Cal Poly Agribusiness Department to Celebrate Decades of Success on November 8

San Luis Opispo CA – Cal Poly’s Agribusiness Department will host its first-ever gala reunion for current students, alumni, faculty and friends on November 8, 2014, at the Madonna Inn Expo Center.
The department traces its roots to 1956, when the Farm Management Department was formally established. Over the years, the department has seen many changes, but the constant has been the dedication to Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing educational philosophy and a commitment to student success.
“The Agribusiness Gala Reunion will celebrate the theme ‘Honoring the Past and Advancing the Future,’” said Agribusiness Department Chair Jay Noel. “It will provide an opportunity to recognize the accomplishments and contributions made by thousands of past graduates in their careers and communities, as well as emeriti faculty, staff and other stakeholders who built the foundation on which the current agribusiness program stands.”
The department will host several events throughout the day, including a morning 5K fun run around the Cal Poly campus, followed by the unearthing of the Agribusiness Department time capsule, a golf outing at the Morro Bay golf course and an on-campus barbeque. All pre-gala festivities will end by 1 p.m.; the gala will begin at 5 p.m.
Retired and emeriti faculty will be honored, including special recognition of Professor Robert McCorkle for his more than 50 years of service to the department.
The gala reunion also provides an opportunity to learn about the challenges and opportunities the department will face as it prepares the next generation of students to enter a changing economic, political and global environment that will require them to critically and creatively think and adapt to new technologies and innovations and effectively work with diverse groups of individuals.
More information, including how to get involved, can be found on the department’s website at agb.calpoly.edu/content/gala. For more information about the department, go to agb.calpoly.edu.