John Eliot Allen, Professor Emeritus of Geology, has a true commitment to lifelong scholarship. After 20 years as a field geologist working throughout the United States, Dr. Allen returned to Oregon in 1956 to found the Geology Department at Portland State College. His classroom had no walls as he continuously challenged students to "see" the geology of Oregon in field trips. Stories of caravans of over 100 cars leaving campus for a geology trip were common. His lectures were already using the multimedia approach in the 1960s. Professor Allen was recogntzed nationally in 1972 for his outstanding and enthusiastic teaching when he received the Neil Miner Award from the National Association of Geology Teachers, an organization for which he also served as PRESIDENTIAL CITATION JOHN ELIOT ALLEN president. Professor Allen was always active in community outreach, especially with the Boy Scouts of America and the Geological Society of the Oregon Country, for which he also had served as president. He retired in 1974 as department head and began a third career of writings as an emeritus professor, and he has yet to slow down. His two books on the Columbia Gorge and the Bretz Floods have gone through two editions. He wrote over 200 weekly articles on Northwest geology for the Oregonian in a column titled "Time Travel." His vita lists more than 200 additional published articles and books. He hopes to publish two more books this year, one his autobiography and the other a book on geological sites of interest in the state of Oregon. 9 Although he retired from PSU 22 years ago, Professor Allen still comes to his small office 365 days a year. Few active faculty can say that. He has been supported in all of his work by his wife, Peggy, for over 62 years. His door is always open to students, faculty, and members of the public who want to learn more about Northwest geology. His enthusiasm for teaching, for geology, and for the teaching of geology is the foundation, at age 86, of his lifelong scholarship. Professor Allen's dedication to Portland State University and to the Portland community is steadfast and will be long remembered. The citation reads: "To John Eliot Allen in gratitude for outstanding service and dedication to the University."
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