News
(Portland, Ore.) July 21, 2010 - Portland State University (PSU) is proud to announce the appointment of
Jilma Meneses (HEEL-ma ME-ne-sis) as the new chief diversity officer (CDO) at PSU. This is a new position
created to build a more inclusive, diverse community at PSU.
"Diversity is a fundamental component of the university's identity," said Meneses. "It must be part of our
goals, performance reviews, course work, and behavior. In order to make it part of our campus culture, we
must also recruit, retain, and develop high-performing faculty, staff, and students from diverse backgrounds. I
look forward to leading PSU in these efforts."
The CDO will support a wide range of diversity-related programs at PSU, including the Office of Diversity
and Equity (ODE); the Office of Affirmative Action, and work in partnership with the Office of the Ombuds
and dozens of student groups. Off-campus, Meneses plans to engage the regional community and increase
awareness within underrepresented populations that higher education is a tool that breaks cycles of both
poverty and discrimination. Her first day is September 1, 2010.
"We created this new position," said Wim Wiewel, president of PSU, "because as a society and as an
institution we all still have much to learn about how we practice and live diversity. Through her professional as
well as her personal experiences, Jilma can lead us in this shared learning process and I am thrilled about her
joining our leadership team."
Meneses has over eighteen years of administrative and business experience, including ten years at Oregon
Health & Science University (OHSU). She currently serves as director of risk management at OHSU and was
previously the director of Affirmative Action & Equal Opportunity (AAEO). Prior to OHSU, she served as
civil rights director at TriMet. She is the founder and current chief executive officer of Our Family Adoptions
(OFA), a humanitarian aid organization providing resources to orphans in the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) and the first in the United States to partner with the DRC to process adoptions of Congolese
orphans by United States citizens. She received her Juris Doctor from Lewis & Clark Law School.
Meneses and her family live in Camas, WA.
About Portland State University
Portland State University (PSU) serves as a center of opportunity for over 28,000 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 49-acre downtown campus
exhibits Portland State's commitment to sustainability with green buildings, while many of the 125 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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