PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY'S
INDEX
2011 CAREER FAIR MAPS
NEWS OPINION ARTS SPORTS
CAREER FAIR: PAGE 9
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 15TH, 2011
VOL. 65 NO. 38
PSUVANGUARD.COM
Confucius Institute brings Chinese language teachers to Ore. China’s economic growth creates language demand Katrina Petrovich Vanguard staff
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SARIA DY/VANGUARD STAFF
Growing demand: Stephen Wagley, a professor of Chinese language at PSU, said that more Chinese language teachers are needed in Oregon. There are currently only 17 certified teachers in the state.
ortland State’s Confucius Institute is responsible for training prospective Chinese language teachers and aiding Chinese instructors in the Portland Public Schools (PPS) system, including its Chinese Flagship Program. The Confucius Institute is part of PSU’s Office of International Affairs and Department of Asian Studies. According to its director, Meiru Liu, the institute offers a teacher training program that helps to meet the growing demand for Chinese language teachers in Oregon. Liu said the main mission of the training program is to educate and support Oregon’s K–12 Chinese language teachers. The institute’s teacher training program not only brings native speakers directly from China to aid Oregon instructors, but also sends prospective American teachers to PSU’s sister school, Soochow University, in Soochow, China for intensive language training. According to Liu, those completing the program can earn graduate credits through the Graduate School of Education at PSU. These credits can be used to acquire a Chinese language-teaching license, an accreditation that is required by the Oregon Teacher
ASPSU launches restructuring campaign Members hope to raise student awareness of higher education reform Jesse Hansen Vanguard staff
With the high attendance at last Tuesday’s forum on higher education reform, it’s clear that restructuring has gained momentum among universities in the Oregon University System. In order to raise student awareness, ASPSU is planning to launch a grassroots campaign across Portland State’s campus. ASPSU ON PAGE 3
Egyptian international students speak at panel discussion Students discuss their reaction to resignation of Mubarak, as well as future of Egypt Corie Charnley Vanguard staff
Egyptian international students at Portland State had a reason to celebrate this weekend. President Hosni Mubarak stepped down on Friday after facing two and a half weeks of antigovernment protests. To celebrate this historic occasion, four students from the American University of Cairo studying abroad at PSU participated in a panel discussion about what the change in regime means to them.
CONFUCIUS ON PAGE 3 EGYPT ON PAGE 3
Many businesses to attend Career Information Day Career fair expected to be successful despite current economic climate Solomon Hanson Vanguard staff
Representatives from local, regional and national businesses will be at Portland State’s annual Career Information Day tomorrow to answer questions regarding potential careers in their respective fields. Businesses will represent various occupational areas, including banking, retail, insurance, education and government. This year is unique in that Career Information Day, sponsored by the Career Center, will be held separately from the Engineering and Technology Job Fair. This is largely a result of the employer and student response to last year’s career fair. Of the attending businesses in 2010, almost onethird was engineering- and technology-related. Gregory Flores, interim director for the PSU Career Center, said that employers and students alike wanted a more focused engineering
and technology-related fair, as well as an allmajor fair. This fair will take place today from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Smith Memorial Student Union Ballroom. This year’s response does seem to differ from previous years. Employer attendance to the fair had been steadily declining since 2008. According to Flores, the fair usually draws between 70 and 80 businesses, but businesses attending last year’s fair totaled only 62, the fewest in the fair’s history. In 2009, 72 were in attendance, while there were 82 in 2008. This year, however, over 120 businesses will be in attendance between the two fairs. “The exciting part for us is [this] employer response to the new fair,” Flores said. Despite lower numbers the last couple of years, Flores said that “employers are…pretty satisfied with the quality of the students.” Melissa Mackie, college relations lead for Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield—an attending business for the last couple of years—agreed. “I remember meeting a lot of quality students,” she said.
Mark Sytsma hired by the Office of Research and Strategic Planning Former CLAS associate dean is responsible for coordinating research projects Ryan Deming Vanguard staff
Mackie has been similarly impressed with the students attending the PSU business fairs over the past four years. She will be present again this year as a representative for Regence.
After 17 years with Portland State, Mark Sytsma was recently hired as the associate vice president in the Office of Research and Strategic Partnerships (ORSP). According to John Fink, the vice president of the ORSP, the main function that the office serves is to help “faculty members find and manage grant money that allows them and their students to engage in research and other creative activities.” Fink said that the grants it receives often come from large federal agencies like the National Science Foundation or the U.S. Department of Transportation. One of the most important things that the ORSP does is prioritize which
CAREER ON PAGE 7
SYTSMA ON PAGE 3
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Bringing careers to students: Terri Bennett is coordinating the Career Information Day.