The team's preliminary written report is expected early in May. UO officials will have a chance to respond before the team forwards its final written report to the accreditation association representing 152 private and public colleges and universities for its formal decision in June.

"Overall, there were no surprises in the team's informal preliminary findings," says Dave Hubin, executive assistant president. "Most important, the team affirmed that the university--particularly its faculty and staff--has done an extraordinary job of maintaining or improving upon quality in the midst of severe reductions in state support."

Accreditation, based on decennial evaluations, is intended to assure that the university meets self-regulated standards ranging from scholarship and research to finance and physical facilities.

At the end of its three-day visit, the team, chaired by Joan Wadlow, chancellor of the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, praised the UO for its "creative and entrepreneurial response to state budget reductions," including a highly successful private fund-raising campaign. They found a campus community which cares deeply for the institution and is committed to continuing the quality and excellence of programs, research and teaching.

"On the other hand, they warned--as we all-too-clearly recognize ourselves--that we are at the end of the line in terms of what we can cut without damaging the institution's quality," Hubin says.

He says they also warned that the university is in peril of being able to retain and recruit faculty due to low salaries. They recommended that increasing salaries for faculty and staff be a continuing institutional priority.

"They praised us for being on the leading edge in successfully implementing technological innovations to improve instruction, citing the recent national recognition and awards we have received," Hubin says. "They also commended the university for continuing to assess itself and look for ways to do things better."

At the same time, he says they recommended more consistency in the way senior faculty are evaluated, improvement in assessing students' academic progress, and better coordination and integration of the university's core curriculum.

"My reasons for withdrawing are complex, as is usually the case in such situations, and I cannot really attribute the decision to any single thing," he said. "The similarities between the UO and the Boulder campuses are very strong, both in terms of the institutions and their programs, cultures and faculty, the way the institutions are financed, the political climate in the states, and their positions within a `system.'

"Taken all together, I did not view the position of chancellor there as sufficiently attractive to me to give up the very positive things which we share here at the University of Oregon. Certainly, we do have very serious challenges, and I expect to continue working to meet these challenges," Moseley said.

After nearly three decades of service to the university, the woman known as "Mary H" to those who stumble over the spelling or pronunciation of her name will retire in June.

"I kid the people here and say that, in terms of the job, I will be missed one minute for every year I have worked, which is about 30 minutes, because it will take them that long to find all of my files. I know I will be personally missed for longer than that," she says with a smile.

Saying "Mary H" is "retiring" is a bit premature. She has too much volunteer work still left to do.

"I've always felt the need to volunteer and participate ever since I became president of my Brownie Scout troupe. I have this motto: Service is the rent you pay for your space on Earth. Some people pay more rent than others. I probably pay a heck of a lot of rent, even though I haven't had the chance to participate in some things that I really want to do, such as Meals on Wheels," she says.

Now assistant dean of student life, Hudzikiewicz thought she was going to be an English teacher when she started here as a student in 1959.

"While an undergraduate, I was very active as a student leader. The more I worked, and the more I got involved with planning and organizing student activities and events, the more I knew that was what I really wanted to do," she says.

Perhaps the event most special to Hudzikiewicz is her annual planning of Commencement. Even though it is a tremendous effort that manages to exhaust her by the end of the day, it is what she calls a "happy exhaustion."

"I get a tear in my eye every time it starts because it is a culmination of so many things for so many students. They have achieved such a milestone. The part I play in helping to make that day special for them is good for me, and it helps keep me going," she says. Luckily, her 600-hour post-retirement appointment will enable her to continue to coordinate events such as Commencement.

So, the question, "What are you going to do when you retire?" is not really a question for Hudzikiewicz because she already knows.

President's Office intern Melissa Crown, who coordinated this year's campus food drive, says the UO total represents more than half of the 2,425 pounds but just one-sixth of the $7,714.90 collected by all state employees in Lane County.

Debra Otley, Graduate School, orchestrated a competition to see whether a Graduate School/Publications/Oregon Quarterly team or a Registrar/Admissions team could collect the most food for the drive. Otley's co-workers in Chapman and Johnson Hall won and received a cookie feast supplied by the Oregon Hall team.

"The real winner of our competition was the food drive," Otley says. "Next year, employees in Chapman and Johnson halls will challenge all comers!"

The ceremony, honoring 162 graduates and open to the public, will begin at 11:00 a.m. in the Silva Concert Hall at the Hult Center. A reception will be follow at the Law Center on campus.

Law graduates selected Kitzhaber to speak. In addition, the ceremony will include an address by Rosslyn Stevens Otsubo, Law Student Bar Association president. Also speaking will be Eli Morgenstern, selected by the third-year student body as the graduating class speaker.

Portland attorney and former U.S. Rep. Wendell Wyatt, 79, will receive the 1997 Meritorious Service Award. A native Oregonian, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1964-75.

FIT helps members of the executive and legislative branches of state government gain access to faculty experts on a variety of issues facing Oregon. Doss says the program involves faculty expertise in the legislative process to assist lawmakers in developing informed public policy.

"Committee staff members are hungry for information," he says. "There seems to be enough interest to keep the program running and to keep faculty involved in the research process."

According to Doss, legislators contact the FIT program and request expertise in a particular area. Doss then contacts campus representatives from the Legislative Advisory Committee.

If the UO has an appropriate expert, Legislative Relations Director Kirk Bailey then seeks out faculty members and requests their participation.

"Faculty involvement is entirely voluntary," Doss stresses. "Moreover, the kind of information faculty are asked to provide is completely empirical, and it involves fact-based research, not opinions."

Participating faculty prepare written testimony, respond to queries via e-mail, telephone or fax, or testify before a committee or subcommittee.

For the eighth year since the tradition was revived in 1990 after a seven-decade hiatus, volunteers will clean, paint, plant flowers, spread bark dust and complete other beautification jobs.

"We encourage participation based on UO pride, but what we really want is for everyone to have fun and enjoy the festive atmosphere of University Day," says student director Eric Hudzikiewicz, Business.

The clean-up effort will begin at 8:30 a.m. and continue until 4:00 p.m. Student participants will sign in on East 13th between Chapman and Condon halls, and those working at least one hour will receive a free commemorative T-shirt.

This year's special projects include restoration and relocation of the Fenton Fountain at about 12:30 p.m. in front of Fenton Hall; installation of a plaque, commemorating decades of service by the Friars honorary, near a newly planted tree at about 1:00 p.m. at the corner of University Street and Johnson Lane; and cleaning and restoration throughout the day of the 1910 Senior Bench on Onyx Street opposite the Straub Hall main entrance.

Faculty and staff are urged to participate with students or to do projects for their department.

Jan Oliver, Administration, named Eugene's 1997 Outstanding Woman of the Year on International Women's Day in March, was part of an 11-member delegation from Eugene at the Presidents' Summit for America's Future April 27-29 in Philadelphia.

David Sokoloff, Physics, was awarded the Distinguished Service Citation of the American Association of Physics Teachers at the group's winter meeting. He was honored for his contributions to understanding student learning in physics and for the many positions he has held that served the physics community at all grade levels.

Shirien Stevens, Knight Library, is the Oregon Library Association's 1997 Library Employee of the Year. She was honored April 24 during the OLA's annual conference in Portland.

Bill Kunz, Journalism and Communications GTF, received an Emmy Award April 23 in the Outstanding Live Event Turnaround category for his work as associate director of the Centennial Olympic Games for NBC. He also received nominations in Outstanding Editing Specials for his work as segment producer and in Scriptwriting for his work with the show's hosts, both for ABC's "Wide World of Sports 35th Anniversary Special."

William Loy, Geography, has been given the rank and title of professor emeritus. A UO faculty member since 1967, he is creator of the highly regarded and comprehensive Atlas of Oregon.