The first meeting of the Faith and Intellectual Life Discussion Group for the 2017-18 year will be Friday, September 29, at 3:30 p.m., in the Franz Hall Murphy Conference Room. The group will discuss the article “The Free Banquet: The Case for Universal Basic Income” by George Scialabba and the poem “To be of use” by Marge Piercy. Readings can be found on the Garaventa Center website. All faculty and staff are welcome. Refreshments will be served.
09-18-2017
UP Rates No. 6 in The West: US News & World Report
For the 23rd consecutive year, the University of Portland has received a top-ten ranking by U.S. News & World Report, which recently released its 2018 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings. The University is 6th out of 126 institutions listed in the “Regional Universities – West” classification. The full rankings can be seen on the U.S. News & World Report’s ranking website.
Among notable measures in the U.S. News methodology was the University’s remarkable 90% first-year retention rate and an annual graduation rate of 78%.
In addition, the University’s Shiley School of Engineering’s reputation for excellence continues to rise nationally. This year the Shiley School appeared in the top 30 nationwide for the first time, with a ranking of 29th among engineering schools whose highest degree is a bachelor’s or master’s.
Per 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 659 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 most heavily from surrounding states.
U.S. News’ 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.
Last month, The Princeton Review ranked the University of Portland fifth in the nation among colleges and universities whose students are making a positive impact in their communities through volunteer service, on-campus engagement, and other meaningful contributions.
The University has consistently been the top Oregon school in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Forbes Magazine in their annual rankings of best values in universities.
Congregation of Holy Cross Celebrating Moreau Beatification
On September 15, 2007, the Congregation of Holy Cross celebrated with great joy the beatification of its founder, Blessed Basile Moreau. Now, with similar joy and thanksgiving, Holy Cross is celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows and commemorating the 10 Year Anniversary of the Beatification, with liturgies, celebrations, and events around the world. We invite you to join us in celebrating God’s Providence and the victory in Christ’s Cross in the life of Blessed Moreau.
The Congregation of Holy Cross has a number of resources to enter more fully into this anniversary celebration: a photo gallery of the beatification festivities in 2007; information about the life and ministry of Blessed Moreau, including reflections by Holy Cross religious; downloadable prayers and liturgical texts for the occasion; and news articles highlighting the events surrounding the anniversary.
Finally, as we find in Blessed Moreau even today a ready intercessory and a trustworthy guide in the life of discipleship, we invite you to continue to pray together with us for his canonization.
Dundon-Berchtold Hall Groundbreaking Ceremony: Sept. 21
All University faculty, staff, and students are invited to the groundbreaking ceremony for our new academic center, Dundon-Berchtold Hall, on Thursday, September 21, at 6 p.m., on the Eastside Quad near Waldschmidt Hall. There will be a short program in which we will also recognize the generous lead benefactors of the new building, Amy Dundon-Berchtold and Jim Berchtold ’63. If you have any questions about the ceremony or need an accommodation to attend, please contact Hannah Pick in the Office of University Relations at x7397 or pick@up.edu.
Spirit of Holy Cross Award for Brian Doyle
The late Brian Doyle, whose connection with the Congregation of Holy Cross spanned over 40 years until his sudden passing in the spring of 2017, has received a posthumous 2017 Spirit of Holy Cross Award. Given annually to lay collaborators of the Congregation of Holy Cross, United States Province of Priests and Brothers, the award recognizes those who devotedly work to fulfill Blessed Basil Moreau’s vision and mission to “make God known, loved, and served” a reality at the Congregation’s education, parish, and mission apostolates.
Brian graduated with a degree in English from the University of Notre Dame in 1978, and after positions with U.S. Catholic magazine and Boston College magazine, Brian accepted a position on the Bluff as editor of Portland magazine, which he served with talent, creativity and joy. In 2005 the magazine won the Sibley Magazine of the Year Award, the top national honor for publications in higher education advancement. His volumes of fiction and nonfiction alike attracted a dedicated following, and his honors included an Oregon Book Award and the 2017 John Burroughs Medal for distinguished nature writing for his book Martin Marten. Brian blessed the Holy Cross Community with his friendship, and served as a mentor to many.
He joins the following 2017 Spirit of Holy Cross Award winners:
- Nancy Conroy of Holy Cross House in Notre Dame, Ind.
- Paul Fujawa, lifetime member of St. Casimir Parish in South Bend, Ind.
- James Kramer, associate director of development for the United States Province and the former Indiana Province since 2004.
- Pedro Pablo Miranda, manager of St. George’s College since 2004.
- Mary Nucciarone, director of financial aid at the University of Notre Dame.
- Benito Salazar, who has served for more than 40 years as director of the “Celestial Choir” at St. Adalbert Parish in South Bend, Ind.
- Lucyann Skvarla, who is in her 40th year of service to King’s College, where she began in 1978 as assistant for the humanities and social sciences faculty in Hafey-Marian Hall.
The honorees will be recognized in their local communities by the Holy Cross ministry for which they work during the month of January as part of the celebrations of Blessed Moreau’s life. At that time, they will receive a proclamation of gratitude signed by Rev. Thomas J. O’Hara, C.S.C., Provincial Superior, on behalf of the entire U.S. Province.
Volleyball Set to Open Conference Play at Home
All campus community members are encouraged to gather up co-workers, friends, and family and make their way to the Chiles Center on Thursday night as the Pilots volleyball team starts its West Coast Conference play. The Pilots will host the Pacific Tigers from Stockton, California at 7 p.m.
Following Thursday night’s action the Pilots will then turn their attention to a Saturday home match with Saint Mary’s at 1 p.m. Tickets for both matches are on sale now at the Pilots Box Office, online at www.portlandpilots.com/tickets, or by calling x7525. We hope to see you at the game as the Pilots look to open conference play with two big wins.
TLC Teaching Tip of the Week: Digital Tools in the Classroom
The Digital Lab welcomes faculty looking to increase their students’ multimedia skills to arrange a consultation with the lab’s coordinator (and TLC member) José Velazco, velazco@up.edu. Recent collaborative student projects include:
- Interactive Digital Presentations: Apple’s iBooks Author (or Adobe’s InDesign) allow students to create and send interactive presentations complete with photographs, audio and video. Class members studying political science recently used iBooks Author to present statistics and narratives related to international issues.
- Digital Posters: Students can use Piktochart, an online poster design software, to create posters. Class participants have used the software to create infographics related to a variety of topics across disciplines
- The Lab also offers workshops regarding multimedia best practices. This semester’s topics include Photoshop, Illustrator and Creating Electronic Music. Click here to register for a session.
Faculty are welcome to visit the Digital Lab (located on the upper floor of the library) or contact José Velazco, digital initiatives coordinator, at velazco@up.edu for a consultation and learn how to integrate these technologies into the classroom.
Music At Midweek With Mary Kogen, Sept. 20
Portland State University professor emerita Mary Kogen will be the featured guest for Music at Midweek on Wednesday, September 20, at 12:30 p.m., in Mago Hunt Center recital hall. Kogan will teach TakeTiNa, an approach to learning through rhythm and movement. “TaKeTiNa clears and frees the mind to focus. It is a meditative process that integrates mind and body, super-charging our abilities for learning, thinking and creativity.” Free and open to all. For more information go to this link.
Teaching With Technology Workshops: They’re All That!
The Office of Academic Technology Services & Innovation is hosting a number of Teaching with Technology Workshops this September. Topics will include:
- What’s New in Moodle
- Snagit for Capturing Screen Shots
- Creating Video Lecture for Flipped Learning
- VoiceThread for video-based instruction, discussion, and feedback
- Office 365 Basics
- Microsoft Teams and Planner
- And much much more.
All workshops below will take place in the Clark Library Digital Lab (on the top floor of the library). For more information, workshop descriptions, and to RSVP to any of these workshops, please visit the Teaching with Technology page on the UP Teaching & Learning site.
Constitution Day Lecture with Bill Curtis, Sept. 19
The 2017 Constitution Day presentation will take place on Tuesday, September 19, at 7:30 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. Bill Curtis, political science, will be speaking about significant constitutional cases that are up for consideration by the Supreme Court. The title will be “Travel Bans, Cell Phone Searches, and Wedding Cakes: The Supreme Court’s Upcoming Cases.” All are welcome and light refreshments will be served. For more information contact political science at x7274 or polisci@up.edu.