2004 at PSU: by the numbers

2004 was a year of tumultuous change for both Portland State and the city of Portland. PSU faced new growth on a tighter budget, but also made progress in attracting large donations and landing big-ticket academic items like the Northwest Center for Engineering, Science and Technology. Portland bore witness to a bitter battle of same-sex marriage rights, a wacky race for city mayor and a divisive but energizing presidential election. Here are a few of the figures that made 2004 count:

23,486
Number of students enrolled at PSU as of the fourth week of fall term, an increase of 369 since 2003.

4,390
Number of degrees issued by PSU during the 2003-04 school year, the most ever for the university in a single year.

$8,000,000
Amount donated to PSU’s College of Engineering and Computer Science by Dr. Fariborz Maseeh in March, the largest private donation in the university’s history.

$47,500,000
Total cost of the Broadway Housing building, PSU’s new student housing facility that opened in September.

$100,000,000
Amount PSU announced in November that it hopes to attract in private donations by 2006 through its "Building Our Future" campaign (the university has already raised $76 million).

12
Margin of votes by which a referendum in support of building a new $30 million campus recreation center passed in March’s student elections (the vote was 912-900).

$281
Amount per term that tuition increased for students taking 15 credits in 2004-05 (a 19 percent increase from 2003-04).

$0.50
Cost of a PIN-based transaction when using a Higher One-issued student ID card as a debit card, one of the most hotly fought over issues in the student quarrel with university administration over the cards.

31,952
Number of voters registered by the Student Vote Coalition in Oregon’s largest student voter turnout drive ever.

23
Number of candidates who vied in May to replace Vera Katz as Portland’s mayor, the most candidates that have ever run for a Portland city office.

2,961
Number of same-sex couples that married in Multnomah County between March 3 and April 20.

56
Percentage of Oregon voters who voted to pass Measure 36 Nov. 2, which defines marriage in Oregon to be between one man and one woman.

750
Approximate number of Oregonians who signed a petition supporting Ralph Nader’s bid to get on the Oregon ballot as a candidate for president in March (he needed 1,000 to qualify).

23
Number of Starbucks coffee shops within a two-mile radius of Portland State campus.

10
Number of seconds it takes to open some types of "U-lock" bicycle locks using a hollow Bic pen, according to numerous internet videos posted in September.