June 19, 2000
On your next Oregon Hall visit, don’t be surprised if you discover that offices on three-quarters of the floors have been reshuffled.
Instead of trudging up to the fourth floor to find Multicultural Affairs, now you can walk right in to its offices on the ground floor. Student Life also is relocating to the first floor.
"We’re expecting these changes to make us more ‘student-centered’ than ever," says Anne Leavitt, associate vice president for Student Affairs and dean of students. "We’re excited about the opportunity to create a student services center on the first floor as well as closer associations among the faculty and staff who support student diversity."
Jim Buch, associate vice president for Student Academic Affairs, says the new office arrangement on the third floor provides exciting new opportunities for collaboration.
"Advising staff and staff supporting learning communities and the first year experience (including orientation) will be working together under Karen Sprague, the new vice provost for undergraduate studies, to strengthen existing programs resulting from the Process for Change," he says.
Among offices relocating to the fourth floor, you’ll find those who work with staff on all the floors to provide essential administrative support services.
After months of planning and weeks of packing, the moves took place on June 13 and 14 with only a few bumps along the way. Bekins Northwest movers hauled furniture, files and supplies up and down the building’s stairs and elevators from 3 p.m. to midnight so the relocated offices could start returning to normality by the next day.
The goal, Leavitt and others say, is to have everything in place so that July’s IntroDUCKtion orientation sessions can go off without a hitch.
Despite the large number of employees relocating, most telephone numbers will remain the same. A complete list of faculty and staff, with their locations and phone numbers, will be available after the move. In the meantime, here’s an overview of what changed:
"When the dust settles, we hope you’ll come and enjoy the new configuration," Leavitt says. "We’ll have some temporary signs up soon to help you find us, and we do appreciate the patience of our Oregon Hall visitors as we continue working on this office realignment that aims to provide one-stop service for students by the start of fall term."
For information about the move, call Buch, 6-1264, or Leavitt, 6-1129. Information also is available from department moving coordinators Margaret Hyland or Anne Turner, Academic Advising, 6-1064; Linda Liu, Multicultural Affairs, 6-2999; Donna Leavy, Student Life, 6-1137; or Kathie Stanley, Student Academic Affairs, 6-1278.
Children’s Defense Fund founder and president Marian Wright Edelman, a tireless advocate for children, urged the Class of 2000 to create "a more just and compassionate and less violent society and world" in her address during the 123rd spring commencement on June 10.
Periodic rain showers didn’t dampen the spirits of the approximately 4,208 spring-term degree candidates and fall- and winter-term UO graduates who were eligible to participate in the Hayward Field ceremonies.
"We do not have a youth problem in America," said Edelman, who received an honorary doctorate, the university’s highest honor, in recognition of her work to help disadvantaged children. "We have a big adult problem. Our children are suffering from adult hypocrisy. We are telling them to do one thing, and then we are doing another."
In addition, the university recognized 12 people for their exemplary service, philanthropic leadership and teaching excellence.
Distinguished Service Awards–Annabel Kitzhaber of Eugene, a citizen advocate for good government and former president of the League of Women Voters of Oregon; 1978 UO graduate Robert D. Steadward of Alberta, Canada, an internationally recognized leader in developing sports opportunities for persons with disabilities and president of the 160-nation International Paralympic Committee; and Dorothy Anderson of Eugene, a state leader in land-use planning and energy management and a member and former president of the Eugene Water & Electric Board.
The faculty annually selects recipients who, through their knowledge and skills, "have made a significant contribution to the cultural development of Oregon or society as a whole."
Presidential Medal–Hill Walker, Education–the first faculty member to receive this award–and a nationally acclaimed youth violence expert, received a hand-forged solid silver medal for his leadership in educational research and in developing both the Center on Human Development and the Institute on Violence and Destructive Behavior.
The Presidential Medal honors those who have demonstrated a commitment to higher education through their long-standing and extraordinary support. The medal is a replica of the myrtlewood medallion the UO president wears for ceremonies.
Thomas F. Herman Faculty Achievement Award for Distinguished Teaching–Jon Erlandson and Madonna Moss, both Anthropology, and Rob Proudfoot, International Studies, were honored for their teaching excellence.
The Herman award, first given in 1995, honors senior faculty members who have achieved outstanding records as teachers. Supported by an Alamo, Calif., business leader and 1962 UO alumnus, the award consists of a crystal apple and an annual $2,000 salary increase.
Charles E. Johnson Memorial Award–Rob Proudfoot, International Studies, was honored for demonstrating exceptional service to the university and its community.
The Johnson Award, first given by the UO faculty in 1980, traditionally honors a faculty member who has exemplified the principles affirmed by the late UO president. Those principles include that freedom of speech and assembly hold a central position among American constitutional and educational precepts; that a university can and must adapt to accelerating social change while maintaining its basic objective; and that, as Thomas Jefferson said, "...here we are not afraid to follow truth wherever it might lead, nor to tolerate error so long as reason is left free to combat it."
Graduate Teaching Fellows Awards–Bayta Maring, Psychology, and Mark Meritt, English, received $500 honoraria for the outstanding quality of their classroom teaching and their enthusiasm as instructors. Penelope Heinigk, Germanic Languages and Literatures, received a $150 honorable mention award.
The university established the GTF teaching awards in 1979 in cooperation with the UO chapter of Mortar Board. Their purpose is to recognize excellence in teaching and academic guidance. This year, 40 graduate students from more than 20 departments or programs were nominated.
At a pre-commencement brunch, the UO Alumni Association bestowed its 2000 Outstanding Young Alumnus Award on Seattle Times reporter and 1997 Pulitzer Prize winner Alex Tizon ‘84. The 2000 Distinguished Alumni Award went to N. Ray Hawk ‘47, M.S. ‘48 D.Ed. ‘49, a longtime UO administrator and supporter.
Besides the university-wide exercises on June 10, each school or college–including individual Arts and Sciences departments–held its own ceremony at various campus locations on June 9-10. During these ceremonies, master’s and bachelor’s degree candidates received individual recognition.
Among spring term’s 3,269 degree candidates were 2,379 completing requirements for bachelor’s degrees, 146 for certificates, 499 for master’s degrees and 69 for doctoral degrees. Another 176 students received law degrees during the UO Law Commencement on May 21.
Others eligible to participate in the spring ceremonies were 568 fall term and 471 winter term graduates. No ceremonies were held those terms.
Recycle confidential materials before July 1, Archivist Susan Storch asks departments. "Please send confidential recycling to Weyerhaeuser before July 1 when the funding source for the program will change," she says. "We want to use the existing budget to destroy materials that are already past their retention period." The procedure for confidential recycling will remain the same even after July 1. For information on what you can destroy and how to go about it, consult the Records Retention Schedule and the Confidential Recycling Program information on the University Archives web site, http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/archives/index.html. For more information, call Storch, 6-1899, or send e-mail to sstorch@darkwing.uoregon.edu.
Lunch at Collier House with a job candidate may be just the ticket for departments in the midst of recruiting. Departments may charge lunches at Collier House to a budget index, just as they can for a catered event, says Allen Gidley, Housing business affairs director. However, as waiters cannot verify indexes on a walk-in basis, department business managers should call University Catering at least 24 hours in advance, 6-4303, to make a reservation and provide the applicable index. The number of reservations accepted each day is limited, so plan ahead.
While you listen to performances at selected Oregon Bach Festival concerts, let your children from 6 weeks to 12 years old play at the Downtown Athletic Club Newberry Childcare facility. For $20 per child, state-certified staff will provide a safe, supervised and fun environment, with videos, games, swimming and pizza for kids, while parents attend the June 23, June 28 and July 6 concerts. For information, call the DAC, 484-4011.
If you are planning a trip to a foreign country, then visiting the University Health Center travel clinic should be part of your preparations. The clinic provides faculty, staff and students with vital information about international travel, required and recommended immunizations, and current health conditions in every country. Appointments are made in person at the clinic office. Contact the clinic early to complete any necessary immunizations in a timely manner. The clinic is open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday. For a brochure or more information, call 6-2739.
Free admission to more than 200 science, technology and natural history museums across the country has been added to the benefits for UO faculty, staff and students who join the Friends of the Museum of Natural History. Membership fees, ranging upward from $20 for students and $45 for families, buys entrance to such attractions as Portland’s OMSI, San Francisco’s Exploratorium and Boston’s Museum of Science. Call 6-3024 for details.
University Librarian George Shipman will retire from the post he has held since 1980 on June 30. An interim librarian will be appointed this summer following an internal selection process, with a national search to fill the post permanently to follow. Shipman has brought the UO Library System into the ranks of the top research libraries in the nation. Significant initiatives include a successful fund-raising campaign that resulted in a major expansion and renovation of the Knight Library and creation of an endowed Knight Chair; implementation of the library’s integrated online system; the library’s leading role in the creation of the Orbis consortium of academic libraries in Oregon and Washington; and establishment of the Knight Library Press to publish collectible, limited-edition books by regional authors. A reception honoring Shipman’s two decades of service is set for 4:30-6 p.m. Thursday, June 29, at GAL.
Karen Sprague, Biology, will become vice provost for undergraduate studies on July 1. She will work with campus groups to promote excellence in undergraduate teaching, strengthen the connections between research and undergraduate education, and revise and improve general education requirements. In the new full-time position, she will work with and be advised by the Undergraduate Council. Sprague will oversee Academic Advising, Multicultural Affairs, Student Retention Programs and the implementation of undergraduate programs developed through the Process for Change. A UO molecular biologist since 1977, Sprague earned her doctorate in biochemistry at Yale University. She has taught and researched the control of gene expression in higher organisms.
Del I. Hawkins, Marketing, will become director of the Museum of Art on July 1, succeeding David Robertson who has resigned effective June 30 to become associate director of the David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago. Hawkins will hold the half-time assignment for 18 months through Dec. 31, 2001. Robertson has been director of the UO art museum since February 1996. A national search to fill the director position permanently will begin spring term next year. Hawkins has indicated he will not be a candidate to fill the art museum directorship permanently. In conjunction with this change in leadership, Lawrence Fong, currently the museum’s associate director and curator of Northwest art, will become executive associate director. He will assist Hawkins and oversee many of the day-to-day operations.
Denise Matthews, Journalism and Communication, and Michael Majdic, KL Media Services, won a first place "Gold Camera Award from the U.S. International Film and Video Festival of Chicago for "Roll on Columbia: Woody Guthrie and the Bonneville Power Administration." The documentary, produced by a team also including Lynette Boone, Andy Kirkpatrick and Brian Hinderberger, all Media Services, also won an Award of Distinction from the Videographer Awards 2000. The video will be featured at the Portland Art Museum’s Northwest Film Center on June 25-26, is set to air in late July on Oregon Public Broadcasting and will be screened at the Woody Guthrie Free Folk Festival in Oklahoma in July.
John Postlethwait, Biology, is one of nine outstanding graduates of Purdue University who received Distinguished Alumni Awards from the Purdue School of Science on June 6. A UO faculty member since 1971, he earned a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from Purdue in 1966. His doctoral degree is from Case Western Reserve University, and he was a postdoc at Harvard.
Correction: Steve Shankman, English, Classics and Humanities Center, co-authored with Stephen Durrant, East Asian Languages and Literatures, the book The Siren and the Sage: Knowledge and Wisdom in Ancient Greece and China, published in January by Continuum International [New York] and Cassell [London]. The entry in the May 12 issue was inaccurate due to editorial errors.
Tom Connolly, MNH, published "Comments on America’s Oldest Basketry" in Radiocarbon.
George F. Andrews, Architecture emeritus, died May 19 in Eugene of cancer. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Andrews, 81, joined the UO faculty in 1948 and retired in 1980. He and his wife spent 40 years exploring and documenting sites of Mayan civilization in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras. His pen-and-ink drawings were featured at the Hult Center’s Jacobs Gallery in March. A memorial service and celebration of Andrews’ life and work was held May 25.