PSU Magazine Winter 1992

Vergil Miller dies Vergil V. Miller, former dean of the School of Business Administration, died Oct. 8 in his home after an ex– tended illness. He was 61. "Verg Miller will be remembered fo r his commitment to education and to students," said Associate Dean Ed Grubb. "He was an energizing force that brought the School and the busi– ness community together in a growing, mutually beneficial relationship." A tribute dinner was held in Miller's honor on Oct. 16. He had hoped to at– tend the event, which celebrated his many accomplishments as dean of the School of Business Administration. He became dean in September 1983. A professorship established in Vergil V. Miller's name through the PSU Foundation, has already received $120,000 towards its $300,000 goal. For more information on the Vergil V. Miller Professorship call the PSU Foun– dation at 725-4911. Funding state athletics The Oregon State Board of Higher Education has approved a plan to ad– dress the $6.3 million athletic funding deficit at Portland State University, Oregon State University, and the University of Oregon. The board appo inted a task force to seek alternative funding strategies for intercollegiate athletics at the three schools, and it acknowledged that on– going financial obligations must be met. Currently proceeds from football and men's basketball fund unprofitable sports, which must be funded under NCAA membership rules and Title IX federal law. Oregon is one of the few states that denies state money for university athletics, but it does support sports at the regional colleges. "In 1981, the state board decided to finance its university programs of inter– collegiate athletics without using any state dollars. That strategy has not worked, as is evidenced by the $6.3 mil– lion accumulated deficit," said board President George Richardson Jr. '75. The board set aside an earlier proposal to use institutional funds to support athletics, which drew opposi– tion from faculty, student groups, and Better handwriting becomes a family affair at the free annual "Handwriting Im· provement Workshop," Jan. 25, 10 a.m. to I p.m., in the PSU Smith Center Ballroom. No registration is required. Participants will learn the fundamentals of italic handwriting, a simple lower-case alphabet which is written in one stroke. Gov. Barbara Roberts. However, the board did reaffirm the present policy that intercollegiate athletics are in– tegral to the educational experience and agreed to continue PAC-10 affil ia– tion at Oregon and Oregon State. Until alternative funding sources are found, ongo ing financial obligations must be met, Richardson said. "We will use whatever funds are available to us to cover our current costs," he said. Richardson said he expects the task force to begin its study in January and report back to the board in April 1992. Cancer study continues The ongoing PSU study of the cancer death rate of World War II sold iers ex– posed to radiation at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation (PSU Magazine, Winter 1991) is receiving additional federal support. Congress has authorized $50,000 for completion of data-gathering for the study. The money comes from a $210,000 appropriation made to the Department of Veterans Affairs' 1992 budget. Sen. Mark Hatfield and Rep. Les AuCoin were instrumental is get– ting the money, according to Wally Cummins, PSU adjunct research associate working on the project. The study offers the first oppor– tunity to compare the cancer mortality rate of veterans exposed to radiation releases at the Hanford Reservation from 1943 to 1962 with a control group of unexposed veterans at Ft. Lewis. Veterans Affairs will make death certifi– cates available for the estimated 23,000 veterans who served at Hanford and for veterans at Ft. Lewis. Conducting the study with Cum– mins are principal investigator Alice Stewart, PSU visiting professor, and Rudi Nussbaum, PSU emeritus profes– sor of physics. "Last Hurrah" for HHP The School of Health and Human Per– formance (HHP) will throw "The Last Hurrah," a dinner celebration of the school's many years of service on Satur– day evening, May 30. The School of HHP is scheduled to close July 1, 1992. For more information about the event call the school at 725-4401. PSU 3