Programs with a Purpose
CUPA is where a commitment to public service and pragmatic approach to career advancement intersect. Our academic programs prepare students to flex boundaries and conceive new and practical approaches to stubborn problems. Students draw upon areas of expertise that, up to now, were compartmentalized. To succeed they have to be risk-takers, bridge-builders, and out-of-box thinkers. That’s why we encourage our students to design fresh interdisciplinary solutions and work with faculty and community partners to test them in the field.
The Portland metro region is our laboratory, and we love to get out in it. It’s the proving ground where our students and faculty team with community organizations, imagine original solutions, and implement them in real time. Working in the community allows our students to experience the positive impact of their hard work first-hand, before they even graduate. Leaders from both the public and private sectors come to our classrooms to impart the valuable lessons they have learned from their own experiences in the field. Ultimately, these concrete lessons prepare our students to become effective and marketable civic leaders.