Portland State Magazine Fall 2015

FALL 2015 PORTLAND STATE MAGAZINE 3 Portland State Magazine wants to hear from you. Email your comments to psumag@pdx.edu or send them to Portland State Magazine , Office of University Communications, PO Box 751, Portland OR 97207-0751. We reserve the right to edit for space and clarity. Gloves or no gloves Several readers called or wrote about the bare-handed handling of the 15th-cen- tury Book of Hours photographed for the cover for the spring 2015 Portland State Magazine and in the accompany- ing story “Illuminating the Past.” The PSU Library took the com- ments seriously and created a web page—“Gloves or no gloves?”—to answer any concerns. According to the web page, the PSU Library follows the recommendations of the Library of Congress, which states, “wearing gloves while handling antiquarian books may do more harm than good.” Apparently gloves can carry more dirt than thor- oughly washed and dried hands. In addition, the lack of sensitivity when wearing gloves can lead to torn pages. However, clean gloves are recommended when handling photographs or books with metal or ivory parts. Remembering a past student I saw your article “It’s Never Too Late” in the spring 2015 edition of Portland State Magazine , and I was intrigued to learn that so many students who were previously unable to complete the requirements to graduate received assis- tance in earning their degrees decades after leaving PSU. I could not believe my eyes. Your article reminded me of the many times I had thought of contacting someone at PSU whenever I received a new edition of the magazine. My story has to do with a student who passed away before having the opportunity of completing the requirements to graduate: my mother, Jane Ward Holden. She was a student at the time she passed away in May 1970 at the age of 53. I don’t know the details of when she attended PSU prior to the 1969-1970 academic year, nor what the academic records will show as to her status at that time. I was led to believe that she was close to graduating, and she was so proud of the idea of reaching that goal. We were to have attended summer term together. I was just completing my junior year at Catlin Gabel School. Might it still be possible to locate those records in the archives? I thank you in advance for whatever you are able to do on my mother’s behalf. Bill Holden ’78 Westport, Conn. We forwarded Mr. Holden’s letter to Robert Mercer, Portland State College of Liberal Arts and Sciences assistant dean and a history and master’s of English alumnus. Here is his answer: Bill, I was very touched by your story— particularly that the two of you had planned to take courses together. My own mother passed away in 1991 and there isn’t a day I don’t think about her many times. I see that your mother started as a part-time student in 1962 and took courses off and on until that spring of 1970. Since she was a history major, it is likely that she and I had some of the same professors. (I began as a history major in the mid-’70s.) While she had accumulated well over 100 credits, she was still more than 60 credits away from completing her degree. I am sorry that we cannot award her a degree. But I suspect she would be very touched that you thought to inquire about it. If I can provide any additional information, please do let me know. Robert Mercer ’80, MA ’86 Letters Jane Ward Holden