PSU Magazine Spring 1997

0 UN D Presidential search on The PSU Presidential Search Committee has hit the ground running to complete the search proce s by June. A 14-member committee cons isting mostly of PSU faculty is responsible ~ r getting the word out, interviewing candidates, and narrowing the pool to three to fiv e candidates for final selec– tion by the State Board of Higher Education. If the process goes well, a successor to President Judith Ramaley will be announced at June commencement ceremonies. On July 1, Ramaley takes the helm of the University of Vermont as its 24th president. She succeeds Thoma T H E PARK Salmon, who is retiring. The University of Vermont-an institution of l 0,000 students, 1,000 faculty, and nearly 2,000 staff-is a state school respected for it research program . Ramaley became Portland State's ixth president in August 1990. She was instrumental in taking the University on a course that emphasizes community serv ice learning, curricular reform, and urban initiatives-earning it nationa l accolades. A fo ur-month search for a new PSU pre ident is not unheard of for the state system. The searches conducted at Western O regon State College and Oregon State University in 1994 and 1995 were national in Being one of the best is something to sing about ... and that's just what Portland tate's 41-member Chamber Choir did at the American Choral Directors Association' national convention in San Diego this March after being chosen one of the 50 best university choirs in the world. "This opportunity has the same ignificance for choirs as the Rose Bowl has for athletes," says Bruce Browne, professor of music who has directed the Chamber Choir for 18 of its 22 years. "We're in the company of choral ensem– bles from universities like Miami, Michigan, Temple, Baylor, and Texas Tech– institutions with big money and large music programs." In April the Chamber Choir will release through Albany Records its first compact disc, which Browne believes is a first for a university student group. It includes music created by renown faculty compo ers Vijay Singh, Brian Johanson, Salvador Broton , and Tomas Svoboda. 2 PSU MAGAZINE SPRING 1997 B L 0 C K S cope but completed in four months. Both Ramaley and Joseph Cox, chan– ce llor of the State System of Higher Education, prefer a quick search that avo ids the appointment of an interim pres ident. A Clackamas connection School beyond the two-year as ociate's degree may look daunting to many C lackamas Community College students-but the opportunity to earn a bachelor's has never been better. This spring CCC students are taking Portland State's innovative undergraduate inquiry courses on their own campu , and in fa ll they will be eligible for joint enrollment in both schools. PSU President Judith Rama ley and .CCC Pres ident John Keyer have signed a memorandum which they hope will ease student movement between the two institutions. Come fall CCC/PSU tudents will rece ive services that are coord inated by both institutions, including admis ions, financial aid, and academic advising. The e students will also have joint library privileges. "There are many students who, for whatever reason, don't think they can finish a fo ur-year academic program,'' says Joe Uris '67, '71 MA, '81 Ph.D. , fo rmer PSU tudent body president. Uris is now an associate professor of soc iology at PSU and an instructor in history and sociology at CCC. "This agreement will be empowering to these students. This reaches out to a whole population whose needs aren't being addre sed,'' he says. PSU i eeking to expand this collaborative concept through similar agreements with Mount Hood Community College and Portland Community College. The three institutions, along with CCC, have submitted a joint $2 mi llion proposal to Gov. John Kitzhaber for considera– tion in his lnve tment for Education Budget for the 1997-99 biennium.