Today in the News Media

Today in the News Media is a synopsis of some of the most prominent coverage of OSU people and programs. Inclusion of any item constitutes neither an endorsement nor a critique, but rather is intended only to make the OSU community aware of significant items in the media.
 

No AI in humor; R2-D2 walks into a bar, doesn't get the joke(Washington Post)

Oregon State University computer scientist Heather Knight created the comedy-performing robot Ginger to help her design machines that better interact with — and especially respond to — humans. She said it turns out people most appreciate a robot’s self-effacing humor.
 

Trade wars on the home front (Business Tribune)

The tit-for-tat trade war being waged by the Trump administration has drawn critics from business and economists. While the impact in the Pacific Northwest is felt in pockets of the economy, overall, it has not been severe, say experts, including several at Oregon State University. (NOTE: This article is subscription only)
 

Microbes that live in fishes' slimy mucus coating could lead chemists to new antibiotic drugs (The Telegraph)

In my lab at Oregon State University, we’ve been working to identify the next generation of antibiotics from the microbes associated with animals. Our current efforts focus on the most diverse group of vertebrates, marine and freshwater fishes. (see also The GuardianSan Francisco ChronicleBBC News)
 

Geologists take on mysteries of volcanoes in Cascades range(Columbian)

Till and Adam Kent, a geology professor at Oregon State University, were teaching a class on subduction zones at University of California, Berkeley. Over those few weeks they started work on researching what creates those differences, and brought on other scientists as the project grew.
 

Science has to do better for its queer, trans and non-binary students (Massive Science)

I came out as nonbinary in the second year of my Ph.D. program at Oregon State University, and began using they/them pronouns in professional settings. Despite the fact that, at face value, I “fit in” as part of the small university town with mostly white, middle class, progressive and highly educated citizens, I still felt isolated.
 

OSU-Cascades hospitality management courses go online (Bend Bulletin)

Oregon State University-Cascades’ hospitality management program is the only one of its kind in Oregon, and has doubled in enrollment each year since the campus’ opening in 2015. Now, the university is rolling out some of the courses in the program to online students.
 

6 questions about the latest failed Brexit vote and why it matters (FOX San Antonio)

“The EU has made it very clear that the Withdrawal Agreement that was just voted down for the third time is the only deal on offer for the U.K ... ,” said Alison Johnston, an expert on EU politics at Oregon State University. “So, if the U.K. wants to avoid a no-deal, they are going to have to demonstrate some major political/policy shifts.”
 

Tales from the Trailer Park: An inside look at mobile home communities (WNPR)

Featuring Katherine MacTavish, director of Equity, Inclusion and Diversity Initiatives as well as associate professor at the College of Public Health and Human Sciences, Oregon State University; co-author of Singlewide: Chasing the American Dream in a Rural Trailer Park 
 

Climate change threatens Great Basin waterbirds (Nevada Independent)

Susan Haig, the lead author, an emerita scientist at the U.S. Geological Survey and an Oregon State University professor, said “birds are like the canary in the mine” for the health of water.
 

Science Pub Corvallis to ponder climate change, migration(Gazette-Times)

David Wrathall, an assistant professor in Oregon State University’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, will talk about how climate change affects human migration Monday, April 8, at Science Pub Corvallis.
 

Time left to plant trees in southern Willamette Valley before spring bloom (Register-Guard)

“We are at the tail end of planting season,” said Lauren Grand, forester with the Oregon State University Extension Service in Lane County. ”... In western Oregon, plant trees between November and April. This gives trees a better fighting chance. You want to plant trees before they bud out and start pulling resources from their roots. This decreases the stress they experience from being planted.”
 

Novelist Whitehead to read April 1 at OSU (Gazette-Times)

American novelist and Pulitzer Prize-winner Colson Whitehead will visit Oregon State University April 1 to accept the 2019 Stone Award for Literary Achievement and read from his work.
 

At-risk animals: Exhibit designed to raise awareness (The News Guard)

An exhibit at the public education wing of the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport uses ceramic art to raise awareness about 28 threatened or endangered species in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to Oregon Sea Grant, other collaborators on the project included Oregon State University, NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center, the headquarters for NOAA's Pacific fleet, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Newport. (See also: Oregon Coast Daily News and Newport News Times)
 

Helping the Vulnerable and the Marginalized (Terra Magazine)

When the mysterious illness HIV first emerged as a public health threat, scientists and health officials knew they had work to do. Researchers in Oregon State’s College of Public Health and Human Sciences have established a Sexual and Reproductive Health Equity Consortium to continue the mission.
 

OSU board to set tuition rates in meeting next week (Democrat-Herald)

The Oregon State University Board of Trustees will meet on the Corvallis campus next week to set tuition rates, consider capital projects and handle other business.
 

Not your typical Spring Breakers (Mail Tribune)

The two juniors at Southern Oregon University, along with the nine peers they led on a service trip to Phoenix, Arizona, painted, weeded and cleaned out houses and properties owned by a local transitional housing organization called House of Refuge.
 

Today's photo


Spring pageant: Female students participating on the OAC Spring Pageant circa 1920. The Spring Pageant, normally held in conjunction with May Day, incorporated skits and creative dance in celebration of the onset of Spring.

Today

National Public Health Week is April 1-7: The College of Public Health and Human Sciences is hosting several free events to highlight topics important to improving health and well-being. Join us.

NEW! Campus presentations for candidates of Assistant Director, Faculty and Scholar Services position within the Office of International Services: The topic is "Extraordinary Aliens, Outstanding Researchers, National Interest Waivers … ." Immigration can seem confusing and “illogical." Candidates will try to provide some logic to the “illogical” and some strategies for developing sound institutional policies, standards and best practices that support international scholars and faculty hiring. Presentation times: Candidate 1, Monday April 1, 11 a.m. to noon, Hallie Ford Center Room 115. Candidate 2, Wednesday, April 3, 11 a.m. to noon. Hallie Ford Center Room 115.

TODAY! Stone Lecture with Colson Whitehead: OSU will host the Stone Award for Literary Achievement lecture with Colson Whitehead at the LaSells Stewart Center, Austin Auditorium, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are free, but required. Colson Whitehead is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of "The Underground Railroad" (an Oprah’s Book Club selection and winner of the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize), "The Noble Hustle," "Zone One," "Sag Harbor," "The Intuitionist," "John Henry Days," "Apex Hides the Hurt" and one collection of essays, "The Colossus of New York."

Events

Architecture Around Us: City and Country Life Art Exhibit: The Giustina Gallery at The LaSells Stewart Center presents an art exhibit titled “Architecture Around Us: City and Country Life.” This exhibit features architecture that evokes the essence of our cities, towns and country living. The Exhibit runs April 1-30, and the opening reception is April 5 from 6 to 8 p.m. Free and open to the public.

Board of Trustees: The OSU Board of Trustees will meet from 9:15 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Friday, April 5, in the Horizon Room of the Memorial Union, 2501 SW Jefferson Way in Corvallis. The board will consider tuition rates, mandatory fees and student incidental fees for the 2019-20 academic year and summer session 2019. The board also will consider approval of the Merryfield Hall capital project on OSU’s Corvallis campus and proposed amendments to the board officers policy and will hear a legislative update. Other committees of the board will meet from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, April 4, in the Horizon Room of the Memorial Union. The agendas and meeting materials will be posted as they are available at http://oregonstate.edu/leadership/trustees/meetings. For accommodations: 541-737-3449 or [email protected] at least 48 hours in advance.

Beaver Career Connections: The OSU Alumni Association is launching Beaver Career Connections Meetups on April 11 in participating cities (Bend, Corvallis, Portland, Seattle, Salem and Vancouver). OSU Alumni Career Ambassadors will host the meetups in their respective hometowns on April 11.  Alumni Career Ambassadors are OSU trained volunteers invested in the career growth and development of alumni and students. Registration and more information about the meetups happening in your hometown http://osualum.com/careermeetup.

Out of the Darkness Campus Walk to Prevent Suicide: CAPS is coordinating the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Out of the Darkness Campus Walk for OSU. Save the date: Saturday, April 27, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., SEC Plaza. This will be the first campus walk in the state of Oregon. The goals of the event are to reduce stigma, educate about resources, support loss survivors and raise money for national and local suicide prevention. Consider joining as either a virtual or “IRL” (in real life) walker by visiting http://bit.ly/OSUoutofthedarkness If you would like more information, contact Tess Webster-Henry: [email protected]. Consider registering as a team captain and recruiting members of your department to participate.

Lectures, Workshops, Webinars

NEW! Duo Signup Event: The Duo team will have walk-up events for employees to sign up for Duo, get questions answered, and obtain a token if needed. This is a drop-in event, no registration needed. Signup takes less than 5 minutes.  Our next event is Tuesday, April 2 ,from 9 a.m. to noon at the Agricultural Life Sciences Building, Room 1019. For more information about Duo, see https://is.oregonstate.edu/duo

NEW! Accreditation Information Forum for Faculty, Classified Staff and Students: Plan to attend a short forum Tuesday, April 2, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in MU Multipurpose Room 13 (and streamed for people wanting to attend remotely). Learn about the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities accreditation process and how members of the campus community can participate during the site visit April 15-17. Click Here to Register. Snacks and beverages served.

NEW! Bioinformatics Users Group (BUG): “CERENKOV2: Computational Elucidation of the Regulatory Noncoding Variome, i.e., a machine learning approach to detect the probably most expensive typos in human DNA” Yao Yao (Stephen Ramsey Lab), Wednesday, April 3, at noon in ALS 3006. BUG consists of life scientists, bioinformaticians, computer scientists, mathematicians, engineers, statisticians, and researchers of all types who meet to discuss topics related to these fields of study. Meetings are generally informal, consisting of discussions, interactive talks, or short workshops. All are welcome. No experience needed to participate. For additional information, see https://cgrb.oregonstate.edu/bug

NEW! Center for Genome Research and Biocomputing Seminar (CGRB): Chris Marx, University of Idaho, will present a seminar “Phenotypic heterogeneity between genetically identical cells permits growth with lethal levels of formaldehyde stress” on April 3 at 3 p.m. in the Agricultural & Life Sciences Bldg (ALS) 4001. There will be a short reception following the seminar (refreshments served).

NEW! Sex tips and banana splits: In honor of National Public Health Week, the OSU Student Public Health Association is hosting "Sex tips and banana splits" with Instructor Dan Dowhower, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 3 in Waldo 400.

NEW! TRIAD: Mike Waters, director of health promotion at Fitness Over Fifty, will present “Health for the 3rd Age” on Thursday, April 4, noon-1 p.m. in MU 211. TRIAD gatherings provides faculty, staff, students and community members with an opportunity to network, discuss current events, and learn something new (see triad.oregonstate.edu for details). All are invited to attend free of charge.  An optional catered lunch is available for $13.  Contact Kathy DeBellis, [email protected] to reserve a lunch.

NEW! WRGP Water Resources Science Spring Seminar Series: Julia Jones of the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences will present “Forests and Water in Chile: Commonalities and Contrasts with the Pacific Northwest” on Wednesday, April 3, from 4 to 5 p.m. in BEXL 328. Free and open to the public.

Social justice education: The Social Justice Education Initiative from Faculty Affairs is a foundational professional development program for all faculty, staff and graduate students. SJEI offers a varied schedule of Tier One and Tier Two workshops, all open now for registration. Join your colleagues to begin, or expand, your equity and inclusion journey in this well-reviewed program. Interested in this work for your unit? Contact SJEI Director Jane Waite for further information: [email protected]

Take Note

NEW! Updates to University Policies & Standards: Visit the University Policy & Standards page (http://policy.oregonstate.edu/whats-new) to learn about recent and pending policy amendments. The What’s New page is updated frequently with new developments so we encourage you to check back regularly.

NEW! Bike to campus and win prizes!  ZAP Oregon State is a free bike commute rewards program for OSU students and employees. Track your bike trips to OSU automatically by riding past ZAP stations located on the Corvallis campus. Challenge yourself, compete with your friends and coworkers, and win prizes. Bring your bike to Transportation Services in Adams Hall or the bike shop at Dixon to get started. Visitzap.oregonstate.edu for more information.

NEW! Term-Long Laptops at the Valley Library: The Valley Library has 39 Dell laptops available for long-term borrowing. These laptops are term-long substitutes for students without computers. For more information or to fill out the application, go to bit.ly/valley-laptops. Applications are due Saturday, April 6. For further questions, email [email protected].

Mentoring and Professional Development Award: PCOSW seeks nominations for the University Mentoring and Professional Development Award. This award, presented each September at University Day, recognizes any classified, professional faculty or academic/research faculty member who excels in mentoring, supporting and encouraging OSU employees, especially women and those from under-represented groups or non-traditional careers. The deadline for nominations is May 1. To access the nomination guidelines and application link, visit http://leadership.oregonstate.edu/pcosw/awards-scholarships

Applications for PCOSW scholarships and event co-sponsorships for summer and fall term projects are now being accepted: The President’s Commission on the Status of Women provides funding to OSU community members who are pursuing professional development, research, outreach, or creative projects related to women’s issues. Scholarships average $300 and are paid by reimbursement. Applications are due Friday, May 3, with notification in Week 7. Visit http://leadership.oregonstate.edu/pcosw/awards-scholarships for detailed guidelines, qualification requirements and application links. Questions? Contact Joy Jorgensen at [email protected]

Recyclemania: We’re in the home stretch, let’s not fall behind now. You can help us compete by recycling, composting, and reducing your trash. Tips to help OSU win: recycle your end of the term papers, empty recycling from your office desk or residential hall room into central bins to make it count, and double check what is recyclable at OSU to make sure you and everyone you know is recycling everything possible, because the competition ends March 30.

Spring Family Weekend: Spring Family Weekend is taking place May 3-5, 2019. If your department or organization is planning on hosting an event and would like this information to be included in the master program please fill out this form by Friday, March 22All events that are recorded after the deadline will only be placed on the online schedule. If you have questions regarding Family Weekends, they can be directed to New Student Programs & Family Outreach or Jess Tallant, Parent and Family Programs Coordinator, at [email protected].  

OSU Homecoming Court applications: Applications for the 2019 OSU Homecoming Court are now being accepted. The Oregon State University Alumni Association is proud to sponsor the 2019 OSU Homecoming Court, which seeks to honor students who embody the spirit of a true Oregon Stater. Homecoming Court members will also receive a one-time, $500 scholarship. All full-time students with a 3.0 and above GPA can apply. Application deadline is April 7. Call 541-737- 7844 or visit https://www.osualum.com/homecomingcourt

Traffic & Maintenance 

Scheduled: Campus Wide Steam Shutdown: Each year Facilities Services performs necessary maintenance on the university’s steam system, which requires shutting off the steam throughout campus, to complete maintenance services at the plant, throughout the steam tunnels and in each building.  This process affects hot water supply, heating, and all equipment that uses steam, campus wide.  The steam shutdown for 2019 will occur from 6 p.m. on June 16 to 5 p.m. on June 20. For questions or comments on this closure contact Facilities Services at 541-737-2969.

Jobs

This email only lists new or recently updated job postings. For a full list of current job postings for OSU Today, go to: http://today.oregonstate.edu/email/jobs

To apply for the below positions, visit http://oregonstate.edu/jobs unless otherwise specified.

EXTENDED! Buyer 2: The Health Sciences Business Center (HSBC) in Corvallis invites applications for a full-time Buyer 2 (1.0 FTE). Posting #P02020CT. Job close date has been extended to April 2.

NEW! Education Program Assistant 1: This recruitment will be used to fill one part-time (approximately 19 hours per week) Education Program Assistant 1 position for the Oregon State University North Willamette Research and Extension Center (NWREC) office. This position will be located in Aurora. Posting #P02071CT. Closes April 7.

EXTENDED! Assistant Director of Instructional Design: Ecampus is seeking two Assistant Directors of Instructional Design. These are full-time (1.0 FTE), 12-month, fixed term professional faculty positions. This position is an instructional designer who works with faculty to provide instructional design services for online and hybrid courses, and who supervises one half of the instructional design team. Posting #P02810UF. Closes April 14.

NEW! Director of Research Computing: The College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences is seeking a Director of Research Computing. This is a full-time 1.00 FTE, 12-month, fixed-term professional faculty position. Posting #P02809UF. Full consideration April 14. Closes April 30. Inquiries about the position may be directed to Andreas Schmittner, 541-737-9952, [email protected].

NEW! Director of Public Safety: OSU-Cascades in Bend is seeking a Director of Public Safety. This is a full-time, 1.0 FTE, 12-month, fixed term professional faculty position. Posting #P02870UF. Closes April 16.

NEW! Office Specialist 2: Counseling and Psychological Services is seeking a full-time (1.0 FTE), 12-month Office Specialist 2. Posting #P02045CT. Closes April 18.

NEW! University Housing & Dining Services (UHDS) is seeking to fill 5 Seasonal Custodian positions with anticipated dates of employment May 28-Sept. 27, 2019. This position will be a part of the Operations & Facilities unit providing custodial services that ensure a clean, healthy and presentable environment in all UHDS facilities. Custodians are committed to the overall success and satisfaction of UHDS students, customers, clients and guests and demonstrate this commitment through the work that they perform. Posting #P02061CT. Closes April 22.

NEW! Office Specialist 1: This recruitment will be used to fill one full-time Office Specialist 1 position for the Clackamas County Extension Office at Oregon State University. This position will be located in Oregon City. Posting #P02064CT.  Closes April 30.

Weather

‪"As we learn about each other, so we learn about ourselves." ~ William Hartnell.

Corvallis: Rain today, high of 57, low of 46. Showers tomorrow.

Central Oregon: Rain today, high of 52, low of 39. Showers tomorrow.

Newport: Rain, high of 55, low of 49. Showers tomorrow.

Statewide: For OSU employees around the state, find your local forecast here: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/pqr/