Dr. Jamie Patton is responsible for developing, implementing and managing new programs and initiatives that advance diversity and inclusion at Cal Poly. As a division-wide leader and diversity officer, he provides direction and consultation for services and policies to ensure inclusive practices across all Student Affairs departments. In addition, he helps provide campus-wide support for diversity and inclusion efforts in partnership with the Office of University Diversity and Inclusivity.

 

A native of north Philadelphia, Dr. Patton is a first-generation college graduate with more than 15 years of experience as a higher education administrator. Prior to Cal Poly, he served as the Assistant Dean of Students for Ohio University, where he directed the Parent and Family Program, co-initiated programming to increase graduation and retention rates among African-American male students, and implemented social justice development workshops for Student Affairs staff. Dr. Patton found his passion for a career in Student Affairs at Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania, where he held student leadership roles as Vice President of the Student Cooperative Council, President of the Black Student Union and founder of the Distinguished Gentlemen. He later served in several positions during a nine-year period at Northern Arizona University, including Director of the Student Learning Centers and Director of Inclusion and Multicultural Services.

Beya is here to ensure that Cal Poly continues to have events and programs that serve diversity, equity, and inclusion.  Beya works to support, advocate, and develop students in any way that she can.  She is a resource for students and her work is a celebration of the culture they bring to Cal Poly.

 

Before Cal Poly she worked at Portland State University in the school of business as a diversity outreach specialist, building retention programs for underrepresented minority students and creating and implementing diversity and inclusion strategies within the school of business to create a culture of inclusion and equity for all. She specializes in cultural competency, the intersections of privilege, theory informed praxis, and inclusive practices. Her mission is to disrupt systems of oppression and advocate for equity through education.

 

She has a Master’s degree in Ethnic studies from San Francisco State University and is currently pursuing her doctorate in educational leadership and administration.

As a first-generation college graduate and Latinx woman of color, Kristine’s lived experiences developed a nuanced understanding of marginalization and other systems of oppression and created in her a focused passion to protect, educate and uplift others that share these experiences. Kristine
serves the Cal Poly community, through Student Diversity and Belonging (SDAB), in fostering an environment that is centered on inclusivity and community-building for all students navigating their intersectional identities and to have a strong sense of belonging. Kristine comes to Cal Poly from the Capital Region of NY where she worked
at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) as the Assistant Dean of Students and served as Chair for the Bias Assessment and Response Team (BART).

Kristine’s time at RPI focused on student intervention and support,
advisement of identity-based student organizations, and policy-making for the Dean of Students to strengthen inclusion and accountability.

Anya is the coordinator for the Black Academic Excellence Center at Cal Poly. She has devoted her life to the excellence and growth of black students in higher education.

Vania is dedicated to increasing access, resources, and retention for undocumented/DACAmented students at Cal Poly. She believes in the importance of engaging in an equity driven, culturally affirming, and inclusive practice to uplift students, disrupt oppressive systems, and create healing spaces. Her personal mission is to aid historically underrepresented students in their goals and ensure their longterm holistic success. 

 

She recieved her M.A. in Higher Education from the University of Michigan and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). 

Audre Smikle is an AmeriCorps VIP Fellow serving at the Black Academic Excellence Center (BAEC) at Cal Poly. Audre is used to fighting institutional racism and antiblackness in every space she enters and uses her privilege a to create space for others like her. She realizes the importance of providing meaningful support and resources to students who need help navigating predominately white institutions and is committed to creating safe spaces for Black identifying students on Cal Poly’s campus. With her beautiful nonlinear brain Audre focuses on serving her community and pushing towards a better future.

 

A lover of art, poetry and creation, Audre spends her free time creating as much as possible while focusing on building a sustainable future where Black and Brown people cannot just survive, but also THRIVE. She enjoys eating tasty food, reading afro-futurism, and to be quite honest, any sci-fi or fantasy (the bar is low people). You can find her in BAEC, listening to music, talking to students or leading programs.

First a student, now an AmeriCorps VIP, Bee is a recent graduate of Cal Poly with degrees in Ethnic Studies and Political Science. As a student they were heavily involved with the queer communities at Cal Poly and served on the board of the former Queer and/or Trans* People of Color Collective as a co-chair as well as a choreographer for QTRebellion - a subgroup of dancers within the collective. They also worked as a Student Assistant in the Pride Center and the Men & Masculinities Program before graduating and beginning their AmeriCorps service term at M&M. 

 

They originally became involved in the M&M program due to their curiosity about their own relationship to masculinity as a Latine, queer and genderless individual. Since then, they have developed a passion for exploring the myriad of ways masculinity can exist across cultures and identities and envisioning what healthy masculinity can look like outside of gendered and patriarchal norms. As an AmeriCorps VIP Fellow, they hope to encourage students, staff, and faculty to engage with the M&M Program and help cultivate space on campus for these important conversations to happen.