September 26, 2022

This is the first issue for fall term 2022 of Currently, Portland State University's weekly faculty and staff newsletter. It is published online every Monday during the academic year. News items should be emailed by noon the Tuesday before publication. See the Currently website for submission guidelines and schedule.

News

Picnic in the Park: Thank You!

PSU employees kicked off fall term 2022 with Picnic in the Park last week. We couldn’t have asked for better weather! Thank you to everyone who RSVP’d, to PSU catering, to conductor Ethan Perry and the PSU Chamber Choir for their joyful performances, and to everyone who attended. Check out photos from the event. Have a great term!

Homecoming & VikFest this weekend

PSU employees are invited to Stott Community Field for a pep rally on Friday, Sept. 30, from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. for prizes, games, food, and a chance to meet the team. Then cheer on the Vikings at Hillsboro Stadium Saturday, Oct. 1, at 2 p.m. as they take on Northern Arizona. New this year is VikFest, a pre-game tailgate party that includes food and drink, ax throwing, a football toss, and the chance to soak PSU President Dr. Stephen Percy in a dunk tank! Faculty and staff can purchase discounted tickets for the game and Vik Fest by logging in with their ODIN ID at the athletics webpage.

People sitting around a table looking at documents

Accommodated testing and Universal Design for Learning at PSU: An overview and updates for faculty

PSU Testing Services, in collaboration with the Disabilities Resource Center (DRC) and Office of Academic Innovation (OAI), is offering a brief orientation and info session via Zoom on accommodated testing and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) at PSU. It will be offered twice: Wednesday, Sept. 28, 12 p.m. - 1 p.m., and then again Thursday, Oct. 6, 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.. Please review our website before the training and come with questions. Register today and, as always, we are glad to answer questions and provide guidance any time. Email us at: TestingServices@pdx.edu.

Beginning of term resources at the Learning Center

The start of the term is here! Set your students up for success by letting them know they can meet with an academic coach or peer tutor from the Learning Center to set goals and discuss study strategies. Learning Center services are free and open to all students. Faculty and staff can also submit a request for our ROADS to Success presentation series on topics such as motivation, time management, and study strategies to be presented in your classes. Learn more about all of our services.

Please note: DataMASTER name change

To observe inclusive language standards and add transparency to the technology used, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) will re-name DataMASTER to match the vendor’s naming convention: Cognos! Cognos is a reporting software provided by IBM that has been used to create DataMASTER reports. In all aspects, other than the name change, the system will remain the same. The datamaster.pdx.edu path will continue into the upcoming year. Please contact OIT-BISupport-Group@pdx.edu with any questions about this change.

Free Walktober Movement Challenge

Walktober is a free, 31-day health promotion challenge sponsored by Campus Recreation that is designed to motivate and inspire the PSU community to become more active. Set personal goals, enjoy friendly competition, participate in weekly challenges, and earn prizes as you get outside and increase your step count–whenever and wherever you want! Sign up as an individual or create/join a team and participate in events including a kick-off walk, day trip to Duniway Park, ghost stories walk, and virtual spooky scavenger hunt!

Learn how growing gardens cultivates equitable communities

In conjunction with the exhibition, The Art of Food, the JSMA at PSU will host a talk with Growing Gardens, a local organization that uses the experience of growing food in schools, backyards, and correctional facilities to cultivate healthy, equitable communities. Come by the museum to view the exhibition and learn more about the incredible work being done by Growing Gardens on Thursday, Sept. 29 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. The presentation will be given by Japhety Ngabireyimana, PSU student, and Jason Skipton, Executive Director of Growing Gardens. This event is free to the public.

PSU in the News

Vice President for Global Diversity and Inclusion Ame Lambert was featured in The Skanner and on OPB’s Think Out Loud, covering an emerging partnership between Portland State and Portland Opportunities Industrialization Center to help Black students navigate the “hidden curriculum” of the workplace; Daniel Wong, faculty in the School of Business specializing in supply chain management, helped The Oregonian explain what makes Coos Bay a potentially attractive port; and Marisa Zapata director of the PSU Homelessness Research and Action Collaborative spoke to KOIN about how rising rents exacerbates the region’s housing crisis.

Accolades

People

Kathi Inman Berens, Berrin Erdogan, Ted Khoury, Emily Shafer, Marta Stelmaszak-Rosa, Lindsey Wilkinson, Douglas Wilson, Hyeyoung Woo

Presented

Shane Day, Ramin Farahmandpur, Oscar Fernandez, Maria Helena Gabriel, John Hall, Cristina Herrera, Maurice Hamington, Isabel Jaen-Portillo, Sejin Keem, Emmanuel Magana, Dot McElhone, Cassio de Olveira, Ana C. Pelosi, L. David Rithcie, Leopaldo Rodriguez, Dara Shifrer, Eva Thanheiser, Marvin Washington, Lindsey Wilkinson, Hyeyoung Woo, Maika Yeigh

Published/Exhibited

Theodore van Alst, Kathi Inman Berens, Eric Einspruch, Oscar Fernandez, Julia Freybote, Bennett Gilbert, Tom Hastings, Melissa Haeffner, Maurice Hamington, Jon Holt, Maureen Hickey, Saki Hirozane, Isabel Jaen-Portillo, Ted Khoury, Clive Knights, Jesse Locker, Cassio de Olveira, L. David Ritchie, John Vignaux Smyth, Ami Sommariva, Eva Thanheiser, Marvin Washington

Grants

Cynthia Carmina Gomez, Shane Day

Events

Additional Links

CURRENTLY IS PUBLISHED online every Monday during the academic year. News items should be sent to the Office of University Communications (currently@pdx.edu) by noon the Tuesday before publication. See the Currently website for submission guidelines and schedule.