Contact: Matt Lazier
805-756-7109; mlazier@calpoly.edu 

Named in honor of $20M lead gift from the Resnicks, the new center will prioritize personal and professional development as key components of Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing education

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly today announced the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Success Center, a transformational new facility aimed at expanding the career and personal development opportunities available to students.

Named after philanthropists and entrepreneurs Lynda and Stewart Resnick, co-founders of The Wonderful Company, the center honors their $20 million lead gift supporting the facility and their long-standing commitment for quality education.

The Resnicks’ philanthropy includes historic gifts to local institutions, including Caltech, UC Davis, and Fresno State, among others. They’ve focused transformational efforts in California’s Central Valley, where they support paradigm-changing work in education, community engagement, and health and wellness.

The 25,000 square-foot Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Success Center will feature a professional development center for career services, programs that support Cal Poly’s growing numbers of first-generation students, and student diversity and belonging cultural centers.

“We have worked closely with Cal Poly for over 20 years through our Wonderful Scholars program and know it to be a tremendous educational environment that we are proud to continue to support,” said Lynda and Stewart Resnick. “This program will ensure first-generation students have access to the resources, collaboration and learning tools to help empower them to build successful lives and careers and make meaningful contributions to the world.”

The Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Success Center will provide space for more student advisors, along with three times the office, counselor and professional recruiting space for Career Services, and Student Diversity and Belonging cultural centers.

“The new Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Success Center will provide critical support for our first-generation students and an increased emphasis on career programming for all students,” said Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong. “By engaging students early and often, the center will instill a culture of career readiness — helping to further elevate the value of a Cal Poly degree.”

The Resnicks are already stalwart supporters of student success at Cal Poly through their College Success Scholar Program. Created and funded by the Resnicks, this flagship program currently provides scholarships up to $30,000 for 82 Cal Poly students from the Central Valley and helps them prepare for, pay for, and persist through college.

“Student success happens when universities align professional purpose with personal identity,” said Keith Humphrey, Cal Poly’s vice president for student affairs. “That is exactly the conditions Cal Poly is creating within the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Success Center. I’m excited for our students to amplify their success when we open the doors to this transformational new facility in the core of campus.”

About The Wonderful Company
The Wonderful Company is a privately held $6 billion global company dedicated to harvesting health and happiness around the world. Its iconic brands include FIJI® Water, POM Wonderful®, Wonderful® Pistachios, Wonderful® Halos®, Wonderful® Seedless Lemons, JUSTIN®, Landmark®, and Lewis Cellars® wines. The Wonderful Company’s connection to consumers has health at its heart and giving back in its DNA. To learn more about The Wonderful Company, its products, and its core values, visit www.wonderful.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. To learn more about their Corporate Social Responsibility, visit https://csr.wonderful.com/.
 

About Cal Poly
Cal Poly is a nationally ranked public university located in San Luis Obispo, California, known for its Learn by Doing philosophy. Each year about 22,000 top-tier students come to Cal Poly to put knowledge into action, taking their learning outside the classroom as they prepare for careers in areas such as engineering, agriculture, science, business, humanities and the built environment. Cal Poly’s hands-on approach, small class sizes and close student-faculty mentorships result in graduates Ready Day One to impact their communities, California and the world. Visit: www.calpoly.edu.