Jennifer Oppenlander has lived in Madras her entire life – except for the years she attended Oregon State University in Corvallis. She still lives on her family’s property where she grew up raising animals and learning farming.
Jennifer Oppenlander '96 & '14
Coordinator, Jefferson County Open Campus 
College of Education

Beaver Nation: Jennifer Oppenlander on community pride from Oregon State University on Vimeo.

Inspired by her own teachers, Jennifer decided to become one herself in the second grade. She chose to attend Oregon State because of its excellent education program and her family’s history of attending the university.

“My dad went to Oregon State,” she says. “I grew up being a Beaver fan, and I didn’t even consider going anywhere else.”

Beaver Nation: Jennifer Oppenlander on Oregon State from Oregon State University on Vimeo.

Jennifer directs the OSU Open Campus program in Jefferson County. Led by the OSU Extension service, it is a statewide community-based education partnership that addresses the unique educational and economic development needs of rural Oregon communities like Madras.

Beaver Nation: Jennifer Oppenlander on Open Campus from Oregon State University on Vimeo.

Juntos is a program facilitated by OSU Open Campus. The hands-on, bilingual program for Latino students and their parents provides knowledge and resources to help them graduate from high school and go on to college.

Beaver Nation: Jennifer Oppenlander on finding family from Oregon State University on Vimeo.

August 10, 2017