Breadcrumb
College of Professional Studies
The College of Professional Studies at Cal Poly Humboldt seamlessly integrates core competencies within practical contexts through a variety of immersive experiences. Our graduates emerge as exceptional leaders in their respective professions and communities, embodying a steadfast dedication to social, economic, and environmental justice.
Applied Learning
We provide every student with dynamic opportunities for experiential learning in real-world scenarios, where they engage in practicums, research, internships, clinical, and service-learning experiences. Each is designed to enhance students' career-ready skills, ensuring they are well-prepared for their future.
Social Justice and Sustainability
Through the application of active learning and critical thinking, we prepare students for meaningful community-oriented careers that foster a just, inclusive, and environmentally conscious society.
Personal Guidance
Through innovation and collaboration our faculty challenge and support our students, ensuring their success beyond the classroom. Our students receive academic and career guidance from their faculty advisors, professional advisors, and peer mentors.
Alumni Updates
Matias Solorzano
Psychology, 2025
Matias will start a PhD program in Special Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison during the Fall 2025 semester. He also received an Education Graduate Research Scholars fellowship from the School of Education at UW-Madison to assist him in pursuing his research interests. At UW-Madison, Matias will conduct research on the transition to adulthood in employment for autistic individuals. He seeks to connect more autistic adults to resources that will help them find employment. Recently, Matias completed an internship with the California Department of Developmental Services in the Autism Services Branch. This internship helped him make connections at DDS and made him realize that working in civil service is a good career path for individuals interested in making the world a better place for individuals with disabilities.
Kathleen Dunn
Nursing, 1974
After working as an RN and rehabilitation clinical nurse specialist in San Diego for 45 years, Kathleen retired (2017) and started traveling around the world. Unfortunately, she had the onset of multiple sclerosis while on a trip to Iceland in June 2023. After a month in hospitals and an acute rehab center, she returned home. She can walk with a cane up to about 50 yards, and use a power carbon fiber folding wheelchair for further distances. Kathleen has started to travel again, although in a different style, and took a 35-day cruise to the South Pacific in early 2025. She misses snorkeling and hiking!
John and Linda Rubert
Business Administration, 1978
John and Linda met at Humboldt State in 1972 square dancing with the Lumberjacks and Jill’s. After 34 years of running a business, they are retired now and enjoy their cabin on Hayden Lake in Northern Idaho.
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