Portland State Magazine, Spring 2021

ALUMNI IN THE NEWS 3. SAVING THE SIGN Every time you see the iconic “Portland, Oregon” sign in lights next to the Willa- mette River, you can thank the Advocates that it doesn’t say “University of Oregon.” In 2008, UO moved its Portland pro- grams into a historic building in Old Town with the landmark Oregon-shaped sign on top. UO wanted to put its own name on the sign, but some Portland residents thought it was a step too far for the Eugene-based university. students, and transform the campus with modern, sustainable buildings.Tey helped win funding for the Urban Center Plaza, the Campus Rec Center, Karl Miller Center, Viking Pavilion, Fariborz Maseeh Hall, and the brand new Vanport Building, among others. Te late Debbie Murdock, PSU’s long- time government relations leader, played a big role in the group’s successful strategy until she died of cancer in 2007. Over the years, the Advocates began to “UO wanted to put its own name on the sign, but some thought that a step too far for the Eugene-based university.” Te Advocates didn’t want to start a turf war between PSU and UO, so they worked as individuals to “Save the Sign.”Tey met with city leaders, testifed at meetings, and spread the message to 30,000 supporters on Facebook. “When it got on Facebook, that was a godsend,” Johnson said. “Suddenly we had all this backing.” Te city settled on a compromise, “Portland, Oregon,” as the message to light the way across the river into downtown. 4. FUNDING THE FUTURE Te Advocates have been behind all of PSU’s legislative victories for the past three decades.Tey helped keep tuition as low as possible, protect grants for low-income work more closely with students, faculty and—despite past rivalries—other Oregon universities to rally together for state support of higher education.Tat collaboration and support will continue to be important as all the public universities adapt to the challenges of COVID-19, Squire said. “PSU has gone through some struggles, and we’ve proven we’re resilient by overcoming them,” she said. “It’s not easy, but we can do it again.” —SUZANNE PARDINGTON EFFROS Sign up to become a PSU Advocate at pdx.edu/alumni/advocates or by texting PORTLANDSTATE to 52886 . Picturing PSU’s Past “Portland State: A History in Pictures,” written by the late Richard Sanders ’57 with photo editing by Brent Schauer, brings PSU’s history to life with 300 photos and stories. Published in 2009 by the Retirement Association of Portland State, the book is available again for the University’s 75th anniversary for $5. Make checks out to the PSU Foundation and send them along with your address to RAPS, P.O. Box 751, Portland, OR 97207. Melody Bell ’04 , founder and CEO of Financial Beginnings, Brian Forrester ’14 , co-founder and CEO of Midas Health (now Lumina), Rachael Rapinoe MS ’19 , co-founder and CEO of Mendi, and Yoseph Ukbazghi ’18 , co-founder of Simple X, were named to Portland Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” list of the region’s most influential young professionals. Sabra Boyd ’10 wrote a story for the Washington Post about how surviving teen homelessness taught her skills for living through a pandemic. Alison H. Chan ’00 is now the commercial controller for the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa regions at Herman Miller, a NASDAQ listed premium designer of office and home furnishings. Sophorn Cheang ’09 was appointed director of Business Oregon. Cheang will lead the state’s largest economic development agency to promote a globally competitive, diverse and inclusive economy. Paul Deppen III MA ’18 was hired by Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia as a clinical research coordinator in the Roberts Individualized Medical Genetics Center. Andrew Dieckhoff ’13 MA ’17 announced that his proprietary sports analytics system, the Dieckhoff Power Index (DPI), is now partnering with one of the top independent college basketball websites in the country, Heat Check CBB. Melanie Dixon MS ’09 was selected as president of American River College, a community college serving 30,000 students in Sacramento, California. Lifeng Dong MS ’02 PhD ’05 was named a member of the Minnesota Academy of Science’s board of directors, where he will be instrumental in guiding the nonprofit organization’s mission of advancing science, technology, engineering and mathematics in the state. Eric Funk ’72 MA ’78 composed and performed Intermountain Opera’s first-ever commissioned composition, a vocal work titled “Requiem for a Forest,” inspired by the Bridger Foothills Fire in September 2020. Hadley Heck ’19 , former member of the Portland State volleyball team, has been hired as a reporter at KVAL TV News in the Willamette Valley. Sarah Iannarone ’05 was named executive director of The Street Trust, a nonprofit group that promotes bicycling, walking and public transit safety issues across Oregon. Sofia Jasani MS ’20 , the founder of the Oregon Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development, won the Oregon Counseling Association’s Human Rights Award for her commitment to advancing social justice in the counseling field. SPRING 2021 // 37