Featured

Students who are interested in applying for campus leadership positions are encouraged to visit www.up.edu/leadership for this year’s common leadership application. A number of positions offered by student activities, the Moreau Center, campus ministry, and information services are listed on the site, and students can apply for up to three positions using one application. Applications and recommendation forms are due by Wednesday, February 12. For more information about a particular student leadership position, please direct questions to the office offering the position. For questions about the online application or recommendation form, please contact residence life at reslife@up.edu or 7205.

Former Pilots basketball standout Laura Sale O’Connell ’96 will be one of ten individuals to be inducted in the WCC Hall of Honor this spring. The West Coast Conference will induct its sixth annual Hall of Honor class on Saturday, March 8, at the Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas, Nev. Ten individuals, one from each member institution, will be honored as part of the 2014 West Coast Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships from March 6-11 at the Orleans Arena.

At Portland, Laura was the ultimate student-athlete, starring on the court while shining in the classroom. Sale O’Connell, who still ranks fifth all-time in UP program history with 1,542 career points, helped lead the Pilots to three NCAA Tournaments in the mid-1990s and she was named an Academic All-American in 1996.

For more information contact athletics at 7117 or go to www.portlandpilots.com.

In celebration of Black History Month this February, the University of Portland is honored to host its annual African American Read-In and cultural dinner on Thursday, February 6, at 5 p.m., in St. Mary’s Student Center lounge. The African American Read-In is a national dedication to literary guests sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Multicultural Programs, the Office of Student Activities, and the English department invite all students, faculty, and staff to share in the celebration dinner and reading. Participants are encouraged to read a selection from their favorite African American author, poet, playwright, or songwriter. All are welcome to attend even if you choose not to read. Please RSVP to http://tinyurl.com/n7fnkyj by Monday, February 3. Questions can be directed to Bethany Sills, multicultural programs, at sills@up.edu or call 7470. (James Baldwin photo by Carl Van Vechten, 1955, http://tinyurl.com/lpke8z2)

Mark your Calendars for Saturday, March 1 and make plans to join the Pilots and other fans to wish women’s basketball coach Jim Sollars a happy retirement. Sollars has announced that this season, his 28th, will be his final year as the head coach for the Pilots. Let’s give Coach Sollars the send-off he deserves at his final game, Pilots vs. Saint Mary’s, on March 1 at 2 p.m. in the Chiles Center.

Rev. Mark L. Poorman, C.S.C., has been selected to serve as the 20th president of the University of Portland. D. Allen Lund, chairman of the University’s board of regents, made the announcement on Saturday, January 25. Fr. Poorman – currently serving as executive vice president at UP – will succeed Rev. E. William Beauchamp, C.S.C., who will step down from the presidency at the conclusion of the 2013-14 academic year. Fr. Beauchamp has served as the University’s president since 2003.

“We believe Fr. Poorman is the ideal person to build upon the foundation laid by Fr. Beauchamp and his predecessors,” said Thomas D. Arndorfer, a University regent and chair of the presidential search committee. “He will guide the University forward while remaining true to our mission of teaching and learning, faith and formation, service and leadership.” A 14-member committee of UP community members conducted the presidential search process, which included meetings with the committee as well as faculty members, administrators, students and alumni.

Fr. Poorman has held his current position as executive vice president since 2011, overseeing the divisions of university operations, financial affairs, university relations and student affairs. He also serves as a professor of theology and pastoral resident of Schoenfeldt Hall. Prior to arriving on The Bluff, he served as vice president for student affairs at the University of Notre Dame for more than a decade. Fr. Poorman will serve as president-elect while Fr. Beauchamp completes his tenure. A welcome reception will be held on campus on Monday, January 27, at 10:30 a.m., in the Bauccio Commons board room. It is free to attend and open to the public.

For more information contact Laurie Kelley, interim vice president of university relations, at kelleyl@up.edu or 8332, or go to http://tinyurl.com/kolj44g.

The University has received a RISE Campaign donation of $85,533 from Don Romanaggi, M.D., an alumnus and longtime supporter of the University. His gift benefits student scholarships at the University, upgrades to Don V. Romanaggi M.D. Hall, and enhancements of Joe Etzel Field. Romanaggi graduated from UP in 1956 and then earned his medical degree in 1960 from Loyola University’s Stritch School of Medicine. His medical practice in Portland specialized in treatment of allergy, asthma, and immunology. In 1997, he retired from active practice after 31 years. While practicing medicine, he also was an associate professor of the volunteer teaching faculty at Oregon Health Sciences University.

Romanaggi and his late wife Agnes, a 1959 UP graduate, have been generous to the University over the years. They were the major donors to the Old Science Hall that in November 2010 was renamed Romanaggi Hall. The gift helped fund new windows throughout, renovation of the third floor, roof improvements, and the first thorough cleaning of its masonry in seventy years. The Romanaggis, who were married for almost 50 years, also made an estate planning gift to provide continued maintenance of the building. They are the originators and major contributors to the Rev. John Molter, C.S.C. Endowed Chair in Science. The gift honored the professor from whom he once earned a dollar. Molter had promised a dollar to any student who got an A in his science class, and those were rare dollars indeed. They also established and funded the Romana­ggi Endowed Scholarship in Pre-Med and the Rev. Gregory Lombardo, C.S.C. Scholarship in Religion. After Agnes’ passing in 2008, Romanaggi funded the Agnes M. Romanaggi Environmental Lab in Donald Shiley Hall.

Romanaggi’s gift is part of the RISE Campaign, which was announced in December 2010 and seeks to raise $175 million by 2014. The campaign has raised more than $168 million to date and is one of the largest development campaigns ever for a Pacific Northwest private college or university. For more information contact development at 7395 or hanna@up.edu.

All faculty, staff, and students are invited to join multicultural programs and the Moreau Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, January 20, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., in the Bauccio Commons. There will be opportunities to sign up for community service projects throughout spring 2014, plus a DJ, free t-shirts for individuals interested in community service, and other giveaways. Those who don’t have time to stop by can go to http://tinyurl.com/lmpjavc for service opportunities. For more information, contact Bethany Sills, student activities, at 7470 and mulitculturalprograms@up.edu, or Lindie Burgess, Moreau Center, at 7132 or moreaucenter@up.edu.

The University of Portland will celebrate the Feast of Basil Moreau on Monday, January 20, with Mass in the Chapel of Christ the Teacher at 5 p.m. During the Mass, the 2013 Spirit of Holy Cross Award will be presented to longtime University of Portland supporters Al and Sue Corrado. The award is given annually to non-Holy Cross individuals who live and serve the Holy Cross mission. All faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend and honor both the founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross and the Corrados, whose selfless efforts on the University’s behalf have helped the Holy Cross mission for decades.

For more information contact Rev. Jeffrey Allison, C.S.C., at 7321 or allison@up.edu.

A new Recreation & Wellness Center, set to break ground in May 2014, will be named in recognition of University of Portland president Rev. E. William Beauchamp, C.S.C. The announcement was made during the University’s annual Christmas gala on Friday, December 13.

Earlier this year, Fr. Beauchamp announced he is stepping down as president at the end of the 2013-14 academic year. The University’s president since 2003, he has been a strong supporter of the new center, expected to be completed by May, 2015. The Beauchamp Center will be located on what is now a parking lot at the corner of North Portsmouth and Strong avenues.

The Beauchamp Recreation & Wellness Center is estimated to cost $23 million, with $20 million raised as of today. The building is expected to become a dynamic focal point on campus, and enhance the physical and mental health of students, faculty, and staff. Designs call for a new, modern facility, which will feature state-of-the-art equipment and space to accommodate the growing University community.

Gifts made to the Beauchamp Recreation & Wellness Center are included in 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 $165 million to date, is one of the largest development campaigns ever for a Pacific Northwest private college or university.

The San Francisco office of 360 Architecture and Portland-based Soderstrom Architects are finalizing the design of the building.  Renderings of the proposed building can be found at this link.

Proposed rooms for the building include the Fitness Center with cardio machines, strength and free-weight stations, and areas for health and wellness testing and counseling. The gymnasium will include three courts for basketball, volleyball, and floor hockey. An indoor track will be suspended above the gym and will hold three lanes for walking and jogging, as well as pace clocks and stretching areas. The new Beauchamp Recreation & Wellness Center will also have two exercise studios, a spinning studio, an Outdoor Pursuits Center, and a 32-foot rock-climbing wall.

For more information contact the development office at 7395 or webmaster@up.edu.