The College of Engineering has dedicated one of its labs in honor of alumnus Martin Colombatto and his family, who provided new equipment through a $100,000 donation.
Colombatto, ¿82, engineering technology, said his gift was prompted by a visit to the college a couple of years ago. He was surprised that students were using the same instruments that he used during his undergraduate years.
¿Cal Poly Pomona has a world-class engineering program, and the students deserve to be working with state-of-the-art equipment. This was kind of a natural way, a good fit for us to give back to this institution that gave me so much,¿ Colombatto said at the Feb. 10 dedication ceremony, which he attended with his wife, Stefanie, and his parents.
The cost of a hands-on education is greater than one based on theory and lectures, said university President Michael Ortiz. State funding for higher education has not provided for the level of equipment that students and faculty need.
¿It¿s impossible for us to [stay current] without the assistance and kind gifts from alumni and industry,¿ Ortiz said. ¿This is going to have a significant impact not only on the students who will benefit from it but also on the faculty and what they are able to do with the students.¿
The Colombatto Family Laboratory lab features 70 new pieces of equipment ¿ five on each of the 14 work benches ¿ used by the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Department of Engineering Technology. The digital multimeter, oscilloscope, function generator, power supply and Dell OptiPlex computer allow students to practice building, testing and troubleshooting electrical circuits. Compared to the old instruments, the new versions are more advanced, more precise and provide a wider range of functions.
Cal Poly Pomona has embarked on a $150 million comprehensive fundraising campaign to ensure that a quality college education is within reach for future generations of students. The campaign will strengthen the university’s ability to provide a hands-on education, to prepare students for the changing demands of the workplace, and to increase research and scholarship opportunities. The fundraising campaign relies on the support of the entire campus community — from alumni to faculty and staff to friends of the university. For more information, visit http://campaign.cpp.edu/.