It was Dec. 23, our eighth night in a row of working the night shift in the drill tent. We were trying to finish drilling the longest ice core ever drilled in the Allan Hills of Antarctica. Radar data indicated that the bottom was somewhere around 300 meters down, and we had passed that mark yesterday. The previous night, I had felt so confident that I started playing Europe’s “The Final Countdown” on the sound system while we got set up. But now I was losing hope that we would reach our goal of bedrock by Christmas.

I was an ice core handler on the COLDEX 2025-26 Allan Hills field team. We had been living in tents on the ice sheet for just over a month, drilling cores in minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit weather. NSF COLDEX, the National Science Foundation Center for Oldest Ice Exploration, is dedicated to finding and analyzing the oldest ice possible. Specifically, the center is interested in the content of the air bubbles trapped within — tiny time capsules that provide important information about the climate millions of years ago.

COLDEX is part of an international effort to extend the ice core record back to more than 1 million years ago. When the ice core community conceived the Oldest Ice Challenge in 2004, the oldest ice core ever drilled was only about 800,000 years old. Taking that beyond 1 million years would uncover data from a time when climate cycles were shorter, with ice ages about once every 40,000 years, compared to the more recent 100,000-year cycle. Even more importantly, during interglacial periods earlier than 1 million years ago, our planet was very warm — even warmer than today. Greenhouse gas data from back then will help us understand how our climate could change in the near future, which could lead to new strategies for improving human resilience.

Several teams worldwide took up the challenge. Founded in 2021 as a multi-institutional NSF Science and Technology Center headquartered at Oregon State University, COLDEX is the United States’ entry. 

Unlike the other international teams, COLDEX focuses on blue ice areas. These cover less than 1% of Antarctica and are found mainly at the margins of the East Antarctic ice sheet. Here, ice flow to the sea is interrupted by mountains, especially the Transantarctic Mountain Range. At these barriers, ancient ice once buried deep under the ice sheet resurfaces, and harsh katabatic winds scour away the younger ice on top. What’s left appears blue due to millions of years of compression.

Recent COLDEX field seasons to blue ice areas have yielded ice far older than other oldest ice projects less than 200 meters below the surface. Unlike areas where deep ice cores are drilled, the Allan Hills have large amounts of ice from the Pliocene epoch (2.5 to 5.3 million years ago) and even before that. During the 2024-25 field season, COLDEX set a record, drilling a core with ice more than 6 million years old at its bottom.

But there are disadvantages to working in a blue ice area. The same ice flow patterns that result in the retention of such old ice make the ice very difficult to work with. It has traveled hundreds of kilometers and has folded and thinned unevenly. John Higgins, a professor at Princeton University and the science lead for this COLDEX project, likes to compare the ice core records from deep continuous cores to “pages in a book, because you can read them in order and they tell a continuous story.” Data from Allan Hills ice cores, however, are more like snapshots jumbled up in a loose box of photos, with some of photos missing altogether.

Because of this, we can’t assume that deeper ice is older than the shallower ice. COLDEX scientists determine the age back in the lab by analyzing argon gas isotopes trapped in bubbles in the cores. They’ve discovered that in one area of the Allan Hills, there’s a layer of much younger ice sandwiched in between two 3-million-year- old layers. Careful handling in the field — and detailed analysis in the laboratory — is required to accurately interpret data from these cores.

Greenhouse gas data from back then will help us understand how our climate could change in the near future.

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Each time the drill pulls up another meter of ice, drill fluid drains out of the core barrel onto a sloped drip tray, which funnels it into a bucket. The fluid can be filtered to remove ice chips and then reused. The core handlers — wearing nitrile gloves over our wool glove liners to keep our hands dry, but not quite warm enough — vacuum the surface of the core to remove as much of the Estisol fluid from the surface as possible. The handlers then measure and log the core; label, photograph and bag it; and carefully place it in a large, insulated box, packed with snow, for storage and transport. These boxes can hold nine of the meter-long cores and, when full, weigh up to 200 pounds. In between drilling, the handlers try to warm up with thick gloves, hand warmers and a lot of dancing around.

Whenever Estisol splashes onto any of our regular clothing, the smell follows us around for days. It has a vaguely fruit-like or floral scent — not nearly as harsh as other solvents like acetone, but still bothersome.

At the Allan Hills, our camp didn’t have washing machines or bathing facilities, which meant that we wore the same layers of wool and fleece under our heavy overalls and coats for days or weeks on end. Fortunately, we had protective drill suits to cover our clothes, and boots that would not degrade when they came into contact with the drill fluid.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: This is as low as the sun ever gets when you’re at latitude 77 degrees south of the Earth’s equatorial plane. “Sunset” arrived at 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 17, 2025, in the Allan Hills of Antarctica. University of Washington graduate student An Li draws an orientation line on the second-to-last ice core section. The triumphant COLDEX team after loading boxes of ice cores onto the plane at the end of a successful field season. From left to right: An Li, Romilly Harris Stuart, Ivo Strawson, Danielle Whittaker (the author) and Martin Froger Silva. A slice of blue ice showing bubbles trapped within. These bubbles are like tiny time capsules, containing samples of ancient air that can be analyzed in the lab. Photos by Danielle Whittaker and Martin Froger Silva

This field mission was actually the first time we used the Shallow Wet Drill and the Estisol it requires. Previously, cores in the Allan Hills were dry drilled, a relatively easy and fuss-free method with minimal setup required. But compressed air in the bubbles in the ice can crack and badly fracture the cores while they’re being cut, contaminating the contents with modern air. COLDEX proposed to test whether fluid drilling would result in better ice core quality and commissioned this new drill from the NSF Ice Drilling Program for this season. This year’s goal wasn’t to find older ice than before, but to bring back better ice.

The improved core quality made all the extra effort worth it. We started drilling this particular borehole dry, waiting to add fluid until core quality started to degrade. One day in mid-December, at about 115 meters deep, the last core of the day came up as complete rubble, unusable for scientific analysis. The next day we filled the borehole about halfway with Estisol and immediately began drilling beautiful, perfect cores, proving that wet drilling would work in a blue ice area.

Still, despite drilling up to 20 meters a day, we were running out of time. In addition to drilling ice, our field team was also responsible for collecting data on the depth and movement of the ice sheet itself. We couldn’t take measurements until we were finished; otherwise the electricity from the generator-powered drill would interfere with radar measurements. We were scheduled to return to McMurdo Station on Jan. 11. We needed to speed things up and finish by Christmas in order to leave enough time for the other projects.

On Dec. 16,we had split the team into two shifts, with the goal of drilling about 16 hours a day until we reached bedrock. I volunteered for the night shift, figuring that bedtime was arbitrary when you had 24 hours of sunlight a day. An Li, a graduate student from the University of Washington who led the geophysics work on our field team, was the other core handler on the night shift. Andrew Haala and Dusty Brunner, engineers from the NSF Ice Drilling Program at the University of Wisconsin, rounded out our team.

The first shift included OSU postdocs Romilly Harris Stuart and Ivo Strawson, Martin Froger Silva from the University of Minnesota, and drillers Elizabeth Morton and Jay Johnson. Each day, they headed out to the drill tent to get started by 9 a.m. Second shift slept later, checking in around 1 p.m. to either swap out with a member of the day shift, or to work on tasks at camp like labeling sample bottles and bags or preparing equipment.

Dinner was the only time during this period that the whole team was together. We gathered in a large communal heated tent with 12 metal folding chairs set up in a circle around the perimeter. Our camp manager prepared surprisingly good meals for us, given the conditions: chickpea curry over quinoa, pasta with pesto and shrimp and grilled cheese sandwiches were some of my favorites. Second shift began right after dinner and lasted until after midnight. Once we were done drilling for the night, we spent an hour or so cleaning up, shutting down the drill and the generator and transporting the ice core boxes to a storage trench dug into the ice. At last, we headed back to camp, usually getting to bed around 3 a.m. under the still-bright sun.

The novelty of the situation had been energizing at first, and the two shifts enjoyed some friendly competition and cheered each other on. First shift left thermoses of hot water and encouraging notes for us to find when we returned. The second shift was sassier, writing “Second shift rules, first shift drools!” on the whiteboard in the community tent.

But the anticipation of the end and the failure to reach it day after day wore on us. By now, we had endured multiple days of winds between 30 and 40 knots (35 to 46 miles per hour), creating a wind chill as cold as minus 36 degrees Fahrenheit. Life in high winds is difficult: visibility is obscured, walking outside requires determined effort, and you must yell to be heard inside the flapping tents.

“You’re going to do it tonight, I am sure of it,” said Ivo at dinner on Dec. 23 when the night shift was suiting up. The first shift had stopped drilling just shy of 324 meters — the equivalent of an 80-story building, over three Statues of Liberty long. “You are going to go in there, drill 3 meters and hit bedrock!” I hoped he was right.

Feeling less optimistic than the night before, we set up for another drilling shift. The drill had some trouble cutting through the ice at first, retrieving only 11 centimeters of ice. Andrew and Dusty changed the cutters on the drill and tried again. This time, the core successfully pulled up a full meter, after a long struggle caused by cutting through a rock. The core had some very deep micro cracks, so thin that you might miss them if you didn’t know what you were looking for.

Looking into the borehole, you can see just how blue the ice really is. The blue color is the result of millions of years of compression. Photo by Martin Froger Silva

Such cracks cause the air bubbles to leak and gases within the core to mix together, rendering them useless as pristine air samples from specific moments in time. The appearance of micro cracks usually indicated that we needed to add more fluid to the borehole to counteract the pressure at deeper depths. The fluid column was now about 110 meters deep.

Andrew frowned at the cracks and asked, “How valuable is the ice at the bottom of this core?” An and I looked at each other. “Well … ,” she said, “the ice at the bottom is usually the oldest, so pretty important.”

Andrew gamely went out into the howling winds to get another 55-gallon barrel of Estisol and pump the fluid into the borehole.

It was after 11 p.m. when the next core came up, and it was only half a meter. The work was feeling especially slow and discouraging. Each drill run took half an hour or more — first to lower the drill all the way down, and then to slowly and carefully cut through the ice. “What do you think? Are you up for trying for one more core?” Andrew asked. Sure, why not, we shrugged.

While the drill made its way down deep into the ice, I asked Andrew, “How will we know when we’ve hit bottom?” I knew that when a dry drill reached bedrock, it would bring up bits of rock from the bottom, but I didn’t know what it would look like in wet drilling.

“Well,” Andrew said, “we won’t know for sure at first. The drill won’t go down any further and we’ll see sediment from the bottom. But most importantly, the cutters will be worn down really badly.” The three sharp cutters that cut into the ice were built for ice, not rock.

About 20 minutes later, Andrew pulled up the core. Again, only half a meter. But when Dusty pulled the core barrel out onto the table, An and I practically screamed. The ice chips that poured out from the barrel were sludgy and very brown, full of sediment. Dusty inspected the cutters. They were badly chewed up, despite being replaced just a couple of hours earlier.

I looked at Andrew. ”We’re going back down, right?” There was no question. Andrew and Dusty changed out the cutters and lowered the drill down the borehole once again. When it came back up, the barrel was empty and the cutters were once again very dulled. It was just after midnight. “Who wants to make the call?” asked Andrew, pointing at the handheld two-way radio.

A few team members had taken radios to bed with them the last night or two so they could be woken up with the news in case we reached bedrock. I grabbed the radio and pushed the talk button.

“Attention, Allan Hills. This is Shallow Wet Second Shift with a very important announcement. We have reached bedrock at approximately 327 meters. I repeat, we have hit bedrock. Have a good night.”

Our teammates back at camp had gone to bed hours before, so I didn’t expect an immediate response. But seconds later, cheers and whoops filled the airwaves. We had completed the deepest ice core ever drilled in blue ice.

Danielle J. Whittaker is a science writer and the managing director of COLDEX.

Q: The National Science Foundation just announced that an OSU consortium will receive $160 million to advance semiconductor design, manufacturing and workforce training. How big of a deal is this, and what does it say about OSU’s role in the state’s future?

A: It’s a big deal. We are the largest university in Oregon. We are its land-grant university. This underlines the role that we play across the state of Oregon. We not only educate new generations of Oregonians, but also drive discovery and the translation of discovery into useful work.

This is exactly what we want to be doing — bringing federal dollars to Oregon and using those dollars to create prosperity for Oregonians.  Fifteen percent of our nation’s workforce in semiconductors already sits right here in Oregon. The FAST grant will help us grow and modernize that workforce.

So it’s a big transformation. We estimate that this effort will add 25,000 new jobs to the region and 180 new startups over the next decade. OSU and our academic partners believe that we can add 4,000 graduates a year to the workforce by the end of this project. We’re planning to do some very big things. [Editor’s note: Learn more about FAST.]

Q: This news comes during a time of major milestones, including the upcoming opening of the Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex. Do you see OSU entering a new era? 

A: The Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex will be the heart of artificial intelligence at OSU and at the heart of AI across Oregon. We’ve been thinking about what’s special about AI in Oregon and what’s special about AI at OSU. And I will tell you that the confluence of AI plus everything Oregon is what’s gotten us excited. It’s AI and agriculture, AI and farming, AI and forestry, AI and oceans and rivers, and of course all the other things that OSU does so well. AI and robotics, for example. 

We’re thinking about how we can create these verticals in the Huang Complex and about the role that OSU can play in bringing constructive use of AI to Oregon. How can we be at the heart of understanding where AI can be helpful? How can we support its use in constructive and useful ways? 

“There’s always good, deep science to be done.”

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 What may seem unrelated, but which is related in all kinds of interesting ways, is that we’ve also just hired Kevin Griffin from Ohio State to be our new athletics director. He brings dedication to student-athletes, real expertise in revenue generation, strategic communication and branding, which are all going to be key to another new era for Oregon State. And interestingly, he brings an interest in athletics plus AI, which we’ve only just begun to think about. A lot of things are coming together all at once. 

Q: Can you give an example of athletics plus AI?

A: Say a student-athlete is injured. Given the history of their health, can we figure out if they can play the next time around? What are the risks? Likewise, can we figure out the next play given the configuration on the field and the history of the players? There’s a big universe of possibilities. We’re going to have to find our way to using AI to our advantage and using it ethically as well.  

Q: All these wins seem especially significant because this time last year we were talking about disruptions to research funding. What’s changed? A: We are on a roll, but federal funding challenges remain. The ground has certainly shifted. I am grateful that we didn’t see the big cuts that were proposed in the president’s budget. That support from Congress is really heartening. But the money also has to flow, and that’s been difficult. We’ll sort it out, and in many ways, we’ve been quite fortunate. FAST is a big example of how federal dollars are still flowing to us. 

The other thing I want to say is that priorities have shifted, but they’ve also shifted in directions that in some cases are quite good for OSU — for example, toward AI and robotics.

Our approach has been to take advantage of the things that we can. We’re finding opportunities and being agile and creative. I remain very bullish on our areas of success. 

Q: Have we seen the big cuts to climate science research that were feared? 

A: There’s certainly a pulling away of investments in climate science, and we see the fallout from that. But there are related areas that we can focus on. So for example, a lot of our geosciences folks are now talking about work in critical minerals. Can there be clean ways of harvesting critical minerals? Are there chemical processes that we could be doing better? All of these things are pathways for us. They’re related to the science that we do and related to the kind of expertise that we have — just applied in a somewhat different way and a somewhat different field. There’s always good, deep science to be done. 

Q: There has been a lot in the news about the financial pressures facing Oregon public universities, and alumni are undoubtedly wondering how OSU is faring. How would you describe our position?

There are big demographic challenges facing all universities — the number of college-age students is falling — and, of course, the federal landscape continues to evolve in terms of research dollars. But what is unique to Oregon is that while these things are broadly true across the United States, our state funding is chronically low, and labor costs here are particularly high. 

Balancing those costs with revenue from tuition has been a challenge in our state. We also face this, but unlike some Oregon universities, we’re not in crisis. We continue to see encouraging enrollment numbers, but we need to compete aggressively for continued growth. 

We are in a unique position because we happen to be invested in areas that continue to draw very heavy interest — engineering, STEM and so on. Our College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences is extremely well known. We are a premier school for agriculture and forestry. We have one of the largest engineering schools in the country. We have a big, highly ranked online program. We’re invested in areas that still draw enormous interest. I feel like our enrollment success is probably tied to that unique position. 

Public trust in American higher education is also at historically low levels. Do you think that’s affecting enrollment, too?  I suspect that demographics is really the biggest part of it, but let me say something that I was struck by. You’ve probably heard of the Yale University report about public trust in higher education that came out this spring. It was a big report that took a year to write and had more than 300 sources. Much was made of it by the media. And yet, at the end of the day, what it calls for is for higher ed to commit to values that have been part of our land-grant mission for a century, if not more.

I mean, we’ve been doing this forever, and for Yale to have woken up and suddenly discovered that this is the secret! It just kind of had me laughing for a while. 

We’ve always been about impact in our communities for all Oregonians, regardless of geography. We’ve always known that discoveries matter. We’ve always known that we’ve got to be an engine for prosperity. So I don’t know why the folks at Yale suddenly realized that this is the magic formula, but I will tell you that our public land-grants are a treasure. We’ve always known what our role is. 

Q: We’ve talked about challenges, but Oregon State’s alumni and friends have also stepped up recently in pretty extraordinary ways. What does that say to you about this community and the university’s future? 

A: First of all, there’s simply moral support, right? Our alumni and friends have been with us through extraordinarily turbulent times these past couple of years and I want to say how grateful I am for that support. Another part of it is, of course, philanthropic support. This year on Dam Proud Day, we raised about $4.1 million across 12,000-plus gifts. That is a very broad range of support and tells you how deeply committed our community is to this university. Thank you for that!

This year we surpassed $400 million toward a $500 million fundraising goal for student success in our Believe It! campaign. It tells you so much about our community’s commitment to our students. I mean, that’s a heck of a number, and I’m so proud of it. 

There’s also the Valley Foundation’s challenge gift for athletics. This is $24 million, and we unlock it by raising another $24 million — $8 million every year for the next three years. I can’t begin to tell you how important that is in these days of college athletics reconfiguring itself. This funds revenue sharing for our student-athletes. It will allow us to build a competitive program in this new universe. With the transition to the new Pac-12 on July 1, it really puts us in an absolutely fantastic place. So thanks again to our alums for making that happen.  [Editor’s note: Two more athletics gifts were announced after this interview. See Backing the Beavs for more info.]

Q: Is there anything else you want to share? 

A: We enter the new school year with enormous momentum. Lots of good things are happening. There’s no question that there are challenges ahead of us, but we are entering it with so much promise. So when you hear things about loss of confidence in higher ed and all of the challenges, know that we’ve got a very strong base from which we’re entering these turbulent waters. We’ve got great students and great professors. We’ve got great folks in athletics and we’ve got great administrators. We will see ourselves through. We are going to do just fine.

During a family trip to Corvallis in 2018, my wife, Hanna Valva, ’97, introduced our son and me to our first game in Gill Coliseum. It was a Friday night, Top 20 women’s basketball matchup between No. 18 Oregon State and No. 7 Oregon. The experience was unforgettable. 

Led by Kat Tudor, the Beavs hit seven first-quarter three-pointers, igniting mayhem among the Gill faithful. That Ducks team featured All-American Sabrina Ionescu, so they wouldn’t back down. Ionescu scored 35, while Tudor countered with 34. The game went into overtime, with OSU prevailing 85-79. Fans lingered after the buzzer, cheering as if they could make the moment last.

As we left campus that evening, we talked about how the players and coaches seemed to know the fans — grade school girls and grandmas alike. This was not just fans celebrating a win; it felt like family. I was hooked. Months later, when an alumni relations role at Oregon State opened up, no one needed to sell me on the bond here. I had just experienced it.

In the years since, much has changed in college athletics. While pundits lament the chaotic state of college football, I think we all recognize the disproportionate impact these changes have had on student-athletes in other sports. And I’ve wondered whether there’d be more magical moments like that night at Gill.

In 2023, OSU launched FEARLESS to do something about it. This campaign raises funds for OSU women’s sports, and through its events and activities, Hanna and I have been introduced to coaches, administrators and student-athletes. 

Each one we’ve met chose OSU because of its special mix of positive culture and competitiveness. And at the very moment that many of us worry whether the soul of college athletics is forever lost, they can help us rediscover the inspiration, excitement and satisfaction of sports fandom.   

In the past year alone, OSU women have competed at the highest level across nearly every corner of athletics. To share a few examples: Gymnastics made its 51st consecutive NCAA postseason appearance, the longest active streak in women’s college gymnastics. Women’s rowing won its second consecutive conference championship. Women’s golf earned a berth in the NCAA Championship.  Women’s basketball reached its 12th recent postseason appearance, track and softball student-athletes broke all-time school records, and volleyball is recruiting at its best rate in years. 

Off the field, 90% of female student-athletes earned a 3.0 GPA or higher. They completed 62% of OSU Athletics’ total volunteer hours and led all of OSU’s Athletics’ student clubs. This leadership was on full display in June when Olympic gold medalist Jade Carey served as OSU’s commencement speaker. 

In a time of change, the remarkable women of OSU Athletics give us so much to celebrate. For me, this is a reminder that fandom is not just about wins and rankings; it’s about showing up for young people who are giving their best, representing Oregon State with pride and inspiring the rest of us to do the same. That’s something to cheer for.

Kevin Griffin didn’t waste any time setting high standards. A few days into his new job as Oregon State’s vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics, he told media, “[Oregon State’s] rightful place is atop the Pac-12 mountain. Let me repeat that: Our rightful place is atop the Pac-12 mountain, and our teams are going to compete for conference and national championships.”

Photo courtesy of OSU Athletics

Griffin comes from Ohio State, where he was associate vice president of brand engagement, services and partnerships. The nephew of two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin, he also has marketing experience with several professional sports franchises, including the Major League Soccer team D.C. United. (See details about his background.)

In May, Silver Waves Media named him one of its Top 100 Rising Athletics Directors, billed as a list of emerging talent poised to lead top-tier collegiate and professional programs.

For one night only, Spring Family Weekend came with a soundtrack. On May 1, more than 600 students took the stage for All University Sing in front of an audience of roughly 3,500, bringing exuberant choreography and shout-your-heart-out energy to Gill Coliseum. This year’s theme, “Welcome to the Show,” featured movie-inspired routines from 12 fraternity and sorority teams. In the end, Kappa Alpha Theta and Acacia took first place with their performance of “Top Gun.” Co-director Alyssa Pike summed it up: “All University Sing means so much to me because it brings people together and creates memories that last long after the event is over.” This student-organized tradition has been part of OSU life since 1936. Have your own favorite All University Sing story? Share tales — and photos!  — with us.

Photos by Maddy Iwaszuk

Oregon State University engineering students have done it again. Global Formula Racing won the Formula SAE Michigan Electric competition for the second consecutive year, once again proving that its electric race cars are built for speed.

The team, a collaboration between Oregon State and German university DHBW-Ravensburg, also captured first place in the inaugural autonomous car event, becoming the first champions in Formula SAE’s new category for driverless vehicles.

The June wins at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, capped months of work by students who designed, built and tested the cars. Team members contributed expertise in mechanical and electrical engineering, as well as autonomous systems.

Founded in 2009, the team gives students hands-on experience developing advanced electric race cars while collaborating across continents and disciplines. Guided by faculty advisor Joseph Piacenza, the team applies classroom learning to the demands of a real-world engineering challenge. The event added another chapter to its legacy as one of the nation’s most successful student engineering competition teams.

Beaver Brags

of OSU students graduate debt-free, versus 45% of public university grads nationwide, according to the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities.

has been given so far toward scholarships and other student success programs in OSU’s Believe It! campaign.

students have graduated from OSU-Cascades since its founding in 2001. This year’s class of 377 students was the largest in campus history.

largest engineering school by undergraduate enrollment, OSU’s College of Engineering ranks among the nation’s biggest according to the ASEE.

Briefs

Cosmic Bend Beavs’ New Place to Recharge

The Oregon State Legislature approved $42 million to remediate 24 acres of former landfill and build a new student health and recreation center at Oregon State University –  Cascades in Bend. The roughly 40,000-square-foot facility will be the first comprehensive campus center dedicated to student health, wellness and recreation. Remediation is expected to begin in 2027. Learn more.

Text Support

Oregon State launched Beaverly, an AI-powered text-messaging tool designed to connect students to information and support. Beaverly sends check-in texts to undergraduate students at key points in the term, offering resources when they’re likely to need them most. Students can also text Beaverly with questions. Drawing on a knowledge base curated by OSU staff, Beaverly can answer questions on a range of topics or refer students to humans for help. The tool is part of an effort to boost graduation rates by helping students avoid falling behind. Learn more.

RIP Robots

June 11 was the last day to see flocks of little white six-wheeled robots trundling across the Corvallis campus on their way to deliver smoothies and sandwiches to hungry students. Starship Technologies has pulled its autonomous fleets out of U.S. college campuses to focus on delivery in urban markets and Europe. After debuting in 2019, the robots quickly became quirky campus fixtures, beloved by many for their cuteness and occasional misadventures, including a 2022 incident when one was famously hit by a train. Watch that video (again).

On A Winning Streak

Five National Awards

The Oregon Stater picked up five national awards this summer, including its first for overall excellence. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) named the Stater among the country’s best, awarding it a bronze award for alumni magazines published three or more times a year.

The magazine also won two writing awards: a silver for “OSU Below,” by Katherine Cusumano, MFA ’24, and a bronze for “6 Things You Might Not Know About OSU and AI,” by Keith Hautala, Cathleen Hockman-Wert, Scholle McFarland and Rachel Robertson.

The Fall 2025 “Super Fans!” cover brought home silver awards from both CASE and the Society of Publication Designers (SPD). Becky Plante of Pentagram Austin created the design from photographs taken by Karl Maasdam, ’93, of more than 100 vintage Beaver buttons, pins and patches.

The SPD recognition put the Stater in good company, alongside winners from The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine and Rolling Stone. Go Beavs! — Stater Staff

The ground has shifted under college athletics, creating new financial pressures. But Oregon State University supporters aren’t just sitting back. Alumni and friends have stepped up to help the university navigate student-athlete revenue sharing, critical facility enhancements and the need to improve the game day experience. This support comes at a pivotal moment, as OSU prepares to compete in the new Pac-12, which launched July 1.

“I am proud of the way we have come together to overcome these obstacles,” said OSU President Jayathi Murthy. “The present moment provides an opportunity for Beaver Nation to build on our legacy as fierce competitors who play to win.”

One of the biggest changes is a new set of NCAA revenue-sharing rules that allow Division I universities to pay student-athletes directly from athletic department funds. That creates a major new annual expense at a time when competitive programs already require significant investments in coaches, facilities and support services.

Enter the Wayne and Gladys Valley Foundation. The Valley Challenge for Student-Athletes will support student-athlete revenue sharing: If donors contribute $8 million per year to OSU Athletics, the Valley Foundation will unlock an additional $8 million each year for up to three years. If fully matched, the challenge will generate $48 million to recruit and retain student-athletes. 

Access to top-notch facilities also makes a difference when student-athletes are trying to decide which program to choose. Ten donor families, led by an anonymous donor, recently committed a total of $25 million to build the university a new Field Sports Building. The facility will provide space for training, treatment, film study and more for 150 student-athletes in softball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s cross country and women’s track and field. 

Of course, facilities matter to fans, too. In June, OSU also announced an anonymous gift to fund improvements to Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. The $15 million right-field overhaul will add bleacher seating, upgrade spaces for spectators and build a clubhouse for the Corvallis Knights, the summer collegiate baseball team that shares the facility. 

Together, the three initiatives could direct as much as $88 million toward some of OSU Athletics’ most immediate competitive needs.

Shawn L. Scoville, president and CEO of the Oregon State University Foundation, which led the fundraising efforts, said the support will help turn the challenges of a changing athletics landscape into opportunities. 

“The philanthropic momentum for OSU Athletics is real,” he said. “We couldn’t be more grateful for this group of donors leading the way, and to the thousands of other supporters and fans who show up for Beaver Nation in so many ways — with their own gifts or by wearing Beaver gear, purchasing tickets and tuning in on game day.”

The only drawback to building a cutting-edge 49,000-square-foot arts center on OSU’s Corvallis campus is that it cannot sprout legs and walk its world-class programming over to the rest of the state.

But thanks to two new partnerships in Portland and Bend, more Oregonians can now experience the magic of PRAx in their own backyard.

PRAx in Portland

This spring, the Patricia Valian Reser Center for the Creative Arts installed a 1,500-square-foot gallery in the Nancy Stueber Natural Sciences Hall at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in Portland.

The PRAx installation opened May 28 and includes five pieces of infrastructure hosting different artistic mediums. PRAx’s team will curate the space each year to include works that align with OMSI’s main gallery theme, “Climate of Change/Clima de Cambio.”

The inaugural exhibition’s works are all centered around the sub-theme of water, with the dance performance “Rising” from PRAx’s 2025-26 season projected onto the life-size video screens, a commissioned piece by musician Eli Stine playing in the gallery’s headphones, and paintings and sculpture lining the gallery’s walls.

The  gallery contains traditional as well as interactive areas devoted to visual arts, sculpture, performance art, literary art and music. 

“It is a big deal for OSU. OMSI gets more than 800,000 visitors a year,” said Peter Betjemann, the Patricia Valian Reser executive director at PRAx and associate vice provost of arts and humanities at OSU. “It was a new kind of challenge to curate a space in which the primary audience is 6- to 16-year-olds. But we are delighted to be partnered with OMSI and to bring the unique PRAx vision of arts, humanities and science integration to Portland.”

The museum and OSU have a lot of shared values, said Akiko Minaga, OMSI’s vice president of learning experiences.

“At OMSI, we think a lot about how to make science more accessible and interdisciplinary,” she said. “For this exhibition in particular, we wanted to explore different ways of being able to talk about and explore climate change, and this partnership with PRAx came at a great time.”

OMSI Creative Director Ciera Iveson has been enjoying watching students experience the PRAx exhibition as they find new ways to engage with the sometimes-abstract concepts of climate change.

“You often see kids imitating the dancers and doing their own dances. They’re literally embodying it,” Iveson said. “I’ve spent a lot of time observing and checking in with teachers from different age groups, and I think there’s something for everyone in this year’s PRAx gallery.”

PRAx in Bend

On the other side of the state, PRAx kicked off a new concert series designed to let the OSU-Cascades community share in the performances experienced by the Corvallis campus. The concerts are co-presented by OSU-Cascades and PRAx at the Tower Theatre in Bend.

A young visitor listens to Eli Stein’s “Where Water Meets Memory.”

In the 2025-26 season, the visiting artists were Ukrainian band Yagódy and percussionist and 2025-26 Patricia Valian Reser Artist-in-Residence Andy Akiho. Next year, there will be three performances, one for each term.

Barcelona-based sextet Maruja Limón brings its fusion of flamenco, Latin rumba and electronic experimentation to the Tower Theatre on Sept. 27. Dutch-Israeli jazz musician Nani Vazana appears with the OSU Chamber Choir on Jan. 23. And Third Coast Percussion collaborates with DJ and pioneering electronic composer Jlin on April 7. (See here for details and tickets.) 

It is a big deal for OSU. OMSI gets more than 800,000 visitors a year.

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The series is the culmination of conversations with Central Oregon community members who want OSU-Cascades to be a campus that strengthens arts and humanities in the region, said Christine Pollard, interim chancellor and dean of OSU-Cascades.

In addition to bringing renowned artists to town, the partnership also helps arts students at OSU-Cascades learn about different career pathways and meet professionals working in a wide range of artistic jobs, Betjemann said. That includes students in the arts, media and technology program, which is offered exclusively at the Bend campus.

“OSU-Cascades should be a destination for the arts, particularly the arts in relationship with media and technology,” Betjemann said. “As a university with deep strengths in engineering and technology, we have a special responsibility to diversify the range of contacts that students have with artists working in all forms of expression.”

1940s

Eleanor Ilene Hayes ’44, Portland, OR, Kappa Alpha Theta • Helen Colleen Bliss ’49, Mount Vernon, WA, Sigma Kappa • Mary Ann Arrowsmith Sharp ’49, Kappa Alpha Theta

1950s

Earl D. Barton ’50, Portland, OR, Pi Kappa Phi • Donald Q. Hall ’50, Phi Kappa Psi • Richard Allan Howell ’50, Sherwood, OR, Phi Sigma Kappa • Jerome L. Lewis ’50, Vancouver, WA • William O. Sheppard Jr. ’50, Hood River, OR, Delta Upsilon • Barbara Covey, ’51, Beaverton, OR, Chi Omega • Royal Willey DeLany ’51, Sigma Phi Epsilon • Welles Adkisson Henderson ’51, Davis, CA, Alpha Xi Delta • James Chung Lum ’51 • Marjory Gay Wade ’51, Portland, OR, Kappa Alpha Theta • Mary Wait Keinath ’52, Aberdeen, WA, Delta Delta Delta • Robert W. Reeves ’52, El Paso, TX, Pi Kappa Phi • Donald Wallace Chapman ’53 ’57 ’61 • Paul R. Enberg ’53, Vancouver, WA • Vernon L. Hulit ’53 ’56 ’57, Canby, OR, Alpha Gamma Rho • Barbara Ruth Stabler ’53 ’63, Lake Oswego, OR, Pi Beta Phi • William S. Dunbar ’54, Helena, MT • Loren D. Gardner ’54, La Jolla, CA, Delta Sigma Phi • Joann Freeman Gribble ’54, Paris TX, Sigma Kappa • John J. Heniges ’54, Vancouver, WA, Pi Kappa Phi • Earl Ronald Liggett ’54, Kent, WA, Phi Gamma Delta • Jane Mausshardt ’54, Portland, OR, Kappa Alpha Theta • William S. Smith ’54, Colfax, CA, Delta Tau Delta • Edward J. Chaffee ’55, Lakewood, OR • Mitchell P. Daletas ’55, Springfield, OR, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Richard L. Johnson ’55, Kent, WA • William C. Johnson ’55, Corvallis, OR, Theta Chi • Kayrene Butler Pearson ’55, Longmont, CO, Delta Zeta • James Alfred Williams ’55, Albany, OR, Beta Theta Pi • Richard A. Young ’55, Strafford, NH • Robert Owen Butcher ’56, Carnelian Bay, CA • Charlotte Nygren Chalker ’56, Tacoma, WA, Kappa Kappa Gamma • Alan N. deLaubenfels ’56, Sigma Phi Epsilon • Deloris Sell Dennis ’56 • Joanne Lehman Klunder Hardy ’56, Brunswick, ME, Sigma Kappa • Fern Keith ’56, East Wenatchee, WA • Irita Donahue Nicholas ’56, Fort Worth, TX, Gamma Phi Beta • Paul N. Nordling ’56, Woodburn, OR, Sigma Nu • Sue Marie Weber ’56, Santa Rosa, CA, Chi Omega • Suzanne Lillian Anderson ’57, Kappa Kappa Gamma • Richard E. Atterbury ’57 • Joyce Rae Gustafson ’57, Portland, OR, Kappa Kappa Gamma • Melvin T. Nygaard ’57, Roseburg, OR, Pi Kappa Alpha • James C. Waggoner Sr. ’57, Sartell, MN, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Ann Kirkpatrick Beaumont ’58, Boise, ID, Kappa Kappa Gamma • Margery Guthrie ’58, Bend, OR, Kappa Alpha Theta • Guinn R. James ’58, Springfield, OR, Delta Tau Delta, Kappa Delta Rho • Craig MacCloskey ’58, Bend, OR, Beta Theta Pi • David Albert McClure ’58 ’59, Mission Viejo, CA • Joyce Jensen Read ’58, Canby, OR • Robert L. Smith ’58, Port Angeles, WA, Delta Tau Delta • Junius I. Tanner ’58, Snowflake, AZ, Sigma Chi • Beverly Jeanne Asbahr ’59, Gresham, OR • Burk H. Biersdorf ’59, Emmett ID • Marjory Coker ’59 ’69, Vermillion, SD • George J. Fischer ’59, Phi Kappa Theta • Richard Chester Fults ’59 ’70, Arlington, VA • Robert L. Guinn ’59, Bloomington, MN, Sigma Phi Epsilon • Harris H. Hansen ’59, Delta Tau Delta • Ronald K. Swingen ’59, Hillsboro, OR, Phi Gamma Delta • Gene R. Wall ’59, Pahrump, NV, Theta Chi

1960s

Darrell L. Fort ’60 • Carol Hopeman Jordan ’60, Albany, OR • Ronald Lewis Pittman ’60, McMinnville, OR • William C. Routh ’60, Dayton, NV, Pi Kappa Phi • Burt L. Sarver Jr. ’60, Lacey, WA • Hisao Shigeishi ’60, Sacramento, CA • Janet A. Stout ’60, Bellevue, WA • Charlotte Ralls Thompson ’60 ’61, Corvallis, OR, Kappa Alpha Theta • Robert R. Bushman ’61, Sublimity, OR, Pi Kappa Alpha • Ronald William Critchfield ’61, Salinas, CA • Kenneth O. Gamon ’61 ’69, Ellensburg, WA • Arnold B. Harmsen ’61, Sundance, WY • John F. Luebben ’61, San Jose, CA, Theta Chi • Robert M. McBurney ’61, Charleston, SC • Lawrence H. Merk ’61, Tuscon, AZ • Thomas Ralph Stumbaugh ’61, Santa Cruz, CA • Jody Ward ’61, Bend, OR, Delta Delta Delta • James Richard Wilson ’61, Napa, CA • Alpha Tau Omega • Charles LeRoy Bayman ’62, Athena, OR • Gordon A. Brynildsen ’62 • Beta Theta Pi • Ailene Deanna Dean ’62 ’73, Chico, CA, Sigma Kappa • James M. Galyen ’62 • Phi Delta Theta • James M. Heater ’62, Salem, OR • W. Richard Neilson ’62, Tucson, AZ, Alpha Gamma Rho • Denys Dale Overholser ’62, Arkdale, WI • David George Rongerude ’62, West Des Moines, IA, Kappa Delta Rho • Patricia Storms-Cattell ’62, Carmichael, CA, Sigma Kappa • Robert Keith Andrews ’63, Kappa Delta Rho • Michael Joseph Dardis ’63, Portland, OR, Delta Tau Delta • Lewis Mike Miller ’63 • Richard C. Ray ’63, Randolph, NJ • Arthur Douglas Ritchie ’63, Bend, OR, Sigma Phi Epsilon • Peter J. Roake ’63, Fort Walton Beach, FL, Beta Theta Pi • Robert Leroy Thrush ’63, Bandon, OR • Anne Bialous ’64, Duvall, WA, Kappa Kappa Gamma • Roger Gladwin Bland ’64 • Michael Evan Bye ’64, Happy Valley, OR • Larry D. Evans ’64, Anchorage, AK, Alpha Gamma Rho • Daniel Morgan Ford ’64 • Ken Lance Harrison ’64 ’66, Walla Walla, WA, Delta Tau Delta • Douglas J. Klein ’64 • Edward Lee Lehman ’64 • Terry D. McKee ’64, Tigard, OR, Theta Xi • Donald Lee Proctor ’64 • Barbara Jean Taitz ’64, Wilsonville, OR, Delta Delta Delta • Robert Earl Akers ’65, Palm Springs, CA • Barry Claude Dearborn ’65, Wasilla, AK • Earl Eugene Ferguson ’65, Chandler, AZ • Dale A. Handy ’65, White Bear Lake, MN • William Richard Humphreys ’65, Baker City, OR • Mark Jack Hyman ’65, Portland, OR • Victor B. Kim Jr. ’65, Kailua, HI • John Bartley Miaullis ’65 ’68, Los Altos, CA • Ronald Allen Schoenheit ’65, Lake Oswego, OR, Sigma Pi • Johnny E. Shaw ’65, Condon, OR • Edith Louise Thompson ’65, Pendleton, OR • Howard C. Britton ’66, Baker City, OR, Acacia • Susan Moehnke Gookin ’66 • John Thomas Hardy ’66, Portland, OR • Ronald Eugene Nitsos ’66 ’70, Medford, OR • Donald Homer Cooley ’67 ’69, Nibley, UT • Philip R. Ekelund ’67, La Pine, OR, Alpha Sigma Phi • Randall W. Harrison ’67, Albany, OR • Nancy Lee Hudson ’67, Salem, OR • Mohammad Jamshidi ’67, Los Angeles, CA • John L. Krumbein ’67, Vancouver WA • David George Laird ’67, Eugene, OR • Frank J. Ribik Jr. ’67, Delta Chi • Roger Dean Clyne ’68 ’84, Tualatin, OR • Susan Goodman ’68, Seattle, WA, Pi Beta Phi • Ishwar Prasad Murarka ’68 ’71 • Akos Dominic St. Clair ’68, Florence, OR • Robert James Worral ’68, Portland, OR, Sigma Pi • William Stephen Bodner Jr. ’69, Fayetteville, NC • Larry D. Conn ’69, Lakeview, OR • Gloria Ayoutt Hensen ’69, Anchorage, AK • Daniel T. Miller ’69 • Albert I. Nassar ’69 • Calvin H. Taylor ’69, Creswell, OR • Winfield Truax ’69

Mary E. Kentula, M.S. ’73, Ph.D. ’83

Mary E. Kentula died Feb. 5 in Albany, Oregon. She was 76. A nationally recognized wetland scientist known among colleagues as the “Queen of the Swamp,” Kentula spent more than three decades with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Corvallis. Her research showed that creating wetlands did not necessarily replace the ecological functions of those that were lost, helping reshape restoration practices and inform implementation of the Clean Water Act. She later led the first National Wetland Condition Assessment, a nationwide survey that continues to guide environmental decision-making. As courtesy faculty at Oregon State, she mentored more than two dozen students and helped train a new generation of wetland scientists. She was awarded the Society of Wetland Scientists Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019, reflecting a career devoted not only to advancing knowledge, but also to helping others find their place in the field. She was predeceased by her husband, Professor Emeritus Donald J. Armstrong, and is survived by her sister-in-law, Colleen Kentula; her cousin, Rick “Rico” Racosky; and her chosen family, Amanda Nahlik and Eric Emerson. Photo courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

1970s

John L. Beal ’70, Lacey, WA • Frederick John Billmaier ’70 • Jeanne Marie Brown ’70, Independence, OR • Forrest W. Cameron ’70, Turner, OR • James Harris Curtis ’70, Portland, OR, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Ronald E. Davenport ’70, Russellville, AR • Dennis Michael Dunning ’70 ’72, Salem, OR • Marcia Christman Gauthier ’70, Tualatin, OR • Nancy Riches Gillitzer ’70, Clovis, CA • Gamma Phi Beta • Steven J. Henderson ’70, Spokane, WA • James Malcolm Jackson ’70, Salem, OR • David A. Kovacs ’70, Columbia, MO • Stanley Lee Smith ’70, Denver, CO • Henna E. Tatham ’70, Austin, TX • Franklin Scott Barber ’71 • Elizabeth Ann Biller ’71, Beaverton, OR • Frances Bush ’71, Corvallis, OR • Keith Roland Swensen ’71, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Pam Vadman Ulrich ’71, Atlanta, GA, Alpha Delta Pi • Lonnie Gene Barron ’72, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Jon Brazier ’72, Medford, OR • Thomas C. Chadwick ’72, Nipomo, CA • Bonnie Badley Gregg ’72 • Mark Matson Hyder ’72, Alpha Sigma Phi • Richard Steven Ledgerwood ’72 • Raynard Edward McCormick Jr. ’72, Brownsville, OR • Susan Netzorg ’72, Monterey, CA, • Doris V. Wells ’72 ’73 • Rudolf Karpstein ’73 • Mary E. Kentula ’73 ’83, Albany, OR • Margaret K. Palen ’73 ’74, Clatskanie, OR • James Wesley Reed Jr. ’73, Mosier, OR • Kenneth J. Snoddy Jr. ’73, Coos Bay, OR • Victoria Louise Young ’73 ’78, Redmond, OR • Herbert Philip Barth ’74, Lyons, OR • Julianne Peterson ’74 • Cathy Richards ’74 ’75, Alpha Chi Omega • Stuart M. Taylor ’74 • Rex Norman Winder ’74, Portland, OR • Richard Scott Leback ’75, Astoria, OR, Beta Theta Pi • Gideon Zarraga Alegado ’76 ’98 • Anthony Ronald Carlson ’76, Morris, MN • Suzzette K. Kehoe ’76, Vancouver, WA • Mark Alan Stuckart ’76 • Gregory L. Trousdale ’76 • Gary Lee Kramer ’77, Orem, UT • James Harold Vogt ’77, Snohomish, WA • Roger Douglas Sampair ’78 • Cecilia D. Gray ’79, Phoenix, AZ

Gideon Alegado, M.S. ’76, Ed.D. ’98

Gideon Alegado died April 25 in Vancouver, Washington. He was 83. For generations of students, faculty and staff, Alegado was one of the Memorial Union’s most familiar and welcoming faces. As the night manager and later building manager, he helped guests, encouraged students and often played the piano, creating a sense of warmth, hospitality and belonging. He was also the longtime advisor to the Filipino American Student Association, later known as Isang Bansang Pilipino. Born and raised in the Philippines, Alegado moved to Corvallis with his late wife, Rachel Tobias Alegado, M.S. ’76, to pursue graduate studies. (The couple is pictured here together.) In 1983, while studying for his doctorate in education, he joined the MU staff, where he worked for 25 years, until 2008. After retiring, he spent six months each year in the Philippines as president of the Christian college his adoptive parents founded and where his own love of education began. He is survived by his son, Gideon-Mer Alegado, ’99; his daughter, Garnet Hayes; two grandchildren; and extended family in the United States and abroad. Photo courtesy of the Alegado Family

1980s

James Bernard Beauchemin ’80, Bend, OR • Jon Edward Blair ’80 • Phillip Raymond McClain ’80, Portland, OR • Mailefihi Emili Wilson ’80 • James George Metz ’81, Longmont, CO • Linda Modrell ’81 ’89, Albany, OR • Pamela Annette Dupee ’82, Denver, CO • Vincent Thomas Fritz ’82, Destin, FL • James Alfred Maxey ’82, Tucson, AZ • Ann Marie Kendall ’83 ’98 • Jill Meisenhelder ’83, Vista, CA • Mark William Tobiassen ’83 • Milton Ayer Brown III ’84, Palm Springs, CA • Kenneth Ray Helms ’84, Westford, VT • Scott Charles Martin ’84, Whitefish, MT, Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Craig Michael Maxey ’84, McMinnville, OR • John James Baker ’85, Turner, OR • Victoria Mae Webster ’86, Gresham, OR, Gamma Phi Beta • John Oscar Jacobson ’87 ’90, Rock Creek, OR • Connie Jo Sanders ’87, Anchorage, AK • Hyungmo Yoo ’87 ’91, Cupertino, CA • Andrew Bakun ’88, Honolulu, HI • Donna Jean Rae ’88, Salem, OR • Janice Kay Sork ’88, Roseburg, OR • Jose R. Ortiz, ’89

1990s

Andrew Slaughter Noonan ’90, Corvallis, OR, Kappa Sigma • Todd Richard Owen ’91 • Susan Elizabeth Adams ’92, Beloit, WI • Mary Jolene Ramaker ’92, Olympia, WA, • Nancy Florence Orcutt ’93, Corvallis, OR • Bradford James Sinko ’93 • Patricia Ann Cordova ’95, Monticello, IL, • Lorraine Anna Sheppard ’97 • Edward Cressey Merrill IV ’98, Corvallis, OR

Robert J. Schultz

Robert “Bob” Schultz (at left, shown here with President Emeritus Ed Ray), a legendary educator and steward of Oregon’s public lands, died on April 2. He was 92. During his 56 years teaching at Oregon State, nearly every student in civil and construction engineering passed through his classroom. He emphasized fundamentals like “draw a sketch” and “check your work”  — lessons his students carried throughout their careers. One of his most enduring public contributions came in 1967 with the passage of the Oregon Beach Bill. He played a critical role in developing the methodology that defined the boundary between public and private lands along the coast. This work helped secure permanent public access to Oregon’s beaches. Outside of OSU, he helped practicing surveyors prepare for and pass licensure exams. His workshops reached generations of land surveyors, including most of those registered in the state. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Constance Schultz; son John Schultz, ’95; and daughters Anne Marie Schultz, Georgeanne Windisch and Mary-Jo Schultz, ’01. Donations can be made in his memory to the Robert J. Schultz Geomatics Endowment Fund. Photo courtesy of Oregon State University

2000-2010s

Ryan Daniel Johnston ’00, Fruitland, ID • Diana Charlotte Nelson ’05, Hendricks, MN • Cody Ryan Gibson ’10, West Hartford, CT • Maureen Louise Belle ’11 • Kimberly Lyon ’11, Meridian, ID • Austin Scott Yager ’12, Beaverton, OR • Richard A. Brown ’15 ’16 • Jonathon William Loetscher ’16 • Alexander Solomon Menashe ’16, Portland, OR

Faculty, Staff and Friends

Cathleen J. Adams, Albany OR • Marguerite Altree • Barbara L. Anderson, Coos Bay, OR • John Michael Babb • Chuck Barbo, Seattle, WA • J. Richard Bell • Peggy Lee Bender • John O. Bergstrom, Portland, OR • Geraldine A. Beyer • Elizabeth E. Pierce Biersdorf, Emmet, ID • Wilbur Bluhm • Charles Alfred Bonnett Jr., Bend, OR • Albert R. Bullier • Barbara A. Bush, Eugene, OR • Clarence R. Byers • Edward J. Cameron • Jay B. Carr, Boise, ID • Dale Case • Donna J. Clem, Albany, OR • Terry Conklin, Grand Rapids, MI • Frances J. Crandall • Kermit Cromack Jr., Corvallis, OR • Helen M. Ellis, Corvallis, OR • Ed Faxon • John Feller • Robert F. Fessler • Peter R. Fontana, Saint Augustine, FL • Jean Frazier Geist • Avel Gordly • William C. Harvey, Portland, OR • Phyllis Hubbard • Marilyn E. Lacy • Donald J. Lee, Moscow, ID • Florence Linenberger • Lorraine Baldwin Lund, Ogden, UT • Peter N. Lupi • Nancy C. Mattila, Carlton, OR • Connie J. Mausshardt • Lynn R. McFadden, Canby, OR • Linda L. McMillan, Salem, OR • Keith W. Muckleston • Ellen M. Murphy • Gary L. Musser • Jay R. Owens, Fort Collins, CO • Elizabeth Reece, Grants Pass, OR • Loretta J. Rielly, Corvallis, OR • Rose Elaine Robertson • Kathryn V. Ross, Dallas, OR • Ida Ruby • Donald J. Rydrych • Barbara J. Sawer • Bonnie Schmitt • Robert J. Schultz • Syble Mae Self, Albany, OR • James M. Shaw, McMinnville, OR • Kent David Soldwedel, Portland, OR • Florence A. Stronck • Gerald M. Timpe, Klein, TX • Linda K. Tucker, Bountiful, UT • Ilene Wagner, Oakland, CA• Gordon Wanner • Linda Wanner • Rachel D. Williams • Robert Albert Wilt, Corvallis, OR

1. When the Forest Breathes

by Suzanne Simard, M.A. ’89, Ph.D. ’96

Suzanne Simard’s international bestseller Finding the Mother Tree changed how readers think about the interconnectedness of trees. With her trademark blend of autobiography and science, the forest ecologist’s newest book explores how ecosystems adapt, recover and endure, and what the natural world can teach us about resilience and community. Learn more.

2. Joy Ride: A Bike Odyssey from Alaska to Argentina

by Kristen Jokinen, ’09

Kristen and Ville Jokinen met and fell in love while scuba diving in Vietnam. After Ville left his native Finland to join Kristen in Oregon, the two set off on a two-year cycling adventure. With an introduction by Cheryl Strayed, Joy Ride follows their journey through hijinks, heartbreak and the life-changing power of the open road. Learn more.

3. The Book of James

by Eric Wayne Dickey, ’98, MFA ’09

This collection of poems tells the story of a brother who died young, weaving together a narrative that speaks to the oftentimes fraught nature of sibling relationships. Dicky is a John Anson Kittredge Fund for Individual Artists grant recipient and a Vermont Studio Center Fellow. Learn more.

4. The Rolodex Happenings

by Dennis James Sweeney, MFA ’15

While sorting through his late father’s belongings, Guy Sutter Jr. discovers an old Rolodex full of surprises. Winner of the Stillhouse Press Novella Prize, Sweeney’s novella explores how little we can ever really know about the people closest to us. Learn more.

1960s

Mark E. Odegard, M.S. ’65, has been selected to serve as an expert reviewer for the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Special Report on Climate Change and Cities.

1970s

Celia Austin, ’76, co-founder and co-owner of Rain Dance Vineyards and Rain Dance Ranch; Ruth Beyer, ’77, senior vice president and general counsel for Precision Castparts; and Tad Davies, MBA ’78, retired certified public accountant and co-founder of The Davies Group, were recognized by the OSU Foundation as Lifetime Trustees, the OSU Foundation’s highest recognition for volunteer leaders. Lifetime Trustees distinguish themselves by their expertise, dedication and generosity over their years of volunteer service. Watch the video tributes.

Philip Fischer, ’70, founder of eBooleant Consulting LLC, co-wrote the book You Are AI’s Best Friend, a guide for living and thriving alongside rapidly developing artificial intelligence. Learn more.

Dr. Dennis Godby, ’79, a Sacramento-based naturopathic doctor, started the final leg of his trek across the U.S. to raise awareness for health equity on Aug. 24. He invites naturopathic doctors and others to join him anywhere along the route from Bozeman, Montana, to Seattle, Washington, or when he arrives in Seattle on Sept. 24 at Pier 62.

Richard A. Marston, M.S. ’76, Ph.D. ’80, university distinguished professor emeritus at Kansas State University, is a co-lead author on a new university textbook, Essentials of Geomorphology, published by Cambridge University Press. Marston was also named an honorary fellow in 2026 by the International Association of Geomorphologists, only the fourth American named since the IAG was founded in 1989.

Lowell H. Suring, M.S. ’74, principal wildlife ecologist for Northern Ecologic LLC, co-edited the book Movement Behavior of Wildlife — Effect of Resource Distribution and Landscape Structure in North America. Learn more.

1980s

Kevin Clark, ’89, NSF I-Corp OSU Advantage Accelerator mentor, joined heads of state, U.N. agency officials and other participants at the 2025 U.N. Summit on Sustainable Development. He was recognized by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers for his outstanding contributions to standardizing identification of artificial intelligence and human agents. In 2026, he was inducted into the American Academy of Neurology and elected NIST/ANSI U.S. National Committee Liaison to Joint Technical Committees on Quantum Technologies and Information Technology.

Jensen Huang, ’84, ’09 (Hon. Ph.D.), CEO of NVIDIA, has been awarded the 2026 IEEE Medal of Honor, the highest distinction presented by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for humanity.

Daniel M. Rhea, ’81, retired from the CIA on March 31 after 43 years of service. This included tours at the National Security Council, the National Intelligence Council, supporting Desert Shield/Storm in the Persian Gulf, supporting U.S. State Department policy in the Western Balkans before and after the 1991-1995 conflict and providing analysis for the Counter Terrorism Mission Center. Rhea was born and raised in Baker City, Oregon.

Nancy Streets, ’80, retired as advertising director for the Elko Daily Free Press after a 42-year newspaper advertising career in Oregon and Nevada. In recognition of her innovations in print and digital advertising as well as her two terms as president of the Nevada Press Association, she was also inducted into the 2025 Nevada Newspaper Hall of Fame.

Todd Thompson, ’89, has written and published a seven-book science fiction series under the name T.B. Thompson. All of them — including the first book, SouthHaven — are available on Amazon. Learn more about him.

Yuqi Zhao, M.S. ’85, Ph.D. ’91, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, was elected a 2025 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, an honor that recognizes contributions to scientific research and innovation.

Robert F. Melendy, ’92, M.S. ’94, ’98, Ph.D. ’08,

Robert F. Melendy, associate professor of electrical engineering at George Fox University, solved a 70-year mystery in neuroscience: Why the Nobel Prize-winning Hodgkin-Huxley equations, which describe how neurons fire, have their specific mathematical form. The research, published this March in the journal Membranes, proves these equations aren’t just empirical observations: they’re mathematically required by fundamental physics. “It’s a discovery that could reshape our understanding of everything from neurological disease treatment to artificial intelligence development,” Melendy said. Photo courtesy of George Fox University

1990s

Joyce Chang, MAIS ’93, Ph.D. ’96, a professor of human development and family science at the University of Central Missouri, was honored with the 2026 Byler Distinguished Faculty Award, the university’s highest recognition for its faculty members.

2000s

Lauren Dillard, ’09, was promoted to head of user experience and design at MassMutual, a mutual life insurance company based in Springfield, Massachusetts. Dillard is a proud alumnus of the New Media Communications program at Oregon State and former editor of The Daily Barometer.

Cindy Heilman, M.S. ’05, published her second book, Why You Can’t Dispense Food Like Medicine, a strategic guide for senior living and post-acute care leaders that argues dining is not just about nutrition but about human connection, dignity and community.

2010s

Kaitlyn Coburn, ’14, was promoted to partner at Kernutt Stokes, the fourth largest CPA firm in Oregon.

Steven Eriksen, ’10, is head winemaker for Northern California’s Wise Villa Winery. In 2019, while under his direction, Wise Villa Winery became the most awarded winery in North America for single-varietal wines as judged by the San Francisco Chronicle, bringing home 27 medals. Most recently, in the 2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, the winery won 18 medals: three double gold, six gold, four silvers and five bronze.

Ally McLain, ’14, employment law and labor relations attorney at Miller Nash LLP in Portland, has joined The Flip Museum Board of Directors.

Ian Redding, ’18, senior GIS and visual design specialist at Mark Thomas Engineering, won the 2025 ArcGIS StoryMaps Competition in the Infrastructure Category for the Pacheco Pass Wildlife Overcrossing Project.

Kent Emry, ’02

Kent Emry, ’02, pictured here with co-founder Leah Archer, launched Aphasia Relearned, a nonprofit expanding access to intensive aphasia rehabilitation. After a 2022 stroke triggered by a race car accident, Emry developed aphasia — a language disorder that affects speaking, reading and writing — along with partial paralysis and vision challenges. Recognizing how costly effective treatment can be, he turned his recovery into a mission to help others regain communication and independence. Aphasia is more common than muscular dystrophy or Parkinson’s disease yet is widely misunderstood. Learn more. Photo courtesy of Aphasia Relearned

2020s

Brandon Enghauser, ’25; his spouse Jay Enghauser, ’24; and their friend Amber Hamilton are the new owners of independent bookstore Grass Roots in downtown Corvallis. Grass Roots was originally opened in 1971 by founders Jack Wolcott, ’70, and Sandy Smith, who are now retired. 

Paris Myers, ’23, a doctoral student in MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, is the lead author on a paper introducing a new optical system called “MorphoChrome,” which allows for the design and programming of iridescence onto everyday objects, augmenting them with a structurally colored multi-color glimmer.

It’s April 2026, and the world is watching in fascination as a crew of four astronauts travels farther from Earth than any other humans have gone before. This is NASA’s Artemis II mission, the first crewed lunar flyby since Apollo 17 in 1972.

Sara Schmidt, M.S. ’24, is watching, too, eyes glued to screens for hours. But she is not in her living room, watching on her phone. Schmidt sits in front of a ring of huge monitors in the Science Evaluation Room of Mission Control at Houston’s Johnson Space Center.

Schmidt is part of a team that supports photographic data collection by NASA missions, with a current focus on lunar missions. Her team issues instructions for taking photos, and then processes, curates, distributes and archives the imagery for the science team. These images — about 11,000 publicly available ones from the Artemis mission alone — are critical for understanding everything from the moon’s geology and history to planning future missions to the moon and even Mars.

Houston is Schmidt’s hometown; she grew up visiting Space Center Houston, but she didn’t have space-related ambitions then. “I was definitely afraid of airplanes, so rocket ships were off the table. Being an astronaut was not something I considered,” she says.

Clockwise from top left:  One of Schmidt’s favorite mission photos; astronaut Reid Wiseman using the software developed by Schmidt’s team to report lunar observations; this image of NASA Mission Control watching the launch went viral after social media viewers noted the number of women in the room; “I got full body chills when I saw the photos,” Schmidt says about the first images returned from the lunar flyby, like this one of Earthset.

She knew she was good at math, though, and wondered what kind of career she should aim for. A first-generation college student, she took community college classes in search of the right fit.

Her breakthrough moment came when she landed a spot in NASA’s competitive Community College Aerospace Scholars Program, giving her the opportunity to spend four days at a workshop at Johnson. Suddenly her purpose became clear.

“The people I was with had the same interests as me, and I felt instantly comfortable there. So, I thought, if this is what NASA is like, I definitely want to work here,” she says.

She transferred to University of Houston for her last year of school, earning a degree in environmental sciences, and then landed a job back at Johnson on a team that ran operations for International Space Station missions. Each day, her team developed and transmitted instructions to the ISS crew for the day’s image collection to satisfy a variety of goals. “Researchers around the world would submit requests for particular kinds of images — during COVID there was one study on how COVID affected nighttime city lights, for example,” Schmidt says.

During the pandemic, Schmidt decided that if she could find a strong online-only program that allowed her to keep working, it would be the ideal time to further her education. The Oregon State online interdisciplinary graduate program in environmental sciences fit the bill perfectly. Without the Ecampus option for this degree, “I wouldn’t have been able to do it,” Schmidt says. Her graduate project examined ways to use green infrastructure to address catastrophic flooding in Houston.

“My master’s program took coordination, organization and dedication that I hadn’t experienced before,” she says. “A few months after completing the master’s project, I was tasked with writing mission documents for imagery, which were only slightly shorter than the master’s project paper. Without the master’s, that work documentation would have been so scary. It certainly helped me tackle other massive projects with more confidence than if it was a pre-master’s project.”

As the Artemis project ramped up at NASA, Schmidt’s group pivoted to providing operational support for the lunar science team, similar to what they had been doing for the ISS. They knew, in theory, what images they wanted the astronaut team to capture, but issues like slight timing changes and lunar illumination meant they had to revisit those plans on the fly after launch and send new sets of instructions. Schmidt recalls the feeling of triumph when that revised photography plan was successfully transmitted to the spacecraft.

Her team had developed the software that provided visualizations and instructions for image capture with the mission’s two cameras, as well as a system that makes it possible to annotate directly on the photos in real time. This aspect of data collection was critical, as it allowed the astronauts to circle items of interest on the photos and jot down observations that they might have otherwise forgotten.

For Schmidt, one of the biggest moments of the mission came in the middle of the night as astronauts transmitted the first few photos from the lunar flyby. “I got full body chills when I saw the photos — they were better than anything I could have ever imagined,” she says. “The first one was one of the eclipse shots, this dark orb of the moon with light behind it, and I thought, ‘This is the coolest thing I have ever seen in my life. This is what it was all for.’”

Post-splashdown, her team is now responsible for processing all of the photos and archiving them for the science team so they can be used for decades to come. Many photos and their accompanying commentary by the astronauts — annotations, simultaneous audio recordings — describe places never before seen by human eyes.

Schmidt notes that scientists still conduct research using images taken more than 50 years ago during the Apollo missions. The Artemis images will contribute to those projects, as well as to new initiatives not yet imagined.

Her work is helping bring the next era of space exploration into focus — for the astronauts who will walk on the moon, for those who’ve set their sights on Mars and for everyone watching back on Earth.

The May 1 email might have seemed routine to most: “Your NSF Regional Innovation Engine proposal 2532464 is currently under review by the program office.”

But for Rob Stone, it was anything but routine.

He knew, after having worked at the National Science Foundation for four years, that the message meant there was a “99% chance” the proposal would be funded. 

Two months later, it was official. 

Oregon State University and nearly 100 partners had secured what could be one of the largest awards in university history: up to $160 million over 10 years from the National Science Foundation to accelerate semiconductor innovation and manufacturing in Oregon. The goal: help Oregon turn its semiconductor strengths into more discoveries, more startups and more good jobs.

“It shows the power of our expertise and the expertise of all our partners in driving the state forward.”

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“This demonstrates OSU’s role as a leader and convener,” said Stone, the project’s interim CEO and principal investigator, as well as a professor of mechanical engineering. “It shows the power of our expertise and the expertise of all our partners in driving the state forward in a key sector like semiconductors.”

The initiative, known as Frontiers of Advanced Semiconductor Technology, or FAST, brings together semiconductor companies including Intel, HP and NVIDIA; community colleges and universities; government agencies and economic development agencies; venture capital funds; and a range of nonprofits to strengthen the semiconductor ecosystem statewide. 

Photos courtesy of Intel and OSU

It builds on the state’s semiconductor industry — often called “Silicon Forest” — which has been a major source of economic growth, exports and innovation. OSU’s history of helping to drive that ecosystem made it the project’s natural leader. More than 40 OSU faculty have expertise in semiconductors, leading research and collaborating with companies to advance chip design, performance and manufacturing. The university offers semiconductor workforce development programs, including online degrees and certificates. And for decades, OSU graduates have staffed semiconductor companies in Oregon and beyond.

“Oregon’s semiconductor leadership was built through decades of innovation and collaboration,” said Gaby Cruz Thompson, research manager at Intel Labs. “To remain competitive for decades to come, we must continue investing in the ecosystem that makes that success possible. We see the FAST coalition, led by OSU, as an important convener of this work.”

The award arrives as global demand for semiconductors is rising rapidly, in large part because of artificial intelligence. At the same time, federal investment has expanded, and states are competing to attract and retain high-tech jobs.

OSU launched FAST in 2022 to seize this opportunity. A year later, the consortium received $1 million from the NSF’s Regional Innovation Engines program to further build partnerships and develop initiatives focused on research and preparing students for jobs in the semiconductor industry. In 2024, NSF advanced FAST to the full proposal stage, allowing the team to compete for the award.

With the new funding, FAST will focus on three key priorities: 

• Identifying the semiconductor industry’s needs and accelerating research to meet them. 

• Helping startups by connecting entrepreneurs, investors and semiconductor companies.  

• Preparing workers for an industry that increasingly needs people with AI skills.

Early momentum is already visible. Initial funding from NSF, combined with $8.5 million from the state, has supported: new workforce training programs that allow technicians in the industry to acquire additional skills; industry-backed research projects for scientists at OSU and the University of Oregon; and the creation of Oregon Semi Central, a website connecting Oregonians with semiconductor career, training and education opportunities.

Pallavi Dhagat, an electrical engineer in OSU’s College of Engineering, has been involved with FAST from the beginning. She thinks the progress is encouraging but is most motivated by the long-term vision.

“I have friends in Silicon Valley,” she said. “There, you lose your job, you walk down the road and you find another job. Or you start something new. That culture of innovation, where failure becomes a stepping stone, is what I hope to see here.”

Double the Fun

This fall, Homecoming and Family Weekend are joining forces for one unforgettable celebration in Corvallis, Oct. 15-18. We’ll cheer on the Beavers against Washington State, celebrate at the Black and Orange Awards, connect at the Multicultural Alumni and Friends Tailgater, and enjoy special events for Beaver families and alumni.

2025 Homecoming Court Ambassadors Kailey McGourty, ’26, (left) and RyLee Demianew, ’26, (right) pose with Bernice at the OSUAA Tailgate Town experience during Homecoming. Photo by Kai Casey

OSUAA Tailgate Town, Reimagined

Beaver Football and Head Coach JaMarcus Shephard are rewriting the playbook this fall, and the OSU Alumni Association is kicking off a new era of tailgating, brought to you by OCCU! Beaver fans can expect a pregame atmosphere with new gathering spaces, updated seating and interactive experiences. Check it out Sept. 12 and 19; Oct. 10 and 17; and Nov. 7 and 21, three hours before kickoff. And VIPs, you asked and we listened. This season, Life and Orange & Black Club members can enjoy the new VIP Lounge. This exclusive, limited-capacity hospitality space features a private bar, comfortable lounge seating, special OSU Athletics guest speakers and more game day perks. Get in on the action.

Learn from the Best

Hear real stories from alumni who have stepped into leadership, launched businesses, navigated career twists and turns, and found ways to thrive through change at these Ask Alumni events: Sept. 30: How to build management skills at every career stage; Oct. 21: What it takes to launch your own business venture; Nov. 1: How to stay resilient in uncertain times.

Jackie Sappington, MBA ’26, of The Country Cat, laughs with Lois and Dave Cho, ’18, of CHO Wines, at the Food and Beverage Industry Network launch party. Photo by Ali Gradischer

Raise a Glass to New Connections  

The launch of the Food and Beverage Industry Network brought together Beaver innovators, industry leaders and students for an unforgettable evening at CHO Wines. From award-winning food and beverages to inspiring conversations, the debut event uncorked the strength and momentum of Oregon State’s food and beverage community. Don’t miss your chance to be part of our next event.

Build meaningful connections for your life after OSU by joining an OSU Alumni Association network. Photo by Baylee Stewart

Find Your Beaver Community 

OSU Alumni Association networks connect Beavers through shared passions, professions and communities. From career connections to affinity, regional and college networks, there are many ways to build relationships and stay in touch with Oregon State. Get involved today.

Save the Date

Away Meetup: OSU vs. University of Houston Cougars
Sept. 4

Beaver Block Party at The Square

Sept. 26

Away Tailgate: OSU vs. Colorado State Rams

Oct. 3

Celebrando Nuestras Raices

Oct. 8

College of Engineering Oregon Stater Awards

Oct. 8

Black & Orange Awards

Oct. 15

Homecoming and Family Week

Oct. 15-18

OSUAA Parent and Family Social

Oct. 16

10th annual Multicultural Alumni and Friends Tailgater

Oct. 17

Beavs, Brews and BBQs

Nov. 7

Lecture: Mammoths and Global Change

Nov. 12

Away Tailgate: OSU vs. Boise State Broncos

Nov. 14

Lecture: Conserving Yellowstone

Nov. 18

The grass was greener under solar panels.That simple observation set Oregon State University researcher Chad Higgins on a path to become a global authority in agrivoltaics: the practice of combining solar energy production with agriculture.

More than a decade later, OSU is a world leader in this growing field, and Higgins — an associate professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences — is still focused on grass. But now his question is: What conditions always make grass greenest? The answer could be transformative for family farms, rural communities and a world with an exponentially growing demand for food and energy.

The basic idea behind agrivoltaics is that solar panels and plants have a symbiotic relationship. Plants need only so much sunlight before they become stressed and start to sweat — increasing water use and reducing productivity. Strategically placed shade can yield healthier crops with less irrigation. In turn, vegetation cools the air beneath solar panels, improving efficiency and extending panel lifespan.

Ideally, it could be a win-win-win benefiting food, water and energy systems simultaneously.

But the knowledge of how best to set up this relationship is still a work in progress. In April 2023, OSU completed a five-acre agrivoltaics installation at the North Willamette Research and Extension Center (NWREC) near Aurora. For the first time anywhere in the United States, scientists could study the relationship between solar panels and agriculture in a space designed for that work, rather than conducting what Higgins calls “experiments of opportunity” under existing solar arrays.

Now OSU faculty and students are experimenting with a cornucopia of crops. Still, what works in Oregon may fail in Minnesota. Higgins knew testing every crop in every microclimate would be impossible. That brings us back to grass — orchardgrass, specifically.

Common in the Willamette Valley, orchardgrass is used for pastures, hay and erosion control. But more importantly, grass is a global reference crop: its growth patterns align predictably with more than 200 other crops. Higgins realized that if he could isolate the effect of agrivoltaics on orchardgrass, determining the optimal combination of growing factors — precisely how much water + nutrients + sunlight/shade = greatest yield — that equation could then be applied broadly. That’s huge.

On a January morning NWREC tour, the test plot — two years into a three-year effort — looked like, well, a frosty, grassy field. But to Higgins, it’s a field of dreams. That same week, The Oregonian reported on a study commissioned by regional utilities, warning that within five years, the Pacific Northwest could face energy shortages severe enough to cause rolling blackouts.

Illustration by Matt Twombly

Solar Grazing

Agrivoltaics works with pasture land as well, offering shade to grazing cows and sheep. Goats, however, are discouraged because of their tendency to chew and climb equipment.

Harvesting Watts

The five-acre North Willamette Research and Extension Center (NWREC) has an installed capacity of 320 kWh , enough to power 40 homes.

Recharging Wells

One OSU experiment tests whether rainwater from panels can replenish groundwater.

Built to Move

Panels are programmed to automatically rotate so they stay pointed at the sun, maximizing sunlight exposure. They can also be angled up to allow farm equipment through.

Revitalizing Soil

Aside from crop studies, an intended 20-year experiment is exploring whether agrivoltaics can improve soil health and remediate damaged land.

Reimagining Farming

Higgins’ golden rule: Don’t block the row. Make space for tractors by ensuring that panels aren’t close to fences and that cables are buried deep enough to allow cultivation.

As society wrestles with how best to use limited land and secure the three foundational elements of modern life — food, water and energy —  Higgins suggests “the narrow path to thread the needle is agrivoltaics.”

To be sure, big policy questions remain — like who would pay for the technology. But first we need to nail down the science, and that’s what land-grant universities do best.

Higgins’ passion is to help family farms survive. Once a first-generation college student from Upstate New York dairy country, Higgins understands the pressures farmers face. Farms have always harvested solar energy, he noted. Agrivoltaics harvests it twice.

“This is a way to increase farm profitability and sustain viability for another season,” he said. “People say, ‘I don’t believe you, Chad; it doesn’t add up.’ I say, ‘Come and visit, come drive the tractor through. Believe the evidence of your own eyes.’”

The greatest measure of any university is the quality of the people it sends out into the world. This year’s Alumni Fellows and Changemakers show the amazing ways Beavers use their Oregon State education to make things better, from shaping green building standards to designing tools, expanding rural health care and strengthening local food systems. Meet this year’s honorees.

Alumni Fellows

Since 1988, the Oregon State University Alumni Association, in partnership with the university, has recognized caring, passionate and talented members of Beaver Nation who have distinguished themselves in their professions and their communities. Alumni Fellows are nominated by their colleges and departments.

Adam Bean, ’00

Honored by the Honors College

A member of the first Honors College class in 1995, Adam Bean built a high-impact career leading cross-functional teams in the semiconductor and energy storage industries. More than 30 years later, he continues to shape the college’s identity as the second-longest-serving member of the Honors College Board of Regents and a frequent host of Bay Area alumni networking and mentorship events.

Scott W. Christianson, ’08

Honored by the College of Business

Scott Christianson’s ongoing tenure with Ferguson Wellman Capital Management began the Monday after he graduated from Oregon State. Today he is a principal and portfolio manager and was named to the 2023 Portland Business Journal 40 Under 40 list. He guides emerging College of Business professionals as a mentor and a member of the Dean’s Council of Excellence and the Finance Advisory Circle.

Keith Dempsey, ’93, M.S. ’96, Ph.D. ’09

Honored by the College of Education

After serving as department chair of the Graduate Counseling Program at George Fox University, Keith Dempsey now leads his own counseling and consulting practice, known for addressing racial trauma and expanding access to mental health care. A mentor, role model and natural connector, he continues to foster belonging for students and alumni as a founding member of the OSU Black Alumni and Friends Network.

Christine Ervin, ‘77, M.S. ’81

Honored by the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences 

Christine Ervin is a pioneer of clean energy, climate solutions and green building innovation, areas she now consults in through her Portland-based practice. Her extensive leadership includes helping establish the world’s most widely used green building rating system (LEED) as the first CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council and directing $1 billion annually toward clean and renewable energy as a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Energy.

Jerry F. Franklin, ’59, M.S. ’61

Honored by the College of Forestry

Nicknamed the “Father of New Forestry,” Jerry Franklin has contributed substantially to the field of sustainable forest management during his more than 60-year career. He served on the team that developed the Northwest Forest Plan, one of the most globally influential conservation frameworks, and has authored more than 300 publications. He continues to steward the future of the field as a mentor and advisor.

Ben Rivera, ’90

Honored by the College of Engineering

In a 35-year career with Portland-based Leatherman Tool Group, Ben Rivera designed some of the company’s most iconic multipurpose tools, contributed to more than 150 U.S. patents and served as president and CEO for over a decade. His design for the WAVE Leatherman tool is part of the permanent collection within the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 2014, he was inducted into OSU’s Academy of Distinguished Engineers.

Shannon B. Wanless, Ph.D. ’09

Honored by the College of Health 

A national leader in social emotional learning and the director of the University Center for Social and Urban Research in Pittsburgh, Shannon Wanless has dedicated her career to building a future that is more equitable, humanizing and conducive to children and families thriving. Along with her professional accomplishments, she remains connected to OSU as a mentor, guest lecturer and collaborator.

Kathy Ward, ’77

Honored by the College of Agricultural Sciences 

Kathy Ward’s work in agriculture began on her family’s Century Farm in Baker City, Oregon, and culminated in an international leadership role in vegetable research and development with Bayer Crop Science. Today, she champions student success in the College of Agricultural Sciences through advisory board service, mentorship and philanthropy. She also volunteers with a nonprofit dedicated to farmland and habitat conservation.

Changemakers

The Changemaker awards, hosted by the OSU Alumni Association, celebrate Beavers who transform their communities or fields of interest through career or volunteer work.

Dr. Amanda Achterman, MPH ’06

Dr. Amanda Achterman is a rural family physician and obstetrician at Summit Pacific Medical Center in Elma, Washington, where she helps patients overcome barriers to essential care. Her Oregon State public health training, including work overseeing a community health program in Mexico, helped shape her focus on family medicine and prenatal care. In 2025, she was named Rural Health Practitioner of the Year by the National Rural Health Association.

Jerry Adams, MAIS ’88

Jerry Adams has built a career turning ambitious ideas into practical tools for communities. He developed museum collection management software through MuseComp and Media Rare, then co-founded West Michigan FarmLink, an online food hub that connects small and midsized farms with restaurants, households and institutions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, FarmLink helped farmers sell food that might otherwise have gone to waste while helping households access local products.

Coral Avery, ’20

Coral Avery is a climate planning specialist with the Bureau of Indian Affairs whose work supports Tribes and Indigenous Peoples in natural resource management and climate resilience. A citizen of the Shawnee Tribe, Avery has worked with the Confederated Tribes of Siletz, the Swinomish Tribe clam garden and the Shawnee Seed Sanctuary. They also lead workshops for Native youth and attended the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Brazil.

Malory Turner, ’16

As a professional learning coach with the Northwest Regional Education Service District, Malory Turner trains and supports special education teachers across 20 school districts in Oregon’s Columbia, Clatsop, Tillamook and Washington counties. She helps educators build skills, manage complex student needs and avoid burnout so they can stay in the profession. Turner also leads the region’s multidisciplinary Traumatic Brain Injury Team and serves on the Oregon Education Association’s Special Education Committee, extending her impact statewide.

The memorial bench in a peaceful spot to the east of the Memorial Union’s main entrance is simple: cast iron, weathered wood. But behind it is a story of a nation in turmoil and a young couple who wanted to change the world.

On April 7, 1964, Oregon State science graduate Bruce Klunder, ’58 — a Presbyterian minister and civil rights activist — joined demonstrators opposing the construction of a Cleveland school intended to prevent Black children and white children from learning together. 

Several protesters threw themselves into a trench to block a bulldozer’s forward progress, and Bruce laid down behind the machine to trap it in place. The driver backed up and Bruce was crushed to death. He was 26 years old.

The young minister Bruce Klunder. Photo courtesy of Janice Klunder

The crowd erupted in fury and grief, knocking out several of the driver’s teeth. Police deployed tear gas as near-riot conditions unfolded. Bruce’s 28-year-old wife Joanne — a 1956 Oregon State education graduate — had taken their toddler and six-year-old to the zoo. She found herself suddenly both a widow and the center of a story covered worldwide. 

Striving to calm a polarized city, she told Cleveland’s The Plain Dealer, “My husband died doing what he believed in, what we both believed in. He died loving everyone. He died hoping what he was doing might bring love of all people for each other.”

A few months later, she would write in Ebony magazine: “Days of soul-searching went into Bruce’s decision to … lay his body in the path of a bulldozer. To him, that bulldozer was a symbol of … majority society bulldozing over oppressed people, often without even a glance to see that a human soul was in the way.”

A bench dedicated to Bruce Klunder sits just outside the main entrance of the Memorial Union on OSU’s campus. Photo by Travis Stanford

Ruled an accident by the courts, Bruce’s death was a pivotal point in the desegregation of Ohio public schools. His name is inscribed on the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama, alongside the names of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and others who lost their lives in the struggle.

Joanne carried their shared convictions forward for the rest of her life as a teacher, mother, community member and advocate for justice and peace. She died March 21 at age 90 in Brunswick, Maine.  

“There’s a tendency to focus on my dad because of his tragic death, but they were in this together 100%,” says their daughter, Janice Klunder. 

When the couple met at Oregon State, they shared a deeply held faith and grew increasingly troubled by racial discrimination. In 1962, they led an integrated group of students through the South, where they met 22-year-old student activist leader John Lewis, later a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Asked how he avoided hatred after enduring violence during the Freedom Rides, Lewis replied, “Would you hate a blind man for stepping on your foot?” 

Joanne Klunder with her children and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Photo courtesy of Janice Klunder

Her mother often described that as a life-changing moment, Janice said, and the message still resonates. “There’s so much hate on all sides. But meeting hatred with hatred gets us nowhere.”

 Now in her late 60s, Janice is struck by how young her parents were when they became committed to a cause they hadn’t known much about before going to college at Oregon State. Then and now, she said, “you’re never too young to believe you can help make the world better.”

To ensure the Klunders’ story isn’t forgotten, two of Bruce’s high school friends and college roommates — the late Bobb McKittrick, ’58, and Mike Doherty, ’58, Ed.D. ’76 — sponsored the memorial bench. “It’s important that all students understand this period,” Doherty said. “It could happen again, when racism raises its head.” Read more about Joanne’s life. 

Molly Moran

Assistant Clinical Professor, College of Education

Lucy Purgason

Associate Professor, College of Education

Our federally funded PATH-SC program is vital because many students in rural communities lack access to a school counselor when they need one most. We prepare graduate students and train supervisors who mentor them, ensuring that counselors feel prepared and supported in their roles. By strengthening this workforce pipeline, we help fill hard-to-staff positions and ensure that more students have access to critical guidance at pivotal moments in their lives.

Courtesy of Boise State University and OSU-Cascades

Perry Hystad

Associate Dean for Research, College of Health

My lab examines how pollen and other allergens affect people with COPD, a serious lung disease. For someone with COPD, a high-pollen day is more than an inconvenience; it can increase the risk of a flare-up leading to hospitalization. Our research allows us to turn environmental data into practical tools, including clearer public messages, more personalized clinical treatment decisions and timely alerts. As climate change makes pollen seasons longer and more intense, this becomes even more important.

Courtesy of Oregon State University

Like a 180-piece puzzle of bright white bone, the enormous skeleton of a blue whale — the largest creature ever known to live on Earth — has finally come together for permanent display at Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. After the creature washed up dead on the Southern Oregon coast in 2015, leaders of OSU’s Marine Mammal Institute pursued the rare opportunity to turn its 5,500-pound, 70-foot skeleton into a resource for learning and discovery. Blue whales typically sink to the ocean floor after death and only a handful of their skeletons are on view in North America. This May, a team from Alberta, Canada-based Dinosaur Valley Studios put the cleaned, restored and preserved skeleton back together again, bone by bone, in the courtyard of the Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building. “The impact of the finished display is powerful and humbling,” said Lisa T. Ballance, director of the Marine Mammal Institute. “It will inspire everyone who sees it.” Learn more about visiting the bones.

“I just hope this article isn’t going to make people want to come climb these,” Jimmy Swingle said as we stood at the base of three 130- to 140-foot giant sequoias on the Memorial Union Quad. Branches rustled above us. Little cones sprinkled down, followed by drifting flecks of bark.

Campus police hadn’t noticed when Swingle used a crossbow to launch climbing lines into the trees the day before. But now our heaps of equipment and orange shirts were hard to ignore. An officer had already stopped by to make sure our operation was legit, somewhat reluctantly accepting that it appeared to be.

“Don’t worry,” I told Swingle. “It’s alumni who read the magazine, not so much students. They know better than to climb a humongous tree without ropes and guides.”

“Alumni,” he said with a skeptical laugh. “You mean like Eric and me?”

We couldn’t see Eric Forsman, ’72, M.S. ’76, Ph.D. ’80, sitting high in one of the swaying sequoias, offering encouragement as our writer steadily made her way up a trunk. Forsman and Swingle, M.S. ’05 — a retired U.S. Forest Service scientist and a current one — teach a tree-climbing class for students who want to study life in the canopy, and for anyone else curious enough to try.

And as is so often the case at OSU, both have résumés that make “tree-climbing instructor” an amusingly incomplete description. For starters, Forsman’s graduate research showed that spotted owls depend on old-growth forest, helping launch one of the fiercest environmental battles in U.S. history.

On this summer morning, however, their task was to help us learn whether students had hidden anything high in the MU overstory.

Katherine Cusumano, MFA ’24, was seeking the answer for her cover feature about OSU’s newly accredited campus arboretum (see page 32). For the Spring 2025 Stater, she descended into dark, cramped steam tunnels to explore the world below the Corvallis campus. Now we were eager to find out whether students had made a mark far above it, too.

Once the drone following the climbers’ progress had risen high enough, we spotted some evidence. You can just make it out on this issue’s cover.

Artifacts at 130 feet might be a bit unusual, but the impulse behind them is not. Every generation of students makes its campus its own, leaving mementos and forging memories in buildings and — as seems particularly fitting here in Oregon — the green spaces between.

Maybe it’s the elms gone gold along an old familiar bike ride or an engagement beside the Trysting Tree. For former student Stacy Allison — the first U.S. woman to climb Mt. Everest — it was the Douglas-fir she scaled when she first started to dream about climbing mountains.

Have any campus trees earned a special place in your memories of OSU? Drop us a note to let us know.

And for the record: We are not encouraging anyone to climb the sequoias. But we may have just reminded a few alumni that they already did.

So few pages, so many great Benny and Bernice stories. Inspired by the topic of our Spring 2026 cover feature, readers shared memories of runaway mascots, laundromat mishaps, ski-race triumphs, duct-taped tails and even an unforgettable Oprah encounter. We’ve also been delighted to hear that our cheeky Benny centerfold now adorns offices, playrooms and labs everywhere. Send us photos of yours!

The wonderful “Stories from the Suit,” by Kip Carlson, brought back many memories. My friend the late Ken Austin was the first, of course. I wanted to share another story about “The Beaver.” My father, Doug Chambers, ’41, was the first student to don a beaver costume. The year was 1938, when, as a sophomore, the future ASOSU student body president paid a local seamstress $12.50 to create a costume complete with a 4-foot stiff tail for a skit performed at Portland’s Multnomah Stadium, during halftime at the Washington State vs. Oregon State football game.

The original Benny, Ken Austin, with Benny (Erica Heuer) in 2013. Photo by Jeffrey Basinger

The skit was elaborately planned. Doug, who had summered in Southeast Oregon as a cowboy, and four of his Kappa Sig fraternity brothers were the “actors.” The script called for the group to be seated at a card table playing cards at midfield. At the signal, the table was to be overturned and the other actors — suited up as other school mascots — were to scatter, with Doug giving chase. He was to lasso them and return them to a “pen.” 

My dad lassoed the Cougar followed by the Bear and the Huskie, but Idaho’s Vandal was elusive. Dad said: “My friend had been tailgating a little aggressively and kept running away — even going up into the bleachers — all while hiding his face under his Vandal cape.” The skit ended with my dad exhausted and only three actors in the pen. Unsuccessful skit but a great story.

Our family has five generations of Beavers: 1916, 1941, 1970, 2000, and now my granddaughter is in her first year at Oregon State.

 —Craig Chambers, ’70

My father, Doug Chambers, ’41, was the first student to don a beaver costume.

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I received the Oregon Stater in the mail today and was thrilled with the cover of the various Bennys and Bernice, of course, as well as the article. I was Benny in the 1985-86 school year and was Benny/Bernice in the 1987-88 school year. Football was a little weary, but A.C. Green, José Ortiz and Gary Payton made basketball so exciting. I traveled to the NCAA tournament as well as the Pac-10 games on the West Coast. It was an absolute blast.

Keeping it secret was a challenge, but that was easy to overcome after a while. The side stories will crack you up. Back in the day, I had to take the costumes to the laundromat. The first time around, we put too much soap in the washer and flooded the place. (Made for very clean costumes.) The owner went berserk until we told him what we were washing. (Top secret, of course.) He said he would keep mum as long as we got his assistance to wash the uniforms in the future.

We went to Colorado for a Mascot Ski Race put on by the University of Colorado, Boulder. There were about 35 mascots, two of us being female. (The other was the Lobo from New Mexico.) It took a bit to be included with the others, but when I got second in the ski race, I got “confirmed” as a real mascot by the others.  [Editor’s note: Watch video footage.]

The second time I went, we had both the Benny and Bernice costumes, and the tail was about 20 pounds of steel. When I tried to get off the chairlift, my tail got stuck. I went around the “roundabout” hanging by my tail. It was rather humorous. We got to the top of the mountain on future runs using a snowmobile.

 Like you said, the stories can go on and on. I’m still a true believer: My license plate is BNYBVR. My favorite color is orange. Thanks for a great article.

—Beth (Giers) Johnston, ’88

In 1938, a Benny predecessor made a special appearance at a football game. Photo courtesy of OSU Special Collections and Archives

My all-time favorite thing I did as Benny was the football game for Benny’s birthday when I rode into the stadium with Ken Austin. I just remember standing in the middle of Reser Stadium with the whole stadium singing “Happy Birthday” to Benny. I felt so honored to be a part of something so amazing. I got to do a number of events with Ken, and he was always so kind. It was funny because I would stick to the rule and I wouldn’t speak, not even to him, and a friend of mine told me he told that story years later. I actually never got to meet him out of costume, and I regret that because I would have loved to hear some of his stories.

—Erica (Bloch) Heuer, ’14

I read your article on Benny Beaver with fervor, as I am a Benny Beaver alumnus. I was associated with Alpha Phi Omega, an all-male service fraternity associated with the Boy Scouts of America. As a junior, I noted that the cloth suit worn by Benny was absolutely horrible, with the crotch at the knees and poorly fitted. I came up with the idea to finance a replacement suit, so we approached the home economics club for someone to sew the suit. Up stepped Ann Hall, who sewed it together in the summer of ’65.

The costume had a fiberglass head mounted on football shoulder pads, and the suit was a lightweight cotton to be cooler. I gave it to the Rally Committee, but about a week later, I was asked if I would wear the costume, as the man the chair originally picked was talking too much. (Remember the non-identity clause?) I did, and after the first game I realized the suit was still too warm. I recruited a friend, and we shared duties. This gave Benny much more attention, enough so that the athletics department paid for my friend to go to the basketball regionals in Los Angeles.

Remember Ann Hall?  She is now Ann Werner, and we have been married for 60 years this August, all because of a beaver.

—Alan Werner, ’66

Alan Werner peeks out from an early Benny costume in the mid-1960s. Photo courtesy of OSU Special Collections and Archives

Prior to the start of the Civil War game, Benny and I — already in Bernice costume — headed out across the playing field from the locker room/dressing room to get to our fans who were tailgating in the parking lot. The Oregon band was practicing on the field, and we did as mascots do — we started to dance — while the whole band circled us! It started out as friendly and fun, and it was great “fellowship” with our rivals. Then my tail snapped and fell off — a big, heavy metal tail. I fell to the ground laughing hysterically, and the band stopped playing and dispersed. Bahaha! I think they were unsure what to do with me. So Benny and I ventured out to the parking lot — me cradling my tail like a baby in my arms — and we found then-head men’s basketball coach Jimmy Anderson’s motor home. His wife was able to reattach my tail — ironically enough, using duct tape — and I was back in business.

—Holly Deemer, ’96

Graduation of 2017 was a long day. Everyone kept saying, “Oprah was here!” My handlers at the time were great, and I had a little bit of time to kill. So we all kind of said, “Hey, let’s go try and meet Oprah!”

She was up in the premium seating. There were a couple of cops for security around her. I motioned to a cop to take a picture, and from what I recall he shook his head no. I just walked closer, and she finally noticed Benny and said, “All right, let’s take a picture!” I went over to her section and gave her a hug, and a ton of people were taking their phones out to take pictures.

She was very happy to do so, and then we said our goodbyes. As I’m walking out, she and her entourage were like, “Wait, Benny! We want to take another picture!” and it was my impression that this time it was on Oprah’s personal phone. I came back, and we took another photo that she ended up posting on her Instagram account. Very cool story and so unique.

—Evan Thomson, ’19

Oprah’s first trip to Oregon included a well-documented hug from Benny (Evan Thomson).

I recently received the Oregon Stater Spring 2026 issue. The information about Benny and Bernice Beaver is fun-filled entertainment! I am also inspired by the creative collaboration between editor, writer and photographer! Thank you for the “Best of the Best” all these years!

—Cordelia Blake, ’63

Welcome Reminders

I was delighted to see my father’s name mentioned in the Spring 2026 Oregon Stater article “Poet Laureate of the Locker Room.” 

My dad, Eugene “Gene” Winters, ’50, was given credit for giving William Robertson his nickname of “Ropes.” Dad also served in the 10th Mountain Division, 87th Mountain Infantry, at the same time as Mr. Robertson.  This was likely where the two men became acquainted.

You might be interested to know that my dad was a proud OSU graduate who went on to serve Oregonians through the OSU Extension Service as a wheat, crop and soil specialist.

He retired in 1980 after more than 20 years as an extension agent, taking assignments in Clatsop, Douglas, Jackson, Morrow and Wheeler counties as well as two stints in Amman, Jordan.

The article reminded me of listening to my dad share memories and stories about his life. Such reminders are precious since he’s no longer here with us. Thank you.

—Stephanie Winters Engle, ’84

Fresh-Cut Covers

We loved seeing these gorgeous paper flowers, made from Oregon Stater covers by Sarah Cunningham, Ph.D. ’12, OSU senior instructor of anthropology and leader of the Food in Culture and Social Justice program. The bouquets served as centerpieces at a spring Empty Bowls benefit at McNary Dining Center in support of OSU’s Basic Needs Center. If you’ve reused the magazine in a creative way, please send pictures!

Submit your letters to the Stater. We edit for clarity, brevity and factual accuracy. Please limit letters to 225 words or less.

As the Pac-12 returns to full-scale competition this fall, Oregon State finds itself as the conference’s only remaining charter member and settling into an entirely new “State” of affairs. Oregon State and Washington State, the only holdovers from the Pac-12’s previous era, are now joined by a slew of additional “states” — Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Colorado State, Utah State and Texas State — plus Gonzaga, the conference’s sole private university. Thirteen affiliate members will also compete for Pac-12 championships in select sports. From blue turf and river jumps to live mascots and basketball campouts, Oregon State’s new conference colleagues bring plenty of personality to the Pac-12’s next chapter. Here’s a guide to who’s who:

Select a school on the map to learn more

Fresno State San Diego State Gonzaga Washington State Boise State Utah State Colorado State Texas State

Meet the New Pac-12

California State University, Fresno

Fresno, California

Enrollment: 24,300

Mascot: TimeOut (costumed), Victor E. Bulldog IV (live)

Worth Knowing

Fresno State fans are known as the “Red Wave,” a nickname that’s even inspired a locally brewed game-day lager.

Notable Bulldogs

NFL wide receiver Davante Adams · Olympian, four-time All-American and Oregon State head softball coach Laura Berg · former NFL quarterback Derek Carr · founder of eponymous ceramics brand Rae Dunn · MLB right fielder Aaron Judge · journalist and author Daniel Silva

Sports

Men’s: Baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, equestrian, golf, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, water polo.

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San Diego State University

San Diego, California

Enrollment: 41,200

Mascot: No mascot

Worth Knowing

The Aztecs’ student section, “The Show,” is credited with introducing big head cutouts to college basketball.

Notable Aztecs

College head coach and former NFL running back Marshall Faulk · NBA player Kawhi Leonard · actor Kathy Najimy · co-founder and former CEO of Costco Jim Sinegal · actor, director and former NFL linebacker Carl Weathers · actor Raquel Welch

Sports

Men’s: Baseball, basketball, football, golf, soccer, tennis.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, water polo.

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Gonzaga University

Spokane, Washington

Enrollment: 7,400

Mascot: Spike the Bulldog

Worth Knowing

The “Kennel Club” is one of college basketball’s best-known student sections, with students camping out for prime seats at big games.

Notable Zags

Singer and entertainer Bing Crosby · former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Tom Foley · MLB pitcher Marco Gonzales · former NBA player John Stockton

Game-Day Note

Gonzaga men’s basketball has sold out every home game since the 2001-02 season.

Sports

Men’s: Baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, soccer, tennis, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, soccer, tennis, track & field, volleyball.

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Washington State University

Pullman, Washington

Enrollment: 25,500

Mascot: Butch T. Cougar

Worth Knowing

Washington State is home to one of the few dedicated research nuclear reactors in the U.S. (OSU has one, too!)

Notable Cougs

NFL Hall of Famer Mel Hein · creator of The Far Side Gary Larson · psychologist and counterculture icon Timothy Leary · broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow · NBA player Klay Thompson

Most Famous Dropout

Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft

Sports

Men’s: Baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, track.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, soccer, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball.

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Boise State University

Boise, Idaho

Enrollment: 28,500

Mascot: Buster Bronco

Worth Knowing

Its famous blue football field, installed in 1986, sported college athletics’ first nontraditional turf color.

Notable Broncos

Idaho’s first Latino judge, Sergio Gutierrez · pianist Anna Kijanowska · NFL running back Ashton Jeanty · NFL coach Kellen Moore

Sports

Men’s: Basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, beach volleyball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball.

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Utah State University

Logan, Utah

Enrollment: 28,900

Mascot: Big Blue

Worth Knowing

Nationally recognized for its Space Dynamics Laboratory, Utah State created the first university-developed satellite ever put into space. It was deployed in 1985.

Notable Aggies

Crumbl Cookies founder Sawyer Hemsley · NFL quarterback Jordan Love · actor and NFL defensive tackle Merlin Olsen · U.S. Senator Harry Reid · poet May Swenson · NFL linebacker Bobby Wagner

Sports

Men’s: Basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, gymnastics, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball.

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Colorado State University

Fort Collins, Colorado

Enrollment: 34,200

Mascot: CAM the Ram

Worth Knowing

Colorado State is home to the largest animal cancer center in the world.

Notable Rams

Father of American bouldering John Gill · WNBA head coach and point guard Becky Hammon · author Rebecca Skloot · Olympic gold medal swimmer Amy Van Dyken

Game-Day Note

Keep your eyes peeled for live mascot CAM the Ram. CAM is an acronym for Colorado A&M, the university’s historic name.

Sports

Men’s: Basketball, cross country, football, golf, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, golf, track & field, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, volleyball.

↑ Back to map

Texas State University

San Marcos, Texas

Enrollment: 44,600

Mascot: Boko the Bobcat

Worth Knowing

After commencement, many graduates celebrate by jumping into the San Marcos River in their caps and gowns.

Notable Bobcats

Olympic gold medal high jumper Charles Austin · actor Powers Boothe · TV and film director Thomas Carter · MLB first baseman Paul Goldschmidt · former U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson · country music singer George Strait

Sports

Men’s: Baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, track & field.
Women’s: Basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball.

↑ Back to map

Before I’d even reached the top of the tree, I could see evidence someone had been here before. A gallon-size plastic bag was fastened to a bough some 40 feet above me, just visible through the boughs of the giant sequoia.

One foot up the rope. Other foot up the rope. Handled ascender up the rope. Repeat. What appeared to be a bit of plywood wedged against a branch came into view.

When I reached the branch where my climbing rope looped over and back down, I secured myself directly to the trunk. Then I detached from the main climbing line and surveyed my surroundings.

“How high am I going?” I’d asked more than 100 feet below. “All the way to the top,” replied Jimmy Swingle, M.S. ’05, an OSU-affiliated wildlife biologist who had rigged the ropes in this tree — one of a trio of giants on the northern edge of the Memorial Union Quad.

Now I was so high that there were birds flying beneath me. The squeals of summer campers floated up. The MU itself was a colonnaded toy box.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: The Memorial Union Quad’s 130- to 140-feet-tall giant sequoias are 100 years old this year. Our tree-climbing guides were Jimmy Swingle, M.S. ’05, a U.S. Forest Service scientist (left) and Eric Forsman, ’72, M.S.’76, Ph.D. ’80, a retired U.S. Forest Service scientist (right). Our author, Katherine Cusumano, MFA ’24, makes her way up the trunk in search of student artifacts high in the canopy. High above ground, Eric Forsman offers encouragement. Photo by Brian Horne. Near the top of the tree, Cusumano found a seat offering a sweeping view of the MU Quad and a plastic bag that likely held the rumored notebook of student messages. Photos by Brian Horne and Darryl Lai

These sequoias celebrate their 100th birthday this year, which in sequoia years isn’t even that old. The low end of their typical lifespan is generally thought to be more than 1,000 years. A particularly ancient specimen of Sequoiadendron giganteum in California is estimated to have been 3,266 years old when it was logged in the early 20th century.

(Tree people love scientific names, because so-called common names often vary by region. Different species may share a name, or a common name might imply that a living entity is something that it is not. The Douglas-fir, for example, is not a fir.)

Four years ago, Emeritus, a sculpture by the artist John Grade, hung amid these three sequoias. Tens of thousands of tiny resin and reclaimed wood shapes, resembling conifer branchlets, dangled in a column, as though a fourth, ghostlike sequoia had grown in the vestibule created by the surrounding trees. During the sculpture’s installation, workers were said to have discovered signs that students had scaled at least one of the trees: a notebook filled with messages, a hammock.

I asked Swingle and Eric Forsman, ’72, M.S. ’76, Ph.D. ’80, to help me see whether there was any truth to the rumors. I’d taken their tree-climbing class in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences during my first year pursuing an MFA in nonfiction writing, learning to ascend fixed ropes into trees’ upper reaches. Now Forsman sat in an adjacent tree, roughly 10 feet higher than me. He called over from his perch that he recalled, as an undergraduate, seeing someone shouting across the quad from the upper branches of one of these sequoias.

Landscape architect A.D. Taylor suggested expanding campus green spaces rather than highlighting the school’s architecture. This photo from 1927, the year after he unveiled his plan, shows the MU Quad’s new trees. Photo courtesy of OSU Special Collections & Archives

Upon investigation, I found that the bit of plywood I’d seen as I climbed was a sort of seat, lashed to the tree with lengths of flimsy paracord and situated so that you’d be able to take in the sweeping view across campus below. The plastic bag flapped open above it. I suspected the notebook that had once been held inside had since fallen out.

It would have been too tidy a narrative, really, to find exactly what I was looking for. I decided I was OK with this parallel world above the university — and its student visitors — retaining some mystery.

Malcolm Anderson, ’09, an arborist who helped set up Emeritus, told me this sequoia wasn’t the only campus tree with signs of student occupation. In a different one, he found a climbing register, rope hammocks, a memorial to a student and “some other stuff that was a little more X-rated I am embarrassed to mention.” (Another mystery.)

This hidden ephemera seemed to represent the wilder edge of the university community’s relationship with campus flora — one premised on beauty and function alike, and that was codified in 2023, when the Oregon State grounds earned accreditation as an arboretum, or living museum of trees and other woody plants.

This hidden ephemera seemed to represent the wilder edge of the university community’s relationship with campus flora.

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Arboretum curator and horticulture instructor Dan Blanchard, M.S. ’23, said that during his time combing through university archives, he’d found Daily Barometer articles going back generations in which students praised the beauty of campus. The designation made it official.

By the time campus was recognized as an arboretum, the notion was nearly a century old. Oregon State — then known as Oregon Agricultural College — had relocated from downtown Corvallis to its current location in 1889. Over the next 43 years, its surface area would bloom from just a few dozen acres to more than 500. (Today, the total area is just over 570 acres.) During this period of radical growth, the university administration commissioned landscape architects John C. Olmsted and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. to draft a plan for developing the grounds. Well before there was an arboretum to speak of — before there were sequoias on the MU Quad or even an MU at all — this plan advised thinning out existing trees and limiting planting around the building foundations to highlight the school’s architecture.

But in 1926, another landscape architect, A.D. Taylor, prescribed the opposite — suggesting, instead, expanding the green spaces and establishing a campus arboretum.

Members of the Class of 1913 planting elms on what’s now the Library Quad. Today these stand more than 100 feet tall. OSU Special Collections & Archives

“This simple planting scheme,” The O.A.C. Alumnus, a precursor to the Oregon Stater, trumpeted in 1927, “will do more to complete the architectural and landscape compositions than any other thing which might be done in the campus developments.”

The trees stayed. They opened their stomata, breathed in, breathed out. Decades passed as they reached toward the sun. Some of them did so quickly. After Liriodendron tulipifera, the tulip poplar, was planted southeast of Milam Hall by the Class of 1917, it could have grown as much as three feet each year. Others made more incremental gains. Pinus aristata, a species of bristlecone pine, can live for more than a millennium, but it grows at a glacial pace — sometimes just an inch per year.

And a rotating cast of faculty members and groundskeepers kept planting: Arthur Peck, who started as an instructor of floriculture and landscape gardening in 1908, planted hundreds of elm trees across campus. Don Martel, who took up a post as a professor of landscape architecture in 1947, set about documenting the campus plants and installing signs. (More recent attempts to identify the rhododendron species have proved tricky. Around 1959, the grounds crew began planting discards from the horticulture department’s breeding program; the parentage of many remains unclear to this day.) Patrick Breen, now an emeritus professor of horticulture, established a database of campus plants in 2005 and created a brochure mapping OSU’s notable trees.

An aerial photo of the Corvallis campus in 1944 when the trees of the MU Quad had just begun to fill out. OSU Special Collections & Archives

Still, the notion of the campus arboretum remained exactly that — an idea only. That is, until 2009, when Professor Ryan Contreras joined the Department of Horticulture. “I pretty much immediately said, ‘We need to be an arboretum,’” Contreras recalled. He was struck by the size and variety of trees. “There is more diversity on our campus than there is in many cities.”

“Many universities or colleges that have an arboretum or botanic garden — it’s not always the entire university. The entire campus.”

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In 2012, he hired an undergraduate intern — Keith Lukowski, a “crazy plant geek,” as Contreras described him — a North Carolina State University student who spent a summer in Corvallis cataloguing specimens. David Slifkin, a grounds maintenance worker, recalled seeing him traipsing across campus with notebook paper, mapping and sketching the plants by hand. (Later, Lukowski digitized these findings.)

Finally, numbers could illustrate the scale of the campus environment: 65,000 plants, he reported. 8,723 trees. 595 different species. And 7,376 rhododendrons. There are truly so many rhododendrons.

Despite the momentum he tried to generate, Contreras was surprised to find that the university administration wasn’t sold. 

“I said, ‘You know what? I’m just going to do it. Instead of it being a university-funded, university-sponsored idea, we’ll just do it from my lab,’” he recalled.

When Blanchard, who had a background in public horticulture, came to Oregon State in 2021, the arboretum became his project. Two years later, he presented his master’s thesis: “Developing Tools to Utilize the Oregon State University Woody Plant Collection and Establish a Campus Arboretum.”

In some ways, the arboretum designation enshrined the work that facilities crew and faculty had been doing for generations. “We’re plant lunatic nerds,” Todd Cross, the campus landscape manager, told me.

Todd Cross, campus landscape manager, tends a sapling in the campus nursery. He leads a team of self-described “plant lunatic nerds” working to keep the campus beautiful for generations to come. Photo by Kai Casey

To earn Level II certification from ArbNet requires paid staff management, at least 100 woody plants labeled with scientific names, public programs and a formal policy for adding and removing plants. “People have talked about the accreditation as momentum toward the future,” Contreras said. This future was one that reached beyond any individual human career, or even any human life — a future on tree time.

Oregon State is not unique in having a campus arboretum. In fact, at the time that the core campus earned its certification, Peavy Arboretum, though not accredited, had belonged to the university for a century. What is special is its scope. “Many universities or colleges that have an arboretum or botanic garden — it’s not always the entire university, the entire campus,” Blanchard said. “Sometimes, it’s a section of campus. At some schools, it’s 15 miles away.”

You can probably envision this: There is the built environment of red brick and concrete sidewalk, and then there is nature. But at Oregon State, the arboretum certification challenged the idea that campus and nature were meaningfully distinct. I wondered if this is what the earliest campus planners were thinking when they rejected the idea of thinning out trees to make the buildings more visible. When they decided their duty was not to remove, but to “complete the architectural and landscape compositions.” This, I’d come to learn, was not strictly an aesthetic proposition.

On a hot afternoon in late May, I met Blanchard outside Community Hall. In 1889, when the college relocated, the 35 acres that surrounded us had been the college farm. Today, this area cradles some of the campus’s oldest trees. Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca,’ blue atlas cedars, behind us dated to 1892. The Elm Walk below us was planted with a mix of Ulmus americana and Ulmus x hollandica, American and Dutch hybrid elms, in 1905.

LEFT: Blanchard stands beneath one of the MU Quad’s giant sequoias. Planted in 1926, these trees celebrate their 100th birthday this year. RIGHT: The students of Blanchard’s HORT 228 class demonstrate how campus serves as a living laboratory as they discuss its many unique rhododendrons. Photos by Kai Casey

Since the fall of 2023, Blanchard has led more than 140 arboretum tours. His group sizes average around 50, he says, though during one family weekend tour, he counted 111 attendees. All told, he estimates that he’s guided about 7,000 people across the campus. He gets some repeat customers: “I learn something new every time,” Jennifer Killian, an assistant professor of practice in the College of Forestry, told me.

Blanchard’s path to botany was not a straight one. He’d planned to be a nurse, but as he neared the end of his degree, he began to have doubts. One day, sizing up his collection of some 175 house plants, his mom asked if he’d ever considered turning that interest into a career.

It was not such a leap. After all, he’d grown up in a Christmas tree-obsessed house. His family often had a tree for every room — even the bathroom. Blanchard still describes himself as a “conifer addict” and a “cone head” and in community college, earned the nickname “Dan the conifer man.” His collection of conifer cones comprises some 100 species and is spread across his office, his home in Eugene, and family homes in South Carolina and Florida.

We made our way past Moreland Hall, the original home of the College of Forestry, to the old tree nursery just behind the building. My department, the School of Writing, Literature, and Film, was tucked inside Moreland now. I often wrote about how people related to the natural world — and yet, as we walked, I observed how little time I had spent on campus looking up.

Blanchard beckoned me toward Sequoia sempervirens, a coast redwood, and pulled down a branch. “Redwoods have what are called ‘fog needles,’” he said. “See the ones that are on the stem, rather than on the branchlet?” As the trees grow to gargantuan heights, these needles allow them to drink in the fog that gathers around their upper reaches — by some estimates, contributing as much as 40% of their water intake. It struck me as such a perfect fact. I kept whispering to myself: “They eat the fog.”

Giant sequoia cones are surprisingly small and can stay on the tree for as many as 20 years — seeds tight inside — until unsealed by beetles, squirrels or fire. Photo by Kai Casey

But we also observed in other ways. Blanchard demonstrated the balloon-like shriek that gave one shrub, Bergenia cordifolia, its name: “pigsqueak.” Again and again, he asked me to smell — the first motor oil-scented flush of Asimina triloba, or pawpaw, which mellowed out into the comparatively gentler aroma of bell pepper; the peppery tang of Umbellularia californica, the California bay laurel — or to touch. Outside Cordley Hall, we stopped to survey an oddity: Gunnera tinctoria, Chilean rhubarb, an evil-looking shrub with enormous spiny leaves. I reached out, tentatively, a bit menaced by its covering of sharp spikes.

In one corner of an interior courtyard was a skinny pine about two stories high. Tiny serrano-shaped cones dangled from a few upper limbs. It was faintly yellowed around the edges. It was Wollemia nobilis, the Wollemi pine, a critically endangered species from Australia that had only been discovered in 1994 and is considered a living fossil — a plant that still looks the same as its predecessors in the fossil record.

As we approached, Blanchard gasped. The tree had only ever produced male cones before, but now, he thought he could make out the beginnings of small, round female cones. It was some kind of magic to see it progress — to understand that the trees’ own ancient time scale intersects, briefly, with our own.

When Stacy Allison came to Oregon State in 1976, it was with the intention of becoming a nutritionist. Quickly, this ambition was derailed. She lived with a few avid rock climbers, and under cover of darkness, she joined them in climbing Pseudotsuga menziesii, Douglas-firs, on campus. She practiced rappelling techniques, using only ropes and slings. “We did it at night,” she told me, “when we wouldn’t get caught. I wasn’t the only one; we were not very good rule-followers.”

When she joined a climber friend on a trip to Zion National Park, she became hooked. In 1978, Allison left Oregon State, in part to pursue climbing and mountaineering. In 1988, she became the first American woman to summit Mount Everest. The Douglas-fir where she learned to rappel is now gone, but based on the evidence of visitors in the upper reaches of the sequoias on campus, the spirit of these nighttime expeditions lives on.

A crescent moon shines above campus trees the night of the Apollo 11 moon landing, July 20, 1969. Photo courtesy of OSU Special Collections & Archives

Though climbing the trees is not quite what he has in mind, Cross, the landscape manager, is a big advocate of people getting up close with campus nature. He encourages students to walk on the grass, to find secret hideouts beneath the rhododendrons, to fasten slacklines and hammocks between the trees (taking care, of course, to protect the trunks with padding).

Again and again as I spoke with the self-described plantsmen on campus, they called campus a “living laboratory.” It seemed obvious — in fact, fundamental to the promise of a land-grant university — that the grounds would function as an extension of the classroom itself.

In 2023, around the time that the arboretum was coming into being, I signed up for Swingle and Forsman’s tree-climbing class. In the spirit of the living laboratory, most students were there to advance their research — studying marbled murrelets, for example, or forest pathology and mycology. I was, too, in that I had a grandiose vision of being like Richard Preston, climbing redwoods for The New Yorker, but I had some obvious limitations, like how I was terrified of heights.

Week after week, we practiced climbing techniques, rain or shine. We spur-climbed Douglas-firs in Peavy Arboretum. Near the end of the term, we climbed a pair of old-growth trees on Marys Peak, topping out around 170 feet above the forest floor — so high that the trees swayed gently in the wind as we clung to them like birds on a reed.

I saw a link between this kind of interaction with the campus and the demands of the ArbNet accreditation. Institutions are required to offer a certain amount of public programming, in a sense generating interactions between people and place. It wasn’t always strictly physical. Blanchard worked with a horticulture therapy certificate student, Susannah Prenoveau, to establish a campus nature club and enroll Oregon State in Campus Nature Rx, a network of universities that use green spaces on campus to promote mental health.

A sunny day on the MU lawn with magnolias in bloom in the spring of 1970. Photos by Robert Henderson

Prenoveau cited a litany of benefits to spending time outdoors: improved gut health, lower blood pressure, social and emotional wellness. “If you spend any time in nature, or outside,” Prenoveau said, “most people say they feel better.” Research from the College of Forestry’s HEAL Lab supports this theory: A 2021 survey found that people who maintained or increased their time outdoors during the COVID-19 pandemic were more likely to report higher levels of wellbeing. Next spring, OSU will break ground on a new healing garden in an unused quadrant behind Wiegand Hall, making it one of only a small number of universities in the country with such a facility. 

The campus environment doesn’t only have individual benefits, though. The horticulture department maintains close ties to the Oregon nursery industry, Contreras told me. The grounds crew is constantly introducing new plants to the campus collection — adding to its diversity and, in the process, increasing its resilience to disease, drought, heat. Forestry researchers have also been studying assisted migration — the intentional planting of trees outside of their native range as the climate grows warmer and more unpredictable. The trees are helping us prepare for the future, whatever it might look like.

Students cycled through campus, every year arriving and departing, while the trees stayed put.

And each time I spoke with a plantsman, I asked how working with trees affected their sense of time. “Trees tie you to the past,” Slifkin said. They appeared permanent, immovable; students cycled through campus, every year arriving and departing, while the trees stayed put.

But their lives inched forward, too, each year stacking another ring, each year stretching closer to the sun, getting a little closer to producing a new cone, offering a fresh fruit for a student to pick, almost without thought, on their way to class, a silent tether between the human and nonhuman worlds.

Among the Trees

Oregon State Campus Arboretum Field Guide

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87 Feet

Dawn Redwood

Metasequoia glyptostroboides

Origin

Planted northeast of Community Hall, they grew from rare seeds brought from China in 1948. Once thought to be extinct, this ancient tree was rediscovered growing in China in the 1940s and is now known as a “living fossil.” The tree flourished in Oregon during the Miocene epoch, about 25 to 5 million years ago, and is the official state fossil. A newer dawn redwood was planted just northeast of this tree on June 4, 1991, to memorialize student protesters killed in Tiananmen Square.

40 Feet

Trysting Tree II (Gray Poplar)

Populus x canescens

Origin

The original Trysting Tree was planted next to Community Hall by George Coote, a horticulture faculty member, sometime between 1880 and 1885. He landscaped the first 35 acres of the current campus. Known as a meeting place for lovers, the Trysting Tree inspired engagements, a mention in OSU’s official anthem and more than a little administrative angst. In 1898, the Board of Regents trained bright lights on it to discourage nighttime rendezvous. After the original tree was lost to disease in 1986, a cutting planted nearby became Trysting Tree II. It’s now recognized as an Oregon Heritage Tree, and (just in case) a third Trysting Tree is growing as well.

23 Feet

Big-leaf Magnolia

Magnolia macrophylla

Origin

This medium-sized deciduous understory tree is native to the southeastern U.S.; ours grows behind Shepard Hall. Its massive white flowers are a showstopper in the spring. “Its leaves always look like a shirt thrown over a clothesline,” arboretum curator Dan Blanchard said, drawing on a description Professor Ryan Contreras often uses. David Slifkin, a grounds maintenance worker, considers Magnolia ernestii, an endangered yellow lily tree, his greatest contribution to the campus’s extensive magnolia collection.

110 Feet

Dutch Hybrid Elm

Ulmus x hollandica (cultivar unknown)

Origin

In 1905, the “Elm Walk,” or “Elm Allée,” was planted on lower campus between 11th and 15th Streets by students under the direction of George Coote. Originally, the walk featured alternating Dutch hybrid and American elms. But the Dutch hybrids grew quickly, so in 1927 the American elms were replanted outside the Women’s Building. Grounds crews dug trenches around them, built crates to protect them, and then hauled them on carts — despite the fact that they were already taller than the building! Every spring, thousands of evening grosbeaks visit campus to feast on the elms’ fruit. Although removal of the Elm Walk was first recommended in 1909, the university chose to keep the trees, preserving an iconic campus landscape.

135 Feet

MU Giant Sequoias

Sequoiadendron giganteum

Origin

Planted together in the Memorial Union Quad in 1926, these three giant sequoias celebrate their 100th birthday this year. Their lower limbs have been intentionally allowed to grow to the ground, creating the feeling of stepping into a living vestibule. Giant sequoias have extraordinarily thick, spongy bark — up to 2 feet thick — that helps protect them from wildfires. The trees can live more than 3,000 years, and their cones can remain on their branches for up to 20 years before releasing seeds. Native to California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range, giant sequoias are the largest tree species on Earth.

60 Feet

Apollo 14 Moon Tree (Douglas-Fir)

Pseudotsuga menziesii

Origin

Grown from a seed that orbited the moon in 1971 in the personal kit of astronaut Stuart Roosa, a former U.S. Forest Service smoke jumper. Planted in 1976 outside the Peavy Forest Science Center as part of the U.S. bicentennial celebrations. Seeds from the Apollo 14 mission showed no effects from their zero-gravity excursion. In 2022, a new batch went up with Artemis I.

10–20 Feet

Campus Rhododendron Collection

Rhododendron occidentale, Rhododendron ‘Loderi hybrid’ and others

Origin

OSU’s rhododendron collection began in 1938, when Professor Arthur L. Peck planted nearly 300 plants in front of the Memorial Union. Emblematic of spring and early summer on the Corvallis campus. In the 1960s and early 1970s, campus grounds crews planted discards from the university’s breeding program. Each year, grounds workers plant 50 to 100 new rhododendrons.

70 Feet

Oregon White Oak

Quercus garryana

Origin

Considered the oldest tree on campus, this oak outside Magruder Hall dates to about 1673 — 103 years before the Declaration of Independence and 186 years before Oregon became a state. Due to its historical significance, it was named a Corvallis Heritage Tree.

Arboretum Illustrations by The Mountbird Studio

Request a tour, see a map and support the program by going to the OSU Campus Arboretum website.

Visitors to Oregon State’s Alumni Center will find a locked case filled with typical memorabilia items: bronze trophies, stylish letterman jackets, shiny plaques and books brimming with stories of Beaver history. At some point, their eyes will also spot something peculiar: a wooden platypus.

 “It’s in the category of ‘strange, but true,’” says John Valva, executive director of the OSU Alumni Association. 

The University of Oregon and OSU alumni associations take possession of the trophy whenever their school’s football team wins the universities’ big annual matchup. Why a platypus? Though the actual animal makes its home 9,000 miles from Oregon in far-off Australia, it features characteristics of both a duck and beaver, the mascots of the rival schools. 

The trophy’s relatively informal tradition began in 2007, but its history spans over six decades.

In 1959, then-UO student Warren Spady crafted the trophy as a gift to the victor of the rivalry game. The trophy symbolizes his affection for both schools. Several family members are OSU alumni, but only UO carried a master’s track for the academic program that he wished to pursue. “I was the black sheep of the family,” he says. 

Spady hadn’t completed the animal’s feet before OSU beat the Ducks in an upset victory, staking the first claim to the prize. Rather than finish in the years since, he decided to leave the body atop the carving of a pile of mud, which Spady calls “its home territory.” He simply signed his name under the tail with his lucky pencil. 

A common refrain Spady hears: “That’s a weird trophy.” “It’s a Beaver and a Duck, so to me it’s very logical. I rest my case,” Spady says with a chuckle.

Part beaver, part duck, the platypus struck sculptor Warren Spady as the perfect mascot for the annual OSU-UO game. Photos by Karl Maasdam, ’93

Along with the feet, the exact purpose of the trophy is unshaped to this day.

Soon after its first passing, UO students allegedly stole it. It was found and OSU won it back in 1961, but was stolen yet again in 1962. The trophy then went missing for over two decades. Spady saw it again on the UO campus in 1986. This time, it included an engraved plaque listing the UO water polo team’s 1964 to 1968 wins over OSU.

But in 2004, then-Oregonian writer John Canzano wrote a column about the lack of a trophy similar to ones exchanged in other college football rivalry games. Following a search, hunters trapped the wooden platypus in a closet on the UO campus. The alumni associations began exchanging the trophy soon after. 

“It’s the perfect icon for this rivalry , and yet it’s hard to get excited about a platypus,” says Raphe Beck, executive director of the UO Alumni Association, referring to the schools’ athletic departments’ lack of interest in the trophy. “We certainly wouldn’t want to impose something on the players that wouldn’t excite them.”  

Instead, when the host association’s football team loses the game, Beck or Valva makes the gloomy trek along Interstate 5 to hand it over. 

Spady says he hopes that interest in the trophy expands. “It’s an honor to create a trophy between the two schools, and I hope that it takes,” he says. However, with the future of the rivalry unexpectedly in flux, there are a lot of unknowns.

For now, the two habitats for the wooden platypus — “Platy,” as UO alumni employees affectionately call it — are a bookshelf in the UO alumni office and the locked case inside the OSU Alumni Center. The main debate at this point is which habitat is most natural. 

“The platypus trophy lives here in the UO alumni association offices and occasionally takes a sabbatical to Oregon State,” Beck says. 

He brought the trophy to OSU this spring after the Beavers beat the Ducks 38-34 in a 21-point comeback victory. Dressed in UO attire and carrying the trophy into the office, Beck passed an OSU Alumni Association employee who muttered under her breath, “Go Beavs.” 

“At this point, no one is certain about the future of the rivalry game,”  Valva says, “But I don’t have any intention of giving it back.”

Those who don a Benny or Bernice suit are sworn to secrecy while they’re students. And OSU Athletics, I discovered, does not keep a tidy list of all who have worn the head.

So when I got the idea for a story about the tales of those who once embodied our beloved beavers, I’ll admit I felt a flicker of doubt. How, exactly, do you find people who have been professionally anonymous?

We started, as one does, in the archives. Cora Lassen, the Stater graduate assistant, combed through yearbooks and old Daily Barometers to see whether the secrecy code had perhaps been looser in decades past. (It had not.) I emailed colleagues in case anyone’s former roommate had eventually confessed why they were mysteriously “never at games.” (A couple of leads there.)

Finally, we put out a call on social media.

And then, like a Benny launching from a trampoline to execute a perfect dunk, the responses came pouring in.

Emails. Names. Action shots. Did people have stories? Oh yes. Stories about meeting Oprah. Standing with Ken Austin — the man who originated the role — as a Reser crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to Benny. Being on court as the women’s basketball team cut down nets from their first regular-season title. And the particular terror of falling into bushes or getting stuck crossing a dark street.

Our writer Kip Carlson began making calls. He tapped into his own network. He followed leads from one former mascot to another. The list grew and grew. He finally stopped at 22 interviews, not because we ran out of names, but because we ran out of pages. There are, I now know, a great many alumni walking among us who can execute a flawless push-up routine while wearing a 10-pound beaver head.

All of those unseen Beavers were on my mind the day we took over center court at Gill Coliseum for this issue’s cover shoot.

Five current students — highly trained, deeply committed and absolutely not to be named here — agreed to spend a Sunday afternoon with us under bright lights. We outfitted them in mascot heads and suits from across the decades, so that whether you were cheering in 1988 or 2018, you’d spot a familiar grin.

Then we stepped back.

They slid across the hardwood in old-school, gloriously oversized booties. They marveled at the sheer scale of a 2010s-era head. They demonstrated exactly how much visibility one has through the nose mesh. (Not much.) They swapped stories about near-collisions with exuberant elementary schoolers and the art of communicating pure joy without ever saying a word.

In many ways, they are a study in contradiction, these students who exult in the spotlight while remaining hidden. They get no public credit, only the chance to make a child laugh, to make the fans roar, and to turn an ordinary Thursday night game into a cherished memory.

Judging by the flood of emails we received from their predecessors, those memories last for them as well as for us. So to the Bennys and Bernices of years past: We see you and all you’ve done to bring us together. Even if, technically, we’re not supposed to know who you are.

When I’m searching for a reason to feel optimistic about the future, I don’t have to look far — I find it every day at Oregon State University.

Two years ago, when Carissa O’Donnell, ’24, was nearing final exams, she shared with me the bittersweet feeling of graduation: “I just can’t imagine leaving Oregon State. I feel like I grew up here. But I also know I have to go and make some sort of difference.” In what feels like the blink of an eye, she has already earned a graduate degree from Columbia University’s Climate School, interned with the U.S. House of Representatives and worked directly with Michael Bloomberg’s foundation evaluating low-carbon economics. She’s also finding time to mentor current OSU students.

I first met Javier Garcia-Ramirez, ’24, when he was a sophomore studying engineering. As a first-generation student, he spoke proudly about his siblings, who were also OSU students, and a family life that emphasized hard work and well-being. As kind as he is ambitious, he graduated summa cum laude and secured a software engineering position in New York, all while volunteering for OSU’s alumni network.

Carly Thorkildson, ’24, lights up any room she enters. She was one of those undergrads who belonged to dozens of student organizations. One quarter, after seeing her at multiple events, I finally asked when she had time to sleep. “Ha, sleep is for amateurs,” she quipped. She graduated with honors, immediately excelled in her chosen field of water safety, and continues to volunteer on our Recent Alumni Advisory Council.

Each of these 2024 graduates was an Alumni Association scholarship recipient. Each excelled academically, served as a student leader, launched a career and is already giving back to Oregon State with their time, energy and networks.

It’s a privilege to work with some of Oregon State’s most promising undergraduate students and get to witness their energy, vision and commitment. I know they’ll leave a lasting impact on our campus, on Oregon and beyond.

Thanks to the generosity of thousands of OSU alumni and friends, the Alumni Association’s undergraduate scholarship program — the university’s  longest standing — continues to open doors. Recipients often overcome significant personal and financial challenges to pursue their dreams.

With all due respect to those wonderful Class of 2024 recipients, I suspect this year’s group may be our most outstanding yet. (I say that every year and I always mean it!) There’s Bella Larsen, who spent last summer supporting public health in Uganda; Alana Kelley, who champions healthy attitudes and wellness for girls and young women; and Lily Oliphant, who mentors schoolchildren in robotics — and many others.

In a world that often feels uncertain, these undergraduate scholars remind me what’s possible. They are evidence that student success is worth an investment. They’re not only exceptional students; they also represent our most impressive community-builders and citizens. They care. They give back. And they make me profoundly optimistic about our future.

Join in supporting the next generation at When I’m searching for a reason to feel optimistic about the future, I don’t have to look far — I find it every day at Oregon State University.

Two years ago, when Carissa O’Donnell, ’24, was nearing final exams, she shared with me the bittersweet feeling of graduation: “I just can’t imagine leaving Oregon State. I feel like I grew up here. But I also know I have to go and make some sort of difference.” In what feels like the blink of an eye, she has already earned a graduate degree from Columbia University’s Climate School, interned with the U.S. House of Representatives and worked directly with Michael Bloomberg’s foundation evaluating low-carbon economics. She’s also finding time to mentor current OSU students.

I first met Javier Garcia-Ramirez, ’24, when he was a sophomore studying engineering. As a first-generation student, he spoke proudly about his siblings, who were also OSU students, and a family life that emphasized hard work and well-being. As kind as he is ambitious, he graduated summa cum laude and secured a software engineering position in New York, all while volunteering for OSU’s alumni network.

Carly Thorkildson, ’24, lights up any room she enters. She was one of those undergrads who belonged to dozens of student organizations. One quarter, after seeing her at multiple events, I finally asked when she had time to sleep. “Ha, sleep is for amateurs,” she quipped. She graduated with honors, immediately excelled in her chosen field of water safety, and continues to volunteer on our Recent Alumni Advisory Council.

Each of these 2024 graduates was an Alumni Association scholarship recipient. Each excelled academically, served as a student leader, launched a career and is already giving back to Oregon State with their time, energy and networks.

It’s a privilege to work with some of Oregon State’s most promising undergraduate students and get to witness their energy, vision and commitment. I know they’ll leave a lasting impact on our campus, on Oregon and beyond.

Thanks to the generosity of thousands of OSU alumni and friends, the Alumni Association’s undergraduate scholarship program — the university’s  longest standing — continues to open doors. Recipients often overcome significant personal and financial challenges to pursue their dreams.

With all due respect to those wonderful Class of 2024 recipients, I suspect this year’s group may be our most outstanding yet. (I say that every year and I always mean it!) There’s Bella Larsen, who spent last summer supporting public health in Uganda; Alana Kelley, who champions healthy attitudes and wellness for girls and young women; and Lily Oliphant, who mentors schoolchildren in robotics — and many others.

In a world that often feels uncertain, these undergraduate scholars remind me what’s possible. They are evidence that student success is worth an investment. They’re not only exceptional students; they also represent our most impressive community-builders and citizens. They care. They give back. And they make me profoundly optimistic about our future.

Join in supporting the next generation.

Oregon State has experienced a 29-year streak of rising enrollment, but soon we’ll begin to feel the effects of the sharp drop in U.S. birth rates that followed the 2008 financial crisis. What opportunities do you see for OSU even as the traditional college-age population declines?

We’ve been very fortunate — though I wouldn’t ascribe it entirely to luck — to have had 29 years of increasing enrollments. But nationwide, we’re already beginning to see enrollment pressures growing, and that’s also true in Oregon. Of course, none of this is a surprise, and there’s been quite a bit of thinking and planning around it.

We’ve always been aware that Oregon is a small population state — somewhat over 4 million people — and that there would be demand for our offerings outside our borders. Ecampus has been an extraordinary instrument to serve both people inside and outside the state. So we’ve been thinking a lot about what would make it even more attractive.

Ecampus has been ranked in the Top 10 by U.S. News & World Report for 12 years. There are also new online programs that we’ve been creating — for example, in sports business and in healthcare administration. We’ve always been a good engineering school, so there’s a slew of engineering programs coming online. For example, online mechanical engineering has about 300 students in it. That tells you how attractive that program is.

So being agile, being quick, being creative about the programs that we offer is going to be very important. We’ve been talking a lot about micro-credentials. These are online certificates in specialized fields — I’m sure it comes as no surprise that AI and semiconductors are big! But in the non-STEM areas, for example, we’ve got microcredentials in consumer analytics and viral content creation.

The other thing that I think about a lot is the fact that transfer students are a big chunk of our population. Therefore, making the transfer process smoother is part of how we attract community college students and others into the mix. It can’t be business as usual. We cannot take increasing enrollment for granted.

Do we need enrollment to keep increasing? We’re already the biggest school in the state.

Part of it is our reach. I mean, we want, through our land-grant mission, to have influence — and being bigger does mean influence. You have many more of your graduates out in the world doing good things. There are also financial pressures that will inevitably lead you there because of the way costs are increasing. Those costs outstrip tuition and what the state can give us, so part of how you make up for that is through increasing enrollment numbers. There are, of course, limits to how big on-
campus enrollment can get. Ecampus offers exciting new offerings and an answer to the problem of physical constraints.

OSU’s land-grant mission can be hard to explain, but Oregonians feel the effects when funding for it is reduced. How do you explain the value of statewide engagement?

You’re right that it’s when a program disappears that you understand its value most deeply.

SNAP-Ed teaches people eligible for federal SNAP benefits how to eat and live healthily. In 2024, 24,000 Oregonians received direct education in these areas. Recently, federal funding for the program was eliminated, which was a devastating loss to OSU employees and the communities they served. Despite that, OSU Extension is working hard to deliver as much of the programming as they can.

Outdoor School is another example. OSU Extension runs the state’s weeklong nature education program for fifth and sixth graders. The state cut its funding by 20%, but we’ll continue Outdoor School with maybe a shorter program duration or other adjustments. You can see how important these programs are. People may not know what a land-grant school is, but they access our programs all the time.

Other OSU Extension programs that people certainly know about are 4-H and the Master Gardener program. Yes, degree granting is important. Yes, research is important. But this big deep connection to our community is also hugely important.

Do you have any stories from communities that illustrate why the work matters?

I’ve been making it a point to visit as many extension offices and experiment stations as possible. I’m always struck by the importance of the role that we play and the level of need that there is. There’s so much OSU does that should make us proud.

One example: I am a huge potato fan, and I’m married to a man who lives exclusively on potatoes, it seems! I was at the Klamath Basin Research and Extension Center, one of two potato research facilities that we run (along with the Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center), and I learned an interesting fact. The work that we do supports 40% of the frozen potato production in North America — 40%! That’s more than a billion dollars in gross revenue to farmers.

You’re about to embark on your second OSU tour of Southeast Asia. What have you learned so far from visiting Beavers around the world?

There’s so much love of OSU in the hearts of Beavers everywhere. Of course, the young folks are very connected through social media. They follow us and keep track of the things that are happening — and they’re deeply invested.

But even people who have been out for a long time have so much nostalgia about their time at OSU and a lot of gratitude. I mean, we had these evening get-togethers, and people wouldn’t leave! There was just this amazing feeling of catching up with family after a long time

Follow President Murthy on LinkedIn.

Oregon State University research has helped shape a landmark moment for the planet: the enactment of the High Seas Treaty, which went into effect Jan. 17. Formally known as the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement, it followed more than two decades of negotiations. Its aim is to safeguard the high seas, the two-thirds of the ocean beyond individual nations’ control. “It’s time to celebrate,” said Jane Lubchenco, OSU Wayne and Gladys Valley Chair of Marine Biology. “We have an unprecedented opportunity to protect and sustainably use the biodiversity in an area covering nearly half the planet. That area houses phenomenal biodiversity, but it’s declining and at risk. This new treaty is a very big deal and very good news — science is informing pioneering global policy, and needs to continue doing so.” Central to that science is The MPA Guide (MPA stands for “marine protected areas”), published in 2021 and led by OSU’s Kirsten Grorud-Colvert and Jenna Sullivan-Stack, who coordinated contributions from more than three dozen scientists to create a road map for planning, evaluating and monitoring marine protected areas. “The High Seas Treaty represents another huge milestone, and I’m really proud of the part OSU plays,” Grorud-Colvert said.

We cheer student-athletes from the stands, celebrating buzzer-beaters, record-breaking routines and championship runs. But what happens after the final whistle? How do their experiences as Beavers affect the lives and careers that come next? Beyond the Field was created to answer those questions. Hosted by longtime broadcaster and OSU alum David Endres, ’82, this new podcast features candid, one-on-one conversations with Beaver greats from a range of sports and eras.

The first three episodes, available now, feature Mitch Canham, ’11; Sydney Wiese, ’17; and Les Gutches, ’97. Three more will be released weekly beginning April 10 (including Episode 5 with star gymnast Joy Selig, ’92, seen here in the recording studio). Produced in partnership with OSU Media Services and sponsored by Oregon Community Credit Union, these stories are a reminder that while seasons end, the OSU experience continues to shape lives. Start listening and Go Beavs!

Beaver Brags

-million-year-old ice — the oldest ever directly dated — was discovered in East Antarctica by researchers with COLDEX, a collaboration of 15 U.S. institutions led by OSU.

of stewardship of the McDonald Research Forest, north of Corvallis, is what Oregon State’s College of Forestry is celebrating this year.

views is what a viral video about OSU’s O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Lab got across social media in 2025.

in the nation is what the OSU student literary magazine PRISM earned in the College Media Association’s Pinnacle awards.

Briefs

Cosmic Honor

A discovery that opened a new window on the universe has earned Oregon State astrophysicist Xavier Siemens the Bruno Rossi Prize, one of the highest honors in high-energy astrophysics. Siemens led an international team of nearly 200 researchers, including OSU students, that detected low-frequency gravitational waves — ripples in space-time first predicted by Albert Einstein. The discovery revealed a long-theorized, universe-spanning background of gravitational waves produced by pairs of supermassive black holes slowly merging.

Print. Move In.

Oregon State University researchers have developed a fast-curing, low-carbon building material designed to make 3-D printing homes and infrastructure faster and more practical. Unlike traditional concrete, the clay-based material hardens as it is printed, eliminating days-long curing delays and allowing construction across unsupported gaps such as window and door openings. Early tests show that it reaches residential-grade strength in just three days and reduces carbon emissions by replacing conventional cement with soil, hemp fibers and biochar

Skip the Scalpel

OSU College of Pharmacy researchers have developed new nanoparticles that make it possible to destroy melanoma tumors using low-power, skin-safe laser light instead of surgery or high-powered lasers that can damage healthy skin. The particles collect inside tumors and heat up when exposed to the laser, killing cancer cells while sparing surrounding tissue. In early mouse studies, tumors disappeared without invasive procedures.

Science with Spirit

The name of a new medical imaging breakthrough contains a playful nod to Oregon State’s favorite furry mascot. BVR-19 — a newly patented, manganese-based MRI contrast material — could help patients receive clearer diagnostic images while avoiding the health and environmental concerns tied to commonly used agents. Developed by Oregon State researchers, BVR-19 offers an alternative to conventional MRI contrast agents that rely on rarer, more toxic metals.

Top Honor for Military Beav

Oregon State student Nikki Gold is the first openly LGBTQ+ veteran to be named National Student Veteran of the Year by Student Veterans of America. The honor recognizes leadership, service and advocacy among student veterans nationwide. An undergraduate health student and second-generation Naval veteran, Gold was selected from more than 600,000 candidates across the country. Gold has been involved in peer support and suicide prevention initiatives at OSU and plans to attend law school after graduation.

History at Your Fingertips

A new interactive touch table outside the Special Collections and Archives Research Center on the fifth floor of the Valley Library in Corvallis lets visitors explore 150 years of Oregon State University stories in a dynamic, digital format. Drag and open “bubbles” of photos, text and videos that cover historic moments — from early broadcasts and inventions to cultural milestones. The exhibit was first developed for OSU’s 150th anniversary and is now available whenever the library is open.

While the field of geography is often thought of as the study of spatial relationships, some geographers are as concerned with time as they are with space. Temporal change in places experiencing conflict or disaster, —and the reasons for that change — is what drives Associate Professor Jamon Van Den Hoek of Oregon State’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences.

Van Den Hoek and the Conflict Ecology lab that he leads use satellite imagery to characterize long-term, nationwide changes in conflict settings where it’s often too dangerous to collect information on the ground. He uses a combination of technologies to track the destruction of infrastructure, changes in land use related to conflict, and the movement of people — all with the goal of providing critical information to aid organizations and the media.

Much of what the world knows about the progression of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza is due to the work of Van Den Hoek and his team.

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Much of what the world knows about the progression of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza is due to the work of Van Den Hoek and his team: The maps they have created have been staples of wartime reporting in The New York Times, The Guardian, National Public Radio and other outlets.

What does war look like from space? Van Den Hoek and his team look at a range of changes, such as the destruction of buildings and roads in urban settings, loss or abandonment of agriculture and the establishment of refugee settlements. “Increasingly we’re looking at other signals, too, like atmospheric conditions, pollution, greenhouse gas emissions attributable to large-scale war, smoke signals and more,” he says.

It’s the integration of these disparate techniques and tools that truly helps Van Den Hoek understand the progress of conflict rather than just its footprint. “We consider ourselves to be conducting conflict-engaged, rather than simply conflict-aware, work,” he explains. While a conflict-aware project might look at a single parameter in a conflict zone, like deforestation, and attribute that change to the conflict, his approach engages more deeply in understanding the damage patterns that result from more specific factors like changes in territorial control.

He explains that the difference lies in using a suite of complementary approaches to study change, and linking that data to other kinds of information, including mainstream and social media reports, the history of the conflict area, troop deployment information and any data that can be collected on the ground.

The study of urban conflict areas is challenging, but in some ways it is a little easier than looking at change in other types of landscapes. All studies of change need a baseline, and Van Den Hoek explains that he “exploits the fact that cities tend to look largely the same year after year,” as opposed to agricultural areas that change seasonally and over spans of years.

With a solid baseline drawn from pre-war records, Van Den Hoek and his team examine images of urban conflict and look for building damage using a kind of open-source radar imagery captured weekly by the European Space Agency. This imaging, taken from a side angle rather than strictly from above (like the imagery used by Google or Apple Maps), detects the loss of buildings as well as changes like scorch marks that might indicate internal damage. Review of the imagery is automated using algorithms written and updated by Van Den Hoek and his team; results of their analyses for urban areas include numbers and percentages of buildings damaged.

The Data Behind the Headlines: When major news outlets want to understand the devastating impact of war, they often turn to OSU’s Jamon Van Den Hoek and his Conflict Ecology lab. In the 2024 article “What Ukraine Has Lost,” The New York Times’ graphics editor Marco Hernandez and senior editor Tim Wallace created an arresting set of charts, using the lab’s data, that provided the first visualizations of the war’s destruction. “I consider myself very fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with Jamon,” Hernandez said. “The work he does is exceptional and has made it possible to inform our readers not only about what is happening in Ukraine but in many other parts of the world, with an accuracy and efficiency that no one else has been able to achieve before.” Infographic by 2024 The New York Times company

Each new analysis of changes in Gaza, Ukraine or elsewhere is sent to Van Den Hoek’s list of hundreds of media contacts and non-governmental and aid organizations, who use it to inform the world and, when possible, to take humanitarian action. His lab’s work has revealed that nearly 200,000 buildings have been destroyed so far in Gaza, and twice that many have been destroyed in Ukraine.

While Gaza and Ukraine garner the most Western media attention, Van Den Hoek would like his work to raise awareness of lesser-known but similarly destructive conflicts, too. “There are half a dozen conflict areas in the world that should be getting more attention. Sudan, for example, has for months been identified as the world’s greatest humanitarian crisis,” he says.

Van Den Hoek says the hardest impact to monitor is also the most important, and the one he cares about most deeply: the effects of conflicts on people. His approach can’t say whether there were people in a building when it was destroyed, or where survivors went after an attack. But his team is trying to track the migration of people in war zones and gain insights into what post-conflict life looks like for both refugees (people who leave their country due to disaster) and internally displaced people (those who leave home but stay within their own country’s borders).

There are half a dozen conflict areas in the world that should be getting more attention.

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“There’s a weight, a burden to this work. I want to do it in a way that’s helpful to others, and I recognize that it affects a lot of extremely vulnerable people,” he says.

“I think the continuing goal is to do this work in a rigorous way, with shareable outcomes that are relevant not to understanding the war per se but understanding how to lessen the harm on civilians.

“The global humanitarian system is in tatters right now, in the worst shape it’s been in for a long time. I’m hoping for a turning point and hoping that our work of the last couple of years can serve as an example of what can be done transparently and collaboratively.”

In the Corvallis Community Center’s Chandler Ballroom, a ghost appeared. The room was packed with women when Leonora Kerr burst into the room, wearing an elaborate black feathered hat, to roaring laughter and applause.

She was the wife of William Jasper Kerr, Oregon State president from 1907 to 1932. And her appearance marked the final meeting of the organization she founded in 1908: the OSU Folk Club.

Of course, this wasn’t a real ghost. On this particular October afternoon, the apparition was played by Freda Vars, M.S. ’66, a member of the Folk Club for 58 years and the club’s unofficial historian.

Vars spoke of the club’s history. Founded as a networking and cultural group for women associated with the university, the club soon began supporting campus projects, including construction of the Memorial Union. Then came the Great Depression. “In 1930, with the stock market crash,” said Vars, “they began raising their own money to give away student scholarships.” 

Left: Folk Club members tested playground equipment they funded. Right: All the club’s living past presidents gathered in 1991. Courtesy of OSU Special Collections & Archives

This proved to be the beginning of a nearly century-long tradition. The Folk Club has distributed more than $1.5 million in scholarships, with the majority raised through the OSU Folk Club Thrift Shop. Opened in 1949 and staffed entirely with volunteers, the shop now sits at the corner of Second Street and Jackson Avenue.

Back in the ballroom, the club’s vice president, Mary Ann Matzke, addressed a special guest. Traditionally, the wife of Oregon State’s president served as honorary president of the Folk Club. “Well, times have changed!” Matzke said. “I’d like to name Dr. Jayathi Murthy our honorary president for this year.”

OSU’s 16th president would serve for only a few days, but the symbolic gesture was indicative of the changing times partially responsible for the club’s disbandment. “I think what we saw was a change in our society,” said Ann Kimerling, a member since 1976. “When I arrived here, a lot of women stayed at home, raised families, and if they had careers it was part-time.”

According to Kimerling, membership dropped steadily over the next 50 years, from around 450 women in the 1980s to just around 100 in 2025. “Everybody in Folk Club got older,” said Vars. With a lack of new members, the club found itself cycling through the same tight group for leadership positions. 

Leonora Kerr began the Folk Club in 1908 for women affiliated with the university.

At the club’s final meeting, close friendships were evident. “Whenever people sent in their dues, they sent me cards, or little notes, and just little hellos,” said club treasurer Elizabeth Spatafora. “It made me feel so connected to everyone — some of you are my very best friends now.”

Though the club may be gone, the thrift shop’s familiar orange-and-black storefront is not. It’s now called the Corvallis Community Thrift Shop, and its volunteer staff — including many former Folk Club members — will continue providing financial support to students and community members.

And the history of the Folk Club will live on, thanks to OSU’s Special Collections and Archives and the diligent recordkeeping of members. As Vars said: “I hope someday someone’s going to come and do a project on women’s organizations at the university, and find this wonderful wealth of information.”

For the past 10 years, the Beaver Caucus has helped Oregon State University supporters make their voices heard in the halls of government. What began as an effort to organize OSU’s influence in state policymaking has grown into a coalition that includes students, employees, alumni, donors and experts in the legislative process — all focused on advancing OSU’s priorities through coordinated advocacy.

When the Beaver Caucus launched in 2015, the university had no centralized system for mobilizing supporters. “We have always had good people rooting for us,” said Jill Eiland, ’73, vice president of the Beaver Caucus Board. “But we didn’t have an organized, orchestrated plan with messages people could help us deliver.” The Caucus was created in response to that need.  It serves to coordinate strategies and train volunteers to communicate effectively with elected leaders.

Caucus leaders point to a number of high-profile outcomes as evidence of the group’s impact. One is the Patricia Valian Reser Center for the Creative Arts, OSU’s new performing and visual arts center in Corvallis. Alumna Patricia Valian Reser, ’60, ’19 (Hon. Ph.D.), kicked off the construction project with a key $25 million gift. The Caucus used that momentum to launch a campaign for state funding. OSU students, employees and leaders spoke with decision-makers about the benefits an arts center would bring to the region. Legislators also heard from K-12 teachers in their districts about what the center would mean for arts education. In the end, the state provided $38 million to complete the project. 

“We’re effective because we’re all in the same boat, rowing together,” said Tony Williams, ’87, a professional advocate and Beaver Caucus board member. He said that once OSU’s leadership identifies priorities, the Caucus creates a unified approach for talking with legislators and activates its grassroots network of advocates.

In other sessions, Caucus advocates helped guarantee funds for capital projects including the Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex and the OSU-Cascades Student Success Center. The group has also continued to advocate for increased public university funding and expanded tuition assistance for Oregon students.

We’re effective because we’re all in the same boat, rowing together.

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Such victories are never guaranteed. Oregon trails many other states in public university funding — ranking 46th nationally in 2024 according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association — and federal funding for research has grown increasingly uncertain. In response to these pressures, the Caucus has diversified its focus, advocating for OSU interests at both local and federal levels.

For current board member and former state representative Greg Macpherson, one moment illustrates the Beaver Caucus’ power. After all but two member universities abandoned the Pac-12, OSU’s media rights revenue was expected to drop 44%, putting student-athletes’ scholarships at risk. The organization urged supporters to attend a pivotal legislative session sporting Beaver gear. Participants were already invested. They just needed to know what to do.

“We had that room nearly filled with people wearing orange,” said Macpherson. Lawmakers ultimately approved $10 million in state funding to fill the gap.

Learn more about the Beaver Caucus.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story stated that Oregon ranked 36th for public university funding. That ranking was for the state’s total public investment in higher education and included community college funding. For public university funding alone, actually Oregon ranks 46th in the nation.

We know Oregon State is special. You know it, too. But how do you translate that pride to your social feed? We asked alumni who work in social media and marketing to share simple, effective ways to amplify OSU online. A single post may seem small, but shared widely, it can create momentum — sending ripples outward and elevating Oregon State’s presence in ways that add up. Here are five tips.

1. Share real moments — not perfect ones.

The highly staged Instagram posts of yesteryear have given way to something more genuine. That’s good news for Beavs. “Candid photos, throwbacks, game days, campus visits or everyday OSU pride go a long way — no polished content required,” said Sara Boraston, ’15, senior director of marketing at Teladoc Health. A quick snap from Gill, Goss or your favorite campus spot can spark connection.

2. Engage, don’t just scroll.

A like is nice. A comment, reply or share is better. Social media platforms reward conversation, so interacting with OSU’s posts helps expand their reach. Leave a comment, reply to a story, add your own photo or share a post.

3. Add something personal.

If you share an OSU post on LinkedIn, Facebook or elsewhere, consider adding a sentence about why it matters to you. Mention the professor who changed your life or an experience that shaped your career. Personal context turns a repost into a story of its own.

4. Help the next generation see themselves here.

Younger audiences respond best to video-first storytelling. Whether it’s a candid reaction clip at a game or words of encouragement for new grads, your perspective helps future students and supporters imagine their own connection to OSU.

5. Offer a call to action.

“Create one simple call to action that is consistent and easy to do,” said Jonathan Riley, ’09, CEO at Better Marketing. Tag someone in a #ThrowbackThursday post. Encourage fellow Oregonians to support an important vote. Suggest that classmates join you at an alumni event. A small, clear invitation gives others a natural way to join in.