Letter from your president

The opening of the new TriMet Green Line is symbolic of the start of our academic year.  At Portland State, we are deeply connected with the region, we care about sustainability, and the campus keeps getting better. In addition, programs are growing, and our faculty members are receiving record amounts in research dollars. Our Athletics Department is geared up for more action, coming off its most successful year in the Big Sky Conference. And all across our 49-acre campus, we are improving our facilities after successfully competing for state stimulus dollars. It is an exciting time at Portland State.

We have added more than a dozen new programs and degrees. For example, we are now offering an MBA in healthcare management in collaboration with OHSU; a PhD in mechanical engineering; and this fall is the first class of our MFA in creative writing. Our enrollment will probably top 28,000, and this past spring we awarded nearly 5,000 degrees.

Our growth doesn’t end there. Our research projects increased to $52 million, up 25 percent from the previous year; a trend that will continue.  Last year, we received a record-breaking $25 million, 10-year challenge grant from the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. This gift increases PSU’s leadership in sustainability through faculty research, community partnerships, and new opportunities for students.

Just last month, The Princeton Review named our University a “Best in the West” for our commitment to environmentally related practices on campus and our excellent academic programs. Once again, U.S. News & World Report recognized Portland State in its 2010 edition of America’s Best Colleges for our commitment to engaged learning through working cooperatively with the community.

And those aren’t the only areas where we excel. Men’s basketball and women’s volleyball both were Big Sky Champions, and the women’s softball team won the Pacific Coast Softball Conference championship. Women’s track and field took home titles in the 100 and 200 meter dash.

You also may have noticed (or heard) some major construction throughout campus. We’re enhancing the campus experience with the opening of the new Academic and Student Recreation Center in January. Located in the Urban Center Plaza, the facility includes a bouldering wall for rock climbing, an aquatic complex with a lap pool and whirlpool spa, and a synthetic floor gymnasium with dasher boards for floor hockey and indoor soccer. We are also revamping existing buildings on campus and adding new classrooms. And as more students, faculty, and staff choose alternate means of transportation, we are adding a new bike hub and increasing bike parking on campus by 32 percent.

This year at Portland State, find your own way to connect with our strong campus community of over 30,000 students, faculty and staff. Cheer on coach Jerry Glanville and the Vikings at a football game; attend a concert, play, or art exhibit; or take advantage of our many outdoor programs.

I have now been here for one year, and my wife Alice and I have come to love the excitement and great food of Portland, all the natural beauty of Oregon, and most of all the quality and commitment of the faculty, staff, students, and alumni of Portland State University. We look forward to a wonderful and successful new academic year.

See you out in the community,

Wim Wiewel
President, Portland State University