California State Polytechnic University, Pomona is a public, nationally-ranked, coeducational university situated at the western corner of the city of Pomona, a suburb of Los Angeles, California, and is adjacent to the Kellogg Interchange and Mt. San Antonio College. Commonly known as Cal Poly Pomona, it is one of the 23 campuses that comprise the California State University and one of the six polytechnic universities in the United States along with the Polytechnic University of New York, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Southern Polytechnic State University, Northwestern Polytechnic University, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

History

W.K. Kellogg develops Arabian horse ranch

W.K. Kellogg, known for his famous Corn Flakes, had a life long passion for Arabian horses. After purchasing 377 acres at a cost of $25,000 USD, Kellogg developed the land into a world-renowned Arabian horse ranch. The first building erected contained the horse stables and it used to be located where the university plaza currently exists.

On May 17, 1932 a crowd of more that 20,000 spectators converged on the ranch to witness Kellogg’s donation of his Arabian Horse Ranch, including 87 horses to the California State University. In return for the generous grant, the University agreed to keep the Arabian horses and to continue the Sunday Horse shows that began in 1927.

In 1927, Charles B. Voorhis purchased 150 acres of land near San Dimas to build a facility for students of agriculture.

In 1933, Julian McPhee, assumed the presidency of the California State Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo. Known for his tight fiscal policy, McPhee saved the University during the years of the great depression. After those bleak years, McPhee vision of expanding Cal Poly Pomona to Southern California came close to reality.

Cal Poly Pomona expands

Plagued with financial problems, Voorhis was forced to close his doors only ten years after he had opened his facility. The demise of the facility gave McPhee the opportunity to expand Cal Poly Pomona. In August of 1938, Charles Voorhis donated his facility as a gift to the California State University System. In the same year, McPhee’s request for the land was approved and the entire horticulture program was moved form San Luis Obispo to the new Southern California campus.

Further expansion was halted by the onset of World War 2. The southern Cal Poly campus was closed when the majority of its students where called into active duty and the former Kellogg ranch was transformed into an Army remount station. After the war, the ranch faced an uncertain future, but in 1949 the 813-acre W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch was deeded to the state, a proposal to which Kellogg foundation agreed, provided the Sunday horse shows returned.

In 1949, the first Cal Poly Pomona Float was entered in the Tournament of the Roses Parade and won the Award of Merit. The Rose Float tradition continues today and marks the partnership between the two Cal Poly campuses.

In 1956, the first classes were held on the campus in the present-day science building. Six programs in agriculture, leading to four Bachelor of Science degrees, were offered. In the class of 1957, 57 agricultural majors were the first graduates of Cal Poly Pomona. By, 1959, the curricula of the college included six degree programs in the arts and sciences and four in their nationally recognized engineering program.

Women join Cal Poly Pomona

Many changes occurred in 1961 which affected Cal Poly Pomona profoundly. The Master Plan for Higher Education established the California State College System with its own Board of Trustees, and 329 women enrolled at the University for the first time. In that same year, the Legislature enacted Education Code Section 22606, which identified the primary function of the State College as “…the provision of instruction for undergraduate students and graduate students, through the master’s degree, in the liberal arts and sciences, in applied fields and in the professions, including the teaching profession.”

The Legislature recognized the special responsibility of this institution as a “polytechnic college” by adding Education Code 40051 which authorized the college to emphasize “…the applied fields of agriculture, business, home economics, and other occupational and professional fields.”

In 1966, the California State Polytechnic College, Kellogg-Voorhis, was established as a separate institution from the San Luis Obispo school. Both campuses were awarded full university status in 1972. On June 1, 1972, the campus name was officially changed to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. In 1982, The California State University and Colleges became The California State University.

In the last 50 years, Cal Poly Pomona’s expansive campus has grown from its humble beginnings as a horse ranch to a nationally and internationally recognized institution with approximately 19,800 students and 2,640 faculty and staff members.

Academics

Cal Poly Pomona promotes its "learn by doing" philosophy, where an essential part of the curriculum is hands-on application of knowledge. The university shares with the University of California, Riverside, the distinction of having the only agriculture programs in Southern California. Farmlands flank the campus, giving a stark contrast to a stereotypical urban university. Furthermore, Cal Poly Pomona and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo maintain the only accredited architecture programs in the California State University system.

Cal Poly ranked 31st among Western Colleges in the U.S. News & World Report's 2006 college ranking and was named one of the "Best of the West" by The Princeton Review. [http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/regional/regional_results.asp?state=CA®ion=WE&page=1

The most popular undergraduate majors include Business Administration, Liberal Studies, Computer Science, Animal Science, Hospitality management, Biology, and Psychology. In terms of comprehensive rankings, U.S. News & World Report placed Cal Poly Pomona's Engineering Program 5th nationally among the best public undergraduate engineering programs, and 14th overall, in the publication's 2006 Guide to Colleges 1.

Some departments (mostly in engineering) continue to follow the originally mandatory requirement for an undergraduate senior/research thesis to graduate.

Programs and degrees

The university currently offers BA, BS, and Masters Degrees in seven colleges:

• Agriculture

• Agricultural Biology
• Agricultural Education
• Agronomy
• Animal Health Science

• Animal Science
• Apparel Merchandising and Management
• Food Marketing and Agribusiness Management
• Food Science and Technology

• Food & Nutrition
• Horticulture
• Landscape Irrigation Science
• Soil Science