Achievements

Gabi Kirk

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Dr. Gabi Kirk was awarded a American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowship for 2026-27 to support the writing of her first scholarly monograph, Cultivating Sustainable Sovereignty: Palestinian Agrarian Lives in Transnational Focus.
AAUW’s largest funding program began in 1888, making it one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious fellowship programs exclusively for women. This fellowship supports women scholars who are completing doctoral dissertations, conducting postdoctoral research, or finishing research for publication. AAUW (American Association of University Women) is the nation’s leading organization for equity in higher education and women’s economic empowerment. Founded in 1881 by women who defied society’s conventions by earning college degrees, AAUW has since worked to increase women’s access, opportunity, and equity in higher education through advocacy and philanthropy of more than $146 million, supporting thousands of women scholars. Learn more at aauw.org. 

Socks Lucas, Natalie Anthone, Mia Harmon

Art + Film

Cal Poly Humboldt Ceramics students were invited to participate in the California Conference for the Advancement of Ceramic Art (CCACA) in Davis. Hosted by John Natsoulas Gallery, the conference brings together more than 50 ceramics programs from across the state, creating a dynamic environment for exhibition, dialogue, and exchange.

Our ceramics students represented Cal Poly Humboldt with distinction, exhibiting their work alongside peers from throughout California. Their efforts were recognized with several major awards: Socks Lucas received First Place, Natalie Anthone was awarded Second Place, and Mia Harmon was awarded the honor of a solo exhibition at the John Natsoulas Gallery.

Congratulations, CCACA 2026 Ceramic Students!

Myles Chrispeels

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Geospatial Science and Technology major Myles Chrispeels won the Christopherson Geosystems Student Award for his paper "A Workflow for the Remote Sensing of Turbidity in Freshwater" at the California Geographical Society annual conference in Huntington Beach, CA. In this paper, Myles demonstrates a methodology for using high-resolution imagery and publicly available field data to develop an accessible, statistically sound workflow for monitoring turbidity and water quality patterns in freshwater drinking-water reservoirs. 

Tony Nichols

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Geography major Tony Nichols won third place in the Tom McKnight Undergraduate Student Paper Award at the California Geographical Society annual conference in Huntington Beach, CA, for her paper Finding Belonging: Interviews with Queer People Across Humboldt County. In her paper, Tony highlights how queer residents in Humboldt County experience belonging, exclusion, and uncertainty across different community spaces, underscoring the importance of “third places” and supportive local environments in shaping LGBTQ+ well-being.

Ari Dixon

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Ari Dixon won third place in the undergraduate Student Cartography Award at the California Geographical Society Annual Meeting in Huntington Beach, CA. This map uses a creative visualization to highlight woman-owned breweries across the U.S. West Coast, using proportional symbols to show the number of breweries within 100-mile buffers and callout boxes to spotlight specific brewery stories in Washington, Oregon, and California. 

Will Bellairs

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Geospatial Science and Technology major Will Bellairs won first place in the Tom McKnight Undergraduate Student Paper Award at the California Geographical Society Annual Conference in Huntington Beach, CA. Will's paper, titled Map Games: Learning Map Literacy through Engaging Play, demonstrated the design and classroom testing of an interactive educational map game he developed to increase elementary school students' geographic learning. 

Ari Dixon, Margaret Dailey, Liam Blackburn, Myles Chrispeels, Sawyer Hofstetter, Tony Nichols, Will Bellairs, Astra Mattingly, Kyra Kranyak-Schwartz, Paul Blank

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Nine students from the Geography and Geospatial Science and Technology programs represented the department at the California Geographical Society Annual Conference in Huntington Beach, California, where they presented original research and cartographic work. In the paper presentation sessions, Will Bellairs, Myles Chrispeels, and Tony Nichols shared their research. Liam Blackburn, Margaret Dailey, and Sawyer Hofstetter presented their work during the undergraduate poster session. Ari Dixon, Astra Mattingly, and Kyra Kranyak-Schwartz presented in the cartography session. In addition to the student presentations, Geography faculty member Nicholas Perdue organized a special paper session honoring Joe Leeper. During that session, Emeritus Professor Paul Blank delivered a touching tribute.

Maxwell Schnurer, Mark Taylor, Steven Ladwig, Tony Wallin-Sato, Arthur Monarque, Javier De La Torre

Communication

27 Cal Poly Humboldt Communication majors who are currently incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison presented at the National Conference on Higher Education on Friday April 10.  Students in the program shared how resilience, student leadership, and collective voice shape a BA program inside California’s highest-security prison. Through live video conference to the largest prison education conference in the United States students discussed with conference attendees their leadership strategies, recruiting, curriculum input, and the creation of clubs and academic work centered on their vision.  The room in Cleveland was packed including Cal Poly Humboldt staff and students who are alumni of the program.  The recording of the presentation is available in the link above.  

Maxwell Schnurer, Chelsey Castiglione, Lauren Nicolosi, Dean Washington, Shiloh Litke, Keith Flamer, Mark Taylor

Communication

On April 14th the Sexual Assault Prevention Committee hosted the third annual Anti-Violence Summit at College of the Redwoods.  In partnership with the President's office at College of the Redwoods, the Social Work department CR and the Department of Communication at Cal Poly Humboldt, students from both schools collaborated to prevent and respond to sexualized violence.  Communication Department Sexual Assault Intern Lauren Nicolosi, CRGS major Dean Washington and Communication major Shiloh Litke facilitated breakout sessions.  Project Rebound director and College of the Redwood instructor Mark Taylor hosted the session with guests of Chelsey Castiglione (Prevention Coordinator) and Dr. Maxwell Schnurer chair of the Communication department and the Sexual Assault Prevention Committee. 

Gabriel Roletti, Rosemary Sherriff, Lucy Kerhoulas, Jill Beckmann and Wallis Robinson

Geography, Environment & Spatial Analysis

Gabriel Roletti (ESM BS 2020, Forestry MS 2022) published his Master's thesis in Forest Ecology and Management with his co-advisors Rosemary Sherriff (GESA) and Lucy Kerhoulas (Forestry), along with other Humboldt alums Jill Beckmann and Wallis Robinson.