PSU Magazine Winter 2000

and to Asia he has secured agreements with governments and institutions for financial support and for exchange programs. The latest agreement is with Hanyang University of Korea where he was awarded an honorary degree in November. Other agreements include Waseda University in Japan and an agreement with the Turkish govern– ment for support of PSU's Turkish Studies Program. This fall, PSU was co-host for the Asia-Pacific Conference held in Portland. Pres ident Bernstine is particularly interested in raising PSU's profile within the region and throughout Oregon. One of his first steps was to initiate development of the University's first comprehen ive marketing and communications plan . He also has been meeting with government officials at the local, regional, state, and federal levels seek– ing ways to strengthen PSU's relation– ships. "I want to get the public and private communities to fully recognize PSU as the region's state university," he said recently, "and to recognize our capacity for leadership." "Dan is building bedrock," says Tony Leineweber, vice president of Crown Pacific and president of the PSU Foundation Board of Directors. "Expanding relationships with individ– uals, foundations, and other academic institutions will ensure a solid future for PSU, while at the same time the e partnerships reflect the worth of this University to our state and region today." A by-product of Portland State's outreach efforts has been increased visits to campus by state and federal offi cials and business and community leaders. Mo t recently, Congressman David Wu and U .S. Secretary of Commerce William Daley conducted a town hall discussion at PSU regarding the region's economy, and in December Bernstine hosted a meeting of the Association for Portland Progress Board of Directors. The asso– ciation is a group of key business lead– ers working fo r central city livability and viabi lity. Raising the University's public profile is a critical element in Bernstine's goal to "diversify the revenue stream." Both federal and state support have increased (Bern tine was active during the last state legislative sess ion, helping to secure the largest increase in state funding in more than a decade), and a major capital campaign is on the hori– zon. The president has focused addi– tional resources in the area of private fund raising and preparation for the capital campaign. As a companion effort to increasing revenue, the president, academic deans, department chairs, and key administra– tors have developed the University's first comprehen ive Strategic Resource Development Plan . The plan articu– lates the institution's strategic priorities and will help to guide strategic invest– ments in the future. This also is the first year of opera– tion under the Oregon University System's new funding model, under which individual institutions will Portland State University is one of only two dozen institutions nationwide to be designated a "University of Promise" by America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth. The designation, presented by Gen. Colin Powell, who is chairman of America's Promise, recognizes PSU's commitment to the region's youth and its emphasis on community involve– ment by students, faculty, and staff. The University's Senior Capstone requirement and dozens of commu– nity-based learning courses were of particular interest to Powell, who has pointed to the advantages of these retain the tuition fund pa id by their students. Development of an allocation plan for those funds has been another priority for Bernstine. "Our future budgets," he told faculty this fa ll, "will be more directly related to our own performance-how well we meet the challenge of serving more students and serv ing them we ll." In the midst of working through the issues surrounding academic programs, campus climate, and fi nances, Bernstine faces another potentially knotty problem. At his first PSU commencement ceremony in 1998, President Bill C linton gave the commencement address. The next year it was Secretary of Health and Human Service Donna Shalala. O ne question around campus is, what will he do for an encore? D (Clarence Hein is manager of ' Community Relations at Portland State.) arrangements for the institution as well as the community. A University of Promise agrees to promote what America's Promise call its Five Fundamental Resources for all children: • An ongoing relationship with a caring adult (parent, mentor, tutor, coach). • Safe places and structured activities during non-school hours. • A healthy start. • A marketable skill through effective education. WINTER 2000 PSU MAGAZINE 9