PSU Magazine Winter 1989

Anti-Coke group takes educational route The Black Cultural Affa irs Board has suspended its support of a boycott of Coca Cola products on campus. Instead, the BCAB will foc us on educating the public about apartheid through classes , seminars and lectures, according to BCAB president S~elley Matthews . In addition , the group will lobby for a House bill in 199 1 that would institute stricter limits on Oreoon's business dealings with companies in ~ol ved in South Africa. Coke products were targeted for a boycott last summer because supporters of divestiture in South Africa felt the company has not acted in accord with the spirit of the law passed by the Oregon legislature in 1986. The law prohibits the in vestment of state funds in corporations that have direct economic ties to South Africa. Under the current legal defi niti on of divestment , the Coca-Cola company does not fa ll under the Oregon restrictions , because the law applies only to companies that have capital holdings in South Africa. According to an article in the PSU student newspaper, Vanguard, in 1986 Coca-Cola solds its syrup plant in the country and now claims it has no ownership in South Africa , employs no workers there and pays no taxes to the South African overnment. The company rep laced its plant with one in neighboring Swazil and and , through independently owned South African distributors , still commands 69 percent of the nati on's soft drink market , which amounts to about $220 million a year. In a statement released in October Morris Holl and, dean of Student Affairs offered support of student groups worki~g to educate others again st aparthe id . "Rac ism and discrimination in any form are inconsistent with the core values of Portland State Uni versity," Holland noted . "As an edcuational institution, we are committed to the view that knowledoe is power. Our best approach, then , is t~ ed ucate and through educati on, to empower. " CAMPUS NOTES George Hoffinan Memorials honor former faculty members A spec ial memorial service , "A Celebration of Life," was held for Professor of Hi story Emeritus George C. Hoffman on campus Sept. 29. Professor Hoffmann 75, died Sept. 23 . He was an orioinal ' fac ulty member at Portland State Uni versity in 1946 when it was known as the Vanport Extension Center. He retired as Dean of Social Sciences in 1982 and from teachin o in 1987. A grad uate of Uni versity of 0 Southern Cali fornia , Hoffmann began teaching English and history in Los Angeles in 194 1. During World War II , he served as an officer in the U.S. Navy. He became head of the PSU's Social Science Department in 1947 , a position he held for 35 years . Hi s dedication led to the establi shment of the George Hoffmann Award in 1985, designed to recoonize full-time fac ulty in areas of instr~cti on uni versity serv ice and scholarship . ' Marguerite Marks, former intern ational studies director, died Sept 26 in a Portland hospital of myelofibrosis. She was 70. Professor Marks , who rece ived her bachelor's and master's degrees in hi story at PSU, was director of International Student Services from 1964 to 1973 and was admi ssions officer for international students from 1973 until her retirement in 1984. She was also an assi stant professor for PSU 's Center for English as a Second Language and the Middle East Studies Center. Baxter D. Wilson, 66 , Professor of English Emeritus , was elogized in a memorial service held Sept. 29 at St. Matthew Lutheran Church , Beaverton. He died Sept. 26 from complications after emergency surgery to repair an aneurysm of the f~moral artery. Professor Wilson began teaching at Portland State in 1965 , spec ializing in linguistics and medieval literature , as well as Old and Middle English. He was granted professor emeritus standing upon his retirement in December 1988 . After retirement he continued to pursue research in translation of medieval Latin manu scripts. Egbert S. Oliver, Professor of Engli sh Emeritus, and head of the Portl and State English department from 1962 to 1973 died of congesti ve heart failure Oct. 19 at hi s home in Portl and . He was 86. O li ver earned hi s undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from the University of Washington and taught at Willamette Uni versity before joining PSU in 1950. Hi s publications on Herman Melville , as well as texts and numerous articles, earned him nati onal recognition. Hi s two Fulbright lectureships in Indi a culminated in hi s book Swdies in American Literature, the first textbook on American literature published in Indi a. Following hi s retirement from teaching hi s continuing research resulted in books on aspects of hi s fam il y, of Columbi a County, and of the Congregational Church , in which he was long acti ve . Institute receives grant Barbara J. Friesen, Social Work and Reg ional Researc h In stitute , along with other staff and fac ulty, have been awarded a five-year grant to continue the work of th Nat ional Research and Training Center. The award for the first year is $700,000 , with a five-year total of approxi mate ly $3.5 million. The Center will foc us on improving serv ices to families whose children have emotional disorders and has a new name to reflect thi s foc us Research & Training Center on Family Support and Children's Mental Health . PSU 21