ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½

CORVALLIS, Ore. - In unveiling a new vision for ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½, President Ed Ray told the ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ Faculty Senate on Thursday, October 8, that the university will grow substantially by the year 2025, with ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades Campus expanding to an enrollment of 3,000 - 4,000 students about six times its present size.

The state's first public university branch campus, ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades currently serves about 600 students and has produced more than 1,400 graduates over the past eight years.

In introducing what is being called ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ 2025, Ray described a series of academic changes, enhancements to research and overall growth necessary to achieve ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½'s goal of becoming one of the nation's top land grant universities. Over the same period of time, ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½'s main campus enrollment is projected to expand to 30,000-35,000, a growth arc similar to that outlined for Bend.

That level of success [for ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades] will require us to help colleagues there build signature programs that will make the Cascades Campus a destination of choice for students and faculty, said Ray. We must also promote effective fund raising for the Cascades Campus and develop local university-industry partnerships in research.

With record growth expected this fall, ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades is in the process of adding more programs and course offerings. Degree programs in energy engineering management, hospitality management and sustainability, for instance, will begin over the next two years.

'We appreciate the strong and positive vision for ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades that President Ray has put forward, said Becky Johnson, vice president of ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades Campus. We believe that we can build upon the momentum of this year's strong enrollment growth at both Central Oregon Community College and ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades.  The new programs that will be added over the next few years will also help to grow the campus.'

In recent weeks, a possible move of the ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ College of Education to ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades has been under public discussion. After careful review, ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ leaders have elected instead to plan for increased growth of education programs at ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades, while maintaining the administrative home in Corvallis.  Over the next few months, representatives from the College of Education will work with ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½-Cascades and local education leaders to identify priority programs that meet local needs.


ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½: ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ is one of only two U.S. universities designated a land-, sea-, space- and sun-grant institution. ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ is also Oregon's only university designated in the Carnegie Foundation's top tier for research institutions, garnering more than 60 percent of the total federal and private research funding in the Oregon University System. Its more than 20,300 students come from all 50 states and more than 80 countries. ÌÇÐÄ´«Ã½ programs touch every county within Oregon, and its faculty teach and conduct research on issues of national and global importance.