News
Portland State Graduates Largest Class
Nearly 1,700 of this year’s 4,600 new graduates were on hand at the Rose Garden Arena today to receive degrees at Portland State University’s spring commencement ceremonies while another 12,000 friends and families cheered them on.
The University, founded as Vanport Extension Center in 1946, did not award its first degrees until 1956. This year’s graduating class reflects the 12th-consecutive increase in degrees conferred by Portland State, now in its 61st year.
PSU President Daniel O. Bernstine reflected on his tenure at the University and remarked that both he and the students can take what they learned from PSU and apply it elsewhere. “As we leave PSU to embark on new adventures, I hope that you have developed strong values of civic engagement, critical thinking, and tolerance. I believe that one of the greatest gifts we can obtain through higher education is the knowledge that education and open dialogue builds bridges; that we can disagree on fundamental issues such as faith and politics, yet still respect and value differences of opinion and belief systems.”
Former Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts delivered the keynote commencement address after receiving an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. In her speech, Gov. Roberts encouraged the graduates to have personal courage and to speak out for what they believe. “Today I encourage you; I urge you; I even beg you to be ready and willing to stand up, speak out, take a risk to create a community, a state, a nation, a world that is more humane, more safe, more open, more inclusive, more honest. Don’t be afraid to rock the boat a little. Don’t fear to color outside the lines when necessary. Have the courage to stand alone….As I said in my inaugural address as Governor, ‘Each generation has but one chance to be judged by future generations, and this is your time.’”
Student speakers included Nick Walden Poublon (B.A., History) and Holly Roose (B.A., Black Studies and English).
Portland State will award a total of 4,670 degrees for the 2006–07 academic year, including 3,050 bachelor’s degrees, 1,580 master’s degrees and 40 doctoral degrees.
The program was broadcast live on Oregon Public Broadcasting television, and hosted by Stephanie Stricklen and Russ Lewis, newscasters from KGW 8 (NBC). A commemorative DVD of the ceremony will be available to graduates, families and friends, containing footage of the entire ceremony as well as each student receiving a diploma. (DVD copies are shipped three weeks after the ceremony; for ordering information, visit www.pdx.edu/commencement/keepsakes.html).
Highlights of the Class of 2007
The 2007 graduating class joins 110,000 Portland State University alumni, over 72,000 of whom live in the Portland metro region. This year’s graduates represent 145 towns and cities in Oregon, 46 states, Guam and the District of Columbia throughout the U.S., and 50 countries from around the world. The youngest graduate is 19, and the oldest is 77. Women represent 58 percent of this year’s grads. The top undergraduate majors are Business, Social Science, Arts and Letters, Psychology, English and Communication Studies.
About Portland State University
Portland State University (PSU) serves as a center of opportunity for over 25,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Located in Portland, Oregon, one of the nation’s most livable cities, the University’s innovative approach to education combines academic rigor in the classroom with field-based experiences through internships and classroom projects with community partners. The University’s 47-acre downtown campus exhibits Portland State’s commitment to sustainability with green buildings, while many of the 120 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees incorporate sustainability into the curriculum. PSU’s motto, “Let Knowledge Serve the City,” inspires the teaching and research of an accomplished faculty whose work and students span the globe.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (#07-082)
Source: Office of Commencement
Portland State University
The University, founded as Vanport Extension Center in 1946, did not award its first degrees until 1956. This year’s graduating class reflects the 12th-consecutive increase in degrees conferred by Portland State, now in its 61st year.
PSU President Daniel O. Bernstine reflected on his tenure at the University and remarked that both he and the students can take what they learned from PSU and apply it elsewhere. “As we leave PSU to embark on new adventures, I hope that you have developed strong values of civic engagement, critical thinking, and tolerance. I believe that one of the greatest gifts we can obtain through higher education is the knowledge that education and open dialogue builds bridges; that we can disagree on fundamental issues such as faith and politics, yet still respect and value differences of opinion and belief systems.”
Former Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts delivered the keynote commencement address after receiving an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters. In her speech, Gov. Roberts encouraged the graduates to have personal courage and to speak out for what they believe. “Today I encourage you; I urge you; I even beg you to be ready and willing to stand up, speak out, take a risk to create a community, a state, a nation, a world that is more humane, more safe, more open, more inclusive, more honest. Don’t be afraid to rock the boat a little. Don’t fear to color outside the lines when necessary. Have the courage to stand alone….As I said in my inaugural address as Governor, ‘Each generation has but one chance to be judged by future generations, and this is your time.’”
Student speakers included Nick Walden Poublon (B.A., History) and Holly Roose (B.A., Black Studies and English).
Portland State will award a total of 4,670 degrees for the 2006–07 academic year, including 3,050 bachelor’s degrees, 1,580 master’s degrees and 40 doctoral degrees.
The program was broadcast live on Oregon Public Broadcasting television, and hosted by Stephanie Stricklen and Russ Lewis, newscasters from KGW 8 (NBC). A commemorative DVD of the ceremony will be available to graduates, families and friends, containing footage of the entire ceremony as well as each student receiving a diploma. (DVD copies are shipped three weeks after the ceremony; for ordering information, visit www.pdx.edu/commencement/keepsakes.html).
Highlights of the Class of 2007
The 2007 graduating class joins 110,000 Portland State University alumni, over 72,000 of whom live in the Portland metro region. This year’s graduates represent 145 towns and cities in Oregon, 46 states, Guam and the District of Columbia throughout the U.S., and 50 countries from around the world. The youngest graduate is 19, and the oldest is 77. Women represent 58 percent of this year’s grads. The top undergraduate majors are Business, Social Science, Arts and Letters, Psychology, English and Communication Studies.
About Portland State University
Portland State University (PSU) serves as a center of opportunity for over 25,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Located in Portland, Oregon, one of the nation’s most livable cities, the University’s innovative approach to education combines academic rigor in the classroom with field-based experiences through internships and classroom projects with community partners. The University’s 47-acre downtown campus exhibits Portland State’s commitment to sustainability with green buildings, while many of the 120 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees incorporate sustainability into the curriculum. PSU’s motto, “Let Knowledge Serve the City,” inspires the teaching and research of an accomplished faculty whose work and students span the globe.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (#07-082)
Source: Office of Commencement
Portland State University
