Ethnic Studies Clubs, Activities, and Instructionally Related Activities

The Ethnic Studies Department is home to the following ES advised IRAs, ES clubs, and ES organized activities

Hui Haumana 

The Hui Haumana IRA is advised by ES faculty member Dr. Ryan Buyco, rbuyco@calpoly.edu. Hui Haumana immerses students in Pacific Islander culture through traditional dance, fostering authentic cultural appreciation, community connections, and a sense of belonging while sharing and celebrating heritage through cultural showcases. Their main forms of dance include Tahitian - 'Ori Tahiti, and Hawaiian - Hula. Hui Haumana is a non-audition dance group open to anyone interested! Find out more at their website, here. 

Pilipino Cultural Night

The Pilipino Cultural Night (PCN) IRA is advised by ES faculty member Dr. Ryan Buyco, rbuyco@calpoly.edu. PCN is a celebration of Pilipino and Pilipino-American culture, featuring a scripted play as well as vocal and dance performances. Read more about this annual event that takes place in April and the team behind it on the Pilipino Cultural Exchange (PCE) website, here. Read the most recent Mustang News article about PCN, here. 

Cal Poly Lion Dance Team 

The Cal Poly Lion Dance Team IRA is advised by ES faculty member and associate chair Dr. Grace Yeh, gyeh@calpoly.edu. Lion Dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune, usually performed during Chinese New Year and other traditional, cultural, religious festivals. Read more about this team on their website, here. Read the most recent Mustang News article about the Lion Dance team, here.

Manzanar Pilgrimage 

The Manzanar Pilgrimage IRA is advised by ES faculty member and associate chair, Dr. Grace Yeh, gyeh@calpoly.edu. Dr. Yeh organizes a pilgrimage to Manzanar, the WWII concentration camp, each year and hosts events for the Annual Day of Remembrance in Feburary. Read more about this past years event on our website, here. Read the most recent Mustang News article about this event, here.

Comparative Ethnic Studies Student Association (CESSA)

The Comparative Ethnic Studies Student Association (CESSA) Club 2025-2026 is led by President, Moriah Riggs, Co-President, Mariana Perez, Treasurer, Zora Sowinska, and Advisor, Gracie Mayorga. Actively implementing the critical study of interlocking systems and structures of oppression by supporting students at an interpersonal level, bringing the essence of the field of Comparative Ethnic Studies to a broader audience, and disseminating information in an accessible and relevant manner. The club will be hosting books clubs, organizing for conference attendance, providing further ES resources for all, and starting a mentorship program. Further details and upcoming public events can be found through Cal Poly Now. 

Indigenous Surfers’ Symposium

The Indigenous Surfers’ Symposium was an event in October 2024 organized by ES faculty member Dr. Lydia Heberling, lheberli@calpoly.edu. Surf Sovereignty: Coastal Stewardship, Embodied Activism, and Indigenous Wave Riders is a three-day event that will draw Indigenous surfers, coastal stewards, and activists together from across the Pacific for a series of events focused on art as activism and coastal conservation and climate futures for Indigenous nations. This event was collaboratively organized by Cal Poly Ethnic Studies professor Lydia Heberling and Simon Fraser University professor, Nicholas Reo (Canada Excellent Research Chair in Coastal Relationalities and Regeneration). October 9-11, 2024, schedule listed, here.