2 The RAPS Sheet February 2021 CO-PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Online Zoom RAPS events gain acceptance I just finished attending the January 2021 RAPS member meeting. The speaker this month, political science professor Chris Shortell, presented a talk, “PostTrump America: Where Does American Politics Go from Here?” What great timing. (Thanks to Dawn White for scheduling this speaker and this topic at this time.) Professor Shortell shared with the audience that, given the uncertainty about events after the November election, he waited until President Biden’s inauguration before putting finishing touches on his talk. The January member meeting had 36 people logged in; that is our largest attendance for a virtual RAPS event. I would guess that attendance for the January member meeting was up in part due to happy, satisfied RAPS members sharing their positive experience from the Holiday Gathering. Looking forward: Hooray! Vaccinations are days or weeks away for those Oregonians and Washingtonians in the age groups of our RAPS members. For two-shot vaccines, there is a lag between first shot and the followup shot. After the final shot three weeks or so are required to develop the full development of protection. Thus it looks as if by the beginning of fall term (hopefully) on-campus RAPS events will begin again. Maybe by the summer RAPS will be able to hold its annual picnic. We could bring food to eat ourselves (not share with others). We would be out of doors and socially distanced. Until then get vaccinated when available and stay safe. —Steve Brennan DURING THE MONTHS of “no in-person meetings on campus,” our member meetings have been virtual, using Zoom. A survey of RAPS members, conducted last September, indicated that members were not willing to attend in-person events until getting vaccinated against coronavirus. Attendance at virtual meetings has been increasing gradually over the Covid-time months, as folks become more comfortable with the Zoom technology. The RAPS Board is making an effort to entice more members to attend virtual RAPS events. We have been making phone calls to sing the praises of online meetings. RAPS virtual events have a scheduled time before the start of the official part of the event. This pre-event time is great for visiting with people we have not seen much in the past few months. A creative committee planned last December’s RAPS Holiday Gathering within the bounds of a virtual event. We had a two-hour open house on Zoom. There was time for social visiting and two rounds of PSU trivia. We watched attendees consume their family holiday treats. Scott Burns, our RAPS wine expert, explained characteristics of a number of member-selected wines. We watched a You Tube video showing PSU’s Opera Program director, Christine Meadows, imitating Julia Child baking a chocolate cake. The consensus on the gathering was: entertaining, funny, and informative (Scott knows about wine soils, for sure). Portland State’s 75th anniversary . . . From page 1 Vanport, a temporary city built to house shipyard workers during World War II, was the site of the Vanport Extension Center, which evolved into Portland State University. On May 30, 1948, a railroad dike failed, allowing the Columbia River to rush in, destroying the city and the Extension Center. Four years passed before the school found a permanent home in the Park Blocks. Stephen Epler (19091997), who established the Extension Center, was the founder of Portland State. In observance of the University’s 75 years, The RAPS Sheet will publish articles in the next four issues that focus on aspects of Portland State’s history. The first, an enjoyable and enlightening quiz written by the RAPS History Preservation Committee, appears on page 4. A longer version of the same quiz was a hit at the Holiday Gathering last December. Seventy-five years after its founding, Portland State has nearly 200,000 alumni, an enrollment of more than 26,000, an economic impact in Oregon of more than $1.5 billion, and—well, we don’t want to give away all the answers to the quiz. Happy 75th, Portland State! The web page for the anniversary is: https://www.pdx.edu/75th-anniversary
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