Cal Poly Humboldt is the perfect place to study and experience science. We’re surrounded by ancient redwoods and the Pacific Ocean, which provide an amazing living laboratory. And our faculty help students put their classroom learning to work through research, fieldwork, and lab experiences.

  Alumni Updates

Our grads are doing great things.


Vanessa Crandell, Geology, 2013
Submitted: November 23, 2022
Vanessa Crandell ('13, Geology, Oceanography) earned an M.S. in Geology from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin in 2016. She is currently working as an Environmental Geologist in Anchorage, Alaska. Vanessa primarily works on contaminated sites and geological and geotechnical projects...

Matthew Nelson, Biological Sciences, 2004, 2009
Submitted: August 18, 2022
Matthew Nelson ('04, Zoology, '09, M.S. Biology) has worked as a biological technician for Olympic National Park, a marine biologist for the City of San Diego, and is currently a Shellfish Biologist for the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community in Washington. This position involves working closely...

Jay Brandes, Oceanography, 1988
Submitted: July 12, 2022
Jay Brandes recently gave a talk titled “Microplastics: A Local Problem with a Local Solution” at the 2022 TEDx Savannah Event. He is presently a Professor in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia Athens, working out of UGA’s Skidaway Institute of Oceanography in...

Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, Wildlife, 1963
Submitted: March 9, 2022
Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, columnist for "The Lumberjack" 1960-1962, is at work on a new novel, tentatively titled "Vic and Greg: a Wildlife Refuge Romance." Sample chapters are at: http://www.writing-it-down.com/vic-and-greg/ Sandy's essay "Losing Lumberjack Football" includes some early history...

Barbara Scaroni, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1978
Submitted: March 5, 2022
Barbara Scaroni has managed to stay a dirt forester over the many years. Scaroni is still out marking and cruising timber, administering timber sales, running property lines, and writing environmental assessments, timber sale contracts, and researching the land use history of my timber sale...