April 10, 2023

News

PSU announces Faculty & Staff Excellence Awards winners

Academic Affairs has announced the recipients of the annual Faculty and Staff Excellence Awards. The awards celebrate the individuals who have achieved outstanding scholarship and accomplishments at Portland State University. These awards are one example of how we honor, recognize and incentivize the ongoing excellence of PSU faculty and staff. The recipients of these awards will be honored at a luncheon held between commencement ceremonies on Sunday, June 18. Congratulations to our colleagues for their outstanding contributions:

Jihye Kim Ameling, World Languages & Literatures/Korean- Academic Excellence Award for Adjunct Faculty
Lyndsie Compton, World Languages & Literatures/Spanish - Academic Excellence Award for Adjunct Faculty
Heejun Chang, Assoc. Dean for Research & Graduate Programs/CLAS - Branford Price Millar Award
Richard Clucas, Prof. of Political Science & Exec. Dir. of Western Political Science Assoc./CUPA - George C. Hoffmann Award
Lynell Spencer, Pathway Director of Urban, Public and Global Affairs/Advising - Mary H. Cumpston Award for Service to Students
Lisa Jarrett, Assoc. Prof., Community and Context Arts/School of Art + Design - Foundation Philanthropic Partnership Award

PSU faculty and staff members play ping pong

NEW: Faculty/Staff Rec Center Punch Pass

Interested in visiting the Rec Center without committing to a Campus Rec membership? The new faculty/staff guest punch pass is the perfect option for you! PSU faculty/staff can now purchase a 10-day punch pass for $50 ($20 savings) to visit the Rec Center as a guest. Each punch pass is good for the entire day. Campus Rec membership benefits are not included. Learn more about Campus Rec's faculty/staff membership and faculty/staff guest punch pass on the Faculty/Staff webpage.

Connect students to the Learning Center for academic success

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.

Schedule time to learn about cybersecurity threats

In February, PSU's Information Security Team began offering a 15-minute training by KnowBe4 to all faculty, staff and student workers that covers cybersecurity threats commonly seen at home and at work. More than 17% of all employees have already completed this non-mandatory training. Reminders have gone out to those who haven't yet and we encourage all to complete the online training as time and work assignment permits. Please keep an eye out for your invite from KnowBe4.

Work/Life Balance Survey Update

In early November the Work/Life Balance Committee invited staff and faculty to complete a survey that will direct the initiatives of the committee in the coming year and inform recommendations to update the PSU Work/Life balance policy. The committee would like to sincerely thank everyone who took the time to complete the survey. More than 950 staff and faculty contributed and we are so grateful to our colleagues for their candid and thoughtful responses. The committee is in the process of reviewing the survey results and will share some of the findings at a later date.

Participate in PSU Spring Day of Giving

PSU Spring Day of Giving is this week! Join the Portland State community on Wednesday, April 12, for a grassroots day of giving in support of 75+ unique projects and programs on campus. Early bird giving and downloadable digital assets are now available, so help raise funds for the projects that are important to you — and spread the word!

REMINDER: Spring Symposium is April 27

Mark your calendars for the 2023 Spring Symposium, hosted by PSU President Stephen Percy and the PSU Faculty Senate. All faculty and staff are invited to attend — virtually or in person — on Thursday, April 27 from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and share their ideas on identifying priorities and shared purpose regarding the university’s approach to long term financial planning. The event will be in a World Café format for group dialogue. More information about the event and a chance to RSVP will be sent via email later this month.

PSU in the news

Professor Deborah Arthur, founder of PSU’s Higher Education in Prison, spoke with the Oregonian about expanding the program; Dirk Theisen, mechanical systems manager, talked with Energy Trust about climate control at the JSMA; and Director of PSU’s Population Research Center Ethan Sharygin discussed Multnomah County’s population decline with the Oregonian.

Accolades

People

Miriam Abelson, Jola Ajibade, Kathi Inman Berens, Jon Fink, Marie Lo

Presented

Jola Ajibade, Heejun Chang, Karen Erwin, Elliot Gall, Inna Kucheryavenko, Paul Lokith, Dot McElhone, Catherine McNeur, Michael Mitchell, Pronoy Rai, Alex Sager, Jason Sauer, Joseph Venetucci, Dilafruz Williams, Maika Yeigh

Published/Exhibited

Alida Cantor, Theresa Robbins Dudeck, Martín Alberto Gonzalez, Andrés Holz, Katie Sinback, Maika Yeigh

Events

Additional Links

Currently is Portland State University’s weekly faculty and staff newsletter. It is published online every Monday during the academic year by University Communications. News items should be emailed by noon the Tuesday before publication. See the Currently website for submission guidelines and schedule.