Once again a big congratulations to the class of 2012!  This last Sunday marked OSU’s  143rd commencement  ceremony and we had the great opportunity to have Michelle Obama as the commencement speaker.   We started out the morning with beautiful sunshine and a light breeze.  Over 30,000 friends and family members filled the seats of Reser Stadium all waiting for the ceremony to begin and the students to begin the march into Reser Stadium.

 check out our full profile of Oregon State’s graduates this year:

• Of this number, 2,498 are men, 2,481 are women.
• All total they will be receiving 5,236 degrees.
• 4,130 will be receiving the baccalaureate degree.
• 231 will receive two degrees today.
• 12 will receive three degrees today.
• 1 will receive four (4) degrees today.
• 766 will receive Masters Degrees.
• 86 will receive the Doctor of Pharmacy degree.
• 197 will receive the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
• 57 awarded the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in an earlier ceremony.
• 303 graduates earned degrees via distance education in 23 different degree programs.
• 164 of the graduating class are veterans.

 

The First Lady Michelle Obama received a honorary doctorate in public health for all of her efforts in improving the health of children in the United States.  She began by praising OSU for the positive impact is has on the state of Oregon.

You have built one of the most sustainable campuses in America, conducting groundbreaking research from technology to childhood obesity, you are serving others in so many ways

She gave the class of 2012 a 3 things to take away from here speech. “focus on what you have not what your missing, lead a rich life and that is to define success on your own terms, and don’t leave behind any unfinished business with the people you love.”

To watch the video of the First Lady’s entire speech click below:

Michelle Obama Commencement 2012

Enjoy your summer!

-GG

Watch CBS Videos Online

Go Beavs!
-jm

To the Oregon State Community,

My sincere apology. Whatever you have called me over the past few days can’t be any worse than my own anger over my mistake. I made an inexcusable error when I confused the great OSU coach Craig Robinson with a friend of mine, the personal assistant to President Obama, Reggie Love. I am sending personal apologies to both men, and this is my apology to all members of Beaver Nation. It was a mistake committed during 9 hours of live programming – I was distracted and watching many incoming video feeds, but that’s no excuse for the error, which was no one’s fault but mine. I have felt awful about it since I forced myself to read the coverage of it on OregonLive.com, and I hope that someday you can find it in your hearts to forgive my error.

Brian Williams

(photo from msnbc.com)

Respectfully,
Brian Williams
Anchor and Managing Editor
NBC Nightly News

Apology accepted, B-Dub. Still waiting for you, Mr. Brokaw.

-mko

Oregon State University, where Jane Lubchenko [SIC] is professor of marine biology and zoology and nominee to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is often ranked in the top four marine-science research centers, along with Woods Hole (M.I.T.), Scripps (California), and University of Washington.

Read the rest by clicking the link above…

Recognition in the mainstream of the excellence of these programs is long overdue. It’s nice to see the hard working/brilliant folks over at Marine Biology, Zoology, Fisheries and Wildlife and Oceanic & Atmospheric Sciences get some kudos.

For those of you wanting to be Marine Biologists or specialize in any other sort of life science, you’d have to be crazy to not be checking OSU out. Between the gorgeous setting, great faculty, undergraduate research opportunities and OSU’s leadership on sustainability issues, OSU is a great fit for students interested in the life sciences.

The R/V Wecoma is one of two research vessels based at the OSU HMSC

Until next time!

-jm

You might have read BV’s previous news posting on how President-elect Barack Obama selected Oregon State University Professor Dr. Jane Lubchenco today to chair the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This is big news. I’ve read many articles on Dr. Lubchenco – she’s a distinguished professor and one the world’s leading researchers in science. She teaches Marine Biology and Zoology courses and we’ve even had some previous postings about her here on the blog.

Dr. Lubchenco will be the the first woman to head the agency, and she is internationally known for her work on marine and coastal issues. Her new role will be leading government research on global warming and overseeing ocean and atmospheric research and the National Weather Service. She’s been here at Oregon State University since 1978.

Over the weekend, I spoke with current OSU Marine Biology student Megan Cook who works as a TOUR Student in the Visitor’s Center. Megan ecstatically told me “Obama for sure made a great pick! I have had some interaction with Jane in my program. She is a brilliant scientist and a very active and successful advocate for science’s role in the decision making of this country!”

Megan also referred me to Christine Lastovica — a recent OSU graduate who worked directly with Jane this past summer. Christine told me “Jane is such an amazing woman! The thing I liked most about Jane was that she had time for everyone (which kept her very busy!). It didn’t matter if you were the president of OSU or a student with a question, Jane treated everyone equally. What I admire most about her is her confidence. After a meeting with Jane I would walk away in awe. Her knowledge, enthusiasm, and energy for what she did was astounding. She deserves every award she has received and I am pleased to see her newest appointment- head of NOAA. I take pride knowing much of our countries decisions will be in her hands!”

Thanks to Megan and Christine for allowing me to put their comments here on the blog.

I’ve posted President-elect Obama’s announcement of his science team below. Watch for Dr. Lubchenco at mark 3:57:

Congratulations to Dr. Lubchenco! Please join me in wishing her much success in her new role!

–mko

Washington Post-

Lubchenco Will Helm National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

By Juliet Eilperin
President-elect Barack Obama has tapped Oregon State University professor Jane Lubchenco, one of the nation’s most prominent marine biologists, to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Lubchenco, a conservationist who has devoted much of her career to encouraging scientists to become more engaged in public policy debates, is also a vocal proponent of curbing greenhouse gases linked to global warming. The transition team could not be reached for comment, but several sources confirmed today that Lubchenco had been picked and was headed to Chicago for the upcoming announcement.

The appointment marks a shift for NOAA, which oversees marine issues as well as much of government’s climate work. Lubchenco has criticized the agency in the past for not doing enough to curb overfishing.

Andrew Rosenberg, who served as deputy director of NOAA’s Fisheries Service under Clinton and is now University of New Hampshire professor of natural resources and the environment, praised Lubchenco as an “absolutely world class scientist.”

“When has NOAA been headed by a member of the National Academy and a fellow of the Royal Society?” he said, referring to America and Britain’s most prestigious scientific societies. “That’s exactly the right signal. It establishes NOAA as one of those key scientific agencies.”

By selecting someone who’s both a respected researcher and an active player in national policy discussions, Rosenberg added, “it’s saying that science agencies have a role in policy. They need to be tightly connected, and I believe they will be tightly connected under Jane.”

Wayne and Gladys Valley Professor of Marine Biology Distinguished Professor of Zoology, Oregon State University

We have long marveled at the passion and conviction Dr. Lubchenco brings to her role at OSU and in bringing to light the effects of global warming. Her accolades have been well deserved, but she also is one of those professors that enjoys teaching and working alongside her students. Congratulations to you, Dr. Lubchenco!

One of the faces of OSU

From her bio:

Jane leads an interdisciplinary team of scientists who study the marine ecosystem off the west coast of the U.S. This PISCO team is learning how the ecosystem works, how it is changing and how humans can modify their actions to ensure continued benefit from ocean ecosystems.

Jane actively promotes science and communicates scientific knowledge in international and national arenas. She is Past-President of the International Council for Science and a former President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Ecological Society of America. She was a Presidential appointee to two terms on the National Science Board which advises the President and Congress and oversees the National Science Foundation. She often testifies before Congress, addresses the United Nations, or provides scientific advice to the White House, federal and international agencies, non-governmental organizations, religious leaders and leaders of business and industry. She co-chaired Oregon Governor Kulongoski’s Advisory Group on Global Warming that recommended actions the state should take to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

Jane founded the Aldo Leopold Leadership Program that teaches outstanding academic environmental scientists to be effective leaders and communicators of scientific information to the public, policy makers, the media and the private sector. She currently serves as Chair of the Advisory Board.

She participated actively in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), a 5-year, international scientific assessment of the consequences of environmental changes to human well-being. Among other things, she co-chaired the MA’s Synthesis for Business and Industry.

Jane is a Founding Principal of COMPASS, the Communication Partnership for Science and the Sea, a collaboration among academic scientists, communication and media specialists that communicates academic marine conservation science to policy makers, the media, managers and the public.

Her scientific contributions in ecology are widely recognized. 8 of her publications are “Science Citation Classics”; she is one of the “most highly cited” ecologists in the world (top 0.5%). She is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the Royal Society, and the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World.

She served on the Pew Oceans Commission and now the Joint Oceans Commission Initiative (a merger of the Pew Oceans Commission and the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy). She is a Director or Trustee of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, SeaWeb and Environmental Defense; Trustee Emerita of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and a former Trustee of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences’ Beijer International Institute for Ecological Economics and the World Resources Institute.

Jane has received numerous awards including a MacArthur (“genius”) Fellowship, a Pew Fellowship, eight honorary degrees (including one from Princeton University), the 2002 Heinz Award in the Environment, the 2003 Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest, the 2004 Environmental Law Institute Award (the first scientist to receive this honor) and the 2005 American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology.

Pretty impressive!
-bv

The Admissions Blog writers would like to encourage everyone to exercise their right to vote this November 4th. For Oregonians, it is too late to mail in your ballot and you MUST drop it off at an official drop site. Please take time to familiarize yourself with the issues that are on the November ballot.

For complete online access to the Oregon voters’ pamphlet click here.

In order to be counted, your ballot must be received by a County Elections Office or deposited in an official ballot drop site no later than 8:00 PM on Election Day: Tuesday, November 4th.

Note: Postmarks do not count. There is an official ballot drop site on the OSU Campus:

OSU Valley Library
Mon – Thur 7:30 am to 1:00 am
Fri 7:30 am to 10:00 pm
Sat 10:00 am to 10:00 pm
Sun 10:00 am to 1:00 am

In Benton County there are four 24-hour official ballot drop boxes:

Fifth Street
Across the street from the Benton County Courthouse
180 NW 5th St – Corvallis

Wells Fargo Bank
Next to Pizza Hut, in the Timberhill Shopping Center
2543 NW Kings Blvd – Corvallis

Lincoln Health Center
Drop box in parking lot
121 SE Viewmont Ave – Corvallis

Ray’s Food Place
North Albany Shopping Center
621 Hickory Ave – North Albany

Other official drop sites include:

Corvallis Public Library
645 NW Monroe Ave – Corvallis
Mon – Fri 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Sat 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Sun 12:00 NOON to 6:00 PM

LBCC – Benton Center
757 NW Polk Ave – Corvallis
Mon – Thur 7:30 AM to 9:30 PM
Fri 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Please note: On Election Day all official ballot drop sites will be open until 8:00 pm.

For information about official ballot drop sites in other counties click here.

If your ballot is from another county, you may drop it off at ANY official County ballot box, as long as you do so no later than 8:00 PM Tuesday, November 4th. The county receiving the ballot will route it to your home county for counting.

For individuals from other states, please visit www.maps.google.com/vote for information on where to go find your voting location, registration information and more.

–mko

The Oregon State University Admissions Blog is a synopsis of some of the most prominent coverage of people, events and programs. Inclusion of any item constitutes neither an endorsement nor a critique, but is rather intended only to make the OSU community aware of significant items/events on campus and in the Corvallis community. Its purpose, if any, is solely to serve as a reminder to individuals to exercise their right to vote and the importance of it.

–mko

The Oregon State University Admissions Blog is a synopsis of some of the most prominent coverage of OSU people, events 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/events on campus and in the Corvallis community.

For a few laughs, check out these Saturday Night Live clips on NBC.com.

“There Can Only Be One”

“McCain on Weekend Update”

Please note: The above comments and videos are for entertainment purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the views of Oregon State University. They serve as neither an endorsement nor a critique, but are rather intended only to make the OSU community aware of significant items/events on campus and in the Corvallis and Oregon community. Their purposes, if any, are solely to provide political humor and to serve as a reminder to individuals to exercise their right to vote and the importance of it … In other words, lighten up.

–mko

Bill Clinton at Lincoln School in Corvallis (Fellow Blogger, Matt Ogawa behind the camera):

Hillary Clinton at a rally in Oregon:

John McCain at his renewable energy speech in Portland:

(Note: I couldn’t find any other good images of McCain’s appearance in PDX…If you all have any, send ‘em my way!)

Barack Obama stops in my Hometown, Woodburn, OR for lunch at Luis’ Taqueria:

Also, hanging out with OSU Men’s hoop coach and Brother in Law, Craig Robinson:

PHEW! It has been crazy here in the Beaver State!! It promises to only get crazier as the May 20th primary gets closer.

To those of you who are registered voters in the State of Oregon, don’t forget to vote! Ballots must be received by the 20th. Postmarks DO NOT count.

That’s all for now! Comment away if you have questions.

-jm

The Oregon State University Admissions Blog is a synopsis of some of the most prominent coverage of OSU people, events 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/events on campus and in the Corvallis community.