Molly Gloss attended Portland State during the turbulent 1960s, but her PSU experience was a relatively quiet one. She lived at home and took the bus to campus every day from Gresham. Like many students of that era, she chose PSU because it was convenient—affordable and close to home. Molly was studying to be a teacher. “In 1962,” she says, “you could either be a teacher or a nurse.” She enjoyed many of the “human sciences” she took as part of her Social Sciences degree, particularly psychology, which she found she effortlessly understood. She knew, though, that there wasn’t much a woman in that era could do with a psychology degree. When a guidance counselor suggested she take an English course, she balked. She hadn’t been fond of her English classes in high school. Still, she took the recommended course, Dr. Hill’s Contemporary Literature survey, and found that she loved it. She would take English courses for the rest of her time at PSU. While she attended PSU, Molly worked at the Multnomah County Library, doing the “most boring job”—checking coats and doing menial clerical work. This part-time job and a partial scholarship covered her PSU tuition. On days she worked, she headed from class to the library, stopping to enjoy fish and chips at a café on Broadway. Though Molly describes herself as fairly traditional during this era, she fondly recalls politically active and passionate professors like Marko Haggard, a charismatic political science professor who went on to become Oregon’s first state ombudsman. She remembers how Haggard would discuss his wartime experience and how it informed his own humanism, and she credits him for sparking her interest in politics. Molly was married on her graduation day (she didn’t attend the graduation ceremony), and though she taught for a short time, she didn’t find her calling until 1981, when she returned to PSU to take a writing course with author Ursula Le Guin. Molly had one “bad novel” under her belt, and a few science fiction stories. She would write two more stories in Le Guin’s workshop, and five acclaimed novels and numerous award-winning short stories would follow. Today, Molly’s novels and stories are taught in literature classes at PSU and beyond. Over the years, she has maintained a connection with the University, teaching at the Haystack summer program and teaching the occasional writing workshop. She worked as an adjunct professor at PSU for three years, teaching “Literature of the American West.” These days, she’ll stop by campus occasionally, to discuss her work with students and professors, or do some research at the library. Of the University and its evolution, Molly says, “I’m really proud of it now. I was proud of it then.” Alumni Spotlight: Molly Gloss Class of ’66, B.S. in Social Sciences, English Minor
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