PSU Magazine Fall 1999

Choir earns honors on summer European tour The Chamber Choir returned triumphant from its summer European tour. The student singers captured a silver medal and trophy in the world polyphony competition at the International Contest of Habaneras and Polyphony held in Torrevieja, Spain. Choir director Bruce Browne was also nominated for Best Director at the festival. The PSU Chamber Choir faced competition from choirs from South Africa, Russ ia, Hungary, Argentina, Poland, and 12 other nations. The balance of the choir's European tour was spent singing a mix of European and American works in Romanesque cathedrals and auditoriums. The choir is 35-voices strong under the direction of Browne, who heads the Choral Studies Program at PSU. Browne's choral leadership for more than two decades and hi love of teaching and performing have created what is considered one of the best college choirs in the nation . The PSU Chamber Choir will give a free performance at part of PSU Weekend on Sunday, Oct. 17, at 4 p.m. in the Smith Center Ballroom. For more details about the choir and its upcoming performances, call the PSU Department of Music at (503) 725-30 11. Awards go to 19 faculty Anyone who has earned a bachelor's degree knows you can't take good teaching for granted. The names of riveting and creative professors are exchanged among students like pass– words to an exclusive club. The classroom abilities of 19 profes– sors are now common knowledge, thanks to the second annual John Eliot Allen Outstanding Teaching Award . The winning teachers were identified by outstand ing students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and honored this past spring. The award was named in memory of 4 PSU MAGAZINE FALL 1999 Allen , who founded the geology program and was a valued teacher for more than 40 years. Winners of this year's awards include Steven Bleiler, Mathematics; Johanna Brenner, Women's Studies; Kimberley Brown, Applied Linguistics; Michael Cummings, Geology; Deborah Duffield, Biology; Marc Feldsman, Anthropology; C laudine Fisher, French ; and Gregory Goekjian, English. Also winning this year's award are Lisa Letcher-G lembo, Speech and Hearing Science; Peter Leung, Phys ics; Robert Liebman, Sociology; Ridwan Library receives late professor's books The personal library of the late Professor Jesse Gilmore was recently donated to the PSU Library by his family. Gilmore, who joined the Portland State Extension Center in 1953, was a member of the history faculty until his retirement in 1981. He died in 1993. Gilmore's collec- valued teacher and administrator during this long tenure at Portland State. In his early days he coached tion of more than 1,000 volumes includes many fields, but emphasis is on history and political science. Notable tides in the collec– tion are Lincoln in Caricature, a collec– tion of political cartoons and commentary; and Centennial Album of the Civil War, by Marvin H. Pakula. The collection is valued at more than $18,000. Professor Jesse Gilmore taught history at PSU from 1953 to 1981. His hook collection is valued at more than $18,000. "This kind of donation-a complete private library-is espe– cially valued for PSU because the books have been carefully selected," says Tom Pfingsten, PSU Library director. "In the case of Professor Gilmore's collection, many titles will fill gaps in areas where books are now out of print." Gilmore, a specialist on the history of the Northwest and 20th– century United States, was both a tennis, in addition to teaching history. He remained involved in PSU athletics and was chair of the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee. He eventually served as head of the History Department from 1968 to 1975. Friends of the Library President Gary Robinson presented Chloe Gilmore, Professor Gilmore's widow, with a certificate of appre– ciation for the donation.