PSU Magazine Spring 1997

Jazz pianist joins faculty Darrell Grant- jazz pianist, composer, bandleader, and recording artist– joined the P U music faculty in December. The new assistant professor will teach courses in jazz improv isa– tion, direct University jazz combos, and work with Charles Gray, director of jazz tudies, to design and deve lop new courses in jazz instruction. Andrew Hill, the department's jazz artist-in-res idence, recently left the Univer ity to return to New York. Grant, a class ical and jazz pianist, holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Miami. He has performed with such notable jazz artists a Tony Williams, Roy Haynes, Frank Morgan, onny Fortune, Chico Freeman, and Craig Harris. As a bandleader, he ha recorded two highly acclaimed CD for the C riss Cross jazz labe l, Black Art and The New Bop. Court comes to campus A Multnomah County jury heard crucial testimony this winter on the PSU campus the day before it awarded $22.8 million to a Portland man in one of the largest personal injury verdicts in Oregon. No expert witnesses came fo rward from the faculty and staff. Rather, the University's distan ce learning class– room in 454 Neuberger Hall made it poss ible for the jury to hear testimony from around the country. Dougla Axen claimed that a prescription heart medication , Cordarone, caused him to go blind. The jury ruled that American Home Product , which make Cordarone, failed to warn doctors of the possible side effects of the drug, which can include severe optic nerve damage. Axen's attorney, Jeffrey Wihtol, called on the expert testimony of two San Francisco doctors and cross– examined a drug compan y representa– tive in Pennsylvania using the broad– cast capabilities of the PSU classroom. The two-way audio and visual services were prov ided through Ed-Net. "It went off much better than I expected, considering we had less than a week to get it t gether," said Joe Quist, a PSU med ia support specialist. The cla sroom, one f three on campus that provide two-way broad– cast capabi lities, had never b fore been used for a court case. Bringing the world to show and tell So, your schoo l-age children are learn– ing about France and you need a map of Paris and a French beret to make it real for them. Where to go? Portland State hopes you'll think of Building Bridges, a new mu lticultural resource center and lending library housed in its Sixth Avenue Building. The center offers a library of geographical and topical artifac ts, and educational material such as video– tapes and books for children and L E T I am always looking for "win-win" situations and have found a great one with Portland State University's School of Business Administration. Standard hired five PSU interns and consulted with 12 students in Thomas Gillpatrick and Robert Eder's clas , Competing in a Global Environment. We asked the students to research particular insurance market segments and summarize their findings within a emester time frame. We treated them as part of our marketing team. They had the oppor– tunity to interact with a variety of department , present their conclu– sions to key managers, make recom– mendations, and influence "real" business deci ions. As a result of their work, tandard acted upon many of their recommendations and used their findings to shape our future in specific markets. Most recently, we have been work– ing with an MBA team under Professor Edward Grubb's direction. Again, I am truck with the talent that the student have. The ituation is unique in that the MBA team i working closely with our Di ability Product Development Team, which adults. These materials, newly housed under one roof and available to the community, represent the combined resources of the Multicultural Resource Center (recently relocated from Lake Oswego), O regon Peace Institute, World Affairs Council, Oregon International Council, and PSU' Midd le East Studies Center and Institute of Asian Studies. The center i also a gathering place for interna– tional students and international studie major . "It's a one-stop shop of world trea– sures for educators, organizations, busi– ne ses, or families," says Marta Colburn of PSU's Midd le East Studie Center. For more information about Building Bridges, call Colburn at 725- 566 or stop by the resource center at 1950 SW Sixth. T E R s is composed of a representative from each department. The interaction between the teams is dynamic. The MBA team offer a fresh, new perspective on our products to our employee . Likewise, our employees impart their bu iness experiences to the MBA team members. I do not know yet what the final outcome and recommendations will be, but I do know that both teams will be richer for the experience. Our division's theme this year is 'Winning Combination." I think the relationship that we have had with PSU is a wonderful example of a winning combination. Donna Schultz Standard Insurance Company Portland, Oregon PSU Magazine wants to hear from you. Send your comments to P U Magazine, Portland State University, P.O. Box 75 1, Portland, OR 97207-075 1; or to e-mail address psumag@pdx.edu . We reserve the right to edit for space and clarity. SPRING 1997 PSU MAGAZINE 3