Campus Briefs

BOB KERNS

(Re)introducing Acting President/Provost Herbert A. Medina

WHAT CAN WE tell you that you don’t already know about Acting President/Provost Herbert A. Medina? If you’ve been reading our pages, you know that he’s had a busy few years on The Bluff. He came here three years ago as the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and as a math professor. When he earned the provost position last year, we wrote about his academic goals for the school (including a new core curriculum), and about his “trek record” of walking the spiritual pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela 12 times. You also know, from an inspired reflection he wrote for the Summer 2019 issue of Portland magazine, that he sees in mathematics not only a language of nature, but also a universal language of God. He is originally from El Salvador and is a first-generation college graduate. He believes wholeheartedly in the value and impact of education on an individual’s life and on an entire family line, and he fully believes in the Holy Cross mission of University of Portland.

Unless you saw him in action during the hustle and bustle of move-in/orientation week, you might not know that he was there—seemingly everywhere!—welcoming students and their parents from all over the world. He even had the opportunity to speak in his beloved first language to parents from El Salvador, Guatemala, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, and Mexico.

A shared language builds kinship, as does presence. Medina understands this. When asked why he felt it was important to be present to parents, he said he wanted to convey the following message: “You’re trusting us with your greatest treasure. You’re part of the family now. We’re always here for you.”

Part of his not-small job this year is to get the gears moving on the University’s next strategic plan, to move steadily forward on the new core curriculum, and to keep the momentum going on the University’s diversity, equity, and inclusion goals. He is also aware that he is guiding the University through a transition, not only in terms of leadership, but also in terms of moving from an online-learning pandemic year to an in-person pandemic year.

While he’s not teaching a math class right now, he still wants to show up for students. An example: he recently spoke on the FirstGen Podcast and offered some sound advice. As a first-generation college student himself, he believes in the importance of UP’s FirstGen programming and knows that many of the students who are the first in their families to attend college look up to him.

Also, in late October, Medina is meeting up with the student ambassadors of UP’s FirstGen program for a fun bowling match. But we’d like to give the students a little heads-up. Of all the things you know about Acting President/Provost Herbert Medina, you may not know this: He has competed in bowling leagues and averages 180! The event will be friendly, of course, but the competition may be stiff. Students, you’ve been warned!

Coming Up

THIS YEAR’S SCHOENFELDT Distinguished Visiting Writers Series will feature a conversation with author and speaker Mitchell S. Jackson.

Born and raised in Northeast Portland, Jackson is the 2021 Pulitzer Prize winner in Feature Writing and also won the 2021 National Magazine Award in Feature Writing. His debut novel, The Residue Years, won a Whiting Award and The Ernest J. Gaines Prize for Literary Excellence. Jackson has been featured in publications such as The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Paris Review, and his writing has also been featured on This American Life, among many other places. His memoir Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family, published in 2019, was named one of the best books of the year by NPR, Time Magazine, and The Paris Review, among many others. Jackson works as a columnist for Esquire. His upcoming novel, John of Watts, is currently in production.

Schoenfeldt Distinguished Visiting Writers Series will host a lecture with Jackson on November 10 at 7:30 p.m.

HEAR THE TALK

Join in-person at the Buckley Center Auditorium or online. To access required registration information, go to: up.edu/schoenfeldtwriters/upcoming-speakers.html

JOHN RICARD

ADAM GUGGENHEIM

Christine Sinclair Was Here

When you get word that UP alum, Portland Thorns captain, and the world’s all-time leading international scorer is going to be on campus for a commercial photoshoot, well, you find a way for your in-house photographer to be there too. Welcome back to The Bluff, Christine.