News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.
Contact Jessie Lamb, director of annual giving, at lamb@up.edu if you have questions or need support.
The Moreau Center’s service and justice coordinators (SJCs) are thrilled to again be partnering with Because People Matter to provide Thanksgiving meal baskets to families in need in North Portland, according to Sophie Charles, Moreau Center. In past years, the partnership relied on student-donated meal points to provide the fixings for Thanksgiving meal baskets for over 200 North Portland families. This year, with most students living off-campus, there needs to be a new fundraising strategy.
The University’s 2020 Open Enrollment period runs from Wednesday, November 5 through Friday, November 20, 2020. This is the time to either confirm or change medical and dental coverage, enroll in supplemental life insurance, and elect flexible spending accounts (FSA) for the coming 2021 calendar year.
The Open Enrollment Tool and the FSA Enrollment Form will be available on the HR website starting the first day of Open Enrollment. Information and instructions will be mailed to employees this week along with an an e-mail communication beginning Thursday, November 5.
Questions? Please contact Laura Barnard or Theresa Knott at benefits@up.edu.
The University of Portland is now ranked second out of 127 institutions listed in the “Regional Universities – West” classification according to U.S. News & World Report magazine. The University also placed second in the 2020 rankings – its highest ranking to date. In the 2018 and 2019 rankings, the University placed sixth in the same “Regional Universities – West” category. This ranking marks the 26th consecutive year the University has received a Top 10 ranking. The full rankings can be seen on the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges website.
Among notable measures in the U.S. News & World Report methodology is the University’s 90% average first-year-to-second-year retention rate for the past several years and six-year graduation rates of 82% and 84% for the last two student cohorts. In addition, the University’s Donald P. Shiley School of Engineering’s reputation for excellence continues to rise. This year, the engineering program was ranked 33rd nationally among engineering schools whose highest degree is a bachelor’s or master’s.
According to U.S. News & World Report, regional institutions are those that provide a full range of undergraduate majors and master’s programs, but few – if any – doctoral programs. The universities in this category are not ranked nationally but rather against peers in one of four regions – North, South, Midwest and West – because they tend to draw students primarily from surrounding states.
U.S. News & World Report’s methodology for this category weighs heavily on student retention rates, peer assessment and faculty resources; as well as on student selectivity, financial resources earmarked for educational purposes and the alumni giving rate.
University of Portland’s commitment to its mission of teaching and learning, faith and formation, and service and leadership has been successfully proven through its graduates. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the University of Portland ranks among the highest in the nation alongside peer institutions for the number of students and alumni earning Fulbright grants for several consecutive years.
Fr. Poorman explains that “After observing the steady, skillful hand with which she has led the College in these challenging times, and considering other factors such as continuity of leadership, stability, and institutional knowledge, we concurred that it made sense to ask her to serve for two academic years. We plan to conduct a search for a permanent CAS dean in the 2021-22 academic year.”
University of Portland announced on July 30 that most fall semester classes will be conducted remotely and residence halls will be closed to students unless they have an approved exemption.
All University of Portland faculty, staff, and students are encouraged to check regularly for updates on the UP Coronavirus webpage, according to Michael Lewellen, VP for marketing and communications. New content is being added as the University approaches the Fall Semester.
We are pleased to announce the endowment of the Rowena B. Bramlette ’88 Financial Affairs Division International Accounting Scholarship, established in memory of Rowena Bramlette ’88. Rowena served the University for 14 years and retired from her position of associate vice president for budgeting in 2019. She passed away after a courageous battle with cancer in January 2020. Prior to his retirement as vice president of financial affairs, Alan P. Timmins ’81 had nurtured the idea to create a scholarship in Rowena’s memory. Initial funding was provided by Alan and members of the Controller’s Office. Rowena’s husband, Rod Bramlette has added his support to the scholarship along with the President’s Leadership Cabinet. The Rowena B. Bramlette ‘88 Financial Affairs Division International Accounting Scholarship will be given each year to an outstanding senior, non-US born, accounting student.
In remembrance of Rowena, University employees and members of the faculty may contribute to her scholarship by using this link. To inquire on how you can make your donation through payroll deduction, please contact Kati Duffy, development, at duffyk@up.edu.
The University of Portland’s Portland magazine has won a national Silver Award from CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) in its annual Circle of Excellence awards. Portland won second place in the “Magazines, Alumni/General Interest 3x Per Year category.
In announcing the award, CASE’s statement about Portland reads: “After Portland magazine’s two-year hiatus following the death of beloved, longstanding editor Brian Doyle, editor Jessica Murphy Moo put the wheels in motion again with new designer Darsey Landoe (using partial redesigns from Zehno). They had an audience eager to receive Portland again, and expectations were high in terms of both content and design. Portland magazine has a strong and unique brand; it is more literary and heartfelt than many alumni magazines. The brand was also very much attached to the previous editor. So the team needed to figure out how to continue to give the audience what they wanted—authentic, deeply human stories—with a new editor at the helm. This first year of the redesigned magazine offers great stories—a balance of personal essay and reporting. A New York Times writer described his work with the Compton Cowboys, and the founder of a nonprofit named Girls Build told a personal story about her work to encourage girls to consider careers in the trades. The editor wrote about an archeological dig in Mallorca, Spain, and an alumnus wrote about his summer answering phones at the White House. The tradition of spiritual writing continues as well. The elements of the Portland magazine tradition are there. In the first year of the redesigned magazine, the team delivered the authentic, deeply human storytelling our readers wanted and expected.”
Please congratulate Jessica Murphy Moo for her outstanding vision and leadership in continuing Portland magazine’s reign as one of the top university magazines in the U.S. and beyond.
Following a wide-ranging national search, Herbert A. Medina, former dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, has been appointed to the role of Provost effective July 1. The search for Thomas Greene’s successor attracted more than 300 applicants.
Medina has served as dean and professor of mathematics since 2018. His leadership of CAS has been marked by devotion to student well-being and success, dedication to faculty support and development, and unwavering commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. He has been a champion of experiential learning, directed the study and development of new academic programs, and has already played an important role in faculty and staff searches at the University.
An exemplary teacher-scholar, Medina is rightly beloved by his students and has earned widespread recognition for his research in functional analysis, wavelets, and polynomial approximations. He is deeply committed to the University’s Catholic and Holy Cross mission and its call for all community members to be engaged in the work of social justice, radical hospitality, and advancement of the Catholic intellectual tradition. As a leader and a colleague, Medina’s style is communicative, transparent, collaborative, compassionate, and humbly confident.
Prior to joining UP, Medina enjoyed a highly successful 26-year career as a professor and administrative leader at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. He was associate dean of LMU’s Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering before his appointment as CAS dean at UP. He holds a B.S. in mathematics and computer science from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a M.A. and Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley.
For more information contact the president’s office at x7105 or simek@up.edu.
The University of Portland celebrated its Commencement in a virtual ceremony on Sunday, May 3, with 1,071 graduates who earned degrees from the Shiley School of Engineering, the Pamplin School of Business, the School of Education, the School of Nursing, and the College of Arts & Sciences. University President Rev. Mark L. Poorman, C.S.C., conferred bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees during the virtual commencement ceremony. An in-person commencement ceremony for the Class of 2020 will be held on campus at a future date.
Four honorary doctorates were conferred during the Commencement ceremony. Honorary doctorate recipients were Nancy K. Bryant, Cheryle A. Kennedy, Marilynne S. Robinson, Ph.D., and Rev. H. Richard Rutherford, C.S.C., Ph.D. University provost Thomas G. Greene received the Christus Magister Medal, the University’s highest honor.
More information about 2020 Commencement can be found on the University’s Commencement website.