The second in a series of open workshops for the Campus Master Plan process on Nov. 9 offered university stakeholders an opportunity to show what’s important to them.

The “Visioning + Observations” workshop gave consulting firm Ayers Saint Gross, which is leading the master planning process, more perspectives to integrate into its preliminary analysis. For the hands-on portion of the workshop, participants marked comments on blue and yellow stickers and emoji-decorated notes, and placed them on sections of the campus contained on large maps.

A draft of the master plan, which aims to establish campus priorities and envision the physical landscape of the university in the coming decades, is expected to be completed in fall 2018 for consideration by university leadership. When the next master plan is adopted, Facilities Planning & Management will carry out the objectives that involve the campus infrastructure. The current Campus Master Plan was adopted in 2000.

In addition to placing comments on maps, some of the workshop attendees also shared their viewpoints about the importance of being part of the master planning process:

“I think the university is going through a lot of transition and change. As I support my students, I want to feel like I have a well-versed understanding of what’s happening. If you’re not informed about change, it can cause a lot anxiety and the workshop was very helpful for me to learn where the university is headed. I think the plan is very comprehensive and it’s informed by research. I feel a little more comfortable and at ease, so I hope I can share that with my colleagues and students.”

TIM ALEXANDER
Interim coordinator
Project SUCCESS

“Something that I don’t think students pay a lot of attention to is stuff that happens here, like how people use buildings, how people use land. It’s actually really important because this is where we live and we learn and we work.”

LARISSA SHEN
Junior majoring in biotechnology

“I feel it is important for everyone to participate in this project. Our campus is diverse in so many ways, it is vital that we all share our perspectives and ideas so that the future of our campus reflects this wonderful diversity.”

KEVIN T. COLANER
Associate Vice President for Student Services

“I’m a big advocate of public transit. I’ve lived abroad in Spain and Europe, and used public transit all over the world. I’m also epileptic, so sometimes I can’t drive. I have to rely on public transit wherever I go periodically. I also see it as an issue of social justice and accessibility. I’ve known more students who’ve had issues taking time off from school or dropping out because they couldn’t actually afford to get to campus. It’s not always the textbooks, it’s not always the tuition. It’s that they don’t have a car, they can’t afford a car, they can’t afford the parking, they can’t afford the maintenance or they can’t get a ride. So they miss a lot of classes, they can’t take required classes that are really early or really late. In 2½ years of working here, I’ve known at least two or three students who dropped out because of access issues and other students who have gone into debt because they had to buy a car, or they’re late all the time, or their grades have suffered. I saw them suffering through the quarter, so I joined the Transportation Advisory Committee because I saw this being a social justice issue, not just a green issue, not just the convenience issue.”

JESSIE VALLEJO
Assistant Professor of Music, Ethnomusicology
Director, Mariachi Ensemble

 “Spadra Farm is where we learn by doing. That’s where we’re forcing innovation, where we’re trying new things, organic farming, different irrigation technologies. That’s where students get their hands dirty and learn. We will be the farmers of today and tomorrow.”

FABIOLA PEREZ
Senior majoring in agribusiness and plant science

 “I’m interested in the bigger picture, where the overall campus is going in terms of the infrastructure that we’re going to be using in the future. At the College of Engineering, we want to grow our enrollment but we need to have the infrastructure to go along with that.”

RONALD YEUNG
College of Engineering
Interim Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Student Services

“Attending the workshop was an opportunity for me to learn about the Campus Master Plan process. The workshop allowed me to highlight some of the strengths the campus should expand upon, and provide suggestions for areas that could be improved. Cal Poly Pomona is a great campus and it is exciting to see how it may evolve and change for future generations.”

CHRISTINA WADE
Web developer and designer
IT, Campus and Web Applications

“We’re such a diverse campus and one of the things that I want to make sure that they continue to focus on is diversity. We have a very diverse population, but the buildings themselves do not show that diversity. From personal experience after surgery on my foot, I had to be in a scooter for three months. I learned so much about accessibility and I wanted to make that a very clear point. There’s a lot of things we can do to improve accessibility. There are students who have accessibility issues long-term and it’s part of their life. I love the campus and love the fact that these faculty, staff and students are able to come and have a voice.”

SANDY DIXON
Interim chair, professor
Department of Ethnic & Women’s Studies

“I wanted to find out how the future plans of this university will affect my work, my career here. I do want to leave a legacy here, so I want to know how (the master plan) can impact that.”

BRYAN VAN NORDEN
’16, plant science
Don B. Huntley College of Agriculture staff member