March 31, 2025
Dear Campus Community,
I hope you all had a restful Spring Break and are having a wonderful start to the spring term. As usual, I am writing to you all today to share an update ahead of our committee and full board meetings later this week.
Before I move forward with the message, I want to reiterate some of the recent news that has been shared across campus that I believe is important to acknowledge:
- On Wednesday, March 26, Provost Chabon and Dr. Kinsella shared that a Tentative Contract Agreement was reached between PSU & AAUP. I want to acknowledge and applaud both bargaining teams for coming together to reach this tentative agreement.
- Work in Salem continues to be critical as we advocate for funding the Public University Support Fund (PSUF), expanding Oregon’s need-based student financial aid program and other vital investments in higher education.
- Federal actions continue to impact higher education, and while we are in uncertain times, as a board, we share the university’s commitment to equitable access, quality education, and a supportive, caring campus for all.
On Thursday, April 3, board committees will discuss several important items, including:
- Onboarding and recruitment of new trustees and opportunities for shared governance.
- Improving career outcomes for our students.
- Budget scenarios for the upcoming academic year.
- Federal updates.
Additionally, at this meeting, we intend to move forward with the approval of the tuition and mandatory enrollment fees for the 2025-26 academic year and the 2025 summer term, as well as the calendar for the upcoming academic year.
I want to remind the campus community that we value your input and welcome public comment at our full board meetings. While we have a limited time for public comment, I want to encourage anyone to email trustees@pdx.edu if you don’t have time to join our meetings or would like to submit something.
Finally, as a reminder, following the meeting, we will continue to issue a campus-wide communication to highlight the key themes of the public comments received and share any related actions or action items the board took. Please review these post-meeting communications and we welcome any feedback you may have on this approach.
As always, the board webpage has various resources that you may find helpful, including the yearly calendar, meeting notices, meeting recordings, and other information. Feel free to utilize the board feedback form, also on the webpage, where you can share meeting feedback, general comments, or recommendations on characteristics or candidates we should consider when we have a trustee vacancy.
Benjamin Berry
Board of Trustees Chair
If you want to invite the Board of Trustees to a campus event, email trustees@pdx.edu
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