar Torres Bustamante: Recycling Maps: Innovations in Visualizing Landscape Processes and Actualizing Landscapes through Representation Theories (poster).

Asst. Prof. David Watts: Exploring Attitudes towards the Contributing Role of Nature in Children's Play Environments.

For more information about faculty research interests, click here.

Posted: 4.6.11

Christy O'Hara Has Article about Olmsted Brothers Published in JSAH

Asst. Prof. Christine (Christy) Edstrom O'Hara has had her article, The Panama-California Exposition, San Diego, 1915: The Olmsted Brothers' Ecological Park Typology, published in the March 2011 issue of the quarterly Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians (JSAH). The Journal is published by the University of California Press on behalf of the Society of Architectural Historians.

O'Hara's article is summarized in JSAH as follows: "During the last weeks of his practice, Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., wrote that the future of his firm depended on developing an appropriate landscape style for the arid West. [O'Hara] tells how his sons' firm, Olmsted Brothers, set out to reach that goal in their unbuilt proposal for the 1915 San Diego Panama-California Exposition, in what is now Balboa Park. [O'Hara's article] is the story of their innovative embrace of regionalist aesthetics and a respect for local ecology, topography, and weather. The ideals of their design, however, were not taken up by their clients. The Olmsted firm was fired, and the fairgrounds that welcomed visitors to San Diego in 1915 had architecture that was more appropriate to large cities and a landscape better suited to a wet climate."

To read the full article, click here.

Updated:5.18.11

Oakland Comprehensive Community Design Studio Cancelled

Due to insufficient enrollment, the Oakland Comprehensive Community Design Studio planned for Summer Quarter 2011 has been cancelled.

Updated: 3.-14.11

5th Year Winter Show and Recognition Awards

Program students who finished their two-quarter capstone experience during Winter term (pictured above with their instructor, Asst. Prof. Cesar Torres-Bustamante) exhibited their senior projects in downtown San Luis Obispo March 10-11, 2011.

The show, "Unfold," invited students, faculty, alumni, parents, friends, and the general public to interact with the landscape architecture project designers. Projects ranging from art installations to large regional redesigns were on view. Support for "Unfold" was provided in part by Villa Park Landscape, Phoenix Fine Catering, and Coastal Reprographic Services.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards. Recognition for best design process, design excellence, best senior project, and service to the department was based on faculty nominations and votes. Awards were also made for academic excellence:

Best Design Process - Brendan Escobar

Design Excellence - Daniel Perlin

Best Senior Project - Brendan Escobar

Service to the Department - Katie Blair

Academic Excellence/Achievement - Katie Blair and Daniel Perlin

The golden eagle award was based on the votes of the fifth year class. This award is made to a graduating student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need.

Golden Eagle Award - Katie Blair, presented by classmate Blake Rhinehart.

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Winter term.

Updated: 2.28.11

Jun-Hyun Kim Presents Research at 2011 ALR Conference

Assistant Professor Dr. Jun-Hyun Kim presented his recent research, titled "The Role of Landscape Spatial Patterns in Childhood Obesity and Quality of Life: A Study of Hispanic Children in Inner-City Neighborhoods" at the Active Living Research (ALR) Annual Conference in San Diego, February 24-26, 2011. Less than 20% of the abstracts submitted to this nationally recognized conference each year are selected for the conference's oral presentation session. The theme for the 2011 conference was Partnerships for Progress in Active Living: From Research to Action, which recognizes the importance of engaging experts from multiple disciplines to address critical public health issues, especially active living and obesity.

Active Living Research is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and contributes to the prevention of childhood obesity in low-income/high-risk racial/ethnic communities by supporting research to examine how environments and policies influence active living for children and their families.

To learn more about Dr. Kim's research, click here.

Updated: 4.5.11

4th Year Student Receives Leadership in Landscape and Study Abroad Scholarships

Hekili Lani, a 4th year student spending Winter and Spring terms studying at Lincoln University in New Zealand, has been awarded the 2011 Hawaii Chapter/David T. Woolsey Scholarship from the Landscape Architecture Foundation. This $2,000 scholarship was established in memory of David T. Woolsey, former principal in the firm of Woolsey, Miyabara and Associates. Eligible students are those whose permanent residence is in Hawaii.

Hekili was also awarded two $500 scholarships to help defray her study abroad expenses. Lani was selected to receive both the California State University - Affiliate Student Scholarship and the Lincoln University Sponsored Scholarship. Both scholarships are offered through AustraLearn, an educational program of GlobaLinks Learning Abroad.

For more information about Landscape Architecture Foundation Leadership in Landscape scholarship opportunities, click here. For more information about AustraLearn study abroad scholarship opportunities, click here.

Posted: 2.2.11

Winning Poster Competition Team Includes 5th Year LA Student

LA major Alex Emerson was on the Cal Poly interdisciplinary team that placed first in the poster competition portion of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) Green Energy Challenge. The Challenge invited NECA student chapters to conduct an energy audit of a local commercial or institutional facility in need of energy-efficient improvements. Based on energy audit findings, teams then submitted a preliminary design of an energy retrofit for the facility and were invited to enter a poster summarizing their Green Energy Challenge project experience.

Judges named Emerson and his teammates from Construction Management, Mechanical Engineering, and Architecture the winners of this year's student chapter poster competition for their energy audit of Corbett Canyon Vineyards in Arroyo Grande, CA. Posters were judged based on their overall professional appearance, technical content, and creativity.

To read the Cal Poly news release about the team's achievement, click here.

Updated: 2.7.11

Acclaimed Landscape Architect Mia Lehrer Speaks at Cal Poly

At the invitation of Assoc. Prof. Joseph Ragsdale, Mia Lehrer, FASLA, founding principal of Mia Lehrer + Associates, Landscape Architecture, spoke at Cal Poly on February 4, 2011, as part of the Winter 2011 CAED Hearst Lecture Series. It was "standing room only" in the Business Building Rotunda - more than 230 students and faculty members attended her presentation.

Born in San Salvador, El Salvador, Ms. Lehrer earned her Masters of Landscape Architecture from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. Today, she is internationally recognized for her progressive landscape designs, working with such natural landmarks as parks, lakes, and rivers, coupled with her advocacy for ecology and people-friendly public space.

Mia Lehrer + Associates is known for its design and development of a wide spectrum of award-winning public and private projects that include urban revitalization developments, large urban parks, and complex commercial projects.

With great appreciation for community input, Ms. Lehrer prides herself and her firm on reaching out to stakeholders for their thoughts and ideas about projects with affect their neighborhoods and their lives. She is committed to protecting our environment and designing projects that will heal our earth. She believes that great landscape design coupled with sustainability has the power to enhance the livability and quality of life in our cities, and in doing so improve by great measure the quality of our environment.

Click here to read a profile of Mia Lehrer published in Landscape Online.

Updated: 1.28.11

For 2nd Year in a Row, Program Alum Named "Top 20 Under 40"

Alum Brandon Medeiros, ASLA, was one of 20 San Luis Obispo County residents chosen for The Tribune's 2010 "Top 20 Under 40" award. Medeiros, 34, who works as a Senior Planner for Rick Engineering Company, joined the firm in 2007 to establish a division in landscape architecture and urban design in its San Luis Obispo office. Among his recent projects is the Grover Beach, CA West Grand Avenue Streetscape Enhancement.

Medeiros received his BLA from Cal Poly in 2002. He volunteers as chairman for the REC Foundation, a non-profit fundraising corporation which works to create enhanced programs, places and open spaces for quality recreational experiences in Paso Robles.

This is the second year in a row that a program alum has been honored with this award. Bianca Koenig, ASLA, LEEP AP, was chosen in 2009. Like Medeiros, Koenig received her BLA from Cal Poly in 2002.

The Top 20 Under 40 awards honor young leaders who have demonstrated excellence in their field and a strong commitment to community service. The 2010 winners were selected from more than 80 nominees by a panel of judges from the San Luis Obispo County Community Foundation. Winners were honored at a special luncheon at the Madonna Inn January 27, 2011.

For more information, see The Tribune article about the Top 20 Under 40 winners.

Posted: 1.26.11

Walt Bremer Attends GeoDesign Summit 2011

Professor Walt Bremer participated in the GeoDesign Summit on the ESRI campus in Redlands, CA January 6-7, 2011. The summit was designed to explore and develop ideas, concepts, processs, and technology to connect and apply geospatial technology to environmental design and planning decision-making processes.

A broad interdisciplinary group of GIS and design professionals attended the summit and shared ideas to continue to define GeoDesign. The group included landscape architects, architects, planners, geographers, engineers, and developers.

Posted: 1.11.11

Beverly Bass Presents Research at Hawaii International Conference on Arts & Humanities

Asst. Professor Beverly Bass presented a paper about her research, Gathering Spaces: Lessons from Traditional Dutch Street Form in the Age of Peak Oil and Global Warming, on January 10, 2011, at the Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities.

Asst. Prof. Bass's research examines whether features of older Dutch cities that promote walkability can be transferred to communities in the United States. The viability of using traditional Dutch urban street form as a model for development is analyzed by examining characteristics of streets and street pattern within the historic core of three Dutch cities that were settled prior to the industrial age. Bass's study is expected to result in recommendations that could inform the planning of new and retrofitting of existing communities in the U.S.

To read an abstract of Asst. Prof. Bass's research, click here.

Updated: 3.14.11

LA Students Connect with L.A.T.C.

Christine Anderson, representing the Landscape Architects Technical Commitee (LATC), made a licensing presentation to the LA 370, Professional Practice class on March 2, 2011. The LATC was created by the California Legislature to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public by establishing standards for licensure and enforcing the laws and regulations that govern the practice of landscape architecture in California.

Posted: 1.3.11

LA Students Help Build Award-Winning 2011 Rose Float

Students from the LA department were part of the team that helped construct the 2011 Rose Float, Galactic Expedition, which was Cal Poly's entry in this year's Tournament of Roses Parade. The float took home two awards - the Fantasy Trophy, awarded to the float with the most outstanding display of fantasy and imagination, and the Viewers' Choice Award. This is the third year in a row that the float, co-constructed by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Cal Poly Pomona, has taken home that award.

"In my four floats we have won six awards including three Viewers' Choice, two Fantasy, and one Bob Hope Humor," said recent LA grad Brandon Schmiedeberg. "It has been an absolute blast and I'm going to miss being so involved with a great Cal Poly tradition." Other members of the Rose Float team included LA majors Michelle Ahlstrom, Harrison Bergholz, Kelsey Christoffels, Kaylyn Keller, and Sabrina Wise.

To read the University's press release, click here.

Posted: 12.20.10

LA Majors Recognized at Fall 2010 Commencement

LA majors Trevor Bodmer, Kalie Brown, Calandra Chang, Lasca Gaylord, Monica Hernandez, Christine Jarvis, Brandon Schmiedeberg, and Jessica Van Siegman were among the CAED students named in the Fall 2010 Commencement program.

Kalie Brown, Christine Jarvis, and Brandon Schmiedeberg graduated Cum Laude; Kalie Brown, Brandon Schmiedeberg, and Jessica Van Siegman, pictured at left, participated in the ceremony.

The CAED's Fall 2010 Commencement Ceremony took place at 1:00 pm on Saturday, December 11, in the Recreation Center. Professor Walt Bremer, Acting Department Head, and Professor Joseph Ragsdale represented the Landscape Architecture faculty in congratulating the new graduates.

Dean R. Thomas Jones, Associate Dean K. Richard Zweifel, and Advising Center Director Ellen Notermann represented the CAED. UC Irvine Vice Chancellor and Campus Architect Rebekah Gladson, a Cal Poly Architecture program alum, delivered the Commencement Address.

Posted: 1-3-11

5th Year Fall Show and Recognition Awards

The 15 LA students who finished their two-quarter capstone experience during the Fall 2010 term (pictured above with their instructor, Prof. Omar Faruque) showcased their designs in the Berg Galley on December 1, 2010. The show invited students, faculty, parents, friends, alumni, and the general public to view their senior projects. The students were guided in the development and execution of their designs by Prof. Omar Faruque.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards.

Recognition for best design process, design excellence, best senior project, and service to the department was based on faculty nominations and votes. An award was also made for Academic Excellence:

Best Design Process - Serena Conti

Design Excellence - David DuBois

Outstanding Senior Project - Kalie Brown

Service to the Department - Kalie Brown

Academic Excellence/Achievement - Brandon Schmiedeberg and Kalie Brown

The golden eagle award was based on the votes of the fifth year class. This award is made to a graduating student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need.

Golden Eagle Award - Kalie Brown, presented by classmates Serena Conti and Lauren DuBridge

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Fall term.

Updated 3-15-11

Bay Area Comprehensive Community Design Studio: Summer 2011

The CAED will once again offer an eight-week summer interdisciplinary program mixing Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and CRP students together to solve urban design problems. The program, coordinated by Michael Pyatok and his staff, provides an integrated Metro Program experience that combines a design studio with related classes in housing and community design and digital technology (Revitt). Primary faculty will include Mike Pyatok and Peter Waller of Pyatok Architects and their digital communication experts, along with guest instructors and presenters including visiting Cal Poly faculty and professionals.

Instruction will occur in a leased space in downtown Oakland of San Francisco, near a BART rail system station, with location determined each year.

Several evening events and weekend or daytime field trips to tour Bay Area urban open spaces, neighborhoods, and affordable housing developments and enjoy Bay Area culture will be conducted as part of the experience. Seminars featuring planners, architects, landscape architects, public officials, and developers are a major feature of the program. Students will interact with some of the most prominent and award-winning professionals in Northern California who are involved in affordable housing, community development, and urban planning. There will be a combination of individual project assignments, skills development workshops, and interdisciplinary group assignments over the period of the program.

The studio will focus on a real site and client, and involve a large, multi-acre urban affordable or mixed income housing project and associated urban design and landscape design components. There may be one project with several student teams undertaking alternative studies, or several sites under investigation by separate student teams.

The projects are selected by Pyatok and Associates, using their network of housing and community development partners and advocates. Each project will include interaction with city officials, client representatives, and the full range of real world stakeholders, many of whom will be present during periodic reviews and the final project presentation.

Participating LA majors will receive a total of 12 credits, including LA 404, Cultural Environments Design Focus Studio (4 units), LA 437, 3D Digital Design Communications ILC (4 units), and LA 483, Special Studies in Landscape Architecture (4 units). Click here to download the program flier. Click here to learn more about financial aid for off-campus programs. Click here to download the program application -- the due date is April 1, 2011. Selected students will be notified by April 5, 2011.

Updated: 2.16.11

Study in South Korea and China -- Join the Summer 2011 EFT

The LA department will offer students the opportunity to participate in an eight-week Extended Field Trip (EFT) to South Korea and China during Summer Quarter 2011. A total of eight units will be offered: LA 471, Selected Advanced Laboratory - Study Abroad (four units) and LA 433, Cultural Environments ILC (four units). The EFT will be led by Asst. Professors Jun Hyun Kim and Cesar Torres Bustamante.

EFT participants will engage in core curriculum coursework within the cultural and environmental contexts of China and South Korea. Theoretical discussions, seminars, workshops, visual studies and design studio assignments will form the curriculum for the trip's study. Trip leaders will make arrangements with architectural and landscape architectural educational institutions to provide opportunities for collaboration with local professionals, faculty, and students.

During Spring quarter 2011, EFT participants will enroll in a two-unit special problems course (LA 400) to research languages, cultures, and the historical and contemporary development of South Korea and China.

Spots in the EFT are limited. LA students have priority, but Architecture and CRP students may also participate. If you are interested, contact Assoc. Professor Joseph Ragsdale as soon as possible.

Click here to download the South Korea and China Summer 2011 Study Abroad Program Student Agreement and Application. These forms, and a deposit of $1,560, are due to Continuinng Education no later than Friday, March 11, 2011. To learn more about off campus study opportunities, click here.

Posted: 12.20.10

Spring 2010 EFT Students Share Their Experiences

The 12 LA students (pictured above) who traveled with Asst. Profs. Beverly Bass and Christy O'Hara to Spain, the Netherlands, and France during Spring term shared their Extended Field Trip (EFT) experiences with faculty and fellow students during Fall term though their sketch books, photos, and stories. A highlight of their November 19, 2010 presentation was the video they created to chronicle their trip. To view this eight-minute video, click here.

Updated: 12.29.10

DesignIntelligence Ranks Cal Poly's LA Program 8th in the Nation

Cal Poly’s BLA program was ranked 8th in the nation, tied with Cornell University, in the 2011 DesignIntelligence survey, which ranks public and private degree programs. In the eleven-state western region, the Cal Poly program was ranked 1st, tied with UC Davis. Cal Poly’s LA program has made the Top 20 list every year since 2005, when the DesignIntelligence survey first started ranking landscape architecture programs.

Cal Poly ranked 2nd in the nation in preparing graduates in sustainable design practices and principles, based on the hiring experience of surveyed practitioners, and was ranked among the five most admired undergraduate programs in the nation by surveyed academicians, for our learn-by-doing philosophy and balance of technology, sustainability, and design.

"From the hundreds of employers I have talked to in the last year alone who hire from many schools across the nation," said R. Thomas Jones, Dean of the College of Architecture and Environmental Design," I believe that our landscape architecture program produces students who are prized for their ability to look holistically at design issues, integrate sustainability along with technology in their work, collaborate well with other professionals, and manifest a drive for excellence and thirst for continuing learning that is prized by most firms."

The DesignIntelligence rankings have become a tool for students choosing academic programs that will launch their design careers. DesignIntelligence is a bi-monthly journal published by the Design Futures Council, a Washington, D.C. think tank that explores trends and opportunities in design, architecture, engineering and building technology.

Posted: 11-12-10

Louise Schiller Speaks as Panel Member at SLO AITC Conference

On November 6, 2010, lecturer Louise Schiller spoke as a workshop panel member at the California Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) Conference in Shell Beach. The workshop, aimed at K-12 teachers and administrators, discussed a model program which creates a way for farmers to diversify their business and a way for school food service directors to connect with area farms.

Workshop participants were encouraged to bring together school officials, food service directors, parents, distributors, processors, and producers to establish mutually beneficial relationships that would result in locally produced and processed food being consumed by students in California schools.

Schiller is President of the Central Coast Ag Network (CCAN) and represented CCAN's Farm to School program which conducts tasting programs and Harvest-of-the-Month events at San Luis Obispo County schools.

Updated: 11-8-10

Alumni "Mix it Up" November 5 in San Francisco

Dean Tom Jones, Associate Dean Dick Zweifel, Assistant Dean Linda Kristenson, Interim Department Head Walt Bremer, faculty members Vangeli Evangelopoulos, Cameron Man, Christy O'Hara, Joseph Ragsdale, and Cesar Torres-Bustamante, Landscape Architecture Department Advisory Council members, and recent and not-so-recent program graduates were among those who attended the Fall Alumni Mixer at CMG Landscape Architecture in San Francisco on November 5, 2010.

The mixer was hosted by Advisory Council Members Kevin Conger (the "C" in CMG - class of 1988), Paul Buchanan (1996) and Paul Marcillac (1990). Thank you, Kevin, Paul B., and Paul M.! Special thanks also go to Hunter Industries for their generous sponsorship and to CMG Landscape Architecture for the use of their studio space.

Guests noshed on tamales, got an update on department activities, had the chance to study examples of past and present student work, and learned how to become more involved with the program through department and student engagement, providing opportunities for internships and shadowships, and contributing financial support.

Didn't get an Evite to the mixer? Send an email, including your name and class year, to landscapearchitecture@calpoly.edu, and we'll add your email address to our invitation list for future events.

Posted: 11.02.10

Grant Union High School's GEO Academy Juniors Visit LA Department

The LA Department welcomed 12 juniors from Grant Union High School 's GEO Environmental Science and Design Academy, along with their landscape architecture teacher, Daniela Tavares, and program leader, Ker Cha, during their trip to Cal Poly October 28-29, 2010. The students traveled from Sacramento to San Luis Obispo to learn more about Cal Poly, our BLA program, and the landscape architecture profession. Asst. Professor Beverly Bass serves on the Academy's Advisory Committee.

During their visit, the group learned about Cal Poly's Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), shopped at El Corral, toured the CAED, visited the Dexter LA studios, listened to an Admissions presentation, and lunched with faculty, staff, and student reps.

The GEO Academy is one of the California Partnership Academies - a three-year program structured as a school-within-a-school. The program provides a specialized curriculum within the core high school curriculum that allows at-risk students to be exposed to career and educational options that are not typically part of the high school experience. The Academy has a Landscape Architecture focus.

For more information about Grant's Environmental Science and Design Academy, check out their video, "Eat at the Garden."

Posted: 10-21-10

Jun-Hyun Kim Presents Research at ACSP & IMCL Conferences

Assistant Professor Dr. Jun-Hyun Kim presented papers during October 2010 at conferences in Minnesota and South Carolina.

Dr. Kim presented one paper, "Landscape Spatial Patterns and Health-Related Quality of Life among Hispanic Children," at the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) annual conference in Minneapolis, MN. This paper assessed the association between landscape spatial patterns and children's health-related quality of life.

Another paper co-authored by Dr. Kim was presented at the conference by his colleague, Dr. Chanam Lee, from Texas A&M University. This paper, "Assessing Safety and Walkability of School Environments: Development of a School Audit Instrument," introduced the recently-developed environmental audit tool for use in assessing the built environment conditions around school sites.

Dr. Kim also presented a paper at the International Making Cities Livable (IMCL) Conference in Charleston, SC. His paper, "Urban Landscape Pattern and Childhood Obesity," introduced the correlation between urban landscape spatial patterns and Hispanic children's obese conditions. Along with governors, city officials, practitioners, and scholars from multiple disciplines, including architecture, urban design and planning, social sciences, health policy, urban affairs and law, Dr. Kim shared ideas for improving walkability and city livability from a landscape architecture perspective.

Posted: 10-19-10

Cesar Torres-Bustamante - Across the Pond and Down Under

Assistant Professor Dr. Cesar Torres-Bustamante presented the poster "Figural Regions" at the Emerging Landscapes Conference (University of Westminster, UK) in June 2010.

The project proposed alternative methods for the construction and visualization of pochè maps based on the reconceptualization of figure-ground relationships. In this manner, figures are understood as articulated regions or fields with ambiguous edges, useful in highlighting the temporality of events in the landscape rather than an emphasis on static objects.

In addition, Dr. Torres-Bustamante was invited to participate in Peculiar Places, a project organized by landscape architecture firm Taylor Cullity Lethlean (Melbourne, Australia) that questions the use of public space and how it shapes people and their experiences.

Dr. Torres-Bustamante decided to focus on the map as a way of recording and interpreting the experiences of spaces, and compared the layout of eight European cities through their corresponding touristic map and Google Map. The intention was to indicate how specific and important details are highlighted or hidden from the visitor, interrogating the usefulness of an institutionalized map (such as Google Map ) in revealing the peculiarity of spaces.

Updated: 11-1-10

New Grads Named Winners in SCC/ASLA Design Competition

Steven Hasler and Shotaro Shimoda (class of 2010) were named as winners in the Southern California Chapter of ASLA (SCC/ASLA) 2010 Quality of Life Design Competition. Hasler's advisor for his "Hunters Point Shipyard Park: Re-Justice Realized Through Eco-Adaptive Design" project, which won an Honor Award, was Lecturer Vangeli Evangelopoulos. Shimoda's advisor for his "Town Center, Santa Maria, Repurposing Shopping Mall" project, which won a Merit Award, was Asst. Professor Cesar Torres Bustamante.

The theme for this year's competition was "Building and Celebrating Community through Landscape Architecture." The intent of the Quality of Life Awards program is to celebrate professional excellence by recognizing outstanding works of landscape architecture and environmental planning that promote an enhanced quality of life in Southern California and beyond.

Hasler's and Shimoda's projects were judged by a panel of jurors using criteria including quality of design; functionalism; relationship to context; overall relevance to the profession, the public, and the environment; promotion of the enhancement of quality of life; and environmental responsibility.

Posted: 9-22-10

4th Year Student's Article Published in Gardener News

Donovan Hall, a fourth-year LA student and New Jersey native, wrote the cover story for the September 2010 edition of Gardener News, a New Jersey monthly gardening newspaper.

In his article, Hall writes about a project his LA 405 Project Design and Implementation Focus Studio class tackled during the Spring 2010 term. Guided by the course instructor, Louise Schiller, Hall and his classmates helped to develop a master plan for a proposed future San Luis Obispo Community Farm on a portion of the Dalidio Ranch property. As part of their research for this master plan, Hall’s class learned about the Central Coast Ag Network (CCAN) and their Farm to School program. Hall compares CCAN and the Farm to School Program to New Jersey’s campaign to include “Jersey Fresh” products in school lunches. However, CCAN goes further, encouraging the education of younger students about the importance of agriculture.

Hall advocates incorporating gardening classes into K-12 academic curriculums throughout the nation and argues that preserving New Jersey’s agriculture and educating residents about the Garden State’s numerous farming resources will help repair the state’s image. “Local farmers work tirelessly to produce fresh food,” he writes, “and agricultural educations needs to start earlier in our schools.”

To read the full article, click here.

Updated: 9-22-10

LADAC Member Rick T. Hume, FASLA Joins Ranks of ASLA Fellows

Landscape Architecture Department Advisory Council (LADAC) member Rick T. Hume (class of 1976) is among 41 members of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) who were inducted into its distinguished Council of Fellows, among the highest honors the Society may confer upon a member.

Members of the ASLA Council of Fellows are recognized for their extraordinary work, leadership, knowledge, and service to the profession over a sustained period of time. The Fellows were formally inducted into the Council on September 12, during the ASLA 2010 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. They may use the suffix "FASLA" after their names, denoting recognition of their achievements by their peers.

According to ASLA, Rick Hume was nominated in the Leadership/Management Category by the Southern California Chapter of ASLA. In the 1980s, he wrote and administered the California Section of the Landscape Architects Exam and repeatedly fought to maintain licensure in California. He served on the Southern California Chapter executive board and as its president. In practice, his longstanding leadership in planning for thousands of acres of park, recreation, and open space has inspired millions of visitors. As a lecture and adviser, he has for decades helped prepare students to enter the profession. Hume is also a member of the USC School of Medicine's Healthy Communities Research Team, studying how community development and land development affect obesity in America.

Updated: 2.17.11

ASLA Southern CA Presents: The Role of Landscape Architects in Urban Development

Michael Schrock (class of 1988), a principal with Urban Arena, Paul Haden, founder and president of The Collaborative West, and John O'Brien, vice president of urban infill with Brookfield Southland, will discuss the business opportunities increased infill development presents for landscape architects Thursday, February 17, 2011. Hosted by ASLA Southern California, the presentation will take place at MUZEO, 241 So. Anaheim Blvd., Anaheim. The event starts at 5:45 pm; the presentation starts at 6:30 pm. Admission is $10 for student ASLA members, $15 for non ASLA students, $25 for ASLA members, and $35 for non-members.

For more information or to make reservations, call the Southern CA Chapter at 714.838.3615.

Updated: 8-5-10

Interdisciplinary Team's Design Wins Finalist Spot in Competition

Fifth-year LA students Justin Shareghi and Matt Wilkins are members of a CAED interdisciplinary team, "Design Empathy," whose design was selected as a local finalist in the U. S. Green Building Council (USGBC) 2010 Natural Talent Design Competition: Small, Green, Affordable. The competition provides applied learning experience in the principles of integrated design, sustainability, and innovation, all of which are components of the LEED green building certification program. Participants compete in local, chapter-based competitions, and the top winner in each chapter moves on to compete for a national award at USGBC’s annual Greenbuild International Conference and Expo. National finalists will be announced in early September.

USGBC's 2010 competition focused on the rebuilding effort in New Orleans. Competitors were divided into student and emerging professional groups and were asked to design green, post-disaster, affordable housing. Up to four designs will be selected from the competition finalists to be showcased at Greenbuild 2010 and the designers will see their projects built in New Orleans’ Broadmoor neighborhood.

Design Empathy's goal was to design an innovative dwelling built to weave into a reviving New Orleans, offering the resident an optimal dynamic living space. Faced with a $100,000 budget, hurricane and flood dangers, as well as obtaining a LEED platinum certification, the team made the competition an opportunity to show that great design can be affordable for the average person, including the elderly, families, and low wage earners.

Other members of the team include Gabby Robinson (ARCH), Rodrigo Robles (ARCH), Kevin Farrow (CM), and Cristian Tulbure (ARCE). The design was developed within the context of an interdisciplinary Integrated Project Delivery Studio taught in Spring 2010 by several CAED faculty members, including LA Professor Gary Clay.

Updated: 6-14-10

62 Program Grads Walk at June Commencement

On June 12, 2010, the department said farewell to the Class of 2010 -- the largest graduating class in the LA program's history. 62 new graduates were recognized in the Spring 2010 Commencement program. Those graduating with honors included:

Magna Cum Laude - Kareen Balogo, Shye Jones, and Kieulan Pham.

Cum Laude - Kevin Blakeney, Scott Domingues, Steven Hasler, Christine Jarvis, Charles Kollman, Katherine Lewis, Michelle Neff, Tyler Rinehart, Grant Saita, Keir Smith, Mark Spencer, and Kelly Wyrsch.

Magna Cum Laude graduate Kareen Balogo spoke with the Cal Poly Public Affairs Office about how Cal Poly had transformed her life.

According to their press release, Kareen was 15 when she moved from the Philippines to California to live with an aunt and uncle. Adjusting and trying to fit into her new community was a challenge. "I was shy and, frankly, ashamed that I was now considered a minority," she said. "The language barrier didn't help."

But things began to turn around a year later, when she moved with her parents to National City – a predominantly Filipino community in southern San Diego. She made friends, joined student government and began taking advanced placement courses. Junior college followed, and then a transfer to Cal Poly. On Saturday, she graduated with a degree in Landscape Architecture.

While here, Kareen participated in internships in Oakland, California and South Africa. "I saw and learned some amazing things, worked on real projects and enjoyed a curriculum that prepared me for my career." Kareen hopes to start her own non-governmental organization, working with children in the Philippines. "My education at Cal Poly opened a lot of doors for me to enjoy a more meaningful and fulfilled future," she said.

Kareen was recognized at the Fifth Year Spring Show for her service to the Landscape Architecture department.

Updated: 6-9-10

Fifth Year Spring Show and Recognition Awards

Twenty-four LA students who finished their two-quarter capstone experience during Spring term showcased their senior design projects in downtown San Luis Obispo June 4, 2010. The show, "Rendered," invited students, faculty, alumni, friends, and the general public to interact with the student designers.

"Rendered" was also stop #17 on the San Luis Obispo County Arts Council June "Art After Dark" tour.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards.

Recognition for best design process, design excellence, best senior project, and service to the department was based on faculty nominations and votes. An award was also made for Academic Excellence:

Best Design Process - Richard Joaquin

Design Excellence - Mickey Mangan

Best Senior Project - Scott Domingues

Service to the Department - Kareen Balogo

Academic Excellence/Achievement - Kieulan Pham

The golden eagle award was based on the votes of the fifth year class. This award is made to a graduating student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need.

Golden Eagle Award - Kevin Blakeney

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Spring term. During the Winter show, another set of awards recognized students who completed their capstone project during Winter term.

Posted: 5-26-10

Louise Schiller Elected President of Central Coast Ag Network Board

Louise Schiller, a lecturer in the LA department, has been elected President of the Central Coast Ag Network (CCAN) Board of Directors. CCAN's mission is to support sustainable local agriculture to insure a wholesome, diverse and nourishing supply of food and other agricultural products for residents of the California Central Coast. The organization's principal objectives are to educate consumers about the nutritional, environmental, and economic benefits derived from purchasing locally grown and processed agricultural products; increase consumer awareness and understanding of the significance of the CCAN logo as a method of identifying locally grown and processed agricultural products; and raise community awareness of and commitment to healthy, local food.

Posted: 5-19-10

LA Students Receive Landscape Architecture Foundation Scholarships

Fourth year students Sean Ogawa and Rebecca Vanni were awarded 2010 scholarships from the Landscape Architecture Foundation.

Rebecca was the recipient of the $5,000 Courtland Paul Scholarship, which honors the memory of Courtland P. Paul, FASLA (1927-2003) and his lifelong commitment to the landscape architecture profession. Mr. Paul and Peridian International, the landscape architecture firm he founded over fifty years ago, were well known for community design and master planning, and for the golf courses, hotels, and theme parks they created in Southern California and throughout the world. After receiving her BLA, Rebecca hopes to attend UC Berkeley to pursue a dual masters degree in landscape architecture and architecture. Her aspirations as a landscape architect are to work on redevelopment, historical preservation, and low impact development projects that require leadership and an interdisciplinary approach.

Sean was the recipient of the $2,000 Hawaii Chapter/David T. Woolsey Scholarship, which was established in memory of David T. Woolsey, former principal in the firm of Woolsey, Miyabara and Associates. Sean's goal as a landscape architect is to help people by creating more inviting, unique, and culturally and environmentally conscious public spaces.

The mission of the Landscape Architecture Foundation is to support the preservation, improvement, and enhancement of the environment.

For more information about this year's LAF scholarship recipients, click here.

Posted: 5-19-10

LA Majors Help Cal Poly Place 2nd in Bank of America's 2010 Low-Income Housing Challenge

Three students in the LA program - Ellie Islas, Jenna Meath, and Matt Wilkins - were members of an interdisciplinary team that made it to the final round of the 2010 Bank of America Low-Income Housing Challenge. Cal Poly placed second out of the four finalist schools.

The team partnered with EAH Housing of San Rafael to create a physical and financial proposal for Broadway Village, a 70-unit, multifamily, mixed-use development near downtown Oakland. The project was geared toward larger, low-income families with a minor emphasis on housing individuals with HIV/AIDS. The driving force behind the Broadway Village project was to jump-start the revitalization of the Broadway/Valdez corridor in Oakland by setting a high standard of development.This one-acre, mixed-use development was designed to support the present and future needs of low-income families living in Oakland. The development was qualified for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification.

Team members also included five students working toward bachelor degrees in Architecture, City and Regional Planning, and Construction Management, as well as five graduate students in Business and City and Regional Planning.

To see the full project proposal and a short video on the project, click here.

Architecture Professor Daniel L. Panetta, RLA and RA, was the team advisor.

Updated: 3-15-10

Dean L. Morgridge, Friend of the Department, 1930 - 2010

Dean L. Morgridge, friend of the Landscape Architecture Department and donor of the Dean and Patricia Ann Morgridge Family Scholarship, died February 15, 2010 at his home in San Luis Obispo.

Mr. Morgridge attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he earned a Bachelor of Science in 1952 and a Master of Science in Geology in 1954. He worked for the Humble Oil Company (now Exxon) for 38 years, and spent most of his career exploring Alaska for oil reserves. He led the team that discovered Prudhoe Bay, the largest oil field in North America. He married his wife, Patty Ann, in 1952 and lived in San Marino, CA, Denver, CO, and Anchorage, Alaska before settling in Kingwood, TX.

Mr. Morgridge loved being outdoors in his garden and was an avid horticulturist with a special interest in native plants. He and Patty Ann supported the Landscape Architecture department and provided scholarships to encourage excellence in promising landscape architecture students during their fourth or fifth year of study. Past recipients of the Dean and Patricia Ann Morgridge Family Scholarship include Matthew Bjerk, Kevin Blakeney, Allison Crump, David Dubois, Lasca Gaylord, Robert Frye, Christine Jarvis, Richard Joaquin, Joanne LaFave, Junio Milanese, Brandon Schmiedeberg, and Jennifer Webster.

For more information, go to the Dean L. Morgridge obituary in the San Luis Obispo Tribune.

Updated: 4-16-10

Fifth Year Students Receive ASLA Student Honor and Merit Awards

A jury from the ASLA Southern California Chapter selected six fifth year students for the 2010 ASLA Student Honor and Merit Awards.

Kareen Balogo, Kristen (Shye) Jones, and Tyler Rinehart were awarded an ASLA Certificate of Honor. Certificates of Merit were awarded to Steven Hasler, Richard Joaquin, and Mickey Mangan.

Students considered for the awards were nominated by program faculty based on the following criteria: 1) minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA; 2) in their final two years of study; 3) considered truly outstanding as measured by the program's long-term standards of excellence; 4) demonstrating the highest level of academic scholarship and of accomplishments in skills related to the art and technology of landscape architecture; and 5) demonstrating personal qualities and skills of responsiveness and willingness to work with others, self-motivation and responsibility, and design abilities: exploration, discovery, synthesis and representation of landscape architecture design.

Gere Smith, Professor Emeritus and ASLA Fellow, Bianca Koenig, Landscape Architect with the Wallace Group, and Corby Kilmer with CalTrans were the jury members.

The students will receive their awards at the department's Student Awards Ceremony in June. Baxter Miller, LADAC Advisory Council Member and Southern California Chapter Board Member, will present the Honor and Merit certificates.

Updated: 4-21-10

Design Week 2010 Focuses on National Parks

Design Week 2010 featured teams of students and professionals working together to address current and future needs within Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Proposing and articulating sustainable visions for the future of the parks featured prominently in the program.

This design charrette was held on campus Tuesday, March 30, through Saturday, April 3. Design Week is the creation of Design Workshop, an international design and planning firm with offices all over the globe. The Landscape Architecture Department has hosted the program twice before and Design Workshop has run similar programs at other universities across the country.

Students from several departments within the College and University participated, creating a strong interdisciplinary approach to the project. Students worked with professionals from Design Workshop, BAR Architects, the National Park Service and the Nature Corps.

To see a Photo Slideshow featuring Design Week highlights, click here.

Updated: 4-6-10

New Grads Garner Awards at San Francisco Flower and Garden Show

Tyler Rinehart and Katherine Lewis, who finished the BLA program during Winter term, won two awards for the display garden they created for the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, held March 24-28, 2010 at the San Mateo Event Center. They received the Pacific Horticulture Award, for a garden that best demonstrated the regional nature of garden design, as well as a Silver Medal award.

Their exhibit, Pulling Up Daisies, was a conceptual design in which viewers found themselves in the moment of change as the landscapes of the past were peeled back to reveal a new palette of California native plant possibilities both beautiful and drought tolerant. To see pictures of Tyler and Kat's exhibit, go to Sunset Magazine's blog, Fresh Dirt. Sunset says, "we loved the concept behind this piece of actually peeling back the layers of destructive landscaping to reveal a lush new pallet of native plant possibilities." For more information about Pulling Up Daisies, go to the Show's Gardens web page.

Updated: 3-29-10

Case Study Presentation by David Watts Cited in Landscape Journal

Asst. Professor David Watts is cited in the current issue (Volume 29, number 1) of Landscape Journal, the official journal of the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture published by the University of Wisconsin Press. In her review of the "Right to Landscape: Contesting Landscape and Human Rights" workshop in Cambridge, UK, December 8-10, 2008, Susan Herrington writes "Dave Watts...described how a small community in South Africa received a new school, but the government considered an outdoor play space an unattainable luxury. As such, 300 children... were denied basic rights to play and develop in the landscape. In response, Watts, with volunteer landscape architects from Wisconsin, designed and built a play space using simple, natural materials. This act not only confirmed children's right to landscape, but also empowered parents and tribal elders to maintain these rights."

The proposition of this workshop was that “landscape is a shared resource and all human beings deserve the right to landscape." The call for papers, which went out in January 2008, was aimed at landscape scholars and professionals across disciplines and "attracted an overwhelming response." Watts was one of only 30 participants selected to present a case study for workshop discussion.

Updated: 3-15-10

Fifth Year Winter Show and Recognition Awards

Program students finishing their two-quarter capstone experience during Winter term exhibited their senior projects in downtown San Luis Obispo March 11-12, 2010. The show, "39 Visions 1 Language," allowed students, faculty, alumni, friends, and the general public to interact with the student creators.

During the show, the Landscape Architecture faculty announced several senior class recognition awards.

The golden eagle award was based on the votes of the fifth year class. This award is made to a graduating student who has demonstrated a professional competence and attitude, has been a stabilizing influence during times of great confusion, and is a person who is always able to give to others in their time of need.

• Golden Eagle Award - Steven Hasler

Recognition for service to the department, best design process, design excellence, and best senior project was based on faculty nominations and votes. The senior with the highest Cal Poly GPA through Fall 2009 was also recognized:

• Service to the Department - Aaron Anderson
• Best Design Process - Steven Hasler
• Design Excellence - Tyler Rinehart
• Best Senior Project - Kelly Wyrsch
• Academic Achievement/Excellence - Katherine Lewis

These awards honored students who finished their capstone project during Winter term. In June, another set of awards will recognize students who complete their capstone project during Spring term.

Updated: 2-18-10

LADAC Educational Enrichment Committee Secures Student Internship Opportunities

Landscape Architecture Department Advisory Council members Kevin Conger, Martin Flores, and Mark Lorge -- all members of the LADAC Educational Enrichment Committee -- worked very successfully with LADAC member firms and other firms to provide a number of internship opportunities for LA students for 2010. Opportunities were secured with PWP, Stantec Consulting Services, Landscape Development, Estrada Land Planning, BMLA, KTU+A, Ken Smith Landscape Architect, Mia Lehrer + Associates, SQLA, CMG, and The Lightfoot Planning Group.

Students can learn more about these internships, and the companies providing them, on the Internship Opportunities web page. Thank you, Committee members, for helping our students fulfill their internship requirement.

Updated: 1.26.10

Alumni Mixer Held for Program Graduates January 22 in San Diego

Alumni, faculty, and 3rd, 4th, and 5th year student representatives attended a mixer at the San Diego offices of Rick Engineering Friday, January 22, 2010, hosted by Landscape Architecture Department Advisory Council members Martin Flores (BSLA 1983) and Dolores Marquez (BSLA 1979).

Before the mixer, alumni, faculty, and students toured Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens in Escondido, CA. Designed by Schmidt Design Group, Inc., this landscape architecture project was awarded the ASLA, San Diego chapter 2009 Presidents Design Award. According to Asst. Prof. Dave Watts, who attended these events with students in his LA 402-Design Theory and Exploration Focus Studio, a great time was had by all. A very special thank you to both Dolores and Martin for being such wonderful hosts!

Posted: 1.13.10

LA Students Featured in Slideshow on Building the 2010 Rose Float

Third year LA students Michelle Ahlstrom, Kelsey Christoffels, Brandon Schmiedeberg, and Sabrina Wise -- all members of the Cal Poly Rose Float Club -- are featured in a Photo Slideshow produced by Cal Poly's Public Affairs Office on the building of the award-winning 2010 Rose Float. Program alum Rick Stover (BLA, 1984) and Andrea Swanson (BS, Horticulture, 1973) submitted the winning design for the float, which won both the Bob Hope Humor Award and the KTLA Viewers' Choice Award. The parade float, "Jungle Cuts," depicting five barber monkeys styling the hair of various "clients" including a giraffe with a beehive, a snake with a flat top and a zebra with a mohawk, received the Bob Hope trophy for being judged the most comical and amusing entry. It also received the most votes in the KTLA.com contest. KTLA is a television station in Los Angeles, CA.

Updated: 1.21.10

LA Program Alum is "Top 20 Under 40" Winner

Alumna Bianca E. Koenig, ASLA, LEED AP, was one of twenty San Luis Obispo County residents chosen for The Tribune's 2009 "Top 20 under 40" award. Koenig works as a landscape architect for the Wallace Group, a multi-disciplinary firm headquartered in San Luis Obispo. She serves on the board of the California Central Coast Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council to advocate sustainable design. She also helped found the Deanna Maran Foundation for Non-Violence after her sister's death in 2001. Koenig received her BLA from Cal Poly in 2002.

In its fifth year, the Top 20 under 40 awards honor young leaders who have demonstrated excellence in their field and a strong committment to community service. Candidates for the award were nominated on-line during November 2009, and a review panel from the San Luis Obispo County Community Foundation selected the winners in December 2009 at The Tribune's request. Winners were recognized for their accomplishments at a special luncheon at the Madonna Inn January 21, 2010.

For more information, see The Tribune article about the Top 20 Under 40 winners.

Posted: 12.1.09

LA Program Earns Top Regional and National Rankings

Cal Poly’s Landscape Architecture program was named as one of the Top 20 undergraduate programs in the 2010 DesignIntelligence survey, which ranks public and private degree programs nationally. In this year's survey, the program ranked 1st in the eleven-state western region -- and 14th in the nation. Cal Poly’s LA program has made the Top 20 list every year since 2005, when the DesignIntelligence survey first started ranking landscape architecture programs.

DesignIntelligence is a bi-monthly journal published by the Design Futures Council, a Washington, D.C. think tank that explores trends and opportunities in design, architecture, engineering and building technology. For more information, see the Cal Poly news release about the DesignIntelligence rankings.

Posted: 11.23.09

LA and CRP Students Aid in Los Angeles Community Planning Efforts

Thirty LA and CRP students in a Fall 2009 LA/CRP interdisciplinary studio taught by professors Margarita Hill and Kelly Main are assisting with “Visions for Vermont,” a project of the Figueroa Corridor Coalition Land Trust. The project's goal is to increase neighborhood representation in creating a plan to guide redevelopment efforts primarily along Vermont Avenue in South Los Angeles but also including other areas that are part of the Figueroa Corridor. The outcome will be a document that outlines community design and planning strategies for consideration by the Los Angeles Department of City Planning in its revision of the South and Southeast L.A. Community Plans. Plans for both areas are in the second year of a three-year revision process. The current community plans have been in place for ten years.

Three “Visions for Vermont” events have been held so far, the first in mid-September, one in mid-October and the third earlier this month. During this month's event, held November 13, 2009, Cal Poly students in the interdisciplinary studio set up an interactive booth where community members could create their ideal neighborhood. The students offered a variety of paper cutouts, including trees, community centers, and street signs, for visitors to paste onto a blank map of the community. The LA and CRP students will also help with the next steps of the “Visions for Vermont” project, which will include putting together design plans that will reflect the needs and concerns of the community.

For more information, see the articles on USC's Daily Trojan and Annenberg Digital News web sites.

Posted: 11.23.09

2009 Edition of SLO Landscape: Cal Poly Landscape Architecture Journal Now Available

The 2009 edition of SLO Landscape, the landscape architecture department's journal, is now available. Edited by Prof. Omar Faruque, this year's issue includes articles written to inform professionals, academicians, and students of innovative design methods and techniques, case studies, and research not available in textbooks or published in other journals.

Department alum Rick Hume writes about designing the Orange County, California Great Park. Alum Paul Buchanan writes about designing and constructing the landscape of the Cleveland Clinic. Prof. Walt Bremer has an article about GIS at Cal Poly and beyond. CAED Dean Tom Jones writes about opportunities that lie ahead for landscape architects, Department Head Margarita Hill describes the recent accomplishments of our faculty and students, and the department's advisory council chair, Martin Flores, reflects on the future of the landscape architecture profession.

SLO Landscape also showcases student and alumni activities, including the extended field trip to Italy, Germany, and France, a service project in South Africa, alum Don Marquardt's one-man show devoted to Frederick Law Olmsted, and the Class of 1988's 30th reunion.

Didn't get your copy of SLO Landscape in the mail? Send an email, including your name and mailing address, to landscapearchitecture@calpoly.edu, and we'll mail a copy to you.

Posted: 11.23.09

Former Department Head John Flagg Gillham, 1933 - 2009

Former Department Head John Flagg Gillham, 76, died after a brief illness October 17, 2009, in Lewiston, Idaho.

Prof. Gillham was born in Flagstaff, Arizona, and grew up in western Oregon and eastern Washington. He obtained his undergraduate and graduate degrees in landscape architecture from the University of Oregon. He served as an associate professor at Oregon before joining the Cal Poly Landscape Architecture program in 1975 as program leader and, later, department head. At Cal Poly, he earned the rank of full professor and taught for over 20 years.

For more information, go to the John Flagg Gillham obituary in the San Luis Obispo Tribune.

Posted: 11.06.09

Grant Union's Environmental Science Academy Students Visit Cal Poly

The Landscape Architecture Department enthusiastically welcomed 13 students from Grant Union High School 's GEO Environmental Science and Design Academy, along with their Landscape Architecture Teacher, Daniela Tavares, on Friday, November 6, 2009. The students traveled from Sacramento, CA to San Luis Obispo to visit the department and learn more about the Cal Poly BLA program and the landscape architecture profession. Asst. Professor Beverly Bass serves on the Academy's Advisory Committee.

After a campus tour, shopping at the El Corral bookstore, and a visit to the Dexter LA studios, the group lunched on pizza and soft drinks in the Dexter Fireplace Room and talked about their program at the Academy and the program at Cal Poly with LA majors Aaron Anderson, Katie Blair, Michael Shadle, and Tyler Rinehart and with faculty members Beverly Bass, Walt Bremer, Gary Clay, Astrid Reeves, and David Watts. The high schoolers were interested in how our students had chosen Landscape Architecture as a major, the projects they had worked on, the possibilities of transferring from community college, and how much it costs to attend Cal Poly.

The GEO Academy is one of the California Partnership Academies - a three-year program (grades ten-twelve) structured as a school-within-a-school. The purpose of the program is to provide a specialized curriculum within the core high school curriculum that allows at-risk students to be exposed to career and educational options that are not typically part of the high school experience. According to the California Department of Education web site, Partnership Academies represent a high school reform movement focused on smaller learning communities with a career theme. Components include rigorous academics and technical education, with a career focus, a committed team of teachers, and active business and post-secondary partnerships.

For more information about Grant's Environmental Science and Design Academy, check out their video, "Eat at the Garden."

Posted: 11.05.09

Lecturer Louise Schiller Speaks at Chico Sustainability Conference

Louise Schiller was one of the presenters at the fifth annual This Way to Sustainability Conference at CSU, Chico. On November 5, 2009, Louise and her co-presenter, Phil Evans (San Francisco State University), presented "a model for using the urban landscape as a resource for sustainability education, integrating best landscape practices and involving academic partners fully in a vibrant research and education program." To learn more about the Chico Sustainability Conference and Louise's presentation, "Not Just a Pretty Face - Making Urban Landscapes a Living Laboratory," go to Chico's Sustainability V Conference website.

Brandon Schmiedeberg Featured in KCOY Rose Float Story

Local TV station KCOY's October 26, 2009 story about the unveiling of Cal Poly's 2010 Tournament of Roses float includes comments by fourth year student Brandon Schmiedeberg, one of the student volunteers who've been working for months on the float's concept and design. To learn more about this year's "Jungle Cuts" theme, and read what Brandon has to say about the float's "fun animination" elements and over-height mechanisms, go to the KCOY website.

Asst. Prof. David Watts Featured in Cal Poly Report

The Cal Poly Report's October 7, 2009 issue features the Cal Poly Preschool Learning Lab's new sustainable play area designed by faculty member David Watts, and featuring natural components such as pea gravel and Fibar, an engineered wood surface.

The preschoolers' play area is on University Drive right across from the Kennedy Library. Read about the new play area and see the photo of Dave on the playground at the Cal Poly Report website.

LA 404 Piedras Blancas Project Featured in Cal Poly Magazine

Cal Poly Magazine's Fall 2009 edition has as its cover story a project that lecturer Astrid Reeves' LA 404 Cultural Environments studio worked on during Spring 2009 -- the Piedras Blancas lighthouse. Landscape architecture, engineering, and journalism students, along with faculty and staff, are playing a major role in the effort to restore this historic, century-old light station, located on Highway 1 north of Hearst Castle.

To read the full article, "Beacon of Light," and to view the photos of the lighthouse taken by Astrid Reeves and fifth year student Floralba Pucci-Figueras, go to the Cal Poly Magazine website.

LA Majors Help Cal Poly Team Win Bank of America's
2009 Low-Income Housing Challenge

Two Landscape Architecture majors were on the Cal Poly interdisciplinary team that won the Bank of America 2009 Low-Income Housing Challenge. The 2009 competition also included teams from Stanford and UC Berkeley. The Cal Poly team partnered with People's Self Help Housing to create a physical and financial proposal for an 80-unit farm worker housing development in the unincorporated area of Santa Barbara County near Santa Maria, CA.  In addition to housing, the team's concept included a community and family education center, the renovation of the historic Alan Hancock house, an onsite wastewater treatment facility, and an organic community farm all designed to meet the particular needs of the farm worker population.  The development qualifies for LEED Silver certification.

Twelve students from six different campus departments made up this unusual interdisciplinary team, including LA majors Jennifer Webster and Wade Sherman (class of 2009). The other team members included seven students working toward bachelor degrees in architecture, business, city and regional planning, and construction management, as well as three masters students in city and regional planning and industrial technology.

The full proposal and a short video introducing the project are available for download at www.polyhousingcollaborative.com web site.

Students Develop UCSB Mall Designs

During Winter 2009 Landscape Architecture students under the leadership of Professor Omar Faruque were engaged in developing design solutions for the University of California, Santa Barbara, Tower Mall. The Tower Mall is part of the Campus Plan whose central goal is to provide a coherent system of open space appropriate for a respected University that facilitates communication and access among all parts of the campus.

The Plan recommends the early implementation of four key spaces which establish the framework for developing the campus. One of these key spaces is the Tower Mall: a grand entry space leading from Mesa Road to Storke Plaza.

The plan above was designed by David Dubois. To see all 13 student design solutions, go to the UCSB Campus Design and Facilities Tower Mall web page.

Alumna work featured on cover of Landscape Architecture Magazine

Vera Gates (1984) is co-owner of Arterra, a San Francisco-based landscape firm, whose work was featured the cover of the January 2009 edition of Landscape Architecture Magazine. Go to the Arterra Landscape Architects "In The Press" web page to see the full article.

Landscape Architecture Student Awarded National Scholarship

Landscape Architecture student Yessenia Alvarez-Lopez was awarded a scholarship by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Council of Fellows.

Rodney Swink, chairman of the Council of Fellows, noted that the 2008 pool of applicants was particularly outstanding. Alvarez-Lopez was "quickly singled out for her strong academic record, her many community initiatives and efforts beyond the college setting, and her unique financial challenges."

The scholarship was established in 2004 to aid outstanding students who would not otherwise have an opportunity to continue a professional degree program due to unmet financial need. Alvarez-Lopez was one of two students to receive the $4,000 Council of Fellows Scholarship.

The scholarship was awarded through the Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF) whose mission is to support the preservation, improvement and enhancement of the environment. In 2008 the LAF awarded 24 scholarships and fellowship grants totaling $96,500. The winning students were selected from a pool of 144 applicants.

Landscape Architecture Foundation web site.

Landscape Architecture Celebrates 35 Years

In May of 2008, we celebrated 35 years of Landscape Architecture at Cal Poly. The Alumni Dinner and Silent Auction, which closed the weekend celebration, was held at the Vina Robles winery in Paso Robles. All who joined in the celebration had a truly memorable weekend.

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