Welcome to the first Winter 2026 edition of Currently, PSU's weekly newsletter for faculty and staff. Currently publishes every Monday morning during Fall, Winter and Spring terms.

January 5, 2026

Faculty and Staff are invited to a Town Hall on Wednesday, Jan. 21 to learn about the major changes to federal student aid programs and their implications for Portland State University.

The Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships will show how these updates will reshape financial aid options for undergraduate and graduate students, and how the impacts may be felt in areas including enrollment management, student services, budgeting, and aspects of academic program planning.

Town Hall: Financial Aid Impacts
Wednesday, Jan. 21
12:45 - 1:25 p.m.
Hoffmann Hall

Separate presentations will be offered to students in early February.

Effective Jan. 1, 2026, the Office of Equity and Compliance and Office of Internal Audit have been integrated into a unified structure: the Office of Equity, Audit & Compliance. This alignment strengthens the university’s approach to accountability, integrity and equitable operations. 

Employees and students may continue to report bias incidents, discrimination or discriminatory harassment through the Office of Equity and Compliance without interruption. Existing reporting channels, processes and protections remain in place. 

Questions regarding this transition or Equity and Compliance processes may be directed to Albert Roberson, Deputy Chief Executive of Equity & Compliance/Title VI, Title IX and ADA Coordinator, via email: aroberso@pdx.edu.

Over the break, PSU launched an updated version of the Operational Excellence webpage to reflect the current status of the years-long project to align administrative structures, reduce duplication, achieve excellence and compliance, and provide career pathways for administrative staff. The updated webpage includes links to new pages specific to the areas of focus — Finance, Human Resources and Marketing and Communications — where progress will be updated and noted in future editions of the Bridge Bulletin and Currently.

Computerworld once again named PSU one of the best places to work in IT! The award recognizes top organizations that challenge their IT staff child providing great benefits, engagement and training opportunities. Portland State's Office of Information Technology (OIT) is on the list of Top 100 Best Place to Work in IT for the ninth consecutive year!

Tribal Relations at PSU is partnering with Applied Linguistics and Tribes across Oregon to launch a Tribal Language Speaker Series at PSU. Tribal partners are invited to present their language program’s history, revitalization efforts and future projects. Join one or both of the January events from 12:30 to 1:30 at the Native American Student & Community Center  to be a part of this new initiative. 

While work continues on the transition to Slate for Student Success, the EAB Navigate contract has been extended through March 31, 2026. This revised timeline reflects the need for additional time to incorporate feedback and create a better user experience. 

User portal and appointment scheduling training will occur between Jan. 5 and Jan. 20 and will be coordinated with individuals and teams. Appointment links for students to schedule advising appointments will be available on Jan. 12. Staff who currently conduct appointments and create notes in EAB Navigate will begin using Slate on Jan. 20. Other staff will begin using Slate at a date to be determined. 

Further details and updates will be shared through the project website.

Thank you to all faculty and staff who participated in the Fall term's Early Alerts; your efforts are vital to student success! The Office of Student Success received reports for 8,997 students, which identified 1,360 students at risk of not passing. The Progression Team provided personalized outreach to 496 of those at-risk students.

Special recognition goes out to FRINQ instructors, who achieved a nearly 100% response rate! Other departments with high response rates included Mathematics, Statistics, Business, Accounting and History.

Early Alerts system transition update: To ensure the best user experience at launch, the current Early Alerts process will continue through Winter 2026. The new system is scheduled to go live in Spring 2026. Detailed information will be shared before the launch.

The PSU Alumni Association invites you to PSU Night at the Trail Blazers next Monday, Jan. 15. Join PSU alumni, faculty, staff and students as the Trail Blazers take on the Atlanta Hawks. The first 50 to purchase tickets will receive an exclusive, limited-edition co-branded Portland State x Trail Blazers sweatshirt!

Interest forms are due Friday for anyone who wants to participate in Rec Buddies, a program at Campus Rec that matches up members with a staff member and another member to help increase your comfort in the Rec Center. Learn More about Rec Buddies

This winter, Campus Rec is piloting a series of small group classes! These are introductory courses that will meet for four sessions to learn the fundamentals of activities that include climbing, weights and pilates. Cost for members is $40. Register to participate

Student Success is hosting Welcome Week to greet new and returning students on campus for Winter term.

The Welcome Table is open today and tomorrow (Jan. 5-6) from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.:

Extended Drop-In Advising is available Monday-Thursday (Jan. 5-8), returning to regular hours on Friday. Share the flyer for additional details per pathway.

Friendship and belonging are an important part of college success, and students can make those connections at Find Your PSU. Launched in the fall by Student Activities and Leadership Programs, the webpage is aimed at helping students find others who share their interests and passions — or just to try something new!

Here are important dates for students to submit their applications for funding in the 2026-2027 academic year:

The PSU Financial Wellness Center is hosting workshops in January and February to help students accomplish these tasks. Please share the links to register for FAFSA and scholarship workshops with students!

Also, check out the Inside Portland State blog article about the Financial Wellness Center team and the help they provide our students!

With a new term, it’s time to let students know that they have access to comprehensive, FREE services including one-on-one Academic Coaching, Peer Tutoring at the Learning Center, and specialized workshops and study groups. The full range of offerings is on the Student Academic Support Services webpage.

There’s also pedagogical support for faculty, including the ROADS to Success presentation series and Faculty Resources page.

The University Career Center (UCC) is hosting a Career Week, Feb. 2–5, with the Winter Career Fair on Monday, Feb. 9. Career Week is a high-impact series of events each term that brings together panels, workshops, employer meetups and classroom-aligned programming to support students’ career readiness. Tell students about this upcoming opportunity and/or contact Giovanna DiFalco, UCC Employer Relations Manager, (gdifalco@pdx.edu) with any questions or ideas.

New Vikings Football Coach Chris Fisk shared his vision for PSU’s team with the Oregonian; Jennifer Bell, director of Financial Aid, talked with OPB’s Think Out Loud about what changed to federal financial aid could mean for students; and Marisa Zapata, director of the Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative, discussed the city’s strategy for ending unsheltered homelessness with Axios.

Monday, January 5

Biology Seminar Series: Rapid Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics within Closely Related Strains During Community Assembly

Tuesday, January 6

Beginner Climb Night

Friday, January 9

Music @ Midday: Joe Manis Quartet

Saturday, January 10

Men’s Basketball v. Sacramento State

Find more events at: PSU Events, OAI Events, Viks Athletics

Accolades took an extended holiday! They will return on Monday, January 12.

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CURRENTLY is a weekly newsletter for the employees of Portland State University, published by University Communications. News items, events and accolades should be sent to currently@pdx.edu. Deadline is noon, the Tuesday before publication. See the Currently website for submission guidelines and schedule.