Surrounded by mountains, fed by the Willamette and Columbia Rivers
Nestled in the heart of the Pacific Northwest,
Portland State University is a nationally recognized urban university
Our location in Portland truely puts you in the middle of it all.
Home to forward-thinking
people who cherish the city
for its culture and surrounding natural beauty
and livability
Portland is in the heart
of the Pacific Northwest.
The university's urban setting and many community partnerships act as a
living laboratory that will provide you with diverse opportunities that allow you to
live, learn and lead. Welcome to Portland State University, the city is our campus!
The main lobby of Neuberger Hall houses the help windows and offices of Financial Aid
Cashier, I.D. Cards,
Office of Admissions, Registration and Records, and Transcripts.
There are computers along the wall where students can access their records online.
The Office of Orientation & Campus Visits can also be found on the main floor.
The other floors of Neuberger Hall house the departments of
English, World Languages and Literature, Communication, Conflict Resolution,
Math, Philosophy, Speech and Hearing Sciences, Black Studies and Women’s Studies.
There are Instructional Computer labs on the 4th floor, as well as math labs,
art labs, and Communication computer labs.
There is also a computer lab located in the basement available for all students.
Next is the Smith Memorial Student Union,
which is the campus student union, named after Michael Smith
Michael Smith was part of a 4 man team that won a popular TV show called
the GE College Bowl. For the first time, PSU was in the national spotlight
for academics.
2 years later Smith passed away of cystic fibrosis and the building was
named in his honor.
Smith Memorial Student Union, the campus student union,
is a four-story building with two basement levels.
It was built in four separate phases between 1956 and
1963.
The building houses Viking Food Court,
ASPSU -
which is the Associated Students of Portland State University,
Multicultural Center and La Casa Latina,
over 100 student organizations in Student Activities and Leadership Programs,
ASPSU Childcare,
and our student run, Food for Thought Café,
which serves organic coffee and specializes in vegetarian, vegan and
locally produced foods.
We are now at Cramer Hall which was named after the first PSU President.
Built in 1956 Cramer Hall was the first building constructed
by PSU and not acquired.
Cramer Hall was built in four sections and houses the departments of Anthropology,
Geology, Geography,
Psychology, Sociology,
Economics, and History.
It also houses the Writing Center, Presidents offices, and University
Studies program, which is PSU’s Nationally recognized General Education
program.
University Studies provides students with integrated, connected learning
experiences
that lay the foundation for lifelong intellectual development.
Extending through all four years, the program teaches you how to think
critically,
communicate effectively, and gain a broad awareness of the human experience
to instill a deep sense of responsibility to yourself,
your peers and your community.
Inside of Cramer is PSU Recycles! Program.
The main goals of the program are to reduce the total amount of waste
generated on campus and to reuse and recycle as much as possible from our
waste stream.
Also, PSU Recycles coordinates an office supply exchange program
for faculty, staff
and student groups.
We are now in Licoln Hall.
Recently renovated Lincoln Hall used to be Lincoln High School and was the first
building to be used on our current campus.
PSU started in 1946
Vanport Extension Center for GI’s returning from WWII in the
in the neighborhood of Vanport,
site of vacant housing for shipyard workers.
The Columbia River flood
in 1948
forced the center to move.
Lincoln Hall was acquired in 1952.
Some of the only things salvaged from the flood were a rock and some library books.
Students put the newly named Vanport Rock at the park block entrance to Lincoln
Hall
to show that they wouldn’t be moved again.
The School of Fine and Performing Arts is located within Lincoln hall
along with classrooms designed with the arts in mind.
An auditorium exists on the basement level,
seats 200, and is mostly used for concerts.
A much larger auditorium on the first floor -- the Lincoln Performance Hall -- seats
476 on a steeper grade, has full curtains and lighting, and
features both concerts and theater productions.
A much smaller space known as the Studio Theater is used for more intimate,
experimental student productions and rehearsals.
This 98 year old building is in the process of attaining
Gold LEED Certification after receiving a renovation
that included a new roof and electrical, plumbing,
heating and cooling system retrofits have improved energy efficiency in the
building.
Twelve blocks along SW Park Ave. were donated to the city in
1852.
The South Park blocks, once the center of a high-class residential district,
and preserved by the city for 100 years, has become the central
core of campus.
Further north on the Park Blocks from PSU are the Portland Art Museum,
the Pacific Northwest College of Art and Film Study Center,
Portland Performing Arts Center,
major churches, and the Oregon Historical Society.
Elms along the park blocks are some of the last of their kind.
Others have died from Dutch Elm disease.
Ours’ are vaccinated each year.
In front of the Smith Memorial Student Union on the Park Blocks there is a stage which
holds different events throughout the year.
One such event is Noon Tunes,
which are lunchtime concerts, weather permitting.
From May-November, the Portland Farmers’ Market is also in the park blocks on
Saturday.
The Millar Library is named after the 2nd president of PSU,
Branford P. Millar.
The front half of the library is an $11 million addition built
around the Copper Beech tree in front.
The original plan for the addition was to cut down the tree, the only one of its
kind in the region, and build in its space.
A student group and some professors decided that the tree should not be destroyed so
they protested to save the tree.
They were successful and the architecture for the edition was changed to go around the
tree.
The Millar Library is a part of PORTALS,
Portland Area Library Systems,
which is a library consortium, and is also a part of the Interlibrary loan
system.
Students can go to other university and college libraries around Oregon and
and borrow books that PSU may not have, and request for them to be sent to the Millar
library.
There are also computer labs on the first and second floors with Mac’s
and PC’s, as well as rooms that are available for student check-out for study groups.
The library is open throughout the academic year.
We hope you enjoyed this Tour
There is so much more at see.
Please continue exploring PSU by going on our website.