The annual Portland State of Mind celebration kicks off Thursday, Oct. 13 and runs through Saturday, Oct. 22. The PSOM calendar lists over 50 events happening on or near the Portland State campus throughout the 10-day celebration. Since it would be impossible to attend every event offered, we’ve scoured the event listings and picked out a few that stand out as noteworthy. For the full list of events, visit pdx.edu/portland-state-of-mind.
Portland State of Mind Events: Vanguard’s Top Picks
Thursday, Oct. 13
Portland State of Mind Concert
Smith Memorial Student Union, Parkway North, Room 101
6–10 p.m.
This concert features !!! (pronounced Chk-Chk-Chk), EASTGHOST and Force Publique and will be located in SMSU’s Parkway North Space, right across the hall from the food court and cafeteria.
Cost: Free to PSU students and $15 for the general audience. Tickets are required and available through the PSU Box Office.
PDXTalks
Lincoln Recital Hall, Room 75
7–9:15 p.m.
This TED Talk-style lecture series hosted by PSU’s Office of Communications features PSU alumni and faculty speaking on a variety of subjects. Speakers include Gretchen Schauffler, founder of a line of vibrant interior paints called Divine Color created to combat the effects of dreary Portland weather; Kevin Truong, a Portland and New York City based photographer who created the Gay Men Project; Wajdi Said, president and co-founder of the Muslim Education Trust speaking on fostering understanding and engagement with Portland’s Muslim community; Amelia Pape, an Oregon based social entrepreneur and food access advocate who founded My Street Grocery; and Larry Wallack, current PSU professor and director of the Center for Public Health Studies and distinguished fellow of the Moore Institute for Nutrition and Wellness at Oregon Health & Science University.
Cost: Free and open to the public. Tickets required and available through the PSU Box Office.
Friday, Oct. 14
Campus Sustainability Tour
Meet in Urban Plaza, 506 SW Mill St.
10–11:15 a.m.
Explore many of the PSU campus’ sustainable features, including solar panels, green roofs and moves toward sustainable architecture.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Outdoor Program 50th Anniversary Celebration
Academic and Student Recreation Center, Room 515
6–10 p.m.
PSU’s Outdoor Program kicked off in 1966. This celebration looks back on the past 50 years of student-led outdoor adventures.
Cost: Free, open to current and alumni Outdoor Program trip leaders, staff and volunteers.
Saturday, Oct. 15
Homecoming Football Game and Tailgate
Tailgate: Kingston Sports Bar & Grill, 2021 SW Morrison St.
11:30 a.m.
Football game: Providence Park, 1844 SW Morrison St.
2:30 p.m.
Athletic Director Mark Rountree and the PSU Alumni Association are hosting the pregame party, called the Hop Valley Brewing Urban Tailgate, outside Kingston Sports Bar & Grill. At 2:30, the PSU Vikings face the Cal Poly Mustangs at Providence Park for the homecoming game.
Cost: Free to PSU Students with ID, $20–$40 for the general public, $5 for kids under 8th grade. Purchase tickets at the PSU Box Office.
Monday, Oct. 17
World Languages Fair
SMSU Browsing Lounge, Room 238
1–3 p.m.
A celebration and exploration of world languages and cultures. Learn how to write your name in Japanese or Chinese, how to say hello in Arabic and Persian and explore the music of Russia, Korea and more. Hosted by PSU’s Department of World Languages and Literature.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Paper Tigers Film Screening and Panel
SMSU Browsing Lounge, Rooms 237, 238 and 239
7:30–9:30 p.m.
The School of Social Work is hosting a screening and panel discussion of the film Paper Tigers, described on the PSOM events listing as a movie that “captures the pain, the danger, the beauty and the hopes of struggling teens—and the teachers armed with new science and fresh approaches that are changing teen lives for the better.”
Cost: Free and open to the public, with tickets available through Eventbrite Ticketing.
PSU Convenes: Should Oregon Raise Corporate Taxes?
SMSU Ballroom, Room 355
7–8 p.m.
Sponsors and opponents of the proposed corporate business tax, Measure 97, square off in a debate, live-streamed by KATU-TV and moderated by Steve Dunn. The measure goes to vote Nov. 7.
Cost: Free and open to the public. Tickets required and available through the PSU Box Office.
Tuesday, Oct. 18
Black Lives Matter: Rhetoric or Reality?
SMSU Browsing Lounge, Rooms 327, 328 and 329
4:30–6 p.m.
This panel discussion featuring Black Studies faculty will discuss the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement. Panelists include artist, author and educator Turiya Autry, M.A.; national expert on Africana Studies Dr. Winston Grady-Willis; professor, Chair and Undergraduate Advisor of PSU Black Studies Dr. Shirley A. Jackson; Dr. Derrais (D.A.) Carter, assistant professor of Black Studies; and Dr. Ethan Johnson, associate professor in PSU’s Black Studies Department.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Open for Business: A Networking Event for PSU’s LGBTQ Community and LGBTQ Professionals in Portland
Ecotrust Billy Frank Jr. Conference Center, 721 NW 9th Ave.
6–8 p.m.
A night of networking and reflections on how Portland’s business community and landscape has changed over the past 10 years for LGBTQ professionals. Panelists include Joey Gleason, owner of Buckman Coffee Factory; Robin Knauerhase, research scientist at Intel Labs; Steve Lesky, program officer at Cambia Health Foundation; Bob Speltz, senior director of public affairs at The Standard; and Kris Young, VP/GM NADTC of factory stores at Nike.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Writers at Work
University Pointe, Room 102, 1955 SW 5th Ave.
7:30–9 p.m.
PSU’s English Department and Ooligan Press host Oregon writers in a discussion of their day jobs in writing-adjacent fields like publishing, teaching and literary non-profits.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Wednesday, Oct. 19
STEM Career + Internship Fair
SMSU Ballroom, Room 355
11 a.m.–3 p.m.
An opportunity for current PSU students and alumni to connect with science, technology, engineering and mathematics employers and to learn about career and internship opportunities.
Cost: Free and open to PSU students and alumni job seekers.
Thursday, Oct. 20
2016 School of Art + Design Scholarship Exhibition Reception
Art Building, AB Lobby Gallery (1st floor), and MK Gallery (2nd floor), 2000 SW 5th Ave.
5–7 p.m.
An exhibition of the School of Art & Design’s scholarship winners runs now through Oct. 21. The Oct. 20 exhibit reception gives viewers a chance to meet the featured artists.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
PSU Volleyball vs. Eastern Washington University
Peter Stott Center Gymnasium, 930 SW Hall St.
7–9 p.m.
The Vikings volleyball team takes on the Eastern Washington Eagles in a Big Sky Conference match in the Stott Center.
Cost: Free for PSU students with ID. $10 for general public, $5 for kids 8th grade and under. Tickets available through the PSU Box Office.
Friday, Oct. 21
Diversity and Multicultural Student Services Alumni Alliance Kick-Off Party
Simon Benson House, 1803 SW Park Ave.
5:30–8 p.m.
A celebration of the launch of PSU’s new Diversity and Multicultural Student Services Alumni Alliance. The event will feature a no-host bar, refreshments and free appetizers.
Cost: Free and open to the public. Space is limited. All interested attendees and their guests must register through EventBrite Ticketing.
Saturday, Oct. 22
Lost City, Living Memories: Vanport Through the Voices of its Residents
SMSU Browsing Lounge, Room 238
2–3:30 p.m.
A special screening of community-produced short oral history documentaries. Through archival footage, historic photographs and compelling first-person narratives, this collection of short films creates a rich and elaborate mosaic of the vibrant community that made up the city of Vanport. This event features appearances from former Vanport residents sharing stories and memories; PCC Cascade History Professor James Harrison; “Story midwife” and Vanport Mosaic co-founder Laura Lo Forti; and Portland author of “Images of America: Vanport” Zita Podany.
Cost: Free and open to the public. RSVP recommended at Eventbrite Ticketing.
Fright Night: University Housing & Residence Life Annual Haunted House
Montgomery Court, 1802 SW 10th Ave.
7–10:00 p.m.
Walk the haunted halls of this university residence building as the students transform it into a dreadful dungeon of doom.
Cost: Open to the public. Residents of UHRL get in for free. General admission: $2 donation to the Ken Irwin Memorial Scholarship fund. A $5 donation lets you skip the line.
