Cal Poly’s College of Engineering (CENG) plans to put its funds raised during this year’s Poly Gives campaign towards promoting hands-on learning in Cal Poly’s machine shops.
Poly Gives is a digital giving campaign that Cal Poly has hosted for the last six years, where donors can give money to a department or program of their choice. The three-day event brought in more than $300,000 from 945 gifts for various departments and programs, including all six academic colleges.
The Poly Gives website explained that this year’s event coincided with Open House from April 13 through 15 to increase its impact on the Cal Poly community.
Accumulated from 206 donors, the CENG raised the most money out of all participating colleges and programs during this event, bringing in more than $63,000.
According to CENG’s Director of Marketing and Communications Charlotte Tallman, the funds will go towards subsidizing student shop techs.
“Student shop techs are at the heart of Learn by Doing,” Tallman said. “They provide machine shop safety training for over 1,000 users each year across all majors, enabling a wide swath of students to learn skills, craft projects and participate in clubs.”
CENG received gifts for all 10 of its departments as well as some of its programs like the Women’s Engineering Program throughout the event.
“Our students have a reputation for being curious problem solvers, creative thinkers and, above all, hands-on doers,” Tallman said. “Donor support through initiatives like Poly Gives allows us to provide the Learn by Doing education our students deserve.”