JPR broadcast booth, Murrow Awards

JPR wins regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for news reporting

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The Jefferson Public Radio newsroom at SOU is among the winners of the 2019 regional Edward R. Murrow Awards. The “Murrows” are presented by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) to recognize outstanding broadcast and online journalism.

JPR won in the Hard News and Continuing Coverage categories in RTDNA’s Northwest small market division, made up of public and commercial radio stations in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Alaska. This is the second year running JPR has won in those categories.

“I’m thrilled to see JPR news recognized once again for its outstanding work during the past year, creating high-impact journalism and telling compelling stories about our region,” JPR Executive Director Paul Westhelle said. “The work recognized by the RTDNA is the result of a team effort by our entire newsroom – work which is made possible by the generous support of our listeners.”

JPR’s winning entry in the Hard News category examined the West Coast tourism industry’s responses to a recent string of smoky summers:

“West Coast businesses that depend on the summertime tourist dollar took a big hit from this years’ wildfires and smoke.

“The same thing happened last year. And two years before that. Now, the idea that smoky summers may become the norm is beginning to take hold, and tourist operators — and the towns that rely on them — are looking for ways to adapt.”

Listen to the full story: The West Coast Tourism Industry Starts To Adapt To A Smoky Future

The station’s winning entry in the Continuing Coverage category looked at how deeply the Redding area was affected by the nearby Carr fire, and challenges to the area’s recovery:

“In late July, the Carr fire burned through Shasta and Trinity Counties in far-northern California. Driven by dry fuels, hot temperatures and high winds, it became a ‘fire tornado,’ jumping the Sacramento River and sweeping through neighborhoods in Redding, the region’s largest city. Nearly half of Redding’s population had to evacuate and more than 1,000 homes were destroyed. Eight people, including three fire fighters, died.

“These are stories of how the Carr fire affected the Redding area and some of the challenges facing the recovery effort.”

Listen to the full story: The Carr Fire: Aftermath And Challenges To Recovery

Regional winners of Murrow awards are automatically entered in the national Edward R. Murrow competition. National winners will be announced in June.

This story is reposted from Jefferson Public Radio

SOU lectures-calculations on chalkboard

WSU’s Watkins to offer thought-provoking mathematical lectures at SOU

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Washington State University’s David Watkins will dive into a pair of deep mathematical concepts when he presents lectures at SOU on Friday, May 3, about eigenvalues and mathematical research.

Watkins’ first presentation, at 10:30 a.m. in Taylor Hall, Room 28-31, will offer an examination of eigenvalues for the 36th installment of SOU’s annual Kieval Lecture. He will describe current research into eigenvalues and set straight some commonly taught computational missteps.

“Toward the end of a first course in linear algebra, students learn that matrices have these things called eigenvalues,” Watkins said in describing his lecture. “They will certainly be taught how to compute eigenvalues, but the method that they will learn is wrong!”

The lecture series – which is free and open to the public – was endowed by the late Harry S. Kieval for speakers to address broad popular aspects of mathematics that are attractive to undergraduates and the general public. Kieval was an Ashland mathematician who died in 1994 at age 80.

Watkins – an internationally recognized expert in scientific computing, numerical analysis and numerical linear algebra – will also serve as guest lecturer for this week’s Friday Science Seminar. That presentation, at 3:30 p.m. in Room 151 of the Science Building, will cover the benefits and satisfaction of conducting original mathematic research – even if the same work was done in ancient Greece.

“Anybody can do research,” Watkins said. “If you can figure it out for yourself, the reward in satisfaction will be substantial. And it doesn’t matter whether you discover something new or rediscover things that have been known for a thousand years.”

Watkins is a professor emeritus of mathematics at WSU. He is the author of three books in the field and more than 100 mathematical and scientific publications. He was recently honored, along with several co-authors, by the award of a SIAM Outstanding Paper Prize for work in eigenvalue computations.

The Friday Science Seminar lecture is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be provided by SOU’s STEM Division. The lecture series offers presentations each week on topics ranging from biology to computer science to chemistry.

The Amistad exchange program between SOU and Universidad de Guanajuato is going strong after 50 years

Bridging cultures, changing lives: International exchange and lasting friendships

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Angelica Ruppe, (masters ’86) did not speak English when she arrived at Southern Oregon University from Mexico in 1984 to participate in the Amistad student exchange program. Ruppe had earned a degree in accounting at Universidad de Guanajuato and was taking part in the exchange program to earn a graduate degree from SOU.

“I took English classes as well as graduate classes such as accounting and law,” she said. “I studied English every chance I got and within three months, I could handle it. My dictionary was my best friend.”

Ruppe eventually would serve 23 years the CFO of La Clinica in Medford, before leaving in 2017 to visit Africa on a humanitarian mission. A strong believer in serving her community – in the Rogue Valley, Guanajuato and elsewhere – Ruppe served on the boards of the Community Health Advocates for Oregon, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and the Ashland Rotary.

Ruppe is among about 1,000 students and others who have participated in the 50-year-old exchange between SOU and the University of Guanajuato. The program is still going strong after five decades, bridging cultures and changing lives.

“The connections between the two universities are so rich and so strong. I don’t know of many programs like this that have lasted so long,” said Mary Gardiner, currently the interim director of SOU’s Office of International Programs.

Professors and administrators also have participated in the exchange program. Ashland’s sister-city relationship with Guanajuato has encouraged cultural and professional exchanges that have led to long-time friendships.

One reason the exchange has continued so long is because of the efforts of Ashland’s Amigo Club, an organization composed of community members and alumni who support the Amistad program. The Amigo Club has even endowed a scholarship to encourage the student exchanges.

“We are really delighted to have formed the Amigo Club Scholarship to support the exchange program,” said Amigo Club President Mina Turner. “It’s one of the Amigo Club’s great achievements since it became a nonprofit.”

Turner said she cannot overstate the importance of the program to both schools.

“The exchange helps make life-long bonds and educates people in a way that goes beyond academics,” she said. “Students get a great vision of a different culture, language, tradition and friendship.”

A driving force behind the program has been Graciela Tapp-Kocks, a professor emerita of Spanish at SOU who is known in Ashland and Guanajuato simply as “Señora Chela.” She pursued the sister-city relationship after a painful incident with her son in his Ashland elementary school.

“I thought if people could really experience Mexico and its culture, it would open up their worlds and change some of their misconceptions,” she said.

At the time, the city of Ashland was looking for a sister city, and it was considering partnering with a town in England.

“I knew that a relationship with Guanajuato, Mexico, would bring together two countries, two communities and two peoples in a civil, cultural and academic manner,” Señora Chela said.

She poured her energy into creating a relationship with Guanajuato. She spoke with representatives from both cities and both universities, and through sheer determination brought the schools together.

Over the ensuing years, Señora Chela has been among the most vocal supporters of the exchange program, and she has been a visible symbol of the enduring power of friendship. An equal number of students from each school participate in the exchanges, and students can study just about any subject the schools offer.

“The experience and the social connections they make are priceless,” Señora Chela said.

Brenda Johnson (’95) is currently the CEO of La Clinica, and she said her time in Guanajuato inspired her career choices and helped shape her life.

“I went to Guanajuato with the intention of becoming bilingual, but I got so much more out of it,” she said. “Education is not all intellectual. Some of the greatest and most transformational educational experiences happen when people really catapult themselves into an unfamiliar environment.

“When you trust yourself and immerse yourself in a new experience, the rewards can be phenomenal.”

Johnson, who graduated from SOU with a bachelor’s degree in Spanish, said that one experience in particular inspired her to go into the medical profession.

“While I was in Guanajuato, I got sick, and I had to communicate my health needs and get treatment in a language I didn’t fully understand,” she said. “It made me think about migrant workers and how they access health care in the United States.”

Johnson works at La Clinica making sure people have access to health care regardless of language differences.

“We target a host of community needs but focus on low-income and migrant-worker communities,” she said. “My experiences, seeing the poverty and the resilience of people in Mexico, forever informs my professional choices.”

Mexico Sen. Juan Carlos Romero Hicks (masters ’79 and ’81) was among the earliest students to participate in the exchange program and is among SOU’s most accomplished alums.

“The Amistad program changed my life,” he said.

Romero Hicks came to SOU in 1978, after receiving a bachelor’s degree in industrial relations from Universidad de Guanajuato. His first child was born in Ashland the day before he started classes.

He has gone on to serve as president of the University of Guanajuato, director general of the Mexican National Science and Technology Council, governor of the State of Guanajuato and now is a federal senator. He said his time at SOU helped shape him and influence his path of service and politics.

“When I became president of the University of Guanajuato, I said none of that would have happened if it weren’t for my experiences with the exchange program,” Romero Hicks said. “The time I was there, I wouldn’t change for anything in my life. It gave me the education and the global perspective that shaped who I am.”

He said the positive experiences of living and learning abroad stay with a person forever.

“When I look back, I see four areas of growth during that period of my life – personal growth, language, cultural growth and academic,” he said. “Being bi-cultural is especially important to me. I think of being bilingual as like having two hands, but being bi-cultural is like playing the piano.”

The exchange program is filled with possibility for current and recent students. Kyanna Kuriyama participated in the exchange in 2014 and said it was an unforgettable experience.

“I actually chose SOU because of the Amistad program,” Kuriyama said. “I went on one of the trips to Guanajuato with Señora Chela when I was in high school, and it was so magical. I knew I wanted to return and study there.”

Kuriyama, a Spanish major, stayed with a host family while she attended classes.

“Staying with a family was great,” she said. “They were so nice, and it gave me even more opportunity to practice Spanish.

“People have a lot of misconceptions about Mexico, but if you go you’ll feel comfortable, you’ll make friends and you will learn more than you imagine.”

Señora Chela concurs.

“University exchange programs like La Amistad are hard work,” she said. “They thrive when they are supported by the administration and faculty.

“When I was teaching at SOU, I pushed the program. I would tell students to plan on going to Guanajuato, to come back and share their experience. I would encourage faculty exchanges and share stories about the program with anyone who was interested.”

Gardiner said the hard work has been worth it.

“Students who have participated in the exchange almost unanimously say that the experience has changed them in some way,” she said. “Their experiences in Guanajuato stay with them long after they have left school.”

Reposted from the Fall 2016 issue of The Raider, SOU’s Alumni Association magazine

Campus Expo plans were developed at SOU's Churchill Hall

SOU Campus Expo 2.0 to offer glimpses of higher education future

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University is wrapping up the second installment of a research exercise it calls “peering into the future of higher education,” and will share its findings with the community in a Campus Expo event on Friday.

The expo, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Stevenson Union’s Rogue River Room, will feature presentations on seven topics that may help SOU in the implementation of its Strategic Plan – a blueprint for the university’s future.

The expo is free and open to faculty, staff, students and the general public. Refreshments will be served.

“As we completed our strategic planning, I promised that our plan would be dynamic – not one that would sit on a shelf and collect dust,” SOU President Linda Schott said when she announced the current round of research to campus.

“As the (implementation) work has proceeded, it has become clear that we need to do additional thinking about some of the ideas and issues in the plan,” she said.

Seven 10-minute reports at Friday’s expo will cover higher education trends and projections in the areas of financial stability, institutional collaborations, upper division education, general education, generating certifiably creative graduates, increasing learner satisfaction and success, and achieving lives of purpose.

About 80 faculty and staff members volunteered to split into seven “professional learning communities” and research those topics over the past two months, and will offer their findings at the Campus Expo. Audience members will then have an opportunity to discuss each presentation with others seated at their tables.

President Schott introduced the concept of professional learning communities two years ago to set the stage for SOU’s year-long strategic planning process. Seven groups formed at that time examined optimum learning spaces, who future students may be, how people best learn, how students are taught before arriving on campus, how advances in technology will change teaching, how to prepare graduates for jobs that don’t yet exist and how higher education will be sustained in the future.

The findings from that round of faculty-staff research helped to define the university’s new vision, mission and values, and the “strategic directions” that are now being implemented. Information from the current studies will help to maintain, focus and expand the implementation process.

White papers from both the 2017 professional learning communities and the groups that conducted this year’s research will be available following Friday’s expo on the university’s strategic planning website.

-SOU-

China's Cangdong village, where many Chinese migrants originated (photo courtesy of Stanford University)

SOU archaeologists participate in study of Chinese migrants’ homeland

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Three members of the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) have participated in a three-year, international project to investigate everyday lives of 19th century Chinese migrants both in the U.S. and their Chinese homeland.

The Cangdong Village Project – which was confidential until this month – was led by Stanford University and involved researchers from at least seven U.S. universities and one in China.

“This important project marks the first-ever archaeological study of its kind, and we are so excited that SOU was able to play a role in this milestone transnational research project,” said SOU research archeologist Chelsea Rose, who served as a crew chief.

Her work on the project involved multiple trips over the past couple years to Cangdong village in southern China’s Pearl River Delta region – part of a five-county area that was home to most of the Chinese who migrated to the U.S. during the 19th century.

Rose serves as a research faculty member in the SOU Laboratory of Anthropology, where her focus is on archaeology of the American West – particularly the dispersal of an early Chinese migrant population in Oregon. She has been involved in the Stanford-based Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project, which led to the Cangdong project.

She was joined on the Cangdong project by fellow SOULA employees Katie Johnson-Noggle, who served as the project’s cartographer and graphic designer, and Tyler Davis, who worked as a field researcher.

The project examined the practices of Cangdong Village residents during about a 50-year period in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Migrants from the area left to escape violence and economic hardship, and arrived in the American West to work in mines and railroads. They established flourishing Chinatowns throughout the region until many were forced to flee again by anti-Chinese violence and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

Researchers at Cangdong village found a variety of Chinese ceramic bowls, some of which matched bowl types that have been found at railroad camp sites in the U.S. They also excavated British-made ceramic plates and American-made medicine bottles and clothing from the migration period.

Rose and other researchers have excavated sites where Chinese migrants lived and worked in Oregon and elsewhere in the U.S. West, but the areas from which they migrated had not been studied until Stanford initiated the international research effort. Stanford University was established with much of the wealth that Leland Stanford earned helping to oversee construction of the western half of the First Transcontinental Railroad.

A total of 27 archaeologists, anthropologists and others are listed as team members for the Cangdong Village Project. Participating institutions include SOU, Stanford, China’s Wuyi University, University of New Orleans, University of Massachusetts at Boston, San Francisco State University, Humboldt State University and Durham University.

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Kim Stafford, Oregon poet laureate

Oregon’s poet laureate to speak at SOU Friends of Hannon Library event

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Kim Stafford, Oregon’s poet laureate, will read and discuss his work in an SOU presentation on Thursday, April 18, that is part of the Friends of Hannon Library Speaker Series for the 2018-19 academic year.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 4 p.m. in the library’s Meese Room (#305).

Stafford is an associate professor at Portland’s Lewis & Clark College, and is founding director of the school’s Northwest Writing Institute. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown appointed him last May to a two-year term as Oregon’s ninth poet laureate – “an ambassador of poetry across the state.”

His father, William Stafford, served as Oregon’s fourth poet laureate from 1975 to 1990.

Kim Stafford grew up on Oregon, Iowa, Indiana, California and Alaska as his parents taught in various locations. He received his doctorate in medieval literature from the University of Oregon and has been a member of the Lewis & Clark faculty since 1979.

Stafford has wrtten a dozen books of poetry and prose. His most recent book, “100 Tricks Every Boy Can Do,” examines his brother’s death by suicide and his family’s struggle to cope with and live beyond the tragedy.

Stafford’s 1986 book, “Having Everything Right,” won a Western States Book Awards citation. His work has also been recognized with creative writing fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and a Governor’s Arts Award contributing to Oregon’s literary culture.

Friends of Hannon Library was established in 1974 by a group of SOU librarians, faculty members and interested citizens to raise money and enrich the library’s collections. The organization sponsors a lecture series each year – this year bringing a total of six speakers to campus for talks on a variety of literary topics.

Those who are visiting campus to attend Thursday’s event can park free in any SOU lot by entering the special code FHL1903 in the lot’s parking meter.

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Ashland wildfire smoke

SOU Research Center smoke survey shows mixed views

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Most tourists who visited southern Oregon during the smoky summers of 2017 and 2018 plan to return for future trips, but a majority will modify their plans to account for the possibility of more smoke, according to a new survey by the Southern Oregon University Research Center (SOURCE).

SOURCE’s 39-page “Southern Oregon Visitor Smoke Survey” is one of two reports that were combined by Travel Southern Oregon to create the booklet, “Southern Oregon Wildfire and Visitor Perception Study.” The SOURCE survey was emailed to 8,449 people who visited southern Oregon during the summers of 2017 or 2018, and 1,905 completed the questionnaire – a response rate of 22.5 percent.

“We at SOURCE are very excited about our survey results,” said Eva Skuratowicz, director of the independent, self-supporting research arm of SOU. “We believe that it is the first rigorous, methodologically sound research about southern Oregon visitor behavior and wildfires (and) smoke from wildfires.”

Both the SOURCE study and the second report – a focus-group study with visitors from Portland and San Francisco, conducted by a Portland business consulting firm – were funded in part by a grant from the Oregon governor’s office and administered by the travel bureau.

Travel Southern Oregon’s findings were presented last week to Oregon’s congressional representatives in Washington, D.C., and will also be shared with state legislators.

Smoke from last summer’s wildfire season resulted in 26 canceled or impacted outdoor performances at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and $2 million in lost revenue. Visits to Crater Lake National Park dropped by 14 percent in July and August, compared to previous summers, and a wide variety of business owners reported lost sales that were attributed to the smoke.

The SOURCE smoke survey sampled the perceptions of visitors to two geographic regions in southern Oregon: Medford/Ashland; and an area encompassing the Klamath Basin, Middle and Upper Rogue River, and the Umpqua Valley. The regional reports produced similar patterns of results.

About 85 percent of those who visited either of the areas intend to return for future visits to southern Oregon, but about 72 percent said they would take into account wildfire smoke in deciding when to visit. A majority of those said they will not visit when there are wildfires or smoke in the region, and several said they would consider visiting in seasons other than summer.

A total of 541 respondents in the smoke survey chose to answer a final, open-ended question that asked for any other relevant comments. Of those, 144 did not consider wildfire smoke to be a deal-breaker when deciding whether to visit the area again.

“We saw two plays at the Bowmer theater but chose not to see the plays at Ashland High School,” said one respondent who came to Ashland to attend the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

“We did enjoy some lovely meals in local restaurants and shopped a little, but could not fly fish, ride bikes or hike as we usually do,” the same person wrote. “We usually visit every-other year and love the area. We have been coming to Ashland for 40 years and anticipate coming back.”

However, 91 of those who answered the final question considered the smoke a significant problem and said they would travel elsewhere or alter their southern Oregon itineraries because of wildfire concerns.

“I know you can’t control fires, but they made for an unpleasant portion of our trip,” one person said. “I did, however, enjoy my visit to the southern Oregon coast.”

Another respondent planned to “move our visits earlier in July – trying to plan around possible smoke.”

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Student Recreation Center opening celebration

SOU’s Student Recreation Center celebrating first birthday

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All members of the SOU community are invited to join Campus Recreation on April 23 to celebrate the first birthday of the university’s  Student Recreation Center with complimentary refreshments and free access for faculty and staff.

Construction of the SRC and adjacent Lithia Motors Pavilion was completed last spring, and the recreation center opened its doors to campus on April 23, 2018. A grand opening celebration and ribbon-cutting were held in September.

This year’s birthday party will recognize the facility’s first full year of providing new recreation and wellness opportunities for the SOU community. Snacks and cake will be served at 4 p.m., and participants are encouraged to head down to the recreation field at 5 p.m. to cheer on teams in SOU’s Ultimate Frisbee Intramural Tournament.

The SRC will offer free access all day on the 23rd to SOU faculty and staff members, and students can sponsor one free guest.

The combined Student Recreation Center and Lithia Motors Pavilion complex replaced 60-year-old McNeal Pavilion. The 48,000-square-foot recreation center was funded with $17.7 million in fees that SOU students voted in 2012 to levy upon themselves. Lithia Motors Pavilion was funded separately with $22 million in state construction bonds and about $2 million from donors.

The SRC is home to SOU’s Campus Recreation program and all of its companion areas, including the Outdoor Program, intramural sports, sports clubs and other fitness and wellness programs.

The Student Recreation Center features a 44-foot-high climbing wall, suspended indoor track, “cardio-selectorized” free weight equipment and two gymnasium courts lined for basketball, volleyball and pickleball. It also has exercise machines, a spin room, two fitness studios and locker rooms.

Campus Recreation has expanded its selection of fitness classes during the first year in its new facility. It has also added new equipment and approved new membership and access options, including minor access, an Alumni Association membership and an Express Membership for faculty and staff.

SOU Digital Cinema in studio

HECC gives green light for launch of Digital Cinema degree at SOU

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Oregon’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission gave final approval today for a new Digital Cinema degree program that will begin this fall at Southern Oregon University and prepare students for careers in film and other forms of visual media.

Members of the HECC, whose approval is needed for all new degree programs at the state’s seven public universities, OK’d the SOU program (https://sou.edu/academics/digital-cinema/) without discussion. It had previously been reviewed and endorsed by both the SOU Board of Trustees and the state universities’ provosts council.

“We’re excited to finally offer a major for the students out there who are looking for a ‘film school’ education,” said Andrew Gay, the program coordinator and associate professor of digital cinema at SOU.

“But we also know that today’s student filmmakers need to be prepared for all kinds of visual storytelling careers that go beyond the traditional ‘film school’ format,” he said. “Here at SOU, students will get that immersion in both worlds — in traditional filmmaking and in new digital worlds like streaming television and virtual reality.”

The new major will build upon the success of the existing Digital Cinema concentration within SOU’s Communication major, while introducing several new courses and immersive experiences for student filmmakers – including required coursework related to innovation.

The program’s centerpiece is a new, 12-credit spring immersion called “The Crew Experience,” in which student filmmakers will spend an entire term learning on location, collaborating under the supervision of experienced professionals on the sets of a significant film projects. Students will apply and interview for their crew positions based on the experiences, skill levels and portfolios of work they have developed in preceding classes.

No other film or media program in the Pacific Northwest offers such an experiential approach to professional production training.

Curriculum for the new program was designed with input from an advisory council of current and former students, film and media industry professionals, and experienced educators in the field. It was designed with both state and regional employment trends in mind.

“Economic diversification is key to the health and wealth of southern Oregon, and the media production sector is a promising target for growth in this region, based on existing assets and infrastructure,” said State Sen. Jeff Golden, who served on the new program’s advisory council.

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Bike blender at previous SOU Earth Week

Earth Week at SOU packs in wide variety of events

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University’s fifth annual, student-driven Earth Week celebration from April 15 to 20 will be all about awareness of important issues facing the planet – and celebration of efforts that are making a difference.

Events will range from a “tea talk” about environmental justice and a “pollinator party” with local beekeepers, to a transportation options fair and an Earth Day bike ride. The three-day Environmental Justice Film Festival will have screenings on Tuesday through Thursday, and a Gender Neutral Clothing Swap will also be held each of those days.

The film festival – sponsored by SOU’s Sustainability Resource Center (ECOS), Black Student Union, Queer Resource Center and Food Justice League, and the local climate action group Rogue Climate – will offer films that focus on environmental and social justice from 6 to 8 p.m. each evening. Tuesday’s film will be in the Stevenson Union Arena and the other two films will be in the facility’s Rogue River Room.

One of the featured events at this year’s Earth Week observance will be an “Earth Day Extravaganza” on Tuesday in the Stevenson Union Courtyard. It will feature displays that highlight some of the notable sustainability efforts underway in the Rogue Valley, and opportunities to interact with local organizations and groups that are engaged in those efforts.

Earth Week at SOU will feature public events both on and off the university campus.

Earth Week highlights
MONDAY: Meatless Monday brings an entirely vegetarian menu, all day, to the Hawk dining commons; Tea Talk discussion about environmental justice, 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. at the Third Eye Theater between the Stevenson Union and Britt Hall.

TUESDAY: Graduate student Emily Lind of the Environmental Education club will lead a short “bird hike” around the Ashland Pond, transportation provided (email stewartc3@sou.edu for information); Earth Day Extravaganza, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Stevenson Union Courtyard; a gender-neutral clothing swap, sponsored by the Queer Student Union, will offer free clothes from 1 to 6 p.m. in the Stevenson Union Gallery (SU 323); Environmental Justice Film Festival, “Viceland’s Rise, Standing Rock Part II,” about the Standing Rock efforts to protect tribal burial sites from the Dakota Access Pipeline.

WEDNESDAY: “Nature Reading” of short creative works about nature and ecology, 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., Third Eye Theater; OSPIRG pollinator party with beekeepers, live music, free food, face-painting, raffles and speakers, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Stevenson Union Courtyard; gender-neutral clothing swap, 1 to 6 p.m., Stevenson Union Gallery (SU 323); Environmental Justice Film Festival, “An American Ascent,” about the first African-American expedition on Denali, North America’s highest peak.

THURSDAY: Transportation Options Fair with information about getting around without a car, with goodie bags and smoothies made with a “bike blender,” 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Stevenson Union Courtyard; gender-neutral clothing swap, 1 to 6 p.m., Stevenson Union Gallery (SU 323); Environmental Justice Film Festival, “Urban Roots,” about depressed industrial towns and the need for a sustainable future.

FRIDAY: Arbor Day of service, a day of stewardship with ECOS, SOU Landscaping and The Farm at SOU, with an optional free lunch, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. (details and sign-up online); silver maple birthday party, music and games at the silver maple in Raider Village, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.

SATURDAY: Earth Day Bike Ride with ECOS, biking along the Bear Creek Greenway with treats in Talent, noon to 3 p.m. (details and sign-up online); Rogue Valley Earth Day 2019, a free, all-ages celebration about stewardship and community-building, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum.

A full list of SOU Earth Week events can be found on the SOU sustainability website.

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