Nineteen students from Cal Poly visited the State Capitol Monday, Feb. 11 to be recognized for various efforts and accomplishments in front of the State Assembly and Senate.
The honorees come from an array of academic backgrounds and their achievements span from their commitment to their clubs to national competitions, according to Cal Poly.
The students honored were Abraham Ahmed, Brandon Almeida, Lauren Arendt, Kyle Branch Thomas Brandt, Cody Capella, Jasmin Fashami, Ally Forster, Samantha Galicinao, Jacky Loh, Connor McCarthy, Natalie Miller, Sara Novell, Braden Povah, Alyssa Snow, Brandon Strong, Brian Truong, Jacob Winter and Sabrina Yerena.
Mechanical engineering senior Sara Novell is an honoree for her participation in the Cal Poly Rose Float. Novell was the president of the 2018-19 Cal Poly Rose Float, climbing the ladder of responsibility throughout a five-year period to become the leader of the club.
“I always watched it growing up and it kind of became this joke that if I came to Cal Poly I would at least just try out working for the Rose float, so I tried it out as a freshman and fell in love with it,” Novell said.
Novell said she was excited to see the impact her club has had not just on the school, but on a statewide level. The Cal Poly Rose Float was given the Extraordinaire Award for most extraordinary float in the 130th Tournament of Roses. As of now, Novell is working on her masters thesis, for which she will be installing a microscope that analyzes optics for a big laser.
Proud to be recognizing our Cal Poly students on the assembly floor alongside ASI President Jasmin Fashami and Society of Women Engineer Samantha Galicinao. #MadeInTheCSU pic.twitter.com/LPC1dLi1ke
— Jeffrey D. Armstrong (@CPPrezArmstrong) February 11, 2019
Another student being recognized for his achievements is civil engineer senior Thomas Brandt. Brandt was part of the Steel Bridge Team that went on to place second last year in the National Steel Bridge Competition.
“I think it’s cool that they’re recognizing different groups at Cal Poly for doing well in their respective disciplines and be recognized for hard work,” Brandt said.
Although he was a volunteer last year for the club, Brandt has ascended to become the design lead for this year’s steel bridge project. After graduating, Brandt hopes to one day have his own company that will be a, “one-stop shop,” for building custom houses.
The group of students was introduced to the California Senate by Majority Leader Bill Monning, D-Carmel, and to the State Assembly by Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham, R-San Luis Obispo.
“These fine young men and women are among our best and brightest students,” University President Jeffrey D. Armstrong said, who accompanied the group to Sacramento. “They will share the value of Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing education with our state lawmakers and university boosters.
Three Mustang News leaders were honored, including journalism senior and Social Media Director Lauren Arendt, journalism senior and Chief Anchor Connor McCarthy, and journalism junior and Sports Editor Brian Truong.