Event of the day
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2009 • PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY • VOLUME 64, ISSUE 11
Are you ready to get involved at Portland State? Want to meet new friends and have some fun? Only in it for the free food? Join Campus Rec and SALP—along with a host of student-run organizations—at Party in the Park. When: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Where: South Park Blocks
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INSIDE NEWS Funding for law enforcement Oregon communities receive grants for additional police officers PAGE 2 Kiwanis Capstone receives award Community service is a continued tradition PAGE 3
Arts
Hail
to the chief
New chief of staff says Portland State poised for leaps and bounds
Liana Shewey/Portland State Vanguard
Lois Davis
some additional responsibilities ranging from government relations to student advising and cooperation.
Lindsay Bing
Dirty, filthy swine Local bands meet beer, skate ramps and bacon PAGE 4
Losing consciousness FlashForward presents a new take on televised metaphysical inquiries PAGE 5
Vanguard staff
The job
Portland State welcomed Lois Lindsay Davis as the new chief of staff at the president’s office on Aug. 2. Davis joined the Office of the President after serving Oregon Health and Science University for over 23 years. Davis takes on the new position with nearly 30 years of experience in public affairs, press and government relations at both OHSU and in Washington, D.C., for then-U.S. Rep. Ron Wyden. Davis’ position as chief of staff essentially replaces the special assistant to the president position, formerly held by Roderic Dimand, who is retiring. The new position also takes on
The new post has three main functions, Davis explained, including project initiatives, stakeholder consulting and prioritizing for President Wim Wiewel.
1. Project initiatives “First, [my job is] to make sure the multiplicity of projects the president has initiated are actually getting done,” Davis said. The projects, she said, range from P-20—the education program focused on student success from pre-kindergarten to postgraduate education—to increasing Portland
State’s presence in the Middle East. The list is long, Davis said, and she will gauge her success by the progress of these projects. “I will feel I have done my job if the president’s priorities for projects, such as P-20 and sustainability partnerships … advance by the end of the year,” she said.
2. Stakeholder consulting Davis said the second aspect of her job is contacting the organizations or individuals involved in the projects and discussing the different aspects of the initiatives. She explained that the various projects have both internal and external stakeholders—or members of both the Portland State community and the community at large—deeply involved or affected.
In the case of P-20, this includes students, teachers, parents and community members, as well as advisors and outreach leaders within Portland State. In other circumstances, she said, it is “making sure that if there are people [Wiewel] hasn’t had the opportunity to meet yet in the community, that he gets to do that.”
3. Prioritizing for the president Her third focus as chief of staff, Davis said, is helping President Wiewel prioritize his time. “It’s to make sure the president’s time is being used strategically,” she said. President Wiewel, as both a relatively new president and the leader
DAVIS continued on page two
SFC deemed legitimate
Soul food The Damon Castillo Band talks the talk PAGE 8
SFC met quorum during summer months despite possible legal snag Virginia Vickery
Sports
Vanguard staff
Run Viks, run Vikings head out to meet the call PAGE 6
Rodrigo Melgarejo/Portland State Vanguard
SFC summer work saved: Ozimkowski and members don’t need full-time status in summer.
The Student Fee Committee spent the summer training and planning and feels ready for the coming year, said SFC Chair Johnnie Ozimkowski. “Every group of people goes through an evolution to be productive and efficient. This summer helped us hash out who brings what to the table,” Ozimkowski said. His assessment came at the end of a summer in which the SFC faced the possibility of not being able to conduct official business because of the enrollment status of some of its members. According to an Oregon Administrative Rule requiring all members remain at at least half-time status, the committee would not have been able to reach quorum. With only one committee member enrolled in summer classes, the SFC would not have had the minimum number of
members needed to function. However, Portland State Legal Council worked with the Chancellor’s Office and other Oregon University System institutions to reach an understanding on the issue, said Student Activities and Leadership Assistant Director, Domanic Thomas. The SFC was able to meet officially because the rule regarding enrollment was interpreted to apply only to the traditional school year, which does not include summer term. “It was really a small issue to work out,” Ozimkowski said. “We just didn’t want to do anything that would call the committee’s legitimacy into question.” He said that the summer was valuable time that the SFC used to determine its identity and to prepare members for the budgeting process, which begins this fall with student groups and departments submitting information regarding budget overages. “Our theme this year is stewardship,” Ozimkowski said. “What we really have to focus on is public service—how would every student want their money best spent?”