Dr. Richard Carvajal spent his first morning on campus as Cal Poly Humboldt’s new president greeting students, visiting classrooms, and handing out donuts. Photo courtesy of Cal Poly Humboldt.


PREVIOUSLY

Cal Poly Humboldt’s last two presidents both quit after five years — one went into consulting, the other into hiding — but CPH’s brand-new president Richard Carvajal told the Outpost on Friday he was staking his claim. 

“I will finish my career here, whether it’s one year or 21 years,” Carvajal said. “I hope it’s not one. I hope it’s a lot longer. This is where I will end my career, because it’s a place that I want to truly make better.”

Though he spent 15 years of his career in Georgia (enough to give his voice a hint of twang), Carvajal’s not a stranger to the area. His family moved to Eureka during early childhood, then Hydesville and Carlotta. They moved when Carvajal was in middle school, but Humboldt impressed them. Carvajal said he “dreamed” about coming back when he was a kid; his mother cried when he told her he’d been made the president. He’d expected to finish out his career in Georgia, but felt compelled to accept the offer — he didn’t want to pass up on the chance to participate during a historic time for the university.

He was unable to answer questions about what specific changes he hopes to implement at the university and how’d they’d affect the county, but he said that was because he didn’t come into the job with an agenda and had only been back in Humboldt since Jan. 9. He spent only four of those days working. (We also only had 15 minutes to chat, so the ability to ask detailed follow-up questions and answer them was limited.) Carvajal said that he wanted to hear opinions from his staff and other well-informed people on the issues facing the university and Humboldt County, as well as what they loved and what didn’t need changing. Their answers will determine what he decides to focus on. 

Carvajal said he watched this 2024 forum, in which students and community members told the CSU’s board of trustees what kind of qualities they wanted the next president to have, several times.

“What I heard people consistently saying was that in an ideal world, they wanted someone who loved and appreciated and knew this place,” Carvajal said. “Of course, they wanted somebody who knew how to do the job… I think it uniquely qualifies me, because I come in on day one with a unique and sincere appreciation for what makes this place special.”

He was able to paint some broad strokes, emphasizing his commitment to improving both STEM and humanities programs. Keeping graduates around is also important, he said, for starting businesses and employing workers that will keep the economy afloat. He’s heard from people who are excited for CPH’s Healthcare Hub, excited to have more nurses and engineers around, excited to see the investments the state and local communities have put into CPH pay off.

But the main point Carvajal made was simply that he loves Humboldt. He spent the day after he returned in the redwoods and at the beach. He’s enjoyed going out and meeting people at basketball games and donut giveaways, and plans to be seen often; he got a shoutout at the State of the City, ate with the College of the Redwood’s President Keith Flamer, attended some student club meetings, got some hiking trail recommendations and fishing trip invitations. 

“I love being here,” he said. “I can’t tell you the number of people who have said to me, ‘Welcome home.’ I can’t tell you how much that means to me…This is very, very personal to my family, that we’re here. So I want folks to know that it matters to me. This is very special to me. I want to dive into this work, because I want to make this place that helped make me me even better.”