As a gift for current and future Cal Poly Pomona students, the class of 2012 will be giving the campus purified water stations.
“It is kind of like leaving a gift for the students after we graduate,” said Kayhan Ahmadi, who graduated with a degree in psychology and is currently enrolled in the English credential program. “If we had that when we were here, it would have helped us.”
The gift will be presented to University President Michael Ortiz during commencement.
The senior class gift is a tradition where the senior committee helps raise money for a gift they can leave behind for CPP students to use, and also as a remembrance of their legacy.
Funds for the gift come directly from the seniors through donations from students on the give2cpp.com website and over the phone.
This CPP tradition has taken place for over 50 years. Past senior class gifts have included the bell that can be heard every 15 minutes on campus that was provided by the graduating class of 1966 and the benches in the Japanese garden from the class of 2006.
CPP will be receiving Elkay purified water stations even though there are Brita water filters at some parts of campus, such as the Bronco Student Center and the Marketplace.
Each purified water station will cost $800 to $1,200. The costs vary depending on the plumbing, foundation and maintenance the stations will require in the buildings in which they will reside.
Elkay stations are also more affordable than the Brita models that cost around $1,400, according to fifth-year Biotechnology student Brandon King.
Up to 10 purified water stations will be installed with filters across campus by next school year, according to Ahmadi.
The senior committee’s goal is to have one stationed in every common area on campus. They already have two planned to be installed in the University Library and one in the Marketplace.
The idea for purified water stations was proposed by King at a senior committee meeting. King introduced the idea to the committee of eight seniors, each representing different colleges.
“One day I was really thirsty, [so] I walked around campus carrying an empty water bottle and saw the fountain at the BSC,” said King. “I thought it would be great to have more of them on campus because many [students] do not know they are there.”
Upon research and input from fellow seniors, the committee came to a unanimous decision in supporting King’s proposal.
“Nobody thought it was a bad idea; everyone agreed,” said fifth-year Apparel, Merchandising and Management student Kristin Borchardt.
Previous ideas that were turned down before the purified water stations included installing overhangs on the roofs of bus stops.
Seniors have pulled about $10,000 through pledges and donations so far. Their planned goal is to reach $12,000 before commencement, as well as having purified water stations at each of the colleges.
“We not only fundraise, but we spread awareness about the senior class gift,” said King. “It is actually good this year because more people were open to the idea.”
Last year, seniors raised $8,000 for their gift of a campus garden.
“Pledge rate has not been a lot, but this year we are getting more seniors to give than the previous years,” said Ahmadi.
Seniors predict students and faculty will be using the purified water stations in support of the Green Initiative the campus has been pledging for.
“It is a visual and tangible account for the CPP Green Initiative; it shows that we are environmentally conscious,” said Ahmadi.
One of the reasons purified water stations are considered to make a big contribution to the campus is because it goes along with the university initiative Ortiz signed to have the campus reach climate neutrality,.
For the campus to be considered climate neutral, it must have as much carbon dioxide removed as what is emitted each year.
Seniors, such as Borchardt, said the beneficial gift will be a hard one to top.
“It is much better because [the] campus is trying to move with the Green Initiative and anyone can benefit from the fountains,” said Borchardt.