Series: Faculty In Residence Notes

We are thankful to have three Faculty In Residence living on campus and supporting our students! While we are remote, we will be uploading blog posts from them to this site. Here is the first in that series- enjoy!

Alta Plaza Park, vol. 1, no. 4 (2019), San Francisco

Hello Cal Poly Pomona community! My name is Maya Stovall and I’m an assistant professor in the Liberal Studies department, as well as one of your Faculty in Residence here on campus. I am an artist and anthropologist, and my present research projects center on the politics of space and place, political economy, and power.

Currently I’m preparing my upcoming book, Liquor Store Theatre, which lands on bookstore shelves this fall from Duke Press. This semester I’m teaching Senior Thesis as well as Arts Integration courses here at Cal Poly Pomona, and my husband DeShawn Dumas and I are expecting our first baby this summer. We also have a couple of little dogs, who are grateful that taking walks is allowed under the safe-at-home directions. J

The photograph above is a shot from a recent conceptual art and video project, Alta Plaza Park, I completed last summer while I was in San Francisco together with my husband, who is visiting faculty at the San Francisco Art Institute.

For the past couple years, we Faculty in Residence have been holding different programs across campus and in the dormitory buildings, while living in small apartments right here on campus. It’s been great to connect across campus in different ways.

Now that we’re all moving to virtual work and play, our programming is as well! We wanted to take a moment and connect with you, and let you know you’re on our minds and how we plan to work together for the rest of the semester.

I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions around virtual programming that would be most beneficial for you. Please share your ideas with us!!

It seems that more and more every day, we are living in tumultuous times. It seems that everything around us is changing—yet we are expected to continue to move forward, in some ways, as though things are normal. Things are not normal, and if you’re feeling a bit dizzied by all of this, well, that is entirely normal.

I wanted to suggest a few (5!) safe 5-minute wellness practices to consider. While we’re all staying safe, we need to consider self and community care a priority as well. Here are some ideas:

1. Meditate for 5 minutes

2. Open a window and breathe fresh air, or walk outside for 5 minutes if you safely can

3. Spend 5 minutes listening to relaxing music or ambient noise

4. Call a friend or family member and spread good cheer for 5 minutes

5. Spend 5 minutes trimming your hair, brushing your teeth (seriously!), stretching, or doing something else that’s easy to lose track of during these stressful times

I look forward to connecting with you and building our community together amidst all the changes we’re navigating together.

-Maya Stovall, Ph.D.