Achievements

Humnath Panta, and Co-authors from University of Texas at Arlington

Business

I’m pleased to share a recent research contribution representing Cal Poly Humboldt. My paper, “CEO Compensation and the Political Environment,” has been accepted for publication in the *Journal of Business Research (A)*. This work is co-authored with faculty at University of Texas at Arlington.

The study examines how U.S. political leadership shapes executive compensation. Using a large sample of 32,222 firm-year observations from 1992 through 2022, we find that CEO pay tends to be higher under Republican presidential administrations and Republican-controlled Congresses. We also find stronger pay-for-performance sensitivity during these periods.

These results point to a nuanced effect: higher compensation may reflect rent extraction, while stronger pay-for-performance alignment suggests more efficient contracting. Overall, the findings highlight how the political environment, a non-financial factor, plays a meaningful role in corporate decision-making.

This publication contributes to ongoing research on executive compensation and governance, and reflects the strong research engagement at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Gregg J. Gold and Gianna Giacomotto

Psychology

In an invited presentation at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine (DGSOM), Dr. Gregg J. Gold and former Cal Poly Humboldt psychology student Gianna Giacomotto shared the data and findings from the 2022 to 2024 DGSOM Premedical Enrichment Program (PREP) evaluation study with the staff of the DGSOM Center of Excellence responsible for the planning and implementation of PREP.  This 90-minute presentation included a lively discussion of the findings and their application to future PREP cohorts and the DGSOM California Medical Scholars program. 

Benny Anjewierden and Dr. Amber Gaffney

Psychology

Benny Anjewierden and Dr. Amber Gaffney in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Alberta have a forthcoming book chapter, "Uncertainty and social identity", in K. Vail, D. Van Tongeren, B. Schlegel, J. Greenberg, L. King, & R. Ryan (Eds.), Handbook of the Science of Existential Psychology.

Chris Walmsley, Ph.D.

Psychology

In the fall 2025 semester, Dr. Walmsley was invited by the editor of Operants magazine to write a gerontology piece. The article is entitled "Using Behavior Analysis To Help Evaluate Social Outcomes in a Nutrition Program for Older Adults". It details some community-based ABA research conducted by Dr. Walmsley and his research lab in collaboration with a local agency providing services to older adults.

Mikhail Vasenin, Savva Shanaev, Humnath Panta, Binam Ghimire

Business

Humnath Panta, faculty at the School of Business, co-authored the article “ESG Ratings in Motion: The Global Market Response to Upgrades and Downgrades,” published in the Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment (Taylor & Francis, January 7, 2026). The study analyzes 2,841 MSCI-rated global stocks (2017–2021) using a calendar-time portfolio approach and finds that ESG rating upgrades (downgrades) generate statistically and economically significant abnormal returns of about +1% (–1%) per month. The effects are robust across models, holding periods, sectors, and regions, with stronger impacts for large and growth firms and in low power-distance countries, and increased synchronization post-COVID-19. The findings advance understanding of ESG information efficiency and its implications for global asset pricing and investment strategy.

Amber Gaffney, Benny Anjewierden

Psychology

Benny Anjewierden and Amber Gaffney co-Chaired a symposium with Professor Dominic Abrams at the Society of Experimental Social Psychology in Lisbon, Portugal (Praise some, punish others: When and why deviance is embraced or erased within groups). They then presented at the University of Porto, Portugal, for invited talks. Anjewierden presented some of their joint work on the polarizing nature of criticizing political leaders. Gaffney presented some of their work detailing how motives for social identity can differentially predict political extremism.

Jennifer Lucero, MD, MA; Gregg Gold, PhD; Eraka Bath, MD; Gerardo Moreno, MD, MS; Esmeralda Trejo, MSEd; Ricardo Antillon, MPH; Gianna Giacomotto BA

Psychology

Presented research entitled “Evaluating the Effectiveness of the UCLA Pre-Med Enrichment Program,” and “Lessons Learned on UCLA UIM-COE Clinical Clerkship Psychology of Bias” at the November 13, 2025, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine Medical Education Day conference. Co-authors included UCLA Medical School Faculty, Staff, and recent Cal Poly Humboldt psychology graduate Gianna Giacomotto. 

Josh Zender

Business

Cal Poly Humboldt Business Professor Dr. Josh Zender has received a $25,000 Application Development Grant from PG&E’s Microgrid Incentive Program. In partnership with Syserco and supported by Dr. Pascal Biwole’s Energy Engineering students, Zender will lead a team developing a community microgrid proposal to serve Orick, CA. The grant supports technical development costs for the competitive application process. This project aims to enhance energy resilience for disadvantaged communities and is part of a broader initiative by PG&E to fund clean, locally controlled microgrids throughout California’s high-risk outage zones

Cal Poly Humboldt School of Business

Business

Cal Poly Humboldt's Master of Business Administration recognized as "Top 10 Dark Horse High-Value MBAs" and "Most Affordable MBA Programs at California’s Public Universities".

Kauyumari Sanchez

Psychology

Kauyumari Sanchez, PhD published the article Cross-modal matching of monosyllabic and bisyllabic items varying in phonotactic probability and lexicality in Frontiers in Language Sciences, 4, 1488399. https://doi.org/10.3389/flang.2025.1488399