OSU Biennial Engagement Report | Extension and Engagement

Building and strengthening university–community relationships

Credit: Alyson Yates

Growing together. Thriving together.
Land acknowledgement
What is engagement?

Growing together. Thriving together.

The importance of engagement was instilled in me at a young age. I grew up a farm kid, raised in the little town of Forrest in central Mississippi. A story I often share is my memory of Extension agents occasionally coming to our farm to talk to my father. They told us what we should be doing. The minute they left, he’d say, “Forget that. Let’s get back to work.”

That stuck with me throughout my career as an Extension agent and university administrator. We must listen to those we serve. We must do with, not do to. When I joined Oregon State University in 2021, I was inspired by the breadth, reach and impact of our Extension work. And I was eager to join in a renewed commitment to establishing universitywide, strategic approaches to community engagement and engaged scholarship.

I’m proud to share that this commitment has only grown stronger over the past two years. Extension and engagement efforts involve community members, students, staff, faculty and leadership. Importantly, they are creating positive change — fostering collaboration, building community capacity and improving lives and livelihoods.

In this inaugural biennial engagement report, we share highlights of Extension and engagement work from across the university and in every part of Oregon. I remain inspired by what we will do, together, in the years to come.

Ivory W. Lyles
Vice Provost for Extension and Engagement
Director, OSU Extension Service

VP of Engagement at a lunch table with children

Credit: Lynn Ketchum

Land acknowledgement

Oregon State University recognizes the impact that its land grant history has on Indigenous communities in Oregon. Through the Morrill Act of 1862, which established land grant universities in the United States, the federal government seized nearly 11 million acres of land from 250 sovereign Tribal nations, with little or no compensation.

In 1868, the state legislature designated Corvallis College as Oregon’s land grant institution. Soon after, Oregon received 90,000 acres of federal lands — taken from the Klamath, Coos, Lower Umpqua, Siuslaw and Coquille people — to be sold to create an endowment supporting the growth of the new college, which would become Oregon State University.

Oregon State University in Corvallis is located within the traditional homelands of the Marys River or Ampinefu Band of Kalapuya. Following the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855, Kalapuya people were forcibly removed to reservations in Western Oregon. Today, living descendants of these people are part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians. Indigenous people are valued, contributing members of the Oregon State community and represent multiple sovereign Tribes among students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Oregon State University accepts its responsibility for understanding the continuing impact of that history on these communities. Through self-reflection, learning, reconciliation and partnership, Oregon State commits to being of enduring benefit to the sovereign Tribal nations of Oregon and Indigenous communities throughout the United States.

What is engagement?

At Oregon State University, engagement means collaboration with communities — sustained and deepened over time — that is mutually beneficial and generates co-created knowledge and impact. It takes many forms, has many purposes and involves many types of communities, inclusive of academic, public, private, government and nonprofit entities as well as communities of place, of interest and of practice.

The scholarship of engagement describes a host of practices and impacts across disciplinary boundaries and teaching, research and service functions in which scholars communicate to and work both for and with communities. It is reciprocal and mutually beneficial. This co-creation has the potential for broader impacts, benefiting society or advancing desired societal outcomes.

In 2010, and again in 2020, Oregon State received the Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement. This designation recognizes our universitywide commitment to local, national and global communities through solutions-focused research, teaching and public engagement.

Spectrum icons - inform, consult, involve, collaborate and finally co-create

Adapted from the International Association for Public Participation and Colorado State University.

A flourishing partnership, rooted in purpose

Credit: Alyson Yates

Community health workers connect people with local health and social services. Health care interpreters ensure people can communicate with their providers and receive culturally responsive health care.

As vital as these professions are to Oregon’s Coordinated Care Organizations, especially in rural areas, options for career entry and advancement have been limited by a lack of affordable, accessible training.

This started to change when leaders at the Eastern Oregon Coordinated Care Organization started talking with colleagues at Oregon State University, forging a partnership to create new jobs and workforce training in the region.

Allison Myers, associate dean for Extension and engagement in the College of Health, says the work of the college and OSU Extension across Oregon helps the CCOs fulfill their mission.

“In Oregon, CCOs have incentives and quality metrics that promote health rather than just taking care of sick people,” Myers says. “Often, OSU Extension can help CCOs better meet their metrics by providing nutrition education or physical activity promotion for low-income Oregonians who get their health insurance from CCOs.”

For the past decade, EOCCO and Oregon State have collaborated to create, support and deliver several evidence-based solutions, including:

Certified community health worker training and continuing education, both online and in person. Since 2016, 398 people have completed the entry-level course, and 115 have completed continuing education units. In 2023, the program trained a cohort of 16 veterans and added a continuing education course on veterans’ health.
Spanish-English health care interpreter training for rural communities, meeting requirements for credentialing by the Oregon Health Authority. Since early 2023, 30 students have participated with a 90% pass rate, and 15 are currently registered as qualified interpreters.
Oregon AgriStress Helpline, a free, confidential 24/7 crisis and support helpline for agricultural and forestry communities, available by phone or text at 833-897-2474.

Both Oregon State and EOCCO contribute time, expertise, funding, facilities and other resources, and both benefit from the collaboration.

“We create, learn and improve together,” Myers says. “The community health worker program has been a wonderful success and is becoming self-sustaining. The interpreter program is in its second pilot. While it was extraordinarily difficult at first, we have learned a lot.”

Myers says the partnership between the OSU Center for Health Innovation and OSU’s Professional and Continuing Education unit is core to both programs.

The OSU-EOCCO collaboration is a promising example of how public-private partnerships can help move the U.S. health system toward health promotion. It also shows the potential for Extension to be a go-to partner for communities and the health system, making Oregon a model for other states.

“Our partnership has been more successful than I ever would have dreamed. It has also created a momentum and culture of finding new ways to partner together — ways that benefit both our organizations as well as individuals and communities throughout Oregon.”

— ROBIN RICHARDSON
Senior Vice President, Moda Health | Board Chair, EOCCO

Engagement conference, awards celebrate Oregon State's enduring mission

Credit: Ann Marie Murphy

Public engagement is one of the three pillars of Oregon State’s land grant mission. To build awareness, celebrate accomplishments and share knowledge about public engagement and engaged scholarship from across the university, OSU hosted its inaugural Engagement Conference in September 2023.

“As Oregon’s land grant university, it’s critical that we engage with communities in a spirit of reciprocity,” says Marina Denny, associate vice provost for engagement. “If we bring the research and resources of the university, and our community partners bring their knowledge and ideas to the table, together we can co-create mutually beneficial solutions to real-world issues.”

Held at the CH2M HILL Alumni Center on the Corvallis campus, the conference highlighted OSU’s public engagement priorities and accomplishments, along with evidence-based methods for engagement practice, partnerships, pedagogy and scholarship. The program also included awards recognizing faculty, staff and community partners for programs or projects that exemplify community engagement and engaged scholarship.

OSU Faculty Engagement Award
Community engaged scholarship team award
OSU-community partnership award

Didgette McCracken

Open Campus coordinator for the Division of Extension and Engagement in Grant County, McCracken is one of three founders of Grant County CyberMill, a nonprofit that provides a place where residents can access broadband service, as well as space for collaborating on education and entrepreneurial opportunities. The first CyberMill opened in Seneca in 2021, with a second in Prairie City in 2022. A third location is planned for John Day in 2024.

Oregon Coastal Futures Project

A transdisciplinary team of OSU researchers, Extension specialists and students who worked with a diverse community advisory council, the project helps coastal communities prepare for earthquakes, tsunamis, storms and rising sea levels.

Its members are:

Peter Ruggiero, professor in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences.
John Bolte, professor and head of the Department of Biological and Ecological Engineering in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
Patrick Corcoran, associate professor emeritus in CEOAS, retired Oregon Sea Grant Extension coastal hazards specialist and a member of the project’s advisory council.
Daniel T. Cox, professor and director of the Cascadia Lifelines Project in the College of Engineering.
Steven J. Dundas, associate professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences and researcher at the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station.
Felicia Olmeta Schult, professor of practice in CEOAS and Oregon Sea Grant Extension coastal hazards specialist.
Jenna Tilt, assistant professor in CEOAS.

Indigenous Ocean and Coast

This first-of-its-kind course highlights the social and cultural aspects of Indigenous-centered ocean knowledge, history and engagement. Team members are:

Natchee Barnd, associate professor in the College of Liberal Arts.
Buddy Lane, cultural education manager for the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians.
Peter Hatch, historical researcher/cultural resources technician for the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians.
Itchung Cheung, academic program manager for the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Empowering underserved populations

women in distance behind field of sunflowers

Credit: Lynn Ketchum

Supporting women farmers

In a traditionally male-dominated field, 44% of Oregon farm producers are now women. Since 2007, the OSU Extension Service Small Farms Program has helped them share information and support one another. The Willamette Women’s Farm Network now has close to 250 members. Through farm tours, meetings, classes and networking, members address farming and ranching issues to enhance their economic self-sufficiency.

Restoring an endangered ecosystem

The College of Forestry is working with the Aanniiih and Nakoda Tribes in northern Montana’s Fort Belknap Indian Community, along with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, to restore one of the last intact short-grass prairie ecosystems in the United States. Led by Cristina Eisenberg, associate dean for inclusive excellence and director of Tribal initiatives, the project incorporates Indigenous Knowledge while collecting native seeds and surveying for ethnobotany, soil health and pollinators. The project also includes STEM education for Tribal youth and jobs for FBIC members.

Preserving the Black experience

Oregon State University now owns most of the land in Benton County’s Soap Creek Valley that was claimed by Letitia and David Carson. Formerly enslaved, Letitia was one of Oregon’s first Black settlers when she arrived in 1845. The Letitia Carson Legacy Project, a partnership between Oregon State and the Black Oregon Land Trust, Oregon Black Pioneers, Linn Benton NAACP and Mudbone Grown, focuses on the Black experience in Oregon and preserving the plot of land the Carsons once called home.

Sharing Indigenous voices

OSU Press partnered with Confluence, a community nonprofit dedicated to bringing Indigenous voices to the history, culture and ecology of the Columbia River, to co-publish “My Name is LaMoosh” by Warm Springs Tribal elder Linda Meanus. Intended for young readers, it provides a firsthand account of growing up near Celilo Falls. The book is also a reminder that Indigenous people continue to maintain a cultural connection to the land and river that give them their identity.

Promoting mental health in Spanish

The OSU Center for Health Innovation in the College of Health is partnering with the OSU Extension Service Coast to Forest program to promote mental health and prevent substance use. OCHI and Coast to Forest have provided mental health first aid training for rural communities and are now expanding to offer it in Spanish in partnership with Juntos en Colaboración in Lincoln County.

Closing Oregon's digital divide

With leadership from University Information and Technology and Extension and Engagement, Oregon State is supporting broadband and digital equity work across the state. OSU is teaming up with Link Oregon, community broadband action teams and Oregon’s nine federally recognized Tribes to identify needs, solutions and funding sources.

Credit: Christopher Mitchell

Teaching diverse learners

Man roping a horse's hooves as others work on it

Credit: Jens Odegaard

Managing the horse population in central Oregon

Horse-owning members of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs gather at the Warm Springs Rodeo Grounds each year for a sterilization clinic led by students, faculty and support staff from the Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine. The clinic helps manage a glut of horses on the reservation and a substantial wild horse herd in Central Oregon, improving the health of both the horses and the local ecosystem.

Promoting DEI as good business

The Center for Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Business in the College of Business promotes DEI as a successful business strategy. The center addresses the important and difficult work needed to remedy historical inequities and build a sense of belonging. Working directly with businesses, the center provides consultation, assessments and custom online DEI education programs that are both unique to an industry sector and applicable to any workplace culture.

Building pathways to higher education

Launched in spring 2023, Access OSU is building better pathways to higher education for Black, Indigenous, Pacific Islander and Latinx communities in the Portland metro area. Access OSU integrates community-based programs with multiple OSU resources that serve students and their families. Access OSU is a partnership between the Office of Institutional Diversity, Extension and Engagement, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, along with the OSU Foundation and Alumni Association.

Expanding career opportunities

The Vanguarding an Inclusive Ecological Workforce Fellowship, established by the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Sciences in the College of Agricultural Sciences, is expanding career opportunities for undergraduates from historically excluded or underrepresented communities. VIEW Fellows complete a 10-week paid research experience over the summer, mentored by a faculty member or senior researcher. The fellowship also includes professional development through résumé and graduate school workshops, field days and conferences.

Getting Latinx youth outside

Latinx youth on the Oregon Coast and the Columbia River Gorge are getting outdoors and connecting to their culture through Juntos Afuera (Together Outside), a summer camp developed by the OSU Extension Service Open Campus and Juntos program. Activities include kayaking, bird watching, ziplining and learning about outdoor career opportunities from Latinx natural resources professionals. Launched in Tillamook County in 2021, the program expanded to Hood River and Wasco counties in 2022.

Credit: Ada Solario

Expanding student experiences

people in life jackets teaching a youth about marine life

Credit: Tracy Crews

Opening opportunities for research

Since 2016, Oregon Sea Grant has been leading the STEM at Sea program, which provides high school and community college instructors and their students the opportunity to participate in research at sea. For OSU researchers and their graduate students, STEM at Sea allows them to hone their mentoring and collaboration skills while collecting data and samples. The younger students learn about marine-related career pathways and scientific methods while getting firsthand experience in the research process and the excitement of discovery.

Serving communities over spring break

Every year, Oregon State students spend spring break immersed in service-learning. Offered by Community Engagement & Leadership in the Division of Student Affairs, Alternative Break sends groups of 10 to 12 students to West Coast cities where they work with local leaders and learn about the communities’ historical, cultural and political backgrounds through service projects, educational conversations and presentations.

For 2023, a total of 32 students in three groups traveled to Ashland, Oregon, San Francisco and Yakima, Washington. Students completed more than 800 service hours and 960 education hours focusing on environmental conservation, restoration and justice, housing and food security, Indigenous cultural engagement, immigrant justice and land use equity.

Promoting multilingual science education

The LaCuKnoS Project, short for Language, Culture and Knowledge-building through Science, promotes multilingual science education for Oregon K-12 schools and future science teachers in the College of Education. Led by science education professor Cory Buxton, LaCuKnoS aims to integrate multicultural STEM-based content in school programs and after-school activities. For OSU science education students, LaCuKnoS emphasizes integrating science language and content into the curriculum and new approaches for involving families in science learning. Students also gain opportunities to connect with science teachers across Oregon.

Reaching out through science

Several departments in the College of Science host outreach events for historically underserved youth. Programs include the Pernot Microbiology Camp, a week-long immersive science camp for high school students, the Advocates for Women in Science, Engineering and Math Club for both fifth grade and high school students and the annual Juntos Chemistry Overnight Camp, which brings 20 Latinx high school students from across Oregon to Corvallis.

Wild about Wildlife, a partnership between integrative biology students and students from the College of Agricultural Sciences, is a three-day summer camp for middle schoolers that includes field excursions to the Hatfield Marine Science Center and the Chintimini Wildlife Center. A collaboration in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences has produced interactive outreach kits for K-12 students and community members. Each kit focuses on one concept related to Earth systems, and several have been translated into Spanish for use at bilingual events.

Preparing students for careers

Launched in fall 2023, Cascades Edge integrates career exploration and preparation throughout each term to ensure all undergraduate students at OSU-Cascades have continuous and ongoing support to plan for their careers. Students can explore interests, majors and related career paths, connect with community partners and industry experts, as well as participate in career fairs, networking events and other career development activities.

Getting students involved in service

Community partners in the Corvallis area participate in mutually beneficial Beavs Volunteer and Days of Service projects coordinated through Community Engagement & Leadership in the Division of Student Affairs. In the 2022-23 academic year, Community Engagement & Leadership coordinated 145 service projects involving 1,890 students working with 22 nonprofit organizations and contributing nearly 5,500 service hours.

Students volunteered on projects focusing on food security, housing security, animal welfare, environmental conservation and restoration, health and well-being and other social causes.

Student packing up food in a box in a warehouse

Credit: Dustin Diep

“I learned about how life circumstances impact people in negative ways, but that a strong community helps to alleviate the pain. The trip taught me to be more empathetic to people who have different lives from me.” — Alternative Break Participant

Launching an undergraduate certificate for social good

Woman showing laptop screen to three men with many workshop stickey notes on whiteboard behind

Credit: Shiyani Jinger

The OSU IMPACT Studio and faculty from across the university are collaborating to connect research to curriculum and experiential learning that has community-focused applications. And they’ve created a new undergraduate certificate in the process.

The Design for Social Impact initiative includes faculty from the colleges of Agricultural Sciences, Business, Engineering, Liberal Arts and the Honors College. They are developing project-based experiential learning focused on design, innovation and social good. The curriculum aligns with Oregon State’s longstanding strengths in advancing Earth systems science, health and wellness, economic prosperity and social progress.

This transcript-visible undergraduate certificate offers students an opportunity to dive into public-facing applied research while using design thinking to make informed assessments of alternative solutions to complex problems. Faculty will help students build and lead inclusive, collaborative teams of academics, industry and community partners. Teams will co-create mutually beneficial tools and technologies that address real-world needs.

Oregon State will pilot a new course, Multidisciplinary Design for Social Impact, in 2024. It will be open to junior and senior students from all majors.

About the Division of Extension and Engagement
OSU Extension Service
Community Engagement
Partnerships

About the Division of Extension and Engagement

Extension and engagement are core to Oregon State’s mission and integral to work that will achieve the collaborative vision for shared prosperity laid out in the university’s strategic plan.

While multiple Oregon State units undertake outreach and engagement activities, the Division of Extension and Engagement is charged with stewardship for these efforts across the university. Broadly, the division provides collaborative leadership in three complementary areas.

Ivory W. Lyles
Vice Provost for Extension and Engagement
Director, OSU Extension Service

OSU Extension Service

With operations in all of Oregon’s 36 counties and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, the OSU Extension Service serves Oregonians with research-based knowledge and education focused on creating healthy communities and economies; resilient and productive forests and natural ecosystems; sustainable agriculture, food systems and gardening; and thriving youth, individuals and families. OSU Extension leads efforts across several program areas: 4-H Youth Development, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Family and Community Health, Forestry and Natural Resources, Juntos and Open Campus, Oregon Sea Grant, OSU KidSpirit and Outdoor School.

Kris Elliot in short-sleeved button up shirt

Kristopher Elliott
Associate Vice Provost
Associate Director,
OSU Extension Service

Community Engagement

The division provides collaborative leadership for universitywide, community-engaged scholarship and community engagement best practices. This includes seeking opportunities for greater collaboration and integration across OSU colleges and divisions while collaborating with community partners to develop mutually beneficial solutions to real-world challenges. The division also contributes a community engagement perspective to other university domains and initiatives, including those focused on teaching and learning, research and innovation, and economic development.

The division houses PACE, Oregon State’s professional and continuing education unit that provides support for division programs and some OSU colleges. PACE courses and certificate programs help noncredit learners develop new skills, and PACE also offers customized team training for companies.

Marina Denny
Associate Vice Provost for Engagement

Partnerships

To support Oregon State’s priority on educational access, the division works with other university units to help expand partnerships with community colleges, increase support for transfer students and develop new programs and initiatives that support college access for underserved communities. The division also provides leadership and oversight of partnership-driven programs including Open Campus and Juntos. A program focused on co-creating culturally relevant programming to serve the needs of Native American, Alaska Native and Tribal communities statewide is in development.

Jeff Sherman-Duncan
Associate Vice Provost for Partnerships

Promoting healthy communities

Credit: Karl Maasdam

Promoting gardening for better health

Gardening can be good for mental and physical health, and Hope Grows Here, a community-based gardening and nutrition education study supporting cancer survivors, shows how. The program, a collaboration among the Moore Family Center for Whole Grain Foods, Nutrition and Preventive Health in the College of Health, the Linus Pauling Institute and the OSU Extension Service Master Gardener Program, pairs Master Gardener mentors with cancer survivors as they learn to grow their own vegetables and fruits.

Meeting the need for school counselors

Oregon is experiencing a critical lack of school counselors, especially in rural areas. Lucy Purgason and Molly Moran, College of Education faculty at OSU-Cascades, lead the Promoting and Advancing Training of High Desert School Counselors program, which places 12 to 18 counseling interns at high-need schools in four Central Oregon districts every year.

Presenting vaccine information equitably

Daniela Olivas Shaw, a 2022 OSU graduate, and the College of Pharmacy helped Oregon pharmacies provide information about COVID-19 vaccinations to Latinx patients with equity and empathy. After researching Spanish-language materials by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Oregon Health Authority and local health departments, Olivas Shaw found the materials needed clearer language for Latinx patients. She created a Spanish-language toolkit using familiar terms to cover vaccine manufacturers’ information, possible side effects, differences between vaccines and FAQs.

Olivas Shaw also spearheaded two educational videos produced by the college. The first helps providers recognize and respect different customs across Latinx communities. The second video is for patients, covering information on different vaccines, expectations for vaccine appointments, possible side effects and answers to common questions.

Protecting animals in a disaster

A product of wildfire response efforts in 2021, DAM Vets — the Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine Disaster Action Management Team — offers disaster preparedness training and outreach to the public, as well as disaster response training and education to veterinary professionals and students. DAM Vets continue to provide on-the-ground response during wildfire disasters to protect pets and farm animals.

Helping children with disabilities get moving

Children with mobility disabilities get to play and socialize with their peers more easily through the Go Baby Go program in the College of Health. Past research has shown that independent mobility is linked to cognitive, social, motor, language and other developmental benefits in young children. Go Baby Go is a national, community-based research, design and outreach program that provides modified ride-on cars to children up to age 3 who experience limited mobility. About 750 families have participated in OSU’s Go Baby Go program since it launched in 2012.

Adding tasty recipes to food boxes

Emergency food boxes help families in need, but recipients don’t always know what to make with what’s inside. OSU Extension in Wallowa County worked with the Enterprise Food Bank and Wallowa Food Bank to produce Just Scratch It! kits for the food boxes. Easy-to-make recipes from the Extension Food Hero initiative include skillet chili, one-pan spaghetti, stovetop tuna casserole and a hamburger skillet with beans, rice and cheese.

Nurturing childhood resilience

Through Roots of Resilience, more than 500 early childhood teachers in Oregon are learning how to nurture resilience in children impacted by trauma. Led by Shannon Lipscomb, associate professor of human development and family sciences and associate dean for research at OSU-Cascades, this professional development program is based on the science of resilience and trauma, along with information gathered through focus groups with early childhood teachers and leaders. Research with local teachers over two years shows that the program is meeting teachers’ needs and yielding positive outcomes for children.

Credit: Joe Klein

Driving thriving economies

Men and women and business attire in long line in modern building hallway

Solving real-world problems

Graduate capstone projects in the MBA and specialized master’s programs in the College of Business focus on a business challenge in collaboration with industry sponsors. Student researchers use their fresh skills to bring new insights and find innovative solutions to immediate business problems as well as for forward-focused research and planning. Most capstone projects are conducted for business, but some students apply their research at nonprofits and government organizations.

Using wastewater for irrigation

Oregon farmers might be able to irrigate and fertilize their crops with wastewater thanks to research in the College of Engineering. A partnership between farmers, wastewater treatment plants and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the project could also reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers. Researchers are developing a two-stage, hybrid membrane filtration technology to treat the murky liquid discharge from anaerobic digesters, a type of bioreactor used in water treatment plants and on some larger farms. The technology could be deployed directly at farms that operate their own anaerobic digesters or farms adjacent to municipal treatment plants.

Advancing the semiconductor industry

One in six semiconductor jobs in the U.S. are located in Oregon, and semiconductors account for nearly half of the state’s exports. Through the College of Engineering, Oregon State is leading the Advancing Semiconductor Technologies in the Northwest program. With $1 million in funding, the program focuses on advancing use-inspired solutions for new and existing semiconductor materials and devices, inventing processes for scalable nanofabrication manufacturing and expanding innovation and entrepreneurship. It will also create new training and leverage existing programs to support a diverse workforce.

Supporting family businesses

Family businesses are a major contributor to the Oregon economy and can range from a small, multi-generational farm to a national food brand and a construction conglomerate. The Center for Family Enterprise in the College of Business serves as a critical hub for education and research on issues that matter to family businesses across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.

Promoting mass timber for housing

A collaboration between Oregon State and the University of Oregon, the Tallwood Design Institute in the College of Forestry unites faculty in structural engineering, wood science and architecture to advance mass timber and other wood product building solutions. A $41.4 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration will advance initiatives to use mass timber for housing. The grant includes funding for university research, as well as for manufacturing and workforce development in Portland, forest restoration projects in the Willamette National Forest and efforts to modernize building codes in Oregon communities impacted by wildfires.

Advancing engaged scholarship

Woman with Sea Grant jacket on pointing to whiteboard

Credit: Trav Williams

Presenting the wonders of the ocean

Since it opened in 1965, OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center has shared the wonders of the ocean, exciting discoveries and research with millions of people. Oregon Sea Grant runs public education programs, supported by a cadre of community volunteers. At HMSC, aquarist and veterinary students gain experience caring for aquatic animals, K-12 school groups explore hands-on exhibits and activities, scientists and artists share their work, and researchers study how people learn in the Visitor Center.

Addressing real-world public policy

The Oregon State Policy Analysis Laboratory in the College of Liberal Arts allows students to apply the quantitative and qualitative skills they’ve learned in class to real-world policy issues in education, energy, climate change, disaster response and other fields. OPAL combines research rigor with reciprocal learning to improve policy outcomes for all Oregonians. The results from previous work on food insecurity in Oregon have been used and cited by a variety of sources — including the Oregon Legislature — to develop new policies and actions addressing poverty and food insecurity.

Sharing data on natural resources

The Human and Ecosystem Resiliency and Sustainability Lab at OSU-Cascades shares research data on natural resource conservation, monitoring and restoration with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Forest Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Oregon Department of Transportation.

Assessing drought and heat management practices

The results of a statewide needs assessment of Oregon farmers and ranchers found that they are already largely aware of what management practices and tools are available to contend with drought and heat, but more funding and technical assistance are needed. The OSU Extension Service, which conducted nearly 60 interviews for the assessment, submitted the report to the Oregon Legislature in the summer of 2023 and has also shared it with relevant organizations.

Honoring women who made history

Informed by historical research and scholarship, Eliza Young Barstow, senior instructor in the College of Liberal Arts helped the Corvallis School District evaluate candidates for new names at three elementary schools. In 2021, the schools were renamed to honor Letitia Carson, a former enslaved woman who arrived in 1845 when Oregon’s Black exclusionary laws were still active; Bessie Coleman, the first African American and Indigenous person to earn a pilot’s license; and Kathryn Jones Harrison, who helped regain federal recognition for the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon.

Expanding outreach in earth sciences

Through the Outreach Community of Practice in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, faculty and graduate students, along with partnering OSU organizations, share their work outside the traditional classroom and laboratory environments. Members gather to discuss current projects and envision future outreach and engagement programs that are thoughtful and inclusive.

Protecting whales, supporting crabbers

A collaborative working group of fishermen, government agencies and conservationists, organized and facilitated by Oregon Sea Grant, led to the implementation of research-based strategies to reduce the number of whales entangled in crabbing gear off the Oregon Coast. Sea Grant faculty researchers also identified hot spot areas for potential whale and crab gear conflict on the coast, which will support precision management and reduce economic impacts to crabbers.

Adding content to Wikipedia

Laurie Bridges, instruction and outreach librarian for OSU Libraries, spearheaded the first #EveryBookItsReader Wikimedia campaign in April. Bridges brought together collaborators from Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Canada and Botswana to add quality content about books to Wikipedia and Wikidata. Together, they created more than 900 Wikipedia articles, edited 4,200 articles and added 1.9 million words across Wikipedia in at least nine languages.

Improving crop management

The Oregon Integrated Pest Management Center in the College of Agricultural Sciences shares research-based practices to help farmers, ranchers, field workers and crop consultants prevent crop damage from insects and diseases while reducing risks to human health and the environment.

Two women looking at plant in greenhouse

Credit: Lynn Ketchum

Engaging Oregon youth through hands-on learning

Youth in classroom with Virtual Reality headsets over their eyes

Credit: Susan Rowe

Oregon State provides education and engaged learning opportunities to thousands of youth every year through the Office of Precollege Programs in the Division of Enrollment Management. Offering a range of outreach activities designed to increase college access and academic preparation, the programs also enable OSU faculty to broaden the educational impact of research projects while co-creating STEM curricula for K-12 audiences and professional development opportunities for educators across Oregon and beyond.

Creating immersive, virtual experiences

DIVE4Ag — Distant, Immersive, Virtual Education for Agriculture Literacy — is an initiative led by Precollege Programs and OSU Extension Service 4-H Youth Development to deliver immersive experiences to middle and high school students in the Pacific Northwest. Working with community and industry partners, DIVE4Ag developed an innovative Agriculture Distance Education Toolkit, including five free virtual and augmented reality apps that youth helped co-create while working with agriculture experts, education professionals, communicators and technology partners:

Agroecology on urban farms.
Dairy farm and cheese lab.
Oyster farm.
Horse farm and stable.

The free apps can be downloaded via Xplore applications by Timelooper in both English and Spanish. To date, more than 10,000 people have participated in DIVE4Ag activities, either by downloading and/or interacting with the apps and lessons or by attending professional development workshops and information sessions. More widespread distribution is planned for 2024.

DIVE4Ag is supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Opening STEM pathways in rural communities

SMILE — Science and Math Investigative Learning Experiences — is a statewide program providing after-school clubs and other programs in the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering and math. SMILE supports more than 7,000 underrepresented, lower-income and first-generation elementary, middle and high school students in rural school districts. For 33 years, SMILE has leveraged community partnerships, resources, assets and networks to help students gain STEM skills year-round and go on
to college.

More than 70 SMILE teachers belong to a community of practice with professional development and resources to facilitate clubs and to embed an evidence-based STEM curriculum co-created with OSU researchers into their classrooms.

SMILE is supported by multiple federal, state and foundation funders.

Cultivating invention and engagement

The iINVENT program brings introductory invention education curricula to K-12 audiences both in and out of school. The program’s commitment to innovation, community engagement and problem-solving reaches learners in four ways:

iINVENT in the classroom provides a virtual curriculum to upper elementary students, along with teacher professional development for classroom integration.
iINVENT Mobile Camps in the summer help middle schoolers gain innovation skills through community-focused invention case studies.
iINVENT Youth as Inventors supports high school students who work with partners to solve a problem in their communities and develop prototype solutions.
iINVENT Integrations are short invention activities incorporated into Precollege Programs such as Campus Field Trips and Beaver Hangouts. They provide hands-on activities to K-12 students, teachers and families.

iINVENT is supported by the Lemelson Foundation and through leveraging funds via Precollege Programs partnerships.

OSU Engagement Council

aerial view of the center of OSU Corvallis campus

Credit: Kegan Sims

In 2023, Oregon State established a university-level engagement council that includes representation from each OSU college, OSU-Cascades and relevant non-academic units. The council aligns community engagement and engaged scholarship priorities with the university’s strategic plan and acts on related issues, including:

Socializing definitions of community engagement and engaged scholarship across the university.
Identifying and addressing systemic barriers to doing community-engaged work and recognizing engaged scholarship.
Offering appropriate policy and procedural recommendations to university leadership.
Raising awareness of opportunities for engagement with colleagues and community partners.
Highlighting and celebrating stellar engagement work by university personnel and community partners.

A look ahead

In 2024, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching will release its framework for Oregon State to renew its Community Engagement Classification in 2026. Members of the OSU Engagement Council will help review and recommend systems to collect, track and share evidence-based documentation of the university’s engagement activities, strategies and systems. Input from community partners and university colleagues will inform this work.

See the OSU Engagement Council members

“The engagement mission has something vital to contribute to all three goals in Oregon State’s strategic plan: To be a university focused on big discoveries that drive big solutions, where every student graduates and that fuels a thriving world.”

Ivory W. Lyles
Vice Provost for Extension and Engagement
Director, OSU Extension Service

Man showing youth something near the ocean side

Credit: Trav Williams