Latest Achievements

Student Phoebe Hughes had a work accepted into the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles Illustration West 61 exhibition. The drawing, Trash Griffins, was created in Fall 2022's ART 321: Drawing II: The Natural World, taught by Associate Professor Brandice Gonzalez-Guerra. Phoebe's work in the exhibition may be seen at this link: https://illustrationwest.org/61/student/trash-griffins/

Paul Michael Leonardo Atienza was an invited discussant to a sponsored panel on LGBT Rights in Southeast Asia at the 2023 Association for Asian Studies (AAS) annual conference (March 16-19) held in Boston, MA. The Rising Voices panel is an annual competitive selection process among advanced doctoral students and un-tenured assistant professors on a different topic or theme for inclusion in the AAS conference. The Rising Voices panel is organized by the Southeast Asia Council of AAS and with generous financial support by the journal, TRaNS: Trans-Regional and -National Studies of Southeast Asia.

Paul Michael Leonardo Atienza was an invited participant in a two-day workshop gathering Asian/American researchers, policymakers, & community organizers working on projects and advocacy focused on digital disinformation. Hosted by the Dept. of Communication at UMass Amherst, with generous support from Luminate and Reset, workshop participants shared works-in-progress and engaged in dialogue on interdisciplinary strategies to understand histories of racially targeted misinformation and hate speech. 

Dr. Ho Yi Wan received a grant from the CSU Agricultural Research Institute to support research on a collaborative project that will develop a viable business plan associated with mass timber production in the coastal region of northern California. Dr. Wan and his lab will be responsible for assessing some of the ecological benefits of this plan, primarily with regards to wildfire risks reduction from timber harvest.

Adams, D., Bellinger, G. (2023). Engaging Students in your Classroom through a Structured Learning Approach. California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (CAHPERD; Santa Clara).

Adams., D. (March, 2023). Integrating a collaborative and proactive solutions model into your classroom. California Association for Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance  Conference (CAHPERD; Santa Clara).

Dr. Ramona j.j. Bell was an invited speaker in celebration of Women's Herstory Month at the University of Colorado Boulder on March 7, 2023.  She presented from her forthcoming book, Sporting DIVAS: Black Womanhood, Empowerment & Belonging. 

Marcos Hernandez and Janelle Adsit have published an essay that reflects on Cal Poly Humboldt's literary magazine *Toyon: Multilingual Journal of Literature and Art.* Their chapter, "Literary Journals, Editorial Courses, and Equity in the Publishing Industry," appears in the collection *Creative Writing Scholars on the Publishing Trade* (edited by Sam Meekings and Marshall Moore; published in the Routledge series Studies in Creative Writing, 2022). 

Dr. Sara K. Sterner and her colleagues, Dr. Megan M. Van Deventer (Weber State University) and Laura Lemanski, ABD (University of Minnesota, MCAD) recently presented their work "Innovative Collaboration: A (Co)Process Model for Teacher Educator Collectives" at the 75th Annual National Meeting of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE 2023).

Jill Anderson, David Adams, and Chris Hopper with the help of 3 graduate students published the following book chapter. Anderson, J., Adams, D., Hopper, C., Valdez, M. A., Hughes, D., & Ruland, K. (2023). Collaborative Preparation of Special Educators and Adapted Physical Educators. In Handbook of Research on Interdisciplinary Preparation for Equitable Special Education (pp. 65-84). IGI Global.  

Drs. Erin Kelly, Benjamin Graham, and Jeff Kane received a grant from the Joint Fire Science Program (administered by the Departments of Interior and Agriculture) to support a study on community recovery after wildfires, and how recovery can lead to social-ecological resilience. The study will look into what recovery looks like in communities impacted by wildfires, the networks within communities present for recovery, and the resources available to implement community recovery. Findings will be useful for policy makers trying to create funding, regulatory, and other policy mechanisms to facilitate community recovery, and organizations working toward social-ecological resilience in fire-prone landscapes.

Dawn Arledge was awarded $1.8 million of a $5 million planning grant to support the Community Economic Resilience Fund (CERF), a collaborative project between the California Center for Rural Policy (CCRP) at Cal Poly Humboldt and 12 other Regional Conveners across the state. The initiative will center community participation to create a regional economic development plan that will support an equitable economic transition to a carbon neutral economy. Within the Redwood Coast Region (Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, and Mendocino Counties), CCRP will partner with the Arcata Economic Development Corporation and North Coast Opportunities. Visit ccrp.humboldt.edu for more.

Co-authored a year long study and report on demographic and compensation trends of collegiate outdoor program professional staff. The report is available here. This report provides valuable information for staff and program managers who are attempting to close the gap in pay disparities, and elevate diversity, equity and inclusion in the outdoor industry.

Ray Shirley has been admitted to the McNair Scholars Program, a federal TRIO program that is designed to prepare undergraduate students for doctoral studies through involvement in research and other scholarly activities. Ray will be working with Dr. Marianne Ahokas on forthcoming research projects. The English department congratulates Ray on this significant accomplishment! 

Graduate students Regina Khoury and Sarah Leidinger (Geology) are the 2022-2023 recipients of the $1,500 Richard Chambers Memorial Scholarships from the Northern California Geological Society. Regina Khoury's MS thesis proposal is titled “Pre-Eruptive Storage Conditions of Magmas Erupted During the ~12ka Flare Up of Medicine Lake Volcano, CA.” Her advisor is Dr. Brandon L. Browne in Geology. Sarah Leidinger's MS thesis proposal is titled “Bathymetry and carbon accumulation rate of a rare Northern California coastal peatland.” Her advisor is Dr. Laura Levy in Geology. Congratulations Regina and Sarah! 

Drs. Cutcha Risling Baldy and Kaitlin Reed received a $50,000 grant from the S. H. Cowell Foundation for the Rou Dalagurr Food Sovereignty Lab and Traditional Ecological Knowledges Institute. Funding will support general operations, ongoing yearly programs, and temporary initiatives of the Lab, including funding for personnel, supplies, and community events and engagement.

Nicolette Amann has been awarded $27,000 in funding from the University of California Office of the President to support a variety of literacy-focused professional development programs for local K-16 educators.

Assoc. Professor Rae Robison, National Member at Large in Design, Technology & Management for the Kennedy Center American College Theatre organization, served as a guest respondent for the Region 1 festival in Cape Cod, Massachusetts last week. Rae led a team of professionals from Yale, the New York City Ballet and other universities from across the country in responses to student designs in scenic, sound, costume and lighting design as well as allied crafts. Rae also co-responded to the invited production of Everybody from Naugatuck Valley Community College.

Associate Professor Brandice Guerra had two paintings, "I, Said the Kite" and "Bebecita", accepted into the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles Illustration West 61 exhibition. One of these works, "Bebecita", received an Honorable Mention. The judging panel, composed of prominent professional illustrators, received over 1400 entries from over 450 artists. 301 works from 183 artists were selected for inclusion. The exhibition website will launch in the beginning of March, 2023.  https://si-la.org/illustration-west-61-accepted-artists/  http://www.brandiceguerra.com/oil-paintings/I-Said-the-Kite-Web.jpg.php http://www.brandiceguerra.com/oil-paintings/Bebecita-Web.jpg.php  

Hunter Harrill (Forestry) was a co-author of a recently published article titled "Operational Analysis of Grapple Yarding in New Zealand: A Case Study of Three Mechanized Harvesting Operations"  in the journal Forests. https://doi.org/10.3390/f14020190

Dr. Frye was invited to provide strategic communication support to WindLift, Inc.  WindLift is a research and development technology firm working to bring next generation wind energy to the market with airborne power generation (APG) that is mobile, off-grid, and smart.  WindLift is a Department of Defense contractor currently operating under the aegis of the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (ODASD) for Environment & Energy Resilience.

Dr. Silvia Pavan received a grant from the National Science Foundation to implement a project that will digitize and georeference Cal Poly Humboldt’s mammal collection. The project will be part of a collaborative effort under the Ranges Thematic Collections Network (Ranges TCN), an initiative lead by the University of North Carolina, to digitize and mobilize trait data from mammalian museum specimens from across the American West, including standard external morphological measurements, reproductive and life history observations, and information on ecological associations. Resulting trait datasets will support next-generation anatomical and evolutionary research, and provide baselines for future population monitoring efforts.

Erik Jules (Biological Sciences) published a paper with ten Humboldt student co-authors in the American Journal of Botany (doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.16112). The study -- titled "Genotype accounts for intraspecific variation in the timing and duration of life cycle events" -- was an experimental study of willows covering an area approximately the size of a football field. The results showed that the timing of key life events, such as leaf emergence, flowering, and fruit set, are all heritable traits, indicating that natural selection could favor some individuals under changing climate conditions. Of the ten students, six went onto graduate school after leaving Humboldt.

Professor Alison Holmes (INTL) has been invited to be on the international steering committee of a European Commission Jean Monnet grant hosted by George Washington University. The three-year grant is designed to explore the growing field subnational diplomacy through publications and the creation of executive education programming for city, county, tribal and state officials. Holmes was included on the basis of her scholarship on California’s unique role in international affairs.

Dr. Meenal Rana, along with Michigan State University and University of Michigan colleagues, guest edited the special issue of Research in Human Development (Issue Title: College Women of Color, CWOC). The issue focused on the resilience processes found among diverse groups of CWOC focusing on the key concepts in development (emerging adulthood), intersectionality, resilience and resistance. Included are the studies with African American and Latina young adult women, Latina mothers, and Chinese International students. Dr. Rana engaged two undergraduate students from Cal Poly Humboldt to contribute one article. Additionally, Dr. Rana co-authored the editorial. Vol 19 (3-4), July-Dec 22.