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UO Journalism students, faculty in Portland and Eugene to connect via video
Gift to Turnbull Center is largest to date for the Jackson Foundation
EUGENE, Ore. -- (Oct. 24, 2007) -- The University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication's George S. Turnbull Portland Center -- set to move into the White Stag Block in downtown in spring 2008 -- will feature a comprehensive information resources center and high-tech videoconferencing link.
A $50,000 grant from the Jackson Foundation will seamlessly connect Eugene- and Portland-based students, faculty and staff via video. Established in Portland in 2006, the Turnbull Center offers a senior experience program for undergraduates, which places Eugene-based students in internships in the state's media center. A proposed master's degree in strategic communication for working professionals will also be offered at the Turnbull Center. In addition, workshops and lectures led by SOJC faculty, Portland-based professionals and leading journalists from across the nation provide opportunities for journalists and communicators to connect discuss emerging issues of the day and further their professional development.
The new videoconferencing capability will enable students and faculty in Eugene to benefit from resources in Portland and vice versa. The grant also establishes an info-resources center featuring books, journals, online resources, marketing research data and other reference materials.
"The grant from the Jackson Foundation is a powerful gift," said Alan G. Stavitsky, associate dean for the SOJC and director of the Turnbull Center. "The info-resource center and videoconferencing technology will have a dramatic impact on the way we educate students, utilize faculty and engage public audiences."
The Jackson Foundation is deeply engrained in the print journalism history of Oregon. The foundation was established by Maria C. Jackson, the wife of Charles Samuel ("Sam") Jackson, who in 1902 started the Oregon Journal, Portland's first daily newspaper.
"The grant to the Turnbull Center is a significant gift for the foundation," said trustee Julie Vigeland. "The match is perfect. We are pleased to honor the memory of the Oregon Journal's founder with this grant. The many students who will benefit from the center are the living testament to the power of journalism."
About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.
Contact: Julie Brown, 541-346-3185, julbrown@uoregon.edu
Links: George S. Turnbull Portland Center, http://turnbullcenter.uoregon.edu/about.php