Cal Poly unveils ‘Jungle Jumpstart’ Rose Parade float design
Float depicts rainforest animals, including a frog, monkey, jaguar, and lemurs, working to revive a robot
– Cal Poly universities’ 77th Rose Parade float submission, “Jungle Jumpstart,” will appear in the 2026 Rose Parade and explore the theme through a story of rainforest animals restoring a robot with the resources of the jungle.
The float is the only entry designed and built entirely by students. It is a joint effort between students at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo and California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, which are located 250 miles apart.
“Our team is extremely excited to share our parade float,” said Aubrey Goings, president of the San Luis Obispo team. “It is more than just a story; it is a mirror of us, as Cal Poly university students who combine innovation, creativity and problem solving in the classrooms and labs in our day-to-day lives. We use agriculture, engineering and other disciplines in tandem.”
The float depicts rainforest animals, including a frog, monkey, jaguar and lemurs, working to revive a robot. The design includes a toucan adjusting the robot’s antenna and a macaw lifted skyward when the robot reawakens. Spare robot parts are repurposed as bird habitats and features of the rainforest floor.
Aubrey Goings.
Since the program’s inception in 1949, Cal Poly universities have earned 63 awards, including the Leishman Public Spirit Award in 2025 for “Nessie’s Lakeside Laughs.”
Students dedicate year-round work to design, engineering, welding, decoration and floral preparation. “Jungle Jumpstart” includes a 40-foot robot on the jungle floor, mechanisms to move elements weighing up to 2,000 pounds, and a 25-foot macaw decorated with individual petals.
“The theme for the parade this year, ‘The Magic in Teamwork,’ presents a very exciting challenge for our team,” Goings said. “When this theme was announced, we immediately related to it, as it perfectly describes what we do each year.”
