Research Office

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NEWPORT, Ore. – Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center will allow the public to explore “behind the scenes” of this unique facility on Saturday, April 13, when the Newport facility hosts its annual Marine Science Day.

The free event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will feature scientists and educators from OSU, federal and state agencies, Oregon Coast Aquarium, and the new NOAA Marine Operations Center-Pacific. It is a chance for the public to explore one of the nation’s leading marine science and education centers.

An online schedule of events is available at: hmsc.oregonstate.edu/marinescienceday

In addition to a diversity of marine science presentations, two research themes will be highlighted. One is the science behind bycatch reduction devices, which will be featured by researchers from NOAA Fisheries, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, OSU, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, and Foulweather Trawl, a Newport netmaker.

Marine Science Day visitors will see actual bycatch reduction devices and have an opportunity to view videos showing how fish are excluded or retained, depending on their size, swimming ability or other characteristic. Other research will highlight genetics or other tools used to distinguish between wanted and unwanted catch. Scientists will be on hand to answer questions and discuss their research.

“Visitors will learn not only about the problem of bycatch but also about the solutions, which range from simple and elegant to complex and cutting-edge,” said Maryann Bozza, program manager of the center. “All of the different HMSC research displays on bycatch reduction will be grouped together.”

A second theme will be wave energy, highlighting the efforts of the OSU Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center to improve and facilitate testing of wave energy devices and evaluate their potential effects on marine habitats. HMSC’s Sarah Henkel, a senior research assistant professor in the OSU Department of Zoology, will present an update of wave energy developments on the Oregon Coast.

Henkel’s talk begins at 3 p.m. in the Visitor Center auditorium.

Among other highlights of Marine Science Day:

• Visitor Center activities will include new wave energy exhibits, the recently dedicated Japanese tsunami dock exhibit and a new interactive wave tank.

• The center’s new octopus, named “Miss Oscar,” will be featured in a 1 p.m. interpretive talk and octopus feeding demonstration.

• The public can take self-guided tours through the facility’s marine research labs, library and classrooms, where scientists will have interactive exhibits explaining their research. Visitors may also take guided tours of HMSC’s seawater facilities and aquatic animal husbandry laboratory.

A number of educational activities for children and families will be available, presented by Oregon Sea Grant, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

The OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center is located at 2030 S.E. Marine Science Drive in Newport, just south of the Highway 101 bridge over Yaquina Bay.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Maryann Bozza, 541-867-0234

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NEWPORT, Ore. – Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center will allow the public to explore “behind the scenes” of this unique facility on Saturday, April 13, when the Newport facility hosts its annual Marine Science Day.

The free event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will feature scientists and educators from OSU, federal and state agencies, Oregon Coast Aquarium, and the new NOAA Marine Operations Center-Pacific. It is a chance for the public to explore one of the nation’s leading marine science and education centers.

An online schedule of events is available at: hmsc.oregonstate.edu/marinescienceday

In addition to a diversity of marine science presentations, two research themes will be highlighted. One is the science behind bycatch reduction devices, which will be featured by researchers from NOAA Fisheries, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, OSU, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, and Foulweather Trawl, a Newport netmaker.

Marine Science Day visitors will see actual bycatch reduction devices and have an opportunity to view videos showing how fish are excluded or retained, depending on their size, swimming ability or other characteristic. Other research will highlight genetics or other tools used to distinguish between wanted and unwanted catch. Scientists will be on hand to answer questions and discuss their research.

“Visitors will learn not only about the problem of bycatch but also about the solutions, which range from simple and elegant to complex and cutting-edge,” said Maryann Bozza, program manager of the center. “All of the different HMSC research displays on bycatch reduction will be grouped together.”

A second theme will be wave energy, highlighting the efforts of the OSU Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center to improve and facilitate testing of wave energy devices and evaluate their potential effects on marine habitats. HMSC’s Sarah Henkel, a senior research assistant professor in the OSU Department of Zoology, will present an update of wave energy developments on the Oregon Coast.

Henkel’s talk begins at 3 p.m. in the Visitor Center auditorium.

Among other highlights of Marine Science Day:

• Visitor Center activities will include new wave energy exhibits, the recently dedicated Japanese tsunami dock exhibit and a new interactive wave tank.

• The center’s new octopus, named “Miss Oscar,” will be featured in a 1 p.m. interpretive talk and octopus feeding demonstration.

• The public can take self-guided tours through the facility’s marine research labs, library and classrooms, where scientists will have interactive exhibits explaining their research. Visitors may also take guided tours of HMSC’s seawater facilities and aquatic animal husbandry laboratory.

A number of educational activities for children and families will be available, presented by Oregon Sea Grant, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

The OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center is located at 2030 S.E. Marine Science Drive in Newport, just south of the Highway 101 bridge over Yaquina Bay.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Maryann Bozza, 541-867-0234

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OSU engineers designed a new system to create wetlands that could help farmers in the Midwest avoid catastrophic floods and retain water for when it's needed by crops.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Engineers at Oregon State University have developed a new interactive planning tool to create networks of small wetlands in Midwest farmlands, which could help the region prevent massive spring floods and also retain water and mitigate droughts in a warming climate.

The planning approach, which is being developed and tested in a crop-dominated watershed near Indianapolis, is designed to identify the small areas best suited to wetland development, optimize their location and size, and restore a significant portion of the region’s historic water storage ability by using only a small fraction of its land.

Using this approach, the researchers found they could capture the runoff from 29 percent of a watershed using only 1.5 percent of the entire area.

The findings were published in Ecological Engineering, a professional journal, and a website is now available at http://wrestore.iupui.edu/ that allows users to apply the principles to their own land.

The need for new approaches to assist farmers and agencies to work together and use science-based methods is becoming critical, experts say. Massive floods and summer droughts have become more common and intense in the Midwest because of climate change and decades of land management that drains water rapidly into rivers via tile drains.

“The lands of the Midwest, which is one of the great food producing areas of the world, now bear little resemblance to their historic form, which included millions of acres of small lakes and wetlands that have now been drained,” said Meghna Babbar-Sebens, an assistant professor of civil and construction engineering at Oregon State. “Agriculture, deforestation, urbanization and residential development have all played a role.

“We have to find some way to retain and slowly release water, both to use it for crops and to prevent flooding,” Babbar-Sebens said. “There’s a place for dams and reservoirs but they won’t solve everything. With increases in runoff, what was once thought to be a 100-year flood event is now happening more often.

“Historically, wetlands in Indiana and other Midwestern states were great at intercepting large runoff events and slowing down the flows,” she said. “But Indiana has lost more than 85 percent of the wetlands it had prior to European settlement.”

An equally critical problem is what appears to be increasing frequency of summer drought, she said, which may offer a solid motivation for the region’s farmers to become involved. The problem is not just catastrophic downstream flooding in the spring, but also the loss of water and soil moisture in the summer that can be desperately needed in dry years.

The solution to both issues, scientists say, is to “re-naturalize” the hydrology of a large section of the United States. Working toward this goal was a research team from Oregon State University, Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis, the Wetlands Institute in New Jersey, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They used engineering principles, historic analysis and computer simulations to optimize the effectiveness of any land use changes, so that minimal land use alteration would offer farmers and landowners a maximum of benefits.

In the Midwest, many farmers growing corn, soybeans and other crops have placed “tiles” under their fields to rapidly drain water into streams, which dries the soil and allows for earlier planting. Unfortunately, it also concentrates pollutants, increases flooding and leaves the land drier during the summer. Without adequate rain, complete crop losses can occur.

Experts have also identified alternate ways to help, including the use of winter cover crops and grass waterways that help retain and more slowly release water. And the new computer systems can identify the best places for all of these approaches to be used.

The work has been supported by the Indiana State Department of Agriculture and the National Science Foundation.

College of Engineering Media Contact:  David Stauth Source: 

Meghna Babbar-Sebens, 541-737-8536

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Iowa wetlands

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03/27/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail:  Teaser: 

OSU engineers designed a new system to create wetlands that could help farmers in the Midwest avoid catastrophic floods and retain water for when it's needed by crops.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Engineers at Oregon State University have developed a new interactive planning tool to create networks of small wetlands in Midwest farmlands, which could help the region prevent massive spring floods and also retain water and mitigate droughts in a warming climate.

The planning approach, which is being developed and tested in a crop-dominated watershed near Indianapolis, is designed to identify the small areas best suited to wetland development, optimize their location and size, and restore a significant portion of the region’s historic water storage ability by using only a small fraction of its land.

Using this approach, the researchers found they could capture the runoff from 29 percent of a watershed using only 1.5 percent of the entire area.

The findings were published in Ecological Engineering, a professional journal, and a website is now available at http://wrestore.iupui.edu/ that allows users to apply the principles to their own land.

The need for new approaches to assist farmers and agencies to work together and use science-based methods is becoming critical, experts say. Massive floods and summer droughts have become more common and intense in the Midwest because of climate change and decades of land management that drains water rapidly into rivers via tile drains.

“The lands of the Midwest, which is one of the great food producing areas of the world, now bear little resemblance to their historic form, which included millions of acres of small lakes and wetlands that have now been drained,” said Meghna Babbar-Sebens, an assistant professor of civil and construction engineering at Oregon State. “Agriculture, deforestation, urbanization and residential development have all played a role.

“We have to find some way to retain and slowly release water, both to use it for crops and to prevent flooding,” Babbar-Sebens said. “There’s a place for dams and reservoirs but they won’t solve everything. With increases in runoff, what was once thought to be a 100-year flood event is now happening more often.

“Historically, wetlands in Indiana and other Midwestern states were great at intercepting large runoff events and slowing down the flows,” she said. “But Indiana has lost more than 85 percent of the wetlands it had prior to European settlement.”

An equally critical problem is what appears to be increasing frequency of summer drought, she said, which may offer a solid motivation for the region’s farmers to become involved. The problem is not just catastrophic downstream flooding in the spring, but also the loss of water and soil moisture in the summer that can be desperately needed in dry years.

The solution to both issues, scientists say, is to “re-naturalize” the hydrology of a large section of the United States. Working toward this goal was a research team from Oregon State University, Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis, the Wetlands Institute in New Jersey, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They used engineering principles, historic analysis and computer simulations to optimize the effectiveness of any land use changes, so that minimal land use alteration would offer farmers and landowners a maximum of benefits.

In the Midwest, many farmers growing corn, soybeans and other crops have placed “tiles” under their fields to rapidly drain water into streams, which dries the soil and allows for earlier planting. Unfortunately, it also concentrates pollutants, increases flooding and leaves the land drier during the summer. Without adequate rain, complete crop losses can occur.

Experts have also identified alternate ways to help, including the use of winter cover crops and grass waterways that help retain and more slowly release water. And the new computer systems can identify the best places for all of these approaches to be used.

The work has been supported by the Indiana State Department of Agriculture and the National Science Foundation.

College of Engineering Media Contact:  David Stauth Source: 

Meghna Babbar-Sebens, 541-737-8536

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Iowa wetlands

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03/25/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail: 

Screenwriter Mike Rich will appear at Oregon State University on Thursday, April 4, for a special screening of his award-winning film, “Finding Forrester.” A question-and-answer session will follow.

The screening will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Construction & Engineering Hall of OSU’s LaSells Stewart Center. It is free and open to the public.

Rich, who attended OSU until 1982, created a buzz in Hollywood with his first screenplay “Finding Forrester.” It was picked up by Columbia Pictures and was a holiday season release in 2000, starring Sean Connery and directed by Gus Van Sant. Rich’s second screenplay “The Rookie,” starring Dennis Quaid and Rachel Griffiths, was a success for Disney in 2002.

His other notable screenplays also include ‘Radio,” “The Nativity Story” and “Secretariat.”

The Visiting Writers Series brings nationally-known writers to campus each year and is made possible by support from The Valley Library, the OSU School of Writing, Literature, and Film, the Office of the Provost, the College of Liberal Arts, Kathy Brisker and Tim Steele, and the OSU Beaver Store.

Media Contact:  Angela Yeager Source: 

Heather Brown, 719-232-1485

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Mike Rich

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Screenwriter Mike Rich will appear at Oregon State University on Thursday, April 4, for a special screening of his award-winning film, “Finding Forrester.” A question-and-answer session will follow.

The screening will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Construction & Engineering Hall of OSU’s LaSells Stewart Center. It is free and open to the public.

Rich, who attended OSU until 1982, created a buzz in Hollywood with his first screenplay “Finding Forrester.” It was picked up by Columbia Pictures and was a holiday season release in 2000, starring Sean Connery and directed by Gus Van Sant. Rich’s second screenplay “The Rookie,” starring Dennis Quaid and Rachel Griffiths, was a success for Disney in 2002.

His other notable screenplays also include ‘Radio,” “The Nativity Story” and “Secretariat.”

The Visiting Writers Series brings nationally-known writers to campus each year and is made possible by support from The Valley Library, the OSU School of Writing, Literature, and Film, the Office of the Provost, the College of Liberal Arts, Kathy Brisker and Tim Steele, and the OSU Beaver Store.

Media Contact:  Angela Yeager Source: 

Heather Brown, 719-232-1485

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Mike Rich

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State University Press, which was founded more than 50 years ago, is publishing its first book aimed at children.

“Ellie’s Log: Exploring the Forest Where the Great Tree Fell” continues the press’ tradition of publications about Pacific Northwest forests and natural history. But this seven-chapter book is aimed at eight- to 12-year-olds.

It tells the story of two children exploring an old-growth forest in the Oregon Cascades – specifically the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, a long-term ecological research (LTER) site of the National Science Foundation for more than 50 years.

“A common theme in many of the books we’ve published is the importance of getting people out into nature and learning about our region’s flora and fauna,” said Faye Chadwell, the Donald and Delpha Campbell University Librarian and director of the OSU Press. “By combining elements of science and storytelling, ‘Ellie’s Log’ will, we hope, capture the attention of younger readers and encourage them to observe the natural world in new ways.”

Written by Judith Li, an emeritus faculty member in OSU’s Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, the book focuses on the children’s discovery of the forest’s natural wonders and processes. The narrative, which ranges from the forest’s biodiversity to seasonal change – is based on Li’s experience as stream ecologist at H.J. Andrews.

She said she wrote Ellie’s Log to “inspire children to explore nature, to observe, and to begin thinking like scientists.”  The book, vividly illustrated by illustrator and science communicator M.L. Herring, also of OSU, is part of the LTER’s national Schoolyard Book series.

A learning website, ellieslog.org, developed in collaboration with OSU Libraries, and an online teacher’s guide, complement the book. Both provide ways for children to investigate natural habitats where they live and share their results with “Ellie’s friends.”

Ellie’s Log can be ordered from the OSU Press at: http://osupress.oregonstate.edu/book/ElliesLog

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Micki Reaman, 541-737-4620

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State University Press, which was founded more than 50 years ago, is publishing its first book aimed at children.

“Ellie’s Log: Exploring the Forest Where the Great Tree Fell” continues the press’ tradition of publications about Pacific Northwest forests and natural history. But this seven-chapter book is aimed at eight- to 12-year-olds.

It tells the story of two children exploring an old-growth forest in the Oregon Cascades – specifically the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, a long-term ecological research (LTER) site of the National Science Foundation for more than 50 years.

“A common theme in many of the books we’ve published is the importance of getting people out into nature and learning about our region’s flora and fauna,” said Faye Chadwell, the Donald and Delpha Campbell University Librarian and director of the OSU Press. “By combining elements of science and storytelling, ‘Ellie’s Log’ will, we hope, capture the attention of younger readers and encourage them to observe the natural world in new ways.”

Written by Judith Li, an emeritus faculty member in OSU’s Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, the book focuses on the children’s discovery of the forest’s natural wonders and processes. The narrative, which ranges from the forest’s biodiversity to seasonal change – is based on Li’s experience as stream ecologist at H.J. Andrews.

She said she wrote Ellie’s Log to “inspire children to explore nature, to observe, and to begin thinking like scientists.”  The book, vividly illustrated by illustrator and science communicator M.L. Herring, also of OSU, is part of the LTER’s national Schoolyard Book series.

A learning website, ellieslog.org, developed in collaboration with OSU Libraries, and an online teacher’s guide, complement the book. Both provide ways for children to investigate natural habitats where they live and share their results with “Ellie’s friends.”

Ellie’s Log can be ordered from the OSU Press at: http://osupress.oregonstate.edu/book/ElliesLog

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Micki Reaman, 541-737-4620

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03/22/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail: 

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Glenn Ford, who has been vice president and chief financial officer at Linfield College in Oregon since 2007, has been named vice president for Finance and Administration at Oregon State University.

Ford will begin his new duties on July 8. He succeeds long-time Oregon State vice president Mark McCambridge, who is retiring.

OSU President Ed Ray said that Ford’s experience, which includes stints at three Land Grant universities prior to his Linfield position, would help him “hit the ground running.”

“Mark McCambridge did an exemplary job of helping keep OSU on sound financial footing in a difficult economic environment and doing so in a most transparent manner,” Ray said. “Glenn Ford has the experience and vision to continue that success as the university moves forward.”

As vice president for finance and administration at Oregon State, Ford will serve as the university’s chief financial officer, advising Ray on financial matters and overseeing an organizational structure that includes budget and fiscal planning, business affairs, business services, conferences and special events, facilities services, human resources and public safety.

“I am thrilled to join Oregon State University – a world-class research university with a student-centered focus,” Ford said.  “My philosophy aligns well with Oregon State’s core values of accountability, diversity, integrity, respect and social responsibility.  I am very impressed by the university’s culture of collaborative decisiveness that enhances Oregon State’s distinctiveness and keeps OSU at the forefront of higher education in the United States.”

In addition to Oregon State’s large Corvallis campus, the university operates 15 Agricultural Experiment Station branches, Extension Service operations in 36 counties, the OSU-Cascades campus in Bend, the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, and the Food Innovation Center and a range of other programs and facilities in Portland.

Ford has had similar responsibilities at Linfield College in McMinnville, where he oversees planning and budgeting, investment management, human resources, public safety and security, environmental health and safety and a range of other services. Before joining Linfield, he was vice president for business and finance at Utah State University, a Land Grant university with multiple campuses as well as Extension and Experiment Station operations.

Ford also worked at Washington State University for 15 years in a variety of positions, including four years as finance and operations director (vice chancellor) at the WSU Vancouver campus. Ford also worked at the University of Idaho.

Ford recently was appointed to the board of the Oregon 529 College Savings Network, and is a board member of the West Coast College Consortium, Pioneer Educators Health Trust, and the Willamette Valley Medical Center. He is a graduate of the University of Idaho, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in forest products (business management option) and a master’s of business administration.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Steve Clark, 541-737-4875

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Glenn Ford

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – Glenn Ford, who has been vice president and chief financial officer at Linfield College in Oregon since 2007, has been named vice president for Finance and Administration at Oregon State University.

Ford will begin his new duties on July 8. He succeeds long-time Oregon State vice president Mark McCambridge, who is retiring.

OSU President Ed Ray said that Ford’s experience, which includes stints at three Land Grant universities prior to his Linfield position, would help him “hit the ground running.”

“Mark McCambridge did an exemplary job of helping keep OSU on sound financial footing in a difficult economic environment and doing so in a most transparent manner,” Ray said. “Glenn Ford has the experience and vision to continue that success as the university moves forward.”

As vice president for finance and administration at Oregon State, Ford will serve as the university’s chief financial officer, advising Ray on financial matters and overseeing an organizational structure that includes budget and fiscal planning, business affairs, business services, conferences and special events, facilities services, human resources and public safety.

“I am thrilled to join Oregon State University – a world-class research university with a student-centered focus,” Ford said.  “My philosophy aligns well with Oregon State’s core values of accountability, diversity, integrity, respect and social responsibility.  I am very impressed by the university’s culture of collaborative decisiveness that enhances Oregon State’s distinctiveness and keeps OSU at the forefront of higher education in the United States.”

In addition to Oregon State’s large Corvallis campus, the university operates 15 Agricultural Experiment Station branches, Extension Service operations in 36 counties, the OSU-Cascades campus in Bend, the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, and the Food Innovation Center and a range of other programs and facilities in Portland.

Ford has had similar responsibilities at Linfield College in McMinnville, where he oversees planning and budgeting, investment management, human resources, public safety and security, environmental health and safety and a range of other services. Before joining Linfield, he was vice president for business and finance at Utah State University, a Land Grant university with multiple campuses as well as Extension and Experiment Station operations.

Ford also worked at Washington State University for 15 years in a variety of positions, including four years as finance and operations director (vice chancellor) at the WSU Vancouver campus. Ford also worked at the University of Idaho.

Ford recently was appointed to the board of the Oregon 529 College Savings Network, and is a board member of the West Coast College Consortium, Pioneer Educators Health Trust, and the Willamette Valley Medical Center. He is a graduate of the University of Idaho, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in forest products (business management option) and a master’s of business administration.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Steve Clark, 541-737-4875

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Glenn Ford

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03/21/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail: 

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University will observe Holocaust Memorial Week April 8-12 with a series of events, including a film screening about a notable Holocaust survivor who will also give a public talk, a lecture by an expert on the relationship between big business and Nazism, and a discussion about genocide in Cambodia.

This observance is the 27th in the annual series, which is a collaboration of OSU, the Corvallis/Benton County Public Library, the City of Corvallis, Beit Am, and School District 509-J.

For a complete schedule of events, go to http://oregonstate.edu/dept/holocaust

The program will also include the following events, all of which are free and open to the public:

• Monday, April 8, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Alexander Hinton, “Annihilating Difference:  The Cambodian Genocide.”  Hinton will discuss the Cambodian genocide which resulted in almost 2 million Cambodians dying between 1975 and 1979, and issues of why genocides happen. Hinton is director of the Rutgers Center for the Study of Genocide, Conflict Resolution, and Human Rights. He is author of the 2005 book, “Why did They Kill? Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide.”

• Tuesday, April 9, 4 p.m., Darkside Cinema, 215 S.W. 4th, Corvallis – A screening of the film, “Landscapes of Memory – The Life of Ruth Klüger” (in German, with subtitles). It is a biopic about noted Holocaust survivor and memoirist Ruth Klüger.

• Tuesday, April 9, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Ruth Klüger, “The Shoah in Fiction.”  Klüger was born in Vienna in 1931 and her memoir, “Still Alive: A Holocaust Girlhood Remembered,” documents her internment at several camps, including Auschwitz and Theresienstadt. Klüger will discuss recent trends in depicting the Holocaust through fiction.

• Wednesday, April 10, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Peter Hayes, “From Aryanization to Auschwitz: German Corporate Complicity in the Holocaust.” Hayes, a professor of Holocaust studies at Northwestern University, is an expert on the interaction between German corporations and the Nazi state. In his talk, Hayes will address the involvement of German big business with the Holocaust and the advantages gained by corporations, including the opportunity to exploit slave labor.

• Thursday, April 11, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Henryk Grynberg, “Bearing Witness through Literature.” A Holocaust survivor who has been described as “the chronicler of the Polish Jews,” Grynberg is an award-winning author of major works of fiction and nonfiction dealing with the Holocaust in Poland. An early novel, “The Jewish War,” tells of his experiences during WW II and the sequel, “Victory,” follows his life after the war. It is listed among the “One Hundred Greatest Works of Modern Jewish Literature.”

• Friday, April 12, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., OSU Memorial Union Journey Room – A student conference called “Social Justice in Policy and Education.” The objective of the conference is to address issues of social justice. It includes a visual presentation on aspects of Poland that recall the Holocaust, such as memorials of the Warsaw Ghetto, the Jewish Museum in Warsaw, and the Majdanek death camp. OSU students who recently returned from Poland will narrate the presentation and lead discussion.

Corvallis Mayor Julie Manning will issue a proclamation at the April 8 event. Among the co-sponsors of these events are the OSU School of Language, Culture, and Society; the OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film; the OSU College of Business; the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; and the Austrian Consulate General, Los Angeles.

Media Contact:  Angela Yeager Source: 

Paul Kopperman, 541-737-3421

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Henryk Grynberg will give a talk, “Bearing Witness through Literature,” on April 11, 2013 as part of OSU's Holocaust Memorial Week. (photo courtesy of Jacek Lagowski/Agencja Gazetta)
Ruth Klüger will also speak at Oregon State University on April 11 as part of Holocaust Memorial Week.

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University will observe Holocaust Memorial Week April 8-12 with a series of events, including a film screening about a notable Holocaust survivor who will also give a public talk, a lecture by an expert on the relationship between big business and Nazism, and a discussion about genocide in Cambodia.

This observance is the 27th in the annual series, which is a collaboration of OSU, the Corvallis/Benton County Public Library, the City of Corvallis, Beit Am, and School District 509-J.

For a complete schedule of events, go to http://oregonstate.edu/dept/holocaust

The program will also include the following events, all of which are free and open to the public:

• Monday, April 8, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Alexander Hinton, “Annihilating Difference:  The Cambodian Genocide.”  Hinton will discuss the Cambodian genocide which resulted in almost 2 million Cambodians dying between 1975 and 1979, and issues of why genocides happen. Hinton is director of the Rutgers Center for the Study of Genocide, Conflict Resolution, and Human Rights. He is author of the 2005 book, “Why did They Kill? Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide.”

• Tuesday, April 9, 4 p.m., Darkside Cinema, 215 S.W. 4th, Corvallis – A screening of the film, “Landscapes of Memory – The Life of Ruth Klüger” (in German, with subtitles). It is a biopic about noted Holocaust survivor and memoirist Ruth Klüger.

• Tuesday, April 9, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Ruth Klüger, “The Shoah in Fiction.”  Klüger was born in Vienna in 1931 and her memoir, “Still Alive: A Holocaust Girlhood Remembered,” documents her internment at several camps, including Auschwitz and Theresienstadt. Klüger will discuss recent trends in depicting the Holocaust through fiction.

• Wednesday, April 10, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Peter Hayes, “From Aryanization to Auschwitz: German Corporate Complicity in the Holocaust.” Hayes, a professor of Holocaust studies at Northwestern University, is an expert on the interaction between German corporations and the Nazi state. In his talk, Hayes will address the involvement of German big business with the Holocaust and the advantages gained by corporations, including the opportunity to exploit slave labor.

• Thursday, April 11, 7:30 p.m., C&E Auditorium, LaSells Stewart Center – A public talk by Henryk Grynberg, “Bearing Witness through Literature.” A Holocaust survivor who has been described as “the chronicler of the Polish Jews,” Grynberg is an award-winning author of major works of fiction and nonfiction dealing with the Holocaust in Poland. An early novel, “The Jewish War,” tells of his experiences during WW II and the sequel, “Victory,” follows his life after the war. It is listed among the “One Hundred Greatest Works of Modern Jewish Literature.”

• Friday, April 12, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., OSU Memorial Union Journey Room – A student conference called “Social Justice in Policy and Education.” The objective of the conference is to address issues of social justice. It includes a visual presentation on aspects of Poland that recall the Holocaust, such as memorials of the Warsaw Ghetto, the Jewish Museum in Warsaw, and the Majdanek death camp. OSU students who recently returned from Poland will narrate the presentation and lead discussion.

Corvallis Mayor Julie Manning will issue a proclamation at the April 8 event. Among the co-sponsors of these events are the OSU School of Language, Culture, and Society; the OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film; the OSU College of Business; the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; and the Austrian Consulate General, Los Angeles.

Media Contact:  Angela Yeager Source: 

Paul Kopperman, 541-737-3421

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Henryk Grynberg will give a talk, “Bearing Witness through Literature,” on April 11, 2013 as part of OSU's Holocaust Memorial Week. (photo courtesy of Jacek Lagowski/Agencja Gazetta)
Ruth Klüger will also speak at Oregon State University on April 11 as part of Holocaust Memorial Week.

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03/20/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail:  Teaser: 

Brigadier Gen. Julie A. Bentz, who advises President Obama on national security issues, will return to her alma mater later this spring when she delivers the commencement address at Oregon State University on June 15.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Brigadier Gen. Julie A. Bentz, who advises President Obama on national security issues, will return to her alma mater this June when she delivers the commencement address at Oregon State University.

Bentz, director of strategic capabilities policy on the National Security Staff, is a 1986 graduate of OSU, where she received an ROTC commission and earned a degree in radiological health. She is the first female officer from the Oregon Army National Guard to achieve the rank of general.

“Gen. Bentz has played an integral role in advising the United States about security matters – and especially nuclear defense strategies and implications – since Sept. 11, 2001,” said OSU President Edward J. Ray. “Her journey from a small town in Oregon, to Oregon State University, and on to national prominence will provide a compelling message for our graduates.”

Bentz grew up in the tiny, unincorporated town of Jordan, Ore., which is near Stayton, and earned a national ROTC scholarship that would have allowed her to attend any of more than 200 universities in the country. She chose Oregon State, and earned her bachelor of science and bachelor of arts degrees in radiological health. She accepted her ROTC commission and was stationed in Landstuhl, Germany.

She later was stationed in San Antonio, Texas, where she worked as a nuclear, biological and chemical officer, training U.S. medical forces during the first Gulf War.

Then she became a missionary, and spent four years in Europe and Africa, while still working as an Army reserve officer.

“The pay I received from my service time was enough to pay for my missionary lifestyle,” she told the Oregon Stater magazine in a recent interview.

Bentz earned master’s (health physics) and doctoral (nuclear engineering) degrees from the University of Missouri, and another master’s degree in national security strategy from the National War College in Washington, D.C. She worked at the Pentagon during the 9-11 attacks, received a Legion of Merit medal for her work on the Homeland Security Council, and recently helped coordinate the U.S. response to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.

OSU’s 144th commencement ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 15, in Reser Stadium.

Generic OSU Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Steve Clark, 541-737-4875

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Julie Bentz

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03/20/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail:  Teaser: 

Brigadier Gen. Julie A. Bentz, who advises President Obama on national security issues, will return to her alma mater later this spring when she delivers the commencement address at Oregon State University on June 15.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Brigadier Gen. Julie A. Bentz, who advises President Obama on national security issues, will return to her alma mater this June when she delivers the commencement address at Oregon State University.

Bentz, director of strategic capabilities policy on the National Security Staff, is a 1986 graduate of OSU, where she received an ROTC commission and earned a degree in radiological health. She is the first female officer from the Oregon Army National Guard to achieve the rank of general.

“Gen. Bentz has played an integral role in advising the United States about security matters – and especially nuclear defense strategies and implications – since Sept. 11, 2001,” said OSU President Edward J. Ray. “Her journey from a small town in Oregon, to Oregon State University, and on to national prominence will provide a compelling message for our graduates.”

Bentz grew up in the tiny, unincorporated town of Jordan, Ore., which is near Stayton, and earned a national ROTC scholarship that would have allowed her to attend any of more than 200 universities in the country. She chose Oregon State, and earned her bachelor of science and bachelor of arts degrees in radiological health. She accepted her ROTC commission and was stationed in Landstuhl, Germany.

She later was stationed in San Antonio, Texas, where she worked as a nuclear, biological and chemical officer, training U.S. medical forces during the first Gulf War.

Then she became a missionary, and spent four years in Europe and Africa, while still working as an Army reserve officer.

“The pay I received from my service time was enough to pay for my missionary lifestyle,” she told the Oregon Stater magazine in a recent interview.

Bentz earned master’s (health physics) and doctoral (nuclear engineering) degrees from the University of Missouri, and another master’s degree in national security strategy from the National War College in Washington, D.C. She worked at the Pentagon during the 9-11 attacks, received a Legion of Merit medal for her work on the Homeland Security Council, and recently helped coordinate the U.S. response to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.

OSU’s 144th commencement ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 15, in Reser Stadium.

Generic OSU Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Steve Clark, 541-737-4875

Multimedia: 

Julie Bentz

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OSU’s Disability Access Services is using the AeroScout Real-Time Location System and Asset Tracking & Management solution to instantly track the location of items in order to reduce costs through improved inventory utilization while ensuring that the campus is accessible and comfortable for everyone.

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Oregon State University is using a new tracking system for specialized items for students, faculty and visitors with disabilities and special needs.

OSU’s Disability Access Services is using the AeroScout Real-Time Location System and Asset Tracking & Management solution to instantly track the location of items in order to reduce costs through improved inventory utilization while ensuring that the campus is accessible and comfortable for everyone.

OSU implemented the new system to track the location of hundreds of assets – primarily specialized furniture – tables, podiums and chairs – dispersed across the campus. The system, which works with OSU’s standard Wi-Fi network, allows the Disability Access Service team to immediately locate needed items across the 1,800-acre Corvallis campus, which includes 40 buildings and more than 450 classrooms, and reposition the items where they’re needed.

“We have a lot of returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan and we needed to find a cost-effective way to accommodate them with specialized furniture,” said Jennifer Gosset of Disability Access Services. “Before deploying the AeroScout solution, there were times when 75 percent of (our) assets were unaccounted for. This impacted the campus experience for many of our students and staff members and drove up costs.

“Now we know exactly where every item is,” she added. “As a result, we’re able to provide a much better experience for our students with disabilities and we’ve significantly improved asset utilization and staff productivity.”

The new system includes tags that are attached to the specialized furniture. The tags send location information of each item over OSU’s Wi-Fi network to MobileView, which has a graphical map of the campus that shows the location of each item. 

Media Contact:  Theresa Hogue Source: 

Jennifer Gossett, 541-737-4454

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OSU’s Disability Access Services is using the AeroScout Real-Time Location System and Asset Tracking & Management solution to instantly track the location of items in order to reduce costs through improved inventory utilization while ensuring that the campus is accessible and comfortable for everyone.

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Oregon State University is using a new tracking system for specialized items for students, faculty and visitors with disabilities and special needs.

OSU’s Disability Access Services is using the AeroScout Real-Time Location System and Asset Tracking & Management solution to instantly track the location of items in order to reduce costs through improved inventory utilization while ensuring that the campus is accessible and comfortable for everyone.

OSU implemented the new system to track the location of hundreds of assets – primarily specialized furniture – tables, podiums and chairs – dispersed across the campus. The system, which works with OSU’s standard Wi-Fi network, allows the Disability Access Service team to immediately locate needed items across the 1,800-acre Corvallis campus, which includes 40 buildings and more than 450 classrooms, and reposition the items where they’re needed.

“We have a lot of returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan and we needed to find a cost-effective way to accommodate them with specialized furniture,” said Jennifer Gosset of Disability Access Services. “Before deploying the AeroScout solution, there were times when 75 percent of (our) assets were unaccounted for. This impacted the campus experience for many of our students and staff members and drove up costs.

“Now we know exactly where every item is,” she added. “As a result, we’re able to provide a much better experience for our students with disabilities and we’ve significantly improved asset utilization and staff productivity.”

The new system includes tags that are attached to the specialized furniture. The tags send location information of each item over OSU’s Wi-Fi network to MobileView, which has a graphical map of the campus that shows the location of each item. 

Media Contact:  Theresa Hogue Source: 

Jennifer Gossett, 541-737-4454

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03/19/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail:  Teaser: 

Researchers from two agencies at the Hatfield Marine Science Center have tested a new bycatch reduction system that lowered the rate of incidental halibut bycatch by 57 percent.

NEWPORT, Ore. – Researchers working with the groundfish fishing industry in the Pacific Northwest have tested a new “flexible sorting grid excluder” – a type of bycatch reduction device that shows promise to significantly reduce the incidental bycatch of Pacific halibut from commercial bottom trawl fishermen.

In a series of tests that included 30 tows off the Washington coast, commercial fishermen were able to reduce the number of halibut taken as bycatch by 57 percent, while retaining 84 percent of the targeted groundfishes, according to Mark Lomeli of the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, an organization that helps resource agencies and the fishing industry sustainably manage Pacific Ocean resources.

The findings are being published in the journal Fisheries Research.

Incidental bycatch is a significant issue in many coastal regions including the Pacific Northwest. It occurs when fishing operations result in the discard of non-targeted fish and invertebrates, or through accidental interactions with mammals, seabirds and sea turtles. It is of particular concern, resource managers say, when these “bycaught” species are overfished, threatened or endangered.

The halibut project is the latest success in a series of bycatch reduction projects conducted through a collaboration between NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. These projects have captured the interest of the fishing industry, according to Waldo Wakefield of NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center, a principal investigator on the project and co-author on the article.

“Fishermen are really engaged in the research because they are concerned about getting shut down if the weight of the halibut bycatch approaches a certain threshold,” said Wakefield, who works out of Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, Ore. “The fishermen are not only engaged with the scientists, but they interact with each other and with the net-makers.

“In addition to the reality of being shut down, there is a perception issue,” added Wakefield, who is a courtesy professor in OSU’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences. “They don’t want to unnecessarily be killing halibut, salmon and other species.”

The flexible sorting grid excluder uses two vertical sorting panels that sort fish by size as they progress back toward the codend, noted Lomeli, who was lead author on the Fisheries Research article. The concept to the design is that fish smaller than the grid openings will pass through and be retained, where fish greater than the grid openings – such as the halibut – will be excluded from the net via an exit ramp.

“The system is not perfect,” Lomeli said. “Smaller halibut will occasionally slip through and fishermen in the tests lost about 16 percent of the groundfish they were targeting.”

Nevertheless, the reduction of the halibut bycatch is significant and may be improved by further research.

“The benefit of this type of gear is that fishermen can use smaller or bigger grids depending on the size of the fish,” noted Lomeli, who also works out of OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. “What works for one vessel may not work for another, and fishermen may want to adjust when they target different species. “

Bycatch has become a major issue, the researchers noted, especially since many of the fisheries have gone to a catch-share management system, which caps the number of fish individual fisherman can catch instead of the old system, which had a quota for the entire industry. As part of the new management system, observers are now aboard each fishing vessel to note the catch numbers and weight of both targeted fish and bycatch.

“If the fishermen start getting close to catching too many fish of the wrong species, they typically move, change gear or fish during a different time of the year,” said Wakefield, who is with the Fishery Resource Analysis and Monitoring Division of NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center.

Wakefield and Lomeli have been collaboratively conducting trawl selectivity studies in West Coast trawl fisheries. Their initial work began with the Pacific whiting industry at reducing Chinook salmon bycatch. In this work, a bycatch reduction device using an open escape window was developed that allowed strong-swimming Chinook to escape through the open window, while weak-swimming Pacific hake passed through to the codend.

They also worked with Bob Hannah and Stephen Jones of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in helping the Oregon pink shrimp industry reduce habitat impacts and bycatch of eulachon, a small threatened species in the smelt family, by modifying components of the trawl net. The research team is continuing its work with shrimpers, developing new proposals to further decrease the bycatch of eulachon as well as juvenile rockfish.

The collaborative effort to reduce bycatch by NOAA, the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, ODFW, the fishing industry, net-makers and others is one reason Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center was established – and is considered one of the most unique marine research and education facilities in the world.  The bycatch issue is of such significance it will be a focus of Marine Science Day on April 13 at the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Waldo Wakefield, 541-867-0542

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03/19/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail:  Teaser: 

Researchers from two agencies at the Hatfield Marine Science Center have tested a new bycatch reduction system that lowered the rate of incidental halibut bycatch by 57 percent.

NEWPORT, Ore. – Researchers working with the groundfish fishing industry in the Pacific Northwest have tested a new “flexible sorting grid excluder” – a type of bycatch reduction device that shows promise to significantly reduce the incidental bycatch of Pacific halibut from commercial bottom trawl fishermen.

In a series of tests that included 30 tows off the Washington coast, commercial fishermen were able to reduce the number of halibut taken as bycatch by 57 percent, while retaining 84 percent of the targeted groundfishes, according to Mark Lomeli of the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, an organization that helps resource agencies and the fishing industry sustainably manage Pacific Ocean resources.

The findings are being published in the journal Fisheries Research.

Incidental bycatch is a significant issue in many coastal regions including the Pacific Northwest. It occurs when fishing operations result in the discard of non-targeted fish and invertebrates, or through accidental interactions with mammals, seabirds and sea turtles. It is of particular concern, resource managers say, when these “bycaught” species are overfished, threatened or endangered.

The halibut project is the latest success in a series of bycatch reduction projects conducted through a collaboration between NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. These projects have captured the interest of the fishing industry, according to Waldo Wakefield of NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center, a principal investigator on the project and co-author on the article.

“Fishermen are really engaged in the research because they are concerned about getting shut down if the weight of the halibut bycatch approaches a certain threshold,” said Wakefield, who works out of Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, Ore. “The fishermen are not only engaged with the scientists, but they interact with each other and with the net-makers.

“In addition to the reality of being shut down, there is a perception issue,” added Wakefield, who is a courtesy professor in OSU’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences. “They don’t want to unnecessarily be killing halibut, salmon and other species.”

The flexible sorting grid excluder uses two vertical sorting panels that sort fish by size as they progress back toward the codend, noted Lomeli, who was lead author on the Fisheries Research article. The concept to the design is that fish smaller than the grid openings will pass through and be retained, where fish greater than the grid openings – such as the halibut – will be excluded from the net via an exit ramp.

“The system is not perfect,” Lomeli said. “Smaller halibut will occasionally slip through and fishermen in the tests lost about 16 percent of the groundfish they were targeting.”

Nevertheless, the reduction of the halibut bycatch is significant and may be improved by further research.

“The benefit of this type of gear is that fishermen can use smaller or bigger grids depending on the size of the fish,” noted Lomeli, who also works out of OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. “What works for one vessel may not work for another, and fishermen may want to adjust when they target different species. “

Bycatch has become a major issue, the researchers noted, especially since many of the fisheries have gone to a catch-share management system, which caps the number of fish individual fisherman can catch instead of the old system, which had a quota for the entire industry. As part of the new management system, observers are now aboard each fishing vessel to note the catch numbers and weight of both targeted fish and bycatch.

“If the fishermen start getting close to catching too many fish of the wrong species, they typically move, change gear or fish during a different time of the year,” said Wakefield, who is with the Fishery Resource Analysis and Monitoring Division of NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center.

Wakefield and Lomeli have been collaboratively conducting trawl selectivity studies in West Coast trawl fisheries. Their initial work began with the Pacific whiting industry at reducing Chinook salmon bycatch. In this work, a bycatch reduction device using an open escape window was developed that allowed strong-swimming Chinook to escape through the open window, while weak-swimming Pacific hake passed through to the codend.

They also worked with Bob Hannah and Stephen Jones of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in helping the Oregon pink shrimp industry reduce habitat impacts and bycatch of eulachon, a small threatened species in the smelt family, by modifying components of the trawl net. The research team is continuing its work with shrimpers, developing new proposals to further decrease the bycatch of eulachon as well as juvenile rockfish.

The collaborative effort to reduce bycatch by NOAA, the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, ODFW, the fishing industry, net-makers and others is one reason Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center was established – and is considered one of the most unique marine research and education facilities in the world.  The bycatch issue is of such significance it will be a focus of Marine Science Day on April 13 at the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Waldo Wakefield, 541-867-0542

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03/18/2013 Default Thumbnail:  Custom Thumbnail: 

CORVALLIS, Ore. – One of the nation’s leading marine science education and research facilities is getting a new director.

Robert K. Cowen, a marine biologist and administrator from Miami, Fla., has been named director of Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. He succeeds George Boehlert, who recently retired.

Janet Webster will continue serving as interim director of the center until Cowen begins his duties in late July.

Cowen holds the Robert C. Maytag Chair of Ichthyology at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, where he has served on the faculty since 1998. He previously was on the faculty of State University of New York at Stony Brook and conducted research as a doctoral student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, Calif.

“Bob Cowen has marine science education and research experience on both coasts and is well-suited to lead the Hatfield Marine Science Center into the future,” said Richard Spinrad, OSU’s vice president for research. “That future could include the development of a cohesive marine science-based curriculum as well as continuing to expand the center’s robust research and public outreach missions.”

Cowen’s studies range broadly, encompassing such issues as coastal fish ecology, fishery oceanography, larval transport and connectivity of marine organism populations. He has served on numerous national committees and panels, and is affiliated with the Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO), a multi-institutional research effort led by OSU. He also has served as associate dean for research at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

“I am very enthusiastic about joining the Hatfield Marine Science Center and OSU – not only for their great reputation, but also for the huge potential for bridging marine science education and science activities across the university,” Cowen said.

OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center is located on a 49-acre site in Newport, and has a combined annual budget of about $45 million and 300 employees. Its mission includes both research and education and what makes the facility unique, officials say, is that it houses scientists and educators from OSU and several federal and state agencies - a collaborative environment unmatched at most marine science facilities in the country.

Among those agencies are the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Environmental Protection Agency.

The center also includes the Cooperative Institute for Marine Resources Studies – a joint research initiative between OSU and NOAA; the university’s Marine Mammal Institute; the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, which is the first of its kind in the country; and the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, a national leader in the development of wave energy.

“I look forward to working with all partners at Hatfield to further its education, science and public outreach missions,” Cowen said.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Rick Spinrad, 541-737-0662

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Robert Cowen

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – One of the nation’s leading marine science education and research facilities is getting a new director.

Robert K. Cowen, a marine biologist and administrator from Miami, Fla., has been named director of Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. He succeeds George Boehlert, who recently retired.

Janet Webster will continue serving as interim director of the center until Cowen begins his duties in late July.

Cowen holds the Robert C. Maytag Chair of Ichthyology at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, where he has served on the faculty since 1998. He previously was on the faculty of State University of New York at Stony Brook and conducted research as a doctoral student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, Calif.

“Bob Cowen has marine science education and research experience on both coasts and is well-suited to lead the Hatfield Marine Science Center into the future,” said Richard Spinrad, OSU’s vice president for research. “That future could include the development of a cohesive marine science-based curriculum as well as continuing to expand the center’s robust research and public outreach missions.”

Cowen’s studies range broadly, encompassing such issues as coastal fish ecology, fishery oceanography, larval transport and connectivity of marine organism populations. He has served on numerous national committees and panels, and is affiliated with the Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO), a multi-institutional research effort led by OSU. He also has served as associate dean for research at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

“I am very enthusiastic about joining the Hatfield Marine Science Center and OSU – not only for their great reputation, but also for the huge potential for bridging marine science education and science activities across the university,” Cowen said.

OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center is located on a 49-acre site in Newport, and has a combined annual budget of about $45 million and 300 employees. Its mission includes both research and education and what makes the facility unique, officials say, is that it houses scientists and educators from OSU and several federal and state agencies - a collaborative environment unmatched at most marine science facilities in the country.

Among those agencies are the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Environmental Protection Agency.

The center also includes the Cooperative Institute for Marine Resources Studies – a joint research initiative between OSU and NOAA; the university’s Marine Mammal Institute; the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, which is the first of its kind in the country; and the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center, a national leader in the development of wave energy.

“I look forward to working with all partners at Hatfield to further its education, science and public outreach missions,” Cowen said.

Media Contact:  Mark Floyd Source: 

Rick Spinrad, 541-737-0662

Multimedia: 

Robert Cowen

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