Discovery Day | Photo Courtesy of OSU-Cascades
The success of our students, faculty and alumni, and the growth of the OSU-Cascades campus, wouldn’t be possible without community members. Join us for a look back at some of our proudest accomplishments over the past ten years.
- Science Pubs Launch (2010)
Who knew OSU and OSU-Cascades researchers would be this popular? Since Science Pubs debuted, more than 9,000 community members have learned about the science behind almost everything — from the color blue to whale acoustics. Watch for 2020 Science Pubs. Stay tuned.
- State Legislature, Donors Make Ten-Acre Campus Possible (2014)
When the Oregon State Legislature approved capital funding for the new campus in 2013, it came with a $4 million philanthropic goal. Bolstered by an Oregon Community Foundation challenge grant, community members stepped up generously, exceeding the fundraising goal, raising $4.6 million. You inspire us.
- 108 Community Members Engage in Campus Planning (2015)
A Campus Expansion Advisory Committee engaged 108 individuals — community members, neighborhood representatives, architects, planners, healthcare professionals, nonprofit and business leaders, local and state government representatives and educators — over the course of more than a year to help plan the future campus. This is truly the community’s university.
- OSU-Cascades Campus Opens (2016)
When the ten-acre campus opened, it fulfilled a 30-year quest for higher education in what had been the largest region in the state without a four-year university. Said OSU President Ed Ray, “This is a tribute to decades of work by countless individuals who early on saw the need, defined the future they wanted to achieve and helped to make this day — and this university campus — possible.” It was a great day.
- 1,200 Native Plants Harvested and Replanted on Campus (2016)
Before the ten-acre site was prepared for Tykeson and Obsidian Halls, Human and Ecosystem Resiliency and Sustainability Lab (HERS) director Matt Shinderman led faculty and student volunteers on a native plant harvest. Today, the transplanted bunch grasses, wildflowers and shrubs flourish on our campus, require minimum water and attract native birds and insects. The landscape is so interesting, students built an app where you can learn about it. See story.
- Discovery Day Launches, A New Annual Tradition (2018)
It’s a day we open the campus doors and invite the community in. More than 800 people — from toddlers to age 90+ — came to the inaugural Discovery Day to meet researchers and students, experiment in the lab, sample Beaver Dam chef creations and explore the new and growing campus. Check it out.
- Researcher Attracts Nearly $5 Million to Solve Water Challenges (2019)
Around the world, water is an increasingly precious resource. With awards from the U.S. Department of Energy totaling $4.97 million, a team led by engineering researcher Bahman Abbasi is developing innovative and sustainable technologies that can pull drinking water from sea water and gray water from hydraulic fracturing wastewater — addressing critical global challenges. Read OPB story.
- Groundbreaking Marks Start of Campus Expansion (2019)
It’s called one of the most innovative university development projects in the country. What were formerly a pumice mine and a demolition landfill will transform over the next decades into a 3,000- to 5,000-student, 128-acre campus with ambitious net zero energy, waste and water goals and community amenities. Land preparation is now underway for our next building. Learn more.
- This Decade, 2,971 Students Earned Degrees
It was a busy ten years. Since 2001 when OSU-Cascades was founded, 4,091 students have earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees — and 75 percent of those were awarded this decade. Many alums are living and working here in Central Oregon and volunteering in local communities. Are you a Bend Beav? Tell us what you’re doing.
- Student Enrollment Nearly Doubled Since 2010
As of this fall, 1,311 students attend OSU-Cascades, nearly twice as many as in 2010. We now offer 40+ degrees, minors and options. More than 60 percent of our students are from Central Oregon and 23 percent are the first in their family to go to college. Our students are challenged to go beyond the expected, discover what’s possible and make the world better — in Central Oregon and beyond. Their future starts here.
