Портленд Мемлекеттік Университеті: Тарихы мен қазіргі жағдайы

Public university in Portland, Oregon, US

Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four year college over the following two decades and was granted university status in 1969. It is one of two public universities in Oregon that are located in a large city. It is governed by a board of trustees. PSU is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". Portland State is composed of seven constituent colleges, offering undergraduate degrees in one hundred twenty three fields, and postgraduate degrees in one hundred seventeen fields. Its athletic teams are known as the Portland State Vikings with school colors of green and white. They compete at the NCAA Division I Level, primarily in the Big Sky Conference.

Portland State University was established as the Vanport Extension Center in June 1946, founded by Stephen Edward Epler, a native of Iowa. Epler graduated from Cotner College in Lincoln, Nebraska, and later Columbia University in New York City, before joining the army to fight in World War II. After returning to the United States after serving, Epler became a veterans' counselor in Oregon's General Extension Division in Portland. This first summer session had 221 students, and tuition and fees were $50. Over 1,410 students registered for the 1946 fall term, which was delayed until October 7, 1946, due to a lack of space. Since the population in Vanport was decreasing after World War II, the extension center was able to use buildings created for other purposes: two childcare centers, a recreation building with three classrooms, and a shopping center, which required substantial modification to house a library, offices, and six classrooms. In addition to Vanport Junior High School, Lincoln and Jefferson high schools were used after school hours, as well as the University of Oregon's dental and medical schools, located in Portland. Following the May 30 Vanport Flood of 1948, the college became known as "the college that wouldn't die" for refusing to close after the flood. The term was coined by Lois Hennessy, a student who wrote about the college and the flood in the Christian Science Monitor, then to hastily converted buildings at the Oregon Shipyard, although severe restrictions were placed on the college's curriculum and growth. Portland State University's growth for the next couple of decades was restricted under the Oregon University System's 1929 ruling that no public university or college in Oregon could duplicate the programs offered by another, with grandfathered exclusions for the University of Oregon and Oregon State University. Nevertheless, graduate programs were added in 1961 and doctoral programs were added in 1972. The program garnered national attention for its learning communities, service learning, senior capstones, and successful retention of first year students. U. S. News & World Report has on multiple occasions listed University Studies as a "Program to Look For". In 1995, two years before his death, the university honored Stephen Epler for his contributions to the university's origins. In August 2020, citing the George Floyd protests as well as the killing of a Black man by PSU (campus police) officers in 2018, university President Stephen Percy announced that the campus police will no longer carry guns on patrol (though firearms will still be stored in the public safety office for use in case of an active shooter situation). In case of dangerous calls, Portland police will respond instead. The policy took effect on September 1, 2021. However, this policy was later reversed, and as of early 2023 campus police have resumed carrying weapons.

According to the U. S. News & World Report and Forbes, the university's acceptance rate was 95% in 2012, which was considered selective for a state university. Portland State also has a dual enrollment agreement with Portland Community College and Clackamas Community College that allows students of the two schools to take courses at either school, and also complies with the Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer Degree curriculum (A. A. O. T.), which allows accepted students who have completed two year associate degrees at an Oregon community college to transfer into the university at junior level.

In 1993, PSU comprehensively reformed its undergraduate curriculum with a new curriculum called University Studies that is unique to the institution. The curriculum was conceived to address issues of credit distribution which required students in upper level courses to enroll in classes outside of their majors. In a 1993 summary report on the reform, it was stated that the University Studies sought to incorporate "'across the curriculum' themes including writing, diversity and multiculturalism, ethics, and global studies," as well as form a foundation that "includes the capacity and the propensity to engage in inquiry and critical thinking, to use various forms of communication for learning and expression, to gain an awareness of the broader human experience and its environment, and appreciate the responsibilities of persons to themselves, to each other, and to community." The Sophomore Inquiry courses are heavily communication based, and are focused on group dialogue as well as presentations and research projects.

The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education ranks Portland State as a university with "higher research activity." The Millar Library is open to the public, and allows non students access to their catalogues of PDF files and published online journals.

The university houses a Women's Resources center, a Disability Resources center, a Resource Center for Students with Children, a Queer Resource Center for LGBT students, and a Veteran's Resource Center. Fraternities and sororities at Portland State University are represented by a student run group called "Greek Life" or "Greek Council". The council's purpose is to facilitate between the university and the Greek Community on campus, provide a venue for communication between individual Chapters, and to facilitate socials, fundraisers, and other philanthropic events. The council is made up of six executive offices (President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Special Events Chair, and Public Relations) and represents the following Greek Organizations to date: Alpha Kappa Alpha, Alpha Kappa Psi, Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Chi Omega, Kappa Sigma, Omega Delta Phi and Phi Delta Theta.

The university contains four parking structures for automobiles: two located on 6th Avenue; one on 12th Street at the northwestern edge of the campus; and one 5th Avenue between Montgomery and Harrison Streets. A guest parking lot is located on the south end of Shattuck Hall. Portland State University is serviced with mass transit by TriMet, which includes fifteen bus lines as well as the MAX light rail system. There are also shuttles available through Oregon Health & Science University and Portland Community College on SW Harrison Street at SW Broadway. In addition to use of mass transit, the university also has a large population of students who travel by bicycle. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints operates an Institute of Religion which holds Sunday services. Nearby churches are also located nearby off campus. Hillel International hosts Jewish religious services on campus. Various clubs for Christian, Muslim, and Jewish students also meet on campus.

Portland State competes at the NCAA Division I level in football, basketball, women's volleyball, golf, soccer, tennis, softball, indoor and outdoor track and field, and cross country as a member of the Big Sky Conference. The football team competes in Division I FCS (Football Championship Subdivision). Prior to joining Division I, the school won NCAA National Division II championships in women's volleyball and wrestling. The school has also placed second twice nationally in football and once in women's basketball at the Division II level. Portland State's colors are green and white, and its mascot is the Viking personified as "Victor E. Viking". Among the two more notable former Portland State athletes are Freeman Williams and Neil Lomax. Williams was the NCAA Division I national men's basketball individual scoring leader in 1977 and 1978. Lomax was a record setting quarterback who went on to star for the St. Louis Cardinals in the NFL in the mid 1980s. Football's "Run & Shoot" offense was first implemented at the college level at PSU by coach Darryl "Mouse" Davis. An assistant coach at Portland State, Davis took over as head coach in 1975 following the departure of Ron Stratten. Behind his revolutionary new "Run and Shoot" offense (developed in the late 1960s at Hillsboro (OR) HS) and a strong armed quarterback named June Jones, Davis led the Viking program to new heights— an 8–3 record, including a perfect 5–0 home mark. Davis' quarterback protégés were Lomax and Jones. Home games for football are held off campus at Hillsboro Stadium, and home games for basketball are held on campus in the Viking Pavilion. In 2008, the men's basketball team earned their first ever bid into the NCAA tournament. The university has 30 student managed club sports on campus including the PSU Rugby Club, the PSU Ice Hockey Club and the PSU Lacrosse Club. In addition, the Student Activities and Leadership Program sponsors 120 student clubs including the Tango, Fencing, Medieval and Brewers' clubs.

The university has several alumni in law and government, including Barbara Roberts, the 34th Governor of Oregon, U. S. Federal Judge Anna J. Brown, and American diplomats Joseph LeBaron and Marisa Lino. Betty Roberts, the first woman to serve on the Oregon Supreme Court, and Margaret Carter, the first African American woman elected to the Oregon House of Representatives, are also graduates of the university. Casten Nemra, the seventh president of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Arnold I. Palacios the 12th Lt. Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are graduates of Portland State University as well. Portland State has produced many academics across the sciences and humanities; alumni include: cultural anthropologist and professor at Duke University Lee D. Baker; Michael Kazin, historian and professor at Georgetown University; Dali Yang, professor of political science at the University of Chicago; Thomas Talbott, professor of philosophy at Willamette University; and Hans G. Furth, professor of psychology at The Catholic University of America. Businessman and engineer Norm Winningstad, United Parcel Service CEO D. Scott Davis, and Judi Hofer, executive CEO of The May Department Stores Company are also graduates. Business magnate and co founder and chairman of Nike, Inc., Phil Knight was an assistant professor of business at the university, and his son, animator and CEO of Laika, Travis Knight, is an alumnus. Carolyn Davidson, an alumnus of the university's visual arts department, invented the Nike swoosh while she was a student there. Tarah Wheeler, cybersecurity executive and author of Women In Tech, received her MS in Political Science from the Hatfield School. Writer Francisco Laguna Correa; poets Michael Dickman and John Sibley Williams; and novelists Deborah J. Ross and David James Duncan are among the university's alumni; Mike Richardson, publisher and founder of Dark Horse Comics, is an alumnus as well. In 2007, Dark Horse donated copies of all of its published works to the PSU Library, which maintains both a browsing collection of book titles, in addition to a research collection which also includes every "print, poster, statue, figure, and all other products." In the sciences, the university's alumni base include computer scientist and Turing Award winner Ivan Sutherland, theoretical physicist Mohammad Aslam Khan Khalil, autism researcher Paul Shattuck, and Antarctic researcher Jill Mikucki. Several social activists are among alumni as well, including British political scientist and peace building initiative pioneer Harry Anastasiou; Native American activist Robert Robideau; gay rights activist Paul Popham, who founded the Gay Men's Health Crisis in New York City and social activist and recipient of the Director's Community Leadership Award (DCLA) Musse Olol. The university's contribution to performing arts and entertainment include actors Mark Dacascos and Terence Knox; classical vocalist and Miss America 2002 Katie Harman Ebner; four time Grammy Award winning jazz musician Esperanza Spalding; film composer Rob Simonsen; and Jack Ely, guitarist of The Kingsmen. Emmy winning writer, stand up comedian, and fantasy draft expert; Ian Karmel. Alternative rock singer and guitarist Courtney Love of Hole also attended the university, but did not graduate. Sportsmen who attended Portland State include football players Adam Heyward, Tony Curtis, Super Bowl XLVIII Champion DeShawn Shead, Julius Thomas, two time Super Bowl Champion (XVII, XXII) Clint Didier, Dave Stief, and Neil Lomax. Freeman Williams, who has the second highest NCAA score in NBA history, is also an alumnus.