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College of Law Hosts Public Forum on Vaccines
Capitol Connections What do lobbyists, Supreme Court justices and Willamette students have in common? Turns out, quite a lot. On April 2, more than 100 students and alumni gathered at the Oregon State Capitol for the first Capitol Connections networking reception. Organized by the Willamette University Alumni Association, the successful event celebrated Willamette’s longstanding relationship with the Capitol and also enabled students to learn from alumni who’ve dedicated their careers to public service. “Time with state leaders and elected officials is valuable because it’s scarce,” said Timothy Sekerak ’87, chief clerk for the Oregon House of Representatives. “In the future, you want to be able to say, ‘You might not remember me but I met you.’” Other speakers at the event
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were Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson ’68, state Rep. Tobias Read ’97, lobbyist Cindy Robert ’90, Oregon Supreme Court Justice Virginia Linder JD’80 and politics professor David Gutterman. They agreed Willamette students perform invaluable work through internships at the Capitol — with duties ranging from issuing briefs to organizing House and Senate bills. “They have significant responsibilities that allow them to develop their skills and envision themselves as public servants,” Gutterman said.
To vaccinate or not to vaccinate? These once-routine childhood events now invite public scrutiny and heated debate. Convinced that the procedures are connected to the rise in serious health conditions like autism and autoimmune disorders, more and more parents choose not to immunize their children against potentially deadly diseases such as measles, whooping cough and diphtheria. Yet, their actions could put other youngsters and vulnerable adults at risk of contracting the contagious diseases. To foster debate and understanding on this divisive topic, the College of Law hosted a panel discussion about vaccines in April. About 100 members of the public attended to hear from four panelists: Steve Green, a Willamette University law professor; Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, a family physician and sponsor of two Oregon bills related to vaccine exemptions; Bob Reinhardt ’00, executive director of the Willamette Heritage Center and author of a book on the eradication of smallpox; and Dr. Jay Rosenbloom, a pediatrician and medical director of Children’s Health Foundation. During the moderated discussion and the following question-and-answer session, the panelists touched on political, medical and cultural topics such as individual versus community rights and media coverage of complex health and science stories. All four stressed that people need to educate themselves about this critical public health issue. “There’s more heat than light in discussions about this,” Green said. “The rhetoric used is cast in absolutes, and there are no absolute rights. These are difficult questions that need nuanced understanding.” For more insights into this important topic, read Reinhardt’s In My Humble Opinion article on page 56.
Willamette’s Renewed Website Launches This Summer A year ago Willamette embarked on an important priority — renewing the university’s website to better tell the institution’s story to its many audiences. The new site incorporates a stronger institutional identity, is designed in a responsive manner for mobile devices and includes new multimedia tools for storytelling. The new design and content plan is a result of feedback from our community, including students, alumni, faculty and staff. Check out samples of the redesign at willamette.edu/ go/websiterenewal and look for the site to go live later this summer.