Students and alumni came together to honor the Cal Poly Amateur Radio Club’s 75th anniversary. The weekend-long celebration incorporated activities ranging from barbecues and hikes to learning the club’s history and testing radio devices.
CPARC President Mathew Shaham (Electrical Engineering) shared his enthusiasm for the club and the significance of celebrating its milestone year.
“CPARC is one of the oldest clubs on campus with records as far back as 1947,” Shaham said. “The club supports the classic Learn by Doing approach by involving members in projects that have significance to the overall community.”
Shaham has been a member of CPARC since his freshman year and plans to stay involved while he completes his master’s degree.
“The 75th anniversary was nice because it united current students and alumni who either haven’t been on campus in a long time or still follow the club and support it with advice or donations,” Shaham explained. “In short, it’s impressive an organization dedicated to communications with an emphasis for emergency preparedness has stood the test of time and adapted to a rapidly changing world of technology.”
CPARC is people-focused in more ways than one. Not only do members work to improve the community through their projects, but they have also created antennas that have the capability to contact people across the world using radio waves.
“The club has a long history of public service, and we help to provide communication support to events, such as bike races and triathlons, where cell service can be unreliable,” explained club member Andrew Fahey (Electrical Engineering). “We also hold yearly sessions where we help students and community members study for and pass their ham radio license exam.”
CPARC recruits members with a wide range of interests.
“Our club tries to bring in anyone who is interested and supportive of our project ideas,” Shaham said. “We love public outreach and educating others on electronics and a plethora of related activities.”
These activities include working with the single-board computer system Raspberry Pi to electronics projects like building e-bikes.
“It helps having a great group of officers that keep the club running well,” Shaham said.
The Cal Poly Amateur Radio Club meets every other Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the Engineering East building 20 in room 128. For more information, visit the club’s website.
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