Contact: Maureen Shine (541) 346-3145 June 26, 1997 Source: Jim Garcia, assistant director, UO Office of Multicultural Affairs, (541) 346-3479 Source: Beverly Hayon, Kaiser Permanente (510) 271-6437 EUGENE--Beginning fall term, a new scholarship intended to create more educational opportunities for under-represented minority students will be available at the University of Oregon. California-based Kaiser Permanente, the Eugene-Springfield chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and the Lane County area Latino Coalition have joined forces with the University of Oregon to create the Robert J. Erickson Kaiser Permanente Scholarship. Kaiser Permanente is funding the scholarship with an endowment that will cover nearly all costs of a UO undergraduate student's tuition, room and board, and books for up to four years--valued at approximately $40,000 over four years. The scholarship is named for UO alumnus Robert J. Erickson, a board member of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, who recently retired as Kaiser Permanente's senior vice president for legal affairs and government relations. A community leader in equal opportunity, legal services for the disadvantaged and health care services for the elderly, Erickson has actively supported various African-American, Latino and legal services organizations. Erickson received his bachelor of arts degree in history from the UO in 1950 and his law degree cum laude from Harvard Law School. He also attended the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School. "I'm so delighted to be honored in this way by Kaiser Permanente and local community groups," said Erickson. "I feel strongly that higher education is a key to achieving success, especially for under-represented minority students." "We hope this partnership will serve as a model for other organizations to create educational opportunities for students of color," said Marshall Sauceda, UO Office of Multicultural Affairs director and Latino Coalition board member. To be eligible for the scholarship, students must be U.S. citizens; African-American, Latino or Native American; able to demonstrate financial need; able to carry a full load of classes to graduate in four years; able to maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.75; and interested in contributing significantly to the improvement of his or her community. Residents and non-residents of Oregon are eligible for the scholarship. Applications for the scholarship have been distributed to incoming UO students who meet scholarship criteria and are also available at the following locations: the Eugene branch of the NAACP, P.O. Box 11484, Eugene, OR 97440; and the UO Office of Multicultural Affairs, 470 Oregon Hall, 1255 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1255, or by calling (541) 346-3479. The application deadline is June 30. Applicants and the scholarship recipient will be notified by July 21. -30- #O-4106/Local,OrDailies,OMA