February 19, 2007

Contact: Amy Hewes
College of Engineering
805-756-6402
ahewes@calpoly.edu

Cal Poly Alum speaks during National Engineers Week

Kathleen Holmgren, Cal Poly alumnus and former senior vice president of Sun Microsystems, Inc., delivered the National Engineers Week keynote speech entitled "A Look Back with Lessons Learned" on Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 5:30 p.m. in the Advanced Technology Lab (Building 007) on the Cal Poly campus.

Holmgren, who received her Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from Cal Poly in 1980 and her M.B.A. from Stanford, was a 21-year employee of Sun. She held several positions within the company, including vice president of storage marketing and vice president of worldwide logistics.

"Kathleen is a great speaker-she talked about the trials, tribulations and successes of being an engineer," said Rodrigo Merino, event commissioner for the Engineering Student Council. "This successful Cal Poly graduate can really inspire."

A top leader of Sun, Holmgren received the Sun Microsystems President's Excellence Award in 1992, and again in 2003 with induction into Sun's Leadership Institute. She was the College of Engineering's Honored Alum in 1990. She is an active member of the Advisory Boards for Cal Poly's College of Engineering, Stanford's Graduate School of Business, the Executive Women's Alliance and Mendicino Software.

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