Mark

Barefoot in the Park

September 26, 2013 By Mark

Barefoot in the Park, a romantic comedy, will be performed October 2-6 in the Mago Hunt Center Theater on the University of Portland campus, 5000 N. Willamette Blvd. All performances are at 7:30 p.m., except the Sunday performance, which is at 2 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. For reservations starting September 23, call (503) 943-7287.

Barefoot in the Park, Neil Simon’s smash-hit romantic comedy, follows two newlyweds, her mother, and their crazy neighbor. The comedic story is about newlyweds Corie and Paul Bratter and how they learn to live together in their New York City apartment.

The cast, all University of Portland students, is Jordin Bradley (Corie Bratter), Matthew Sepeda (Harry Pepper), Michael Rexroat (Paul Bratter), Amy Billroth-MacLurg (Ethel Banks), and Jeffrey Phillips (Victor Velasco).

The play is directed by Andrew Golla (faculty) and costume design by student Kristen Gates

Native American Influences: Northwest

September 17, 2013 By Mark

Native Americans have lived in the Northwest for at least 11,000 years and that date is being pushed back in time constantly as new archeological and genetic discoveries are made. Despite all efforts to abolish them, the descendants of the First Nations remain. Their culture and their influence are abiding. They are the conscience of this land and they continue to be its advocates.

The goal of this exhibit is to present the work of a group of contemporary Northwest Native American artists and to show how regional non-native artist have been influenced by their traditions, culture and spirit.

When one encounters art, its effect travels to the viewer and back, somewhat in the manner of the Modoc saying, “Now that we have met, we have changed.”

SHOW ARTISTS: Kathryn Cotnoir, Kate Courtney, Charles Funk, Pat Courtney Gold, Tony Johnson, Lillian Pitt, Michael Raynham, Greg Robinson, Erik Sandgren, Andrea Wilbur Sigo, Tsungani, Dee Vadnais, Toma Villa

Yvette O’Neill Raynham, curator

Remodeled Clark Library Open House

September 16, 2013 By Mark

University of Portland will host a public open house for the newly opened and renovated Clark Library on Friday, Sept. 27 from 2 – 5 p.m. on campus, 5000 N. Willamette Blvd. The Clark Library is open after over a year of major renovation. The event is free and open to the public.

The open house will feature guided tours on the hour and readings by Brian Doyle, award winning author and editor of Portland Magazine, on the half hour. Light hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be provided.

The Clark Library’s renovation and rebuilding project, which cost an estimated $12.5 million, began in May 2012 and was opened to students and faculty in August. The new, modern library was built on the root structure of the old and now offers current technologies, collaborative and flexible learning spaces, and multi-format information resources. The renovation includes a glass-walled entrance facing the Academic Quad, spacious rooms lit with natural light, compact book shelving, updated study labs, reference and technology assistant stations, and state-of-the-art media labs.

The library has added a Heritage version of the Saint John’s Bible, one of only 45 institutions to do so. The beautifully handwritten and illuminated Bible is displayed prominently in the new building, attesting to the library’s role as a spiritual as well as intellectual hub of the campus.

“The Clark Library has been transformed into a modern and beautiful academic library,” Drew Harrington, dean of the Clark Library, said. “We are enormously pleased to welcome visitors to the library, which features a variety of flexible, colorful, and technology-rich learning spaces.”

Many foundations and individuals have given generously to the renovation, including the family of Maurie Clark, a major benefactor for the original library, built in 1958 and named in honor of his father, Wilson W. Clark, in 1972.

The gifts are part of the University’s RISE Campaign, which was announced in December 2010 and seeks to raise $175 million by 2014. The RISE Campaign, which has raised more than $162 million to date, is one of the largest development campaigns ever for a Pacific Northwest private college or university.

The campaign’s goals are divided into four major themes, each with funding targets: (1) Pursuing academic excellence and faculty funding – $70 million; (2) Providing access for all students and direct assistance – $45 million; (3) Developing faith and leadership – $10 million; and (4) Enriching the campus community and physical resources – $50 million.

For more information on the open house, please contact Kathy O’Connell Riddell at (503) 943-7775 or oconnell@up.edu.

To learn more about the library, please visit http://library.up.edu and https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151488779086408.1073741842.21901631407&type =

Beacon Makes National Finals

September 16, 2013 By Mark

FROM THE BEACON

By Sarah Hansell |

The Beacon is a finalist for the 2013 Associated Collegiate Press Pacemaker award for college newspapers, a national award that’s been given out for 86 years and is widely considered to be the most prestigious award in college media.

There are 22 colleges and universities whose student newspapers are finalists in the non-daily category. They include Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston College, George Washington University, University of Oregon, Wake Forest University, Johns Hopkins University and Washington University in St. Louis.

“The Pacemaker puts The Beacon in a very prestigious category with a lot of schools whose newspapers no doubt have more resources than The Beacon,” Editor-in-Chief Kelsey Thomas said.

According to the Associated Collegiate Press, the staff of the Miami Herald judged this year’s entries on the following criteria: coverage and content, quality of writing and reporting, leadership on the opinion page, evidence of in-depth reporting, layout and design and photography, art and graphics.

Past winners of the Pacemaker award in the non-daily category include student newspapers from the University of Chicago, Boston College, Washington University, Santa Clara University and San Francisco State University.

The Associated Collegiate Press will announce this year’s winners at its convention in New Orleans on Oct. 26.

“We’re very honored and excited that all our hard work is being recognized,” Thomas said.

For more information contact Copic at 7470 or copic@up.edu.

Clarence Thomas to Visit UP for Red Mass

September 14, 2013 By Mark

FROM THE BEACON

By Kate Stringer |

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will visit campus Sept. 19 to celebrate UP’s annual Red Mass and dialogue with students and professors.

The town-hall style discussion, “A Conversation with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas,” free and open to the public, will be in the Chiles Center at 4 p.m.

Following the talk, Thomas will attend the annual Red Mass in the Chapel of Christ the Teacher at 5:30 p.m. The Red Mass, a Catholic tradition that prays for all professionals who work with the law and administering justice, will be celebrated by Portland Archbishop Alexander K. Sample.

Thomas’ visit was initiated through his friend Diarmuid O’Scannlain, a Portland judge on the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. O’Scannlain is also a member of the advisory board for UP’s Garaventa Center, which is sponsoring the event.

Thomas is not the first Supreme Court Justice to visit The Bluff. Antonin Scalia’s visit in 2007 was also initiated through O’Scannlain.

Thomas, a 1972 graduate of The College of The Holy Cross, became acquainted with the UP community several years ago through his mentorship of UP junior Dakota Garza. After receiving the Horatio Alger Association scholarship, which recognizes students who’ve dealt with adversity, Garza met Thomas, also a member of the Association. Thomas became a mentor to Garza through the program, which facilitates supportive relationships between recipients and mentors.

“He’s a great mentor and he has a lot of good wisdom to share with people,” Garza said. “He’s such a personable kind of person, I feel like so many people can get along with him.”

Thomas is widely regarded as the most conservative judge on the bench. Recently, he ruled against gay marriage in the Defense of Marriage Act. He also ruled against section 4 of the Voting Rights Act.

“There are a lot of people who are concerned about him because of the decisions he’s made, his stances and his views, how he interprets the Constitution,” political science professor Gary Malecha said. “Many people would argue that he has an interpretation of the Constitution that doesn’t allow for progressive results.”

While Thomas’ decisions are typically conservative, not all have been so. Thomas dissented from the majority opinion in Gonzales v. Raich (2005), which held that Congress has the power under the Commerce Clause to criminalize the production and use of marijuana, even for medicinal purposes.

“At the end of the day he’s very much a federalist, and by that I mean he thinks that the expansion of federal government power since the New Deal shouldn’t be a part of our system. It is unconstitutional,” political science professor William Curtis said. “He’s going to support state legislation regardless of whether that state legislation is conservative or liberal.”

Thomas’ journey to the court was marked with adversity. He grew up in poverty in Savannah, Ga. and was active in the Civil Rights movement.

Garaventa Center Program Director Jamie Powell read Thomas’ memoir, “My Grandfather’s Son,” and found his life journey moving.

“It was a life that you and I have not experienced,” Powell said. “It was a very tough life growing up. It’s a very interesting route he’s taken. Whether you agree with him or not on the different cases, it’s fascinating to see what made the man.”

His nomination to the Supreme Court in 1991 was wrought with controversy when former colleague Anita Hill came forward with accusations he sexually harassed her when she worked for him during the early 1980s. While the charges were inconclusive, the Senate confirmed Thomas’ nomination with a 52-48 vote, the lowest in history. Thomas became the second African-American to be appointed to the Supreme Court.

Because Thomas is a public figure who rules on controversial issues, Powell will not be surprised if there are protests surrounding his arrival. Director of Public Safety Gerry Gregg doesn’t think the event will be highly controversial, but the Portland Police Bureau will be in charge of managing any protesters. U.S. Marshals will provide protection for Thomas.

Garaventa Center Co-Director Fr. Charles Gordon hopes people will take the opportunity to listen to someone different from themselves.

“The University of Portland community is an extraordinarily humane community. If a controversial figure like Clarence Thomas comes here, this is a community inclined to see him as a person, as another human being,” Gordon said. “With an encounter like that, it could help people break out of two-dimensional stereotypes of what someone’s like.”

Garza agrees, pointing out that media portrayals are different from personal encounters.

“I think you see these people in the news, but once you can be around them it’s such a different experience,” Garza said. “I wish that people had the opportunity to get to know him more and see that.”

The discussion in the Chiles Center will be a question and answer forum with questions from Malecha and Curtis as well as students. However, Thomas will not answer questions that could involve court cases or issues that might be presented to him because of presumptions that could be made on his rulings in future court cases.

“I’m excited to talk with a Supreme Court Justice regardless of who it is,” Curtis said. “To talk to somebody who bears that responsibility of that power and that exalted position is going to be very interesting, agree with him or not.”

To learn more about Clarence Thomas:

Political science professor William Curtis will present on the constitutional jurisprudence of Clarence Thomas for Constitution Day
Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. in St. Mary’s Lounge

Schedule of Events

“A Conversation with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas”

Chiles Center Sept. 19 at 4 p.m.

Free and open to the public
General seating, no tickets
Allow time for security, doors open no later than 3:30 p.m.
Large bags or backpacks aren’t allowed
His book “My Grandfather’s Son” will be sold for $15.95 per copy, not autographed

Red Mass

Chapel of Christ the Teacher Sept. 19 at 5:30 p.m.
Free and open to the public

International Forum

September 9, 2013 By Mark

The collaboratives for International Studies and Global Outreach and Teaching and Learning invite all faculty and staff to the Forum on Comprehensive Internationalization on Saturday, September 14, from 9 a.m. to noon, in the board room of Baccio Commons. There will be three panels that will address comprehensive internationalization initiatives, including internationalizing the curriculum, course opportunities, and overseas experiences. Staff and faculty are welcome. Everyone who attends is also invited to stay for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. Please RSVP for lunch with Belgin Inan at inanb@up.edu as soon as possible. Questions? Please contact Kate Regan, international languages and cultures, at regan@up.edu. Childcare will be provided.

New International Film Series

September 9, 2013 By Mark

The Collaborative for International Studies and Global Outreach (CISGO) is pleased to announce the first International film series on campus that will begin this semester, 2013, and continue into spring semester, 2014. Filmmakers from Portland, including faculty and staff from UP, will screen their works related to international travel and research. The first screening will be on Thursday, September 12, from 4:30 to 5:15 p.m., in Buckley Center Auditorium. Kate Regan (pictured), international languages and cultures, will screen her latest film, “Trekking with Quijote.” Courtney Vail Fletcher, communication studies, and Jeff Kennel, marketing and communications, will screen their film on Nicaragua in November. For more details, go to the CISGO website at www. up.edu/cisgo.

Class of 2017 Arrives!

September 8, 2013 By Mark

University of Portland welcomed the Class of 2017 as freshmen moved into the dorms on Thursday, August 22. It is among the largest, most diverse, and academically gifted classes in school history. More than 100 incoming students arrived on campus earlier this week to volunteer in the local community as part of the University’s annual Service Plunge.“The University of Portland’s reputation continues to get stronger and stronger,” said dean of admissions Jason McDonald. “More applicants have allowed us to be more selective, and we’ve seen our academic profile and geographical diversity increase.”At approximately 830 students, the new freshmen class is among the largest in University history. The University’s total overall registered full-time undergraduate students is 100 more than last year at this time.Continuing a trend over the past decade, the University saw a marked increase in the number of students applying for admission with more than 9,500 completed applications, a new school record and a 10 percent increase over the previous record, set last year.The UP Class of 2017 is also highly academically accomplished, with an approximate average SAT score of 1187 and average high school GPA of 3.6.The Class of 2017 is diverse in geography – 52 percent of the class hails from outside Oregon and Washington and 10 percent from beyond the western United States – and in ethnicity, with 39 percent of the class identifying as minority.The students will be on campus all weekend preparing for the 2013-14 academic year to commence Monday, August 26 with the start of fall semester. Official enrollment figures will be confirmed two weeks into the academic year. [Read more…]

More than an office

September 8, 2013 By Mark

FROM THE BEACON

By Olivia Alsept-Ellis|

You see the artifacts in their offices every visit. You want to ask about the Star Wars X-Wing fighter and the garden gnome but don’t want to come across as nosy. But the questions don’t stop plaguing you. Why does he keep a toilet brush in his office?

Some professor’s offices look like scholarly sanctuaries while others are more sterile and focused. However, all of them carry special artifacts with interesting stories attached.

And perhaps the best thing about the stories behind the asparagus plants or Alexander Pope is being reminded that professors aren’t just teachers, but highly creative and intriguing people. The complexity of their environment is evidence of their individuality.

Five professors from different departments share the stories behind their beloved clutter. [Read more…] about More than an office

Students trade fact for fiction

September 8, 2013 By Mark

FROM THE BEACON

By William C. Lawson|

Five stacked notebooks sit in senior Kari Hill’s bedroom, notebooks full of words that sketch the beginnings of a young adult fantasy series. Hill has been working on this four book series since she was 14 years old.

Hill founded a fiction writing group last year with only a few people on the roster, but hopes to increase membership this year. Her own project inspired her to create a group to discuss their work.

She writes about young heroes in a foreign world where there are no adults, and the characters go through a right of passage as they learn adult responsibilities. Hill hopes to have the series finished and published within the next five years, and although she constantly thinks about what needs to happen next with the plot, she doesn’t know all of the specifics on how it will get there.

“The characters have the answers,” said Hill. “If you find yourself stuck, you can always refer to them.”

If she gets an idea, she’ll write a short five sentence sequence to remind her to think about the idea later.

“Some of the best ideas come to you when you aren’t thinking about it,” said Hill. “That’s why it’s good to share your ideas with others, so that they can help direct you towards constructing a good story.”

Every Tuesday the fiction writing group meets in Franz 33 at 7:00 p.m. to talk fiction. The fiction writing group not only helps students share their creative ideas with one another, but also conducts exercises like story building to help inspire creativity .

“We are here to help each other,” said Hill. “You only need a pinch of inspiration for a great idea to take off.”

Hill is advertising the group in her fiction writing class and hopes that spreading the word will attract new members. Only about four people regularly attended the weekly fiction writing meetings last year, one of them being senior Sterling Duracher. Duracher is working on a fantasy book called “Fallen Skies,” a fantasy story about a world with elves and humans coexisting, and is eager to get the gears turning again this year.

“Eventually it would be nice if the club became official,” said Duracher. “Even though I probably will not still be here by the time that happens it would be neat to leave something behind.”