Certainly the most important event of the fall quarter - indeed, of the entire academic year - was the dedication on October 23, 1955, :C?f Portland State College as an independent member of the Oregon State System of Higher Education, a four-year college with the power to confer degrees; and the inauguration, at the same time, of Dr. John F. Cramer as first president of the college. The dedica1'ion and inauguration came as the culmination of nine years of steady growth. Organized in 1946, the school was first known as Vanport Extension Center, and was located in the Portland suburb of that name. By May, 1948, it had become the fourth largest college in Oregon; but disaster, in the form of the infamous Memorial Day flood of that year, literally washed it away and forced it to begin anew, this time at the Oregon Shipyard site in the St. Johns area. Its continued growth, even under these adverse circumstances, indicated its value to the area it served; consequently, the Oregon State Legislature passed a bill making permanent its status as a lower-division daytime extension center. In September, 1952, the college was moved again, this time to the old lincoln High School building in downtown Portland, where it was known officially as Portland State Extension Center. It retained this title until the current year, when, as a result of new legislative action, the college was dedicated anew to the task of extending its upper-division offerings and providing a full program of college work. To serve as first president of the new college, the State Board of Higher Education chose Dr. John F. Cramer, who had been close to the school and its problems for many years in his capacity as Dean of the General Extension Division. In the presence of legislators, public officials, representatives from many of the nation's leading colleges, students, and interested citizens, President Cramer accepted his new responsibilities, determined to lead the college to a place of honor among institutions of higher learning. li ATION 165
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