Cal Poly’s recently remodeled Robert E. Kennedy Library has an added attraction beyond books, archives, and study spaces. Graduate student Mia Lawrence recently installed her deeply researched display, Chicanos at Cal Poly: Who We Are and How We Show Up, which aims to “honor the contributions and acknowledge the tumultuous experiences of Chicano students at Cal Poly over the decades.”
History comes alive
Cal Poly’s Robert E. Kennedy Library is currently displaying Chicanos at Cal Poly: Who We Are and How We Show Up, curated by history grad student Mia Lawrence. This exhibition celebrates the history and cultural identity of Chicano students at Cal Poly, “highlighting their vibrant expressions of community and the challenges they face in forging space within a predominantly white institution,” the university announced.
The exhibition remains on display through Dec. 10. Metered parking is available in the lot next to the library. A digital version is available here: storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/628d2b73a7e44bc4bef8482752e9ecc5.
Lawrence holds a B.A. in history with a minor in political science from Howard University and is currently pursuing an M.A. in history at Cal Poly. She’s on track to graduate in June 2026 with plans of pursuing a Ph.D. in public history next.
As her professional bio notes, “Her research centers on Black American cultural history, yet her commitment as a budding public historian extends beyond disciplinary focus, with a dedication to revealing, honoring, and preserving the stories of all marginalized communities.
“Through her work, she aims to create exhibitions that offer reflection, recognition, and belonging. Her goal is for people to see themselves in history in ways they have never had the privilege.”
Earlier this year, Lawrence engaged in two internships, one with Cal Poly’s Special Collections and Archives and the other with the Chicano San Luis Obispo Archive.
“In my time with Special Collections, I was to research their archive and design an exhibition based on something I found interesting,” she explained.
However, she said she was “disappointed by what was available about Chicano history at Cal Poly in Special Collections compared to the Chicano SLO archives.”
She described the Chicano SLO archives as “an intimate, deeply interesting, culturally relevant treasure trove of Chicano history in the Central Coast area.”
“As historians, we learn about biases in institutional archives that often prevent availability of marginalized histories and how creating independent community archives can alleviate these discrepancies in access,” Lawrence continued. “My idea to focus my exhibition on Chicanos and their contributions was to bring access from the community archive Pedro Arroyo created to the institutional space. An approach that was intended to utilize my privilege to both spaces and alleviate and call attention to these kinds of institutional archival discrepancies.”
Pedro Arroyo may be best known as the Ritmo y Sabor radio show DJ at KCBX, but he’s also been a tireless cultural worker and advocate for Latino and Chicano communities on the Central Coast. Over the years, he’s played a pivotal role in Dia De Los Muertos celebrations, and he’s maintained the Chicano SLO archives, now in the process of being digitized.
Lawrence had good reasons for focusing her research on the Chicano experience.
“I suppose I have a professional answer and a personal answer. I am a Black and Mexican woman, but I am more culturally connected to being Black and appear more so phenotypically,” she explained. “Unsure of how to approach engaging with the part of my culture I haven’t felt connected to, I decided to use advocacy in my profession to honor my culture and become more connected.
“Professionally, I feel it’s important to focus on watering the home that’s burning.”
As she noted, the Latino community has reason to be fearful. Trump’s anti-immigrant stance and ICE raids are deeply concerning. She spent about five months researching, a process made longer by Cal Poly’s deficient collection.
“The research was enjoyable but challenging,” she noted. “Because of the limited availability of Chicano history in Special Collections, I really had to stretch my research skills to find things in places you may not expect. The research looked like thinking outside the box about search terms and working with Laura [Sorvetti], the university archivist, to navigate the archive tactfully. There were a lot of dead ends, but I learned valuable things about navigating an archive.”
Her research journey also yielded some welcome surprises.
“I wasn’t expecting to find the Cal Poly Ethnic Programming board, which was an organization comprised of all cultural clubs at Cal Poly during the ’70s,” she said. “There were some amazing events and illustrations, and the Black Student Union managed to get Earth, Wind, and Fire to perform at Cal Poly. One of the more fun and interesting things I found.”
Another artifact she uncovered was a remarkable and moving video interview from 1995 speaking to students of color about their Cal Poly experiences. Cal Poly has a long and unfortunate history of racism on campus, and sadly, Lawrence’s research didn’t discover a lot of improvement over the years. Cal Poly hasn’t made many substantive changes to the campus culture that are alleviating issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
“Unfortunately, not enough; white homogeneity is still very much the standard, expectation, and comfort,” Lawrence lamented. “My intention in including the video is to call attention to that. I was also moved by the video, hearing students standing in the same spot 30 years ago echoing my feelings and experiences felt discouraging but urgent.”
After attending Howard, a historically Black university, studying for her master’s at Cal Poly has been a cultural change.
“I’m a California Bay Area native, and I wanted to come back home to California after being in Washington, D.C., for so long, but I still wanted to be somewhere new. Cal Poly has been a challenge to get adjusted to, especially after a predominantly Black place. Campus culture is very exclusionary. I struggled to find friends, connect with colleagues, build rapports with professors, and in general I struggled to be comfortable.”
She recalled one incident where a non-Black classmate used the word “negro” in an inappropriate context and then looked at her and said a dismissive “sorry.”
“Everyone stared at me; I felt isolated and humiliated. The professor expressed distaste, but nothing was directly addressed,” she recalled.
The next class, she brought it up and “set boundaries about what is appropriate,” which thankfully was well received, “but it was challenging and uncomfortable and truly not my responsibility, as dismissive as it sounds.”
As Lawrence explained, “students of color deserve normal experiences in academia without having to constantly advocate for themselves.”
She hopes her new project makes the Latino community “feel represented, seen, heard, felt, and acknowledged. I hope to disrupt accepted homogeny and instill a sense of belonging and ownership over the culture of this space in Latine students, where they are often made to feel like the other,” she said, using the gender-neutral “Latine” term. “I hope Latine students embark on their own interests and projects related to their history and culture.
“And most importantly, I hope it sparks joy, empathy, understanding, and curiosity.” ∆
Contact Arts Editor Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Nov 13-23, 2025.