New Faculty Highlights
Laura Backus
Laura Backus, assistant professor in One Health, was hired in September. She teaches courses in animal parasitology, zoonoses and veterinary public health, anatomy and physiology and oversees the veterinary community service enterprise. Her area of expertise is in epidemiology.
Hank DeVries
Hank DeVries (Dairy Science, ’19), operations manager of the Cal Poly Dairy, has been in the industry his entire life. Growing up on a small farm in southern Idaho, DeVries learned from an early age that happy cows and happy people, make a happy farm. While managing his family farm in Idaho he helped grow the herd to 1,200 head and is proud of the strides he made in maximizing beef on dairy revenue streams, improving genetics for production and animal longevity, along with implementing technology to improve cattle management, welfare and employee retention. He is excited about the opportunity to manage the Cal Poly Dairy and looks forward to helping teach the leaders of tomorrow’s dairy industry.
Jacob Dilger
Jacob Dilger, manager of the J and G Lau Family Meat Processing Center, joined the department in April 2023 following the retirement of prior manager Jim Douglass. Before joining Cal Poly, Dilger worked at J&N Natural Meats and Sausage in Paso Robles. He brings expertise in livestock harvesting, has a background in livestock judging and is an FCC licensed amateur radio operator.
Irini Pateras
Irini Pateras, manager of the Oppenheimer Family Equine Center, was hired in January. She previously worked for Beechfork Ranch and 6666 Ranch in Texas. In addition to managing the equine center, she brings expertise in equine management and reproduction.
Hannah Steagall
Hannah Steagall, full-time lecturer in meat science, was hired in August. She teaches courses in meat science, meat processing and food safety. She previously worked as a substitute teacher at Sanger High School in Sanger, California.
Katie Swanson
Katie Swanson, a full-time lecturer in dairy science, joined Cal Poly in September from UC Davis. She teaches dairy husbandry, ruminant nutrition, dairy operations and safety, dairy cattle selection, breeds, fitting, and showing, as well as introductory nutrition and feeding. She brings expertise in dairy cattle nutrition, reproduction and immunology.
Visit Newsletter: Spring 2024 to read more stories.