Humboldt Forensics: Lumberjack Speech and Debate 1926 - 2025

Aaron Donaldson, Communication Faculty

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

A visual representation of the nearly 100 years of Intercollegiate Speech and Debate at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Hypertension in Incarcerated Adults

Jennifer Dreyer, School of Applied Health Undergraduate Student

College of Professional Studies

The issue of high blood pressure in jails calls for innovative techniques to screen, intervene, and educate about cardiovascular health. There are many patients that arrive under duress, intoxicated, or have pre-existing hypertension. Most do not seek treatment for hypertension due to a lack of obvious symptoms. If a patient is found to be hypertensive, both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions must be implemented. It is important to distinguish individual risk factors and social needs to develop patient-centered care plans. High blood pressure management is a definitively complex issue in correctional healthcare, especially for those who experience health inequity.

Identifying Optimal Temperature Ranges that Support Juvenile Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) Growth within the Klamath Basin

Isabelle Shirah, Wildlife Undergraduate Student

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

This project looks at yearly temperature ranges and growth metrics for fish sampled at three sites along the klamath basin.

Improving Cardiac Arrest Outcomes in Critical Access Emergency Departments Using the LUCAS Mechanical Compression Device

Casey Vitali, School of Applied Health Undergraduate Student

College of Professional Studies

This quality improvement project, guided by the Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice, examines the potential impact of implementing the LUCAS mechanical chest compression device in rural hospitals. High mortality rates from cardiac arrest, partly due to inconsistent manual CPR and staffing limitations, have led to a review of the evidence supporting mechanical CPR. Proposed interventions include individual training, department-wide integration, and the development of institutional policies. The anticipated outcomes are increased rates of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), improved discharge survival rates, and enhanced staff competency in providing high-quality resuscitation.

James' Fabulous Mobile Dog Food Pantry: A Grassroots Initiative!

James Brother, Social Work Graduate Student

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

I developed a mobile dog food pantry to meet the needs of unsheltered pets across Humboldt County. Using donations from various sources and implementing similar models used by local nonprofits, I developed access to pet food in areas with an unmet need.

La vida en el Centro del Pueblo

Brigitte Vega, College Corp Undergraduate Student

Other

This year I was able to work with Centro del Pueblo. A non-profit organization which helps its community members through providing a space for the community to garden. Centro del Pueblo also supports its latino community by advocating and providing any type of support. During my time at Centro del pueblo I was able to meet many new people. I was excited to be able to work alongside other latinos. This especially meant a lot to me being the change of environment I experienced coming from Los Angeles. As a part of the organization helping out in the garden became essential to being fully involved with the people.

Light and Dark Assay Comparison of Selected Strains of Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin

Miles Guillot, Chemistry Undergraduate Student

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin (ASR) is a retinal containing membrane protein from the cyanobacteria, Anabaena (Nostoc) PCC 7120. The ASR protein undergoes a conformational change upon absorption of orange light, which causes the all-trans-retinal to be converted to 13-cis retinal and the release of the associated transducer protein (ASRT). In order to facilitate future nanolipoprotein studies we examined the efficacy of the production of ASR in several selected recombinant strains of E. Coli through a light and dark spetrophotometric analysis of the purified ASR protein.

Local Bat Activity in an Urban Context

BreeLynn Butler, Wildlife Undergraduate Student

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Several bat species can be observed in Humboldt County, including the Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis), hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), and big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus). The objectives of this study were to investigate what bat species occur on campus and how variables such as artificial light, weather, and lunar phase might influence bat activity. Ultrasonic acoustic recorders were deployed on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus to capture recordings of bat vocalizations. Additional data from the Arcata Community Forest during a previous year was used to compare the detected species in the forest in Spring 2019 to the detected species on campus in Spring 2025.

Look Both Ways: Reflections from a Future Teacher

Kaelyn Trapsi, College Corp Undergraduate Student

Other

Over the past two years I have had the privilege of working in high school environments with students from all walks of life. to sweeten the deal, they were high schools in two different countries. Through college corps I have been able to work with students at Six Rivers Charter High School for the past two academic years. While helping in classes across many different subjects and electives, I have found ways to connect to students in a way that I appreciated teachers connecting to me when I was in high school. Through an international service learning program to the Philippines, I spent my spring breaks in my ancestral land, not only learning about local history, but also teaching.

Making Sense of Dyspraxic Senses using Exercise, the Effects of Bodyweight Exercises on Proprioception in Individuals with Developmental Coordination Disorder

Evan Jackson, School of Applied Health Undergraduate Student

College of Professional Studies

People with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) have poor motor coordination which interferes with daily activities of living. One potential reason for the impairment of motor skills that people with DCD have a decreased sense of proprioception. Proprioception is the sense of where your body is in space and where body parts are in relation to one another. Exercise can increase proprioception. The purpose of this project is to investigate the effects of bodyweight exercise (BWE) in proprioception in people with DCD. BWE have been found to increase proprioception, static and dynamic balance, and motor function.