PORTLAND, Ore – The Oregon Historical Society has named Oregon State University President Edward J. Ray as one of four recipients of the society’s Oregon History Makers Medal for 2018.

The Oregon History Makers Medal will be presented at a banquet in Portland on Oct. 7. The other recipients are: Stacy Allison, an adventurer, author and businesswoman who was the first American woman to summit Mount Everest; Bill Stoller, the founder and owner of Stoller Winery and the co-founder of Express Employment Professionals; and Bob’s Red Mill.

First awarded in 2009, the History Makers Medal is presented annually by OHS to individuals and businesses that are positively shaping the history, culture and landscape of Oregon.

Past honorees have changed the world of business, literature, medicine, sports, education and the arts. They include Columbia Sportswear’s Gert Boyle, author Jean Auel and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof.

Ray has served as Oregon State’s president for 15 years. During his tenure, Oregon State’s enrollment has grown to nearly 32,000 students, making it the state’s largest university. OSU-Cascades, the university’s branch campus in Bend, expanded to a four-year university in 2015. Additionally, Ray launched the Marine Studies Initiative — a university-wide effort involving all of Oregon State’s colleges and the OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.

Under Ray’s leadership, Oregon State completed its first major capital campaign. The Campaign for OSU raised $1.14 billion and included contributions from more than 106,000 donors.

Recently, in conjunction with the university commemorating its 150th anniversary, Ray announced the Oregon State will expand its programs and services in the Portland region with new office space in the historic Meier & Frank Building in downtown Portland.

Proceeds from the History Makers Dinner support the Oregon Historical Society's work to collect, preserve and interpret Oregon's past.

General OSU

About Oregon State University: As one of only three land, sea, space and sun grant universities in the nation, Oregon State serves Oregon and the world by working on today’s most pressing issues. Our more than 36,000 students come from across the globe, and our programs operate in every Oregon county. Oregon State receives more research funding than all of the state’s comprehensive public universities combined. At our campuses in Corvallis and Bend, marine research center in Newport, OSU Portland Center and award-winning Ecampus, we excel at shaping today’s students into tomorrow’s leaders.

Story By: 

Sean Nealon, 541-737-0787, [email protected]

Source: 

Steve Clark, 541-737-3808, [email protected]

Multimedia: 

Click photos to see a full-size version. Right click and save image to download.