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Student Success – Cultivate Summer 2026
A group of nine students, that make of the Cal Poly Soil Judging Team, pose for a photo while sitting in a large hole in the ground in a field.

World Cup Experience

A student wearing a yellow tee-shirt that reads "OLE, OLE, OLE, OLE, OLE, OLE, OLE, OLE" stands next to seats in a stadium during a World Cup match.

Experience Industry Management students Holland Roberts and Dean Snow, along with recent graduate Lanyssa Cantu, all concentrating in sport and recreation management, turned classroom learning into real-world experience while working at FIFA World Cup venues from San Francisco to Atlanta.

As Visa Brand Ambassadors, they welcomed fans from around the world, and helped KultureCity create memorable game-day experiences. Along the way, they built valuable professional connections and gained firsthand insight into the global sports industry. Their advice to fellow students: step outside your comfort zone — the opportunities that seem out of reach may become the experience of a lifetime.

National Floral Honors

Two students wearing dresses stand next to their advisor.

The Cal Poly Floral Team earned fourth place at the National American Institute of Floral Designers (SAIFD) Symposium in Orlando, Florida, in July, competing against top collegiate floral design programs from across the country. 

Kinesiology major Vanessa Nunez-Jacinde and business major Olivia Venegas-Hernandez also received individual honors for their designs. The symposium was equally memorable for Cal Poly alumni: Marlene Delgado (Agricultural and Environmental Plant Sciences, '25) was inducted into the American Institute of Floral Designers, while Kiara Benavides (Agricultural Science, '22) completed the AIFD certification exam. In addition, Cal Poly SAIFD students and alumni earned five scholarships for the 2026–27 academic year, reflecting the program's continued excellence on the national stage.

 

 

A group of 14 students stand with the dean for a photo during the Student Leadership Awards banquet.

Student Leadership Awards

At the annual Student Leadership Banquet in May, the college recognized outstanding student leaders whose achievements embody Cal Poly's Learn by Doing philosophy.

Student leadership award recipients:

  • Academic Excellence Award - Ashley Sanft, environmental management and protection  
  • Inclusive Excellence Award - Ashlyn Fujioka, animal science  
  • Contributions to the Objectives and Public Image of the College Award - Kaylen Jaime, agricultural communication
  • Contributions to the Objectives and Public Image of the University Award - Reagan Denny, bioresource and agricultural engineering  
  • Service to the Community Award - Jade Meichtry, bioresource and agricultural engineering    
  • CAFES Ambassadors Dean's Award - Marissa Johnston, food science  
  • CAFES Student Employee of the Year Award - Christine Ayala, animal science, Equine Unit student employee; and Rayya Saad, wine and viticulture, CAFES Advising Center student employee
  • Louis H. and Stella Soares Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture - Angel Guerrero, agricultural systems management  

These accomplishments highlight the innovation, collaboration and applied problem-solving that define the CAFES student experience.  

 

A student presents a poster from her research during the Summer Undergraduate Research Program

Spring Research Symposium

The college celebrated undergraduate and graduate student research during the annual CAFES Spring Student Research Symposium in May, recognizing projects that demonstrate innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration and applied problem-solving.

Graduate student award recipients included Ria Chhabra (M.S. Agriculture, Crop Science Specialization), Daniel DeGeorge (M.S. Food Science) and Colin Koubek (M.S. Agriculture, Plant Protection Specialization). Their research explored topics ranging from pest management in strawberries and food upcycling to organic nitrogen mineralization and fertilizer placement.  

Undergraduate research awards were presented to environmental management and protection majors Eleanor Attard, Sonia LeMonier and Ellie Wooten. Their projects examined vineyard soil health, wildfire, sudden oak death management and strategies for reducing the environmental impacts of small-scale honey production.  

The symposium highlighted the depth and breadth of student research taking place across CAFES and showcased the mentorship of faculty advisors who support student discovery through Cal Poly's Learn by Doing philosophy.

National Competition Success

A student stands next to a leaderboard for a national sales competition.

Agricultural business students earned top honors at the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) Marketing and Sales Competition in April. 

The Cal Poly team was named one of six finalists and received the Best Product Name award for Wheybetter Soup, a line of high-protein, whey-based soups. In the sales competition, Sequoia Davies and Ella Rodgers both advanced to the finals, with Davies earning first place. Marketing team members were DJ Coughlan, Luisa Cuencar, JD Danley, Sequoia Davies, Zetta Espinola, Addy Heermance, Wesley Marrs, Victoria Paolini (agricultural communication), Jackson Pawl, Ella Rodgers, and Reagan Schmitt.

Five students and a professor smile as they stand on stage with arms full awards during a Dairy Products Judging competition.

Back-to-Back Champions

The Cal Poly Dairy Products Judging Team, comprised of Sam Bass (animal science), Laura Campagne (dairy science), Andrea Cerros (animal science), Jazzy De Los Santos (computer science), Maya Farris (dairy science) and coached by Professor Vincent Yeung captured its second consecutive national championship at the 102nd Collegiate Dairy Products Evaluation Contest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in April.

In one of the closest competitions in the event's history, the team secured the overall title in a tiebreaker while extending its five-year winning streak in the ice cream category and earning first place in butter evaluation. Yeung was named 2026 Coach of the Year and was presented with the Aurelia and George Weigold Coach’s Award. The repeat championship highlights the team's continued excellence and Cal Poly's Learn by Doing tradition.

A group of nine students, that make of the Cal Poly Soil Judging Team, pose for a photo while sitting in a large hole in the ground in a field.

Cal Poly Soil Judging Team 

The Cal Poly Soil Judging Team placed 10th overall in the nation at the National Collegiate Soil Judging Contest in Raleigh, North Carolina, in March — marking their fifth consecutive year in the top 10. The team also earned first-place in group judging, where the entire team collaborates on soil analysis. The milestone represents the team’s first-ever first-place finish in a competition category.

The team included students majoring in environmental earth and soil sciences or environmental management and protection: Nick Baham, Danny Benitez Saucedo, Mollie Bressler, Maxwell Casem, Kacie Giordano, Sophia Hoang, Erin Kennedy, Lauren Larson, Gabriella Lewis, Sophia Tinkey, Sage Urey, Gavin Wong. 

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