Portland State Vanguard Volume 80 Issue 12

PSU Administration Will Officially Offer

Reinstatement to 10 Faculty Members

PSU Student Worker Union: To unionize or Not to Unionize

to the Editor: ELSAs: Let It Go?

STAFF

EDITORIAL

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Noah Carandanis

MANAGING EDITOR

Olivia Hendry

NEWS EDITOR Vacant

ARTS & CULTURE

Adyan Hussein

OPINION EDITOR Vacant

Nash Bennett

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR

Liam Schmitt

COPY CHIEF

Jude Callaway

ONLINE EDITOR

Quinn Willett

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

Caleb Dougherty

CONTRIBUTORS

Maryam Luqman

Hayden Neumann

Layla Phillis

Faith Younan

PRODUCTION & DESIGN

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Haley Hsu

CONTRIBUTORS

Naue Pagtakhan

Karli Schwartz

ARTS & CULTURE How SSWC Strives to Support Student Parents and Caregivers

SPORTS “Failure Is Not An Option,” says PSU Men’s Basketball

Coach Jase Coburn

ADVISING & ACCOUNTING

COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA

Reaz Mahmood

SALP ACCOUNTANT

Maria Dominguez

STUDENT MEDIA TECH ADVISOR

Rae Fickle

STUDENT MEDIA TECH DEVELOPER

Kaylee Hynes

WEB DESIGNER

Owen Cook

To contact Portland State Vanguard, email editor@psuvanguard.com.

MISSION STATEMENT

PSU Vanguard’s mission is to serve the Portland State community with timely, accurate, comprehensive and critical content while upholding high journalistic standards. In the process, we aim to enrich our staff with quality, hands on journalism education and a number of skills highly valued in today’s job market.

ABOUT

Vanguard, established in 1946, is published weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Student Media Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers and do not necessarily represent the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. Find us online at psuvanguard.com.

ELSAs: LET IT GO?

CATHERINE OLIVARES AND MADDIE BRABO

Last term's Vanguard piece discussing the distribution of ELSA awards, specifically those related to Student Media, did not provide all the necessary information for the reader to get the full picture of the issue. Student media –which is just one section of the many student-run organizations at Portland State University– involves the Vanguard, SubBasement Studios, KPSU radio station, Pathos and the Pacific Sentinel as well.

To re-emphasize the points made in Nick Gatlin’s “ELSAs Need To Change” opinion piece, we will provide additional perspectives that were not addressed originally. There was a missed opportunity for Nick to gather additional perspectives from other Student Media ELSA recipients, outside of those interviewed from our wonderful student newspaper! Vanguard, alongside many other student workers, can attest to the experience of getting overwhelmed by the immense pressure placed upon us by our leadership roles and responsibilities. As Gatlin initially points out, “If I watched the clock and stopped working right when I hit my required hours, I'd make $10.50 an hour. That’s $5.60 less than the minimum wage in the Portland metro area, $16.30.” Clearly, the ELSA math is simply not mathing when it comes to dividing our stipend pay by our expected working hours. It is very clear to me (and should be clear to readers as well) that we, ELSA recipients, are receiving well below the Portland Metro minimum wage. When laying out the math in this way, it’s easy to see how the ELSAs prevent compensating these student roles fairly for the work that they put in. All this can be discussed with the SFC: the Student Fee Committee that distributes money to student organizations.

It’s easier for student leaders entering these roles to initially overlook these fine details because many of us are very passionate and excited about being here in the first place. Perhaps PSU takes advantage of this? Student leaders entering these roles may not realize the pressure they will face or the high expectations put on them. A role that shapes the outcome of your organization's 5-year plan is a huge burden to shoulder and should be compensated fairly.

To explain further, all ELSA roles in student media organizations are required to attend the ‘Student Media Fellows’, which is a class that meets on a bi-weekly basis for 3 sessions a term. We must attend these sessions in order to receive our stipends.

A letter to the editor

These sessions discuss ideas about the worth of being a leader and educating groups in meaningful conversations. Some may say the class is a waste of time and is not worth attending at times, however, I personally think that having the media groups come together to be educated about our shared legal and leadership responsibilities is valuable. Although many of the class discussions only really apply to more legal writing materials, with a main focus on archives from the Vanguard. What could potentially be beneficial to all student members, and an improvement to our current media fellows sessions, would be if we explored outside of those specific journalistic examples and gave resources that are more video and audio-based in their guidance. I find it to be very helpful to receive guidance and reassurance from our student media coordinator, who is only trying to better lead the organization in the best direction. Communicating concerns or giving suggestions to media fellows directly to your coordinator is always a better direction to take, rather than complaining in your last opinion piece.

Earlier in the fall term, KPSU, SBS and the Vanguard managers came together as leaders to discuss these issues. And as responsible managers of our organizations, we put our heads together to talk. Something that has never been done before in all of Student Media history. (Editor’s Note: PSU Vanguard could not independently verify this fact.)

During this conversation about the ELSAs, we identified other ways of presenting the student media fellows class, some of which were discussed here. Joining forces to talk about this and thinking of new ways to fulfill the required responsibilities.

I took the time to interview some additional student media leaders from the sub-basement to ask about their opinions on the ELSA and Media Fellows.

Ryan Cunningham, Projects Director at Sub-Basement Studios, sat down with us to discuss the ELSAs: "I've done the math, and I'm pretty sure many other student media people have as well. Essentially when you get your ELSA, you get it half way through the term, somewhere around week 4, but I work about 20-30 hours a week…and I think the ELSA does not equally match that.” They go on to say that sometimes the workload fluctuates so much so that they “can get up to 40-50 hours a week because of how much prep time goes into it all, but because our pay doesn't

fluctuate and because it's a flat rate, we can't get compensated for the extra hours we put in.”

Another student leader in the media space and the manager of KPSU radio station, Maddie Brabo, comments that “Media fellows could be very useful in a certain capacity, but there are also improvements to be made that could be of benefit to our time and resources. For example, I've heard that other student leadership groups have their own kind of ‘fellows,’ but it is an online module, AND it’s optional for them, where they get additional money for completing said ‘fellows module’. What if student media did something similar? Making these class sessions optional would also open up the student media staff positions to a broader range of people who wouldn’t need to worry about their class schedules conflicting with the bi-weekly meetings.”

Another important factor to consider when entering this discussion is the increase in the minimum wage since 2019 in the state of Oregon. Since 2019, the minimum wage has increased by $3.80, going from $12.50 to $16.30. How does this relate to ELSA awards? Well, ELSAs do not get automatically increased with the minimum wage, which is unlike many normal hourly jobs. Since the stipend does not get automatically tied to increasing costs, and as previously mentioned, we oftentimes work over our required hours, this combination leads to us getting underpaid significantly. Ultimately, this has led many of us to question the hours we put in and how we are compensated for them. Fortunately for us, student-run organizations do have the power to bring up these concerns with the SFC and can request changes to the ELSA awards and their requirements. However, there are still limitations as to what changes student leaders can make, and at the end of the day… we shouldn’t have to ask for permission to get paid fairly.

Now, don’t get me wrong, as Gatlin mentioned, the roles here have a sizable impact and are full of learning lessons that are meant to shape a student’s leadership skills. However, what about when these students move past college and hypothetically acquire a job at The Oregonian… Will they be able to recognize the value of their work hours being put in? How will these students be equipped to navigate the workforce and distinguish between exploitative employers and fair wages?

PSU administration will officially offer reinstatement to 10 laid-off faculty members, in accordance with arbitrator’s decision

PSU-AAUP is in active talks with legal counsel to reinstate faculty members, providing back pay and benefits to affected faculty.

In response to an arbitration decision made in Nov. of 2025, 10 non-tenure track faculty members of Portland State University who were laid off will now officially be offered reinstatement with back pay, according to the PSU administration.

This was announced on Jan. 13, 2026, from a blog post written by PSU president Ann Cudd. In the blog post, Cudd writes that these faculty members were laid off to “address excess instructional capacity at a time of low enrollment and in consideration of our limited financial resources.”

When the original layoffs were announced in Oct. 2024, PSU’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors (PSU-AAUP), along with 10 of the original 17 laid-off staff members, filed a grievance against the University, stating that they did not follow shared governance procedures. The arbitrator agreed, stating that not only did PSU need to reinstate the 10 listed faculty members, but they had to provide both back pay and back benefits to them as well.

Now, with Cudd’s blog post, it seems like this decision is on its way to being implemented.

“We view it as a win for all the members of the AAUP, all of us together,” said PSU-AAUP president and associate English professor, Bill Knight. “It’s an amazing win for our colleagues who are going to be back in the classroom and who are stuck in such an awkward and painful legal limbo around this case for a while.”

Jennifer Kearns, a teaching associate professor in the History department and an affiliate faculty member of the Women, Gender, and Sexualities department, was one of the faculty stuck in legal limbo. She had taught at PSU for nearly 25 years, and felt losing her job was “very shocking and upsetting.”

“I really believe in the mission at Portland State University, you know, serving the students who come to PSU, it’s just been, you know, the work of my life,” said Kearns.

Since June, the single mother has tried to find other jobs to no avail. When she heard about the arbitrator’s decision, she began planning for the terms ahead and looked forward to furthering PSU’s mission.

“It was very heartening to hear from the arbitration judge in November that they agreed with our union’s position that… the process for removing me from my position was not followed according to the contract,” said Kearns.

The PSU administration did not agree with the arbitrator’s ruling when it was announced, formerly calling it an “illogical

decision” in an emailed statement to the Vanguard. In Cudd’s blog post, she wrote that, though they believed they acted in good faith, they would follow the arbitrator’s ruling.

“We believe that the reductions were necessary and appropriate, and were implemented in good faith and in compliance with our collective bargaining agreement,” wrote Cudd. “Nonetheless, we’ve decided the best step forward for our campus at this time is to comply with the arbitrator’s order and reinstate the affected faculty members.”

Both Knight and Kearns were notified of the reinstatement through the blog post.

“I was really, really excited. My colleagues [and I] were chatting to each other about it. The next morning, we got in touch with everyone, and got in touch with our legal counsel, and started talking about next steps,” said Knight.

As Knight and PSU-AAUP’s legal counsel were working on supporting the reinstated faculty members, the Office of Academic Affairs sent out formal communication confirming their reinstatements. An email, which parts of were obtained by the Vanguard, was sent to every reinstated faculty member on Jan. 22, confirming their reappointment to their Non-Tenure Track Continuous Appointment positions.

This email also stated that these faculty members’ reemployment will resume on Jan. 26. In a conversation with Knight before the release of this email, Knight had said that there is a possibility of not every faculty member coming back at the same time, as some have taken up teaching positions at other institutions in the interim.

“Some of them really do have teaching duties that they have to honor, and other duties. And so they’ll try to come back as soon as they can, but we’ll negotiate arrangements for them. And others may be able to come back right away. So I think we’ll see a mix,” said Knight.

OAA also informed the faculty members that any pay increases that would have taken place since Sept. 16, 2025, will be factored into their salaries, and they are actively working on distributing back pay and benefits.

“Meanwhile, the University is continuing to work with union counsel to address back pay and to implement the make-whole remedies ordered by the arbitrator,” read the email.

In terms of getting faculty members back into classrooms, the specifics of that are still up in the air. Though they can return to work, Winter term classes are already well underway, so ac-

tually teaching a class would not be feasible until Spring term. In the email, OAA said that members should expect to be contacted soon by their dean to discuss “preliminary work assignments,” and definitive academic work assignments were, for the Winter term, “unlikely.”

No matter what the Winter work assignments will look like, Knight’s main focus is to suit the needs of all reinstated faculty, with respect to their individual situations.

“I’m excited my colleagues that were laid off are going to be back, and hopeful that they are too, [and] we can get that settled and move forward,” said Knight.

For Kearns, she’s ready and excited to get back into the classroom. Despite the stress of the situation, Kearns’ feelings towards PSU haven’t changed– she still greatly believes in PSU’s mission, and she loves working with students of all demographics and giving them learning opportunities.

“I still believe in the mission. I still believe Portland State is an incredibly important service institution, it’s an access university and that aligns with my values,” said Kearns.

Knight hopes that this decision sets a precedent for the PSU administration to respect PSU-AAUP’s collective bargaining contract. According to Knight, despite the faculty being reinstated, their original firing set a potentially dangerous standard for layoffs in the future. He believes that the University sees these current reinstatements as individual cases, and not indicative of potential reinstatements as a whole in the future.

“In this case, they’re reinstating faculty, but they’re claiming that doesn’t set a precedent, or it doesn’t interpret the contract. They’re saying this is just an individual case. We don’t agree,” said Knight.

Knight hopes to receive additional clarification from the arbitrator in the future.

“I’m hopeful that they want to be good faith partners in all of this with us and not create more conflict than is necessary,” said Knight. Kearns, as she prepares to go back on campus, is mainly excited to get back to working with students. Teaching at PSU has allowed her to connect with students throughout the University, and with the reinstatement, she can go back to doing just that.

“I’m really excited to walk into a classroom and see 30 or 40 students who want to take my class and who are there to learn,” said Kearns. “I’m really curious and excited to have that first day, to be in the room with them and explore together. I’m really excited about that.”

PSU student worker union: to unionize or not to unionize

For the past year, the PSU student worker union movement has been gaining momentum; however, not all student workers feel the need to unionize.

At Portland State University, on-campus student workers are the only group of PSU employees who do not have a union. For years, some student workers have been slowly wanting to form one, but it hasn't been until the past year that a union movement has gained momentum.

Since around spring of 2025, the PSU Student Worker Union (PSU SWU) has been active in spreading the news about the union movement through meetings, trainings and community building events.

“There’s been pushes to unionize student workers since, like, the beginning of PSU. It’s not new,” said Penny Scholz, a former resident assistant (RA) and union member. “It’s really just that this is the most successful we’ve ever been.”

As of Dec. 22, 2025, the PSU student worker union has filed for recognition with the Employment Relations Board of Oregon to have official legal status as a union. Supported by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU Local 503), PSU student workers in favor of forming a union have been collecting signed authorization cards from student workers to either hold an election for union approval or become one automatically without an election.

In order to hold an election for union recognition, at least 30% of authorization cards need to be signed; if over 50% of cards are signed, the union becomes automatically recognized without an election. Currently, the PSU SWU has over 30% of signed authorization cards, and is planning to go into an election.

In the next six to eight weeks, the PSU SWU will send out election ballots to student workers across campus. Approval for a union is based on who votes. If more than 50% of student workers who vote approve of unionizing, the student workers will have an official union with legal recognition.

“We can have a union by the end of spring term, certainly,” said Gillian Herrera, an SEIU Local 503 organizer for the student union.

Members of the union all have their own reasons as to why they support the movement. The student worker experience differs from case to case, but remains a major reason for decid-

ing on whether or not a person wants to unionize.

Nhy Le worked as a student teacher at the Helen Gordon Child Development Center when they first came to PSU. Now working at the Bike Hub as a bike mechanic, Le’s past working experience as an international student is what began their involvement with the union movement in the summer of 2025. As an international student, work opportunities can be limited — with Le’s visa, the only way to work was on-campus.

“In general, international students suffer more than American student workers, because we can’t work anywhere. In a lot of ways, we are subjected to [receiving] passive aggressiveness, and we can't do anything because [we] might risk losing our jobs,” said Le. Working experience isn’t the only reason students want to unionize; school conditions have been another driving factor.

“I still do have a lot of personal grievances with admin in terms of how they have run things and their responses to things like protests and such like that,” said Adrian Nagel, the co-lead Graphic Designer for PSU SWU.

Many students may not have had poor working experiences, but joined the union to support those who have harder experiences with their job.

“I'm joining a union not because I hate my co-workers or I hate my job, but because, I'm part of a web as a student worker,” said Madara Linde, a light and sound technician for PSU Production Services. “I'm a part of a web, and not every part of the web is super strong.”

However, even with the movement working towards holding an election, not all student workers think a union is necessary at PSU.

“I am very much a supporter of unions, don’t get me wrong, but I’d rather be an informed supporter,” said Logan Warwick, a worker for Portland State Athletics Ticketing, in a digital statement.

Warwick first heard about the union in Dec. 2025, when student union representatives came up to him during a basketball game.

“What [the PSU SWU] were saying wasn’t exactly matching up to reality and I didn’t trust it, they gave no information that

strongly moved me to support it. I’m quite content with how things are,” said Warwick.

Some have felt that there weren't set goals or bargaining plans by the union, causing some hesitancy in supporting the union. However, bargaining conversations will come later, according to Scholz.

“Bargaining isn’t something we are incredibly focused on, because we want to make sure that people are as involved as possible, so that when we get to bargaining, we can actually take what we need,” said Scholz.

The PSU SWU has a clear goal of getting the word out about the movement and getting as many people involved. Although the union currently does not have set bargaining plans, part of the voting process will involve student workers nominating who they want on the bargaining team. It will also include voting on what issues students are most concerned with, such as higher wages, RAs being paid and mental health days.

“One of the big things that we want is just more equity in wages, respect in the job and other sorts of compensation," said Scholz. “That’s a pretty basic one that I think everybody can stand for.”

Raising wages has been a concern for both supporters and non-supporters of the union. As a former RA, Scholz has been vocal about RAs receiving wages alongside the already given free housing accommodations. However, there is still worry as to where the money will come from.

“Money doesn’t come from nowhere, so where does the student union think the money for a pay raise would come from…most likely from pulling funding from other areas at PSU,” said Warwick. Even with some conflicting viewpoints on having a student worker union at PSU, the PSU SWU is confident in the official formation of the union. As the weeks leading up to an election, the union will continue to have meetings and events to offer student workers a chance to join the movement.

“We all say that we want to make a change,” said Herrera. “We’re going to have to be willing to put some work into that.

“Failure Is Not An Option,” Says Portland State Men’s Basketball Coach Jase Coburn

Unity and Hard Work Drive Men’s Basketball Team to a Perfect 5-0 Start

HAYDEN NEUMANN

For the first time in Portland State University’s history, the men’s basketball team has started its season 5-0 in the Big Sky Conference, earning them the number one seed in the conference. The team holds an overall record of 11-5.

The Vikings have also matched the longest consecutive Big Sky Conference home win streak held by a PSU team with 15 games, something that hasn’t been done since their 1998-99 season. This streak stretches back nearly two years, to Feb. 15, 2024. The largest score differential in a non-conference loss was only 11 points against Colorado, a team that has only lost one game this season.

The team has maintained a productive and positive outlook on the season, gunning for a chance to play in the NCAA Division 1 “March Madness” tournament. They automatically earn a spot if they finish first in their conference.

“My personal goal is for us to win the Big Sky championship,” said Tre-Vaughn Minott, one of the team’s centers. “I want us to win our regular season. I want us to win the league. I want us to finish number one in our conference like we’re supposed to, like we’re doing right now. And I want us to make it to March Madness.”

Minott, nicknamed TV by his teammates, is one of three veterans guiding the team through its current prosperity. The senior has recorded 179 points in 16 games played, averaging 11.2 per game, and was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week after a standout performance against Sacramento State on Jan. 10. In that game, Minott had a career-high of 23 points and 20 rebounds, posting the first 20-20 game by a Viking in 10 seasons since Cameron Forte in 2016.

“It felt surreal,” said Minott. “I’ve never won such an award. But all I could think about was my teammates. If it wasn’t for them, then I wouldn’t even be getting this award. An infinite amount of gratitude goes to my teammates.”

Minott is joined by seniors Jaylin Henderson and Terri Miller Jr. in leading the team and setting an example for the younger players on the roster.

“We know that we’re going to have to be the anchor of this team,” said Minott. “It’s just about stepping up to the challenge. When

“With his impressive performance against Sacramento State, senior Tre-Vaughn Minott (#4) arguably had the best game of his career so far.”

you’re a leader, you have to make sure you’re on point. People are watching you. You can’t slip up, even for one second.”

Henderson, who plays guard, currently leads the team in points with 295, with Miller Jr. not far behind with 283. Named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week just the week before Minott, Henderson has been working hard to set a good example and continue to help lead the team to more wins.

“There’s not a day where you can take off,” Henderson said. “There’s not even a play you can take off. I mean, [the younger players are] looking up to us like, ‘Oh, he’s taking the play off. I can take the play off. He’s slacking, so I can slack.’”

According to Minott, the shared knowledge between him, Henderson and Miller Jr. goes a long way. Knowing the ins and outs of college basketball allows them to be players others look up to, on and off the court. It also helps when they know they have each other’s backs.

“I don’t think this is a job that could be done alone, honestly,” said Minott. “Having two other veteran leaders that will hold you accountable throughout your mistakes, that definitely helps.”

A consistent component of the team’s culture and environment is the mindset everyone shares, which their head coach, Jase Coburn, is working to curate. Coburn has been coaching at PSU since 2013, stepping into the role of head coach in 2021. Last season, he led the team to a 19-13 record, the best in his tenure. That team finished third in the Big Sky record, the best finish since 2011-12, setting up a momentum that has carried over to this season.

“This is one of the most fun teams I’ve ever coached,” said Coburn. “I think that’s because they’re great people, first and foremost. They’re very coachable. We play hard, and we’re going to be intense, and we’re going to be spirited and we’re going to be passionate.”

Describing the team as “mentally tough,” Coburn recounted how their resiliency has positively affected their game, allowing them to bounce back quickly and maintain focus on their goal of improving every game. By respecting both the game and each other, they reinforce a positive, productive environment.

And the respect goes both ways. Coburn received high praise from his players for his commitment to them and the way he approaches coaching. Minott specifically pointed out how Coburn’s focus is not on the paycheck, nor only on the top scoring players on the team.

“He’s a player’s coach, to the death,” said Minott. “I’m really just proud of his growth. Seeing how the culture has continued to get better, seeing how his planning has continued to get better, his coaching has continued to get better. So, playing for him is great. I wouldn’t want it any other way, honestly.

Coburn’s growth alongside the team has only shown them their own potential. Both Minott and Henderson say Coburn’s trust in them has added to their confidence on the court.

“I love Coach Coburn,” said Henderson. “I would say he’s my favorite coach that I played for in college basketball, by far. I feel like I can go to him and I can tell him about anything. I really do trust him, and I truly believe that he is one of the best coaches in college basketball.”

The environment Coburn has fostered is one of inclusion, support and family. The players hang out with each other outside of practice, spending time together whenever they have the chance. The closeness translates to their game, as well, allowing them to mesh better and have more chemistry on the court.

“Everyone loves each other,” said Minott. “When you have a group of guys that love each other and care for each other as much as they do off the court, then it makes all the stuff on the court so much more easier.”

The team’s culture, as described by the players themselves, is one of showing up. Showing up for themselves, their teammates and their coaches.

“Never give up,” Coburn said. “Failure is not an option, you know, so never give up. There’s going to be failure every single day, whether they’re missing a shot or losing a game. It’s about how you respond. We’re all going to take losses at some point, right? So it’s how you respond to those things.”

The Resource Center for Students with Children is full of toys, books, games, and

How SSWC strives to support Student Parents and Caregivers at PSU

Services

for

Students with Children

emphasizes available resources for staff and students with children at PSU

Campus life at Portland State University is not just about classes, projects and deadlines. It’s about bringing students with different perspectives together to foster community engagement and grow supportive networks. One program that does this is Services for Students with Children (SSWC).

On Tuesday, Jan. 20, SSWC hosted an open house available to all students, staff and faculty at PSU. The event welcomed visitors with a hot cocoa and cookie bar, serving as an informational opportunity to raise awareness for the multitude of resources available to student-parents through SSWC. Members of the organization were readily available throughout the afternoon to answer questions and explain their goals as a program.

SSWC is an organization at PSU that provides support for studentparents and caregivers. It supplies, manages and advocates for a multitude of campus resources to ensure that life at PSU is more accessible to students and staff with children. These resources include a clothing closet, lactation rooms, family-friendly study spaces and childcare essentials such as diapers and wipes.

For many student-parents, these resources are a key factor that allows them to stay enrolled at PSU. Limited childcare availability and rising living costs make it difficult to balance parenthood with the rigor of academics, especially for new parents and caregivers.

Nina Gallo, a criminology and criminal justice major at PSU, has been a community outreach coordinator for SSWC for about a year. She has become familiar with the challenges that many face while trying to balance academics with taking care of children.

“We get a lot of questions about childcare resources. From my perspective, that seems to be one of the most pressing issues. So many places have wait lists, many places are expensive, and it’s just a really difficult thing to access, which is wild, because what do you do? Not everyone can be a stay-at-home parent or take time off work to watch their kids,” said Gallo.

Finding affordable and reliable childcare is one of the greatest barriers for student-parents. One of the ways that SSWC helps this issue is through its Childcare Support Fund. It is a subsidy designed to help offset the cost of childcare, and any eligible student-parent can apply through Scholarship Universe. This award can be used at any qualifying childcare center in Portland and is not restricted to PSU adjunct daycare programs. Funding is limited, so it’s encouraged to apply early.

SSWC seeks to alleviate the stress that comes with being a student parent, whether there’s a deadline issue with a professor or a baby in need of formula. It also maintains family rooms throughout campus, which provide opportunities for parents to study in safe spaces and join the community.

While SSWC centers around the needs of parents at PSU, it is not confined to only students and staff with children. Gallo, who is not a parent, joined because she wanted to learn more about

the experience of other students. She connected her studies in Criminology with her desire to connect with and advocate for student parents.

“More than half of all people that are incarcerated are parents. I felt like this is a good opportunity to learn more about what being a parent is like, as well as the difficulties and the challenges and the successes that people face. I love the parents that come in, it’s been really cool to make connections,” said Gallo.

SSWC encourages broad campus engagement, and there are plenty of options for all students to get involved. Students can donate children’s clothes to SSWC year-round, which are free for those who need them. Volunteer opportunities are also available for events, which require no previous experience.

“I think there’s a misconception that we’re just for student parents and, of course, that’s our focus, and that’s who drives and informs the programming that we have, but it’s great to have a wide variety of students come and be familiar with this space,” said Gallo. “There’s a lot of non-traditional students here, and I think it’s important for people to be aware of other experiences on campus. Coming into the center helps with our numbers too, so we can get more funding.”

SSWC also has a student committee, where PSU students can serve on the advisory board. This allows them to share their opinions and vote on programming for the organization. Students have expressed that their voices need to be heard in discussions regarding resources and funding, because they are the key to extending the program’s outreach.

Advocacy is a core component of SSWC. Gallo has been vocal about family housing on campus– not currently an option at PSU.

“The university closed the one family-friendly housing that we had, and there’s no plans to expand or create anything else. I think the university has an image of what they want their students to be like, but we’re a non-traditional school. We have transfer students. We have people that are parents, and older students too. Student parents are a part of this community and deserve to be seen and heard the same as any other student,” said Gallo.

Organizations like SSWC are crucial for bridging gaps in such diverse environments. They work to amplify non-traditional voices at PSU to make higher education more accessible and less stressful for those with children. In doing this, SSWC not only supports individuals and their families but also contributes to broader efforts to make PSU a more inclusive and representative community.

The SSWC resource center is located in the Smith Memorial Student Union building, Suite 458. Drop-in hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Overall, the program is a valuable support system for many students, making it a key component for the health and success of PSU’s diverse community.

FAITH YOUNAN

“County Line” by Brenn! is a folk album about breaking up with a loved one and growing up. The album’s order follows a breakup; the first song, “4Runner,” reminisces on the places they used to go. Emphasizing his effort to move on while stuck living in his past, he tries to understand why anyone would want to leave this city. Contrasted by the last song in the album, “Revival,” where Brenn! slows down his pace and sings about not having anything worth staying in the city for.

The songs all emphasize a different part of moving on. “Valapriso” talks about how they both tried so hard to accommodate the other, but lost sight of what the relationship should have been. “Looking For” is the acceptance that they simply weren’t right for each other, while “Rearview” is a recollection of all the good moments of their relationship, but also what he could have done differently to keep her. “Jesus Song” is the moment of acceptance where someone can finally come to terms with the end of their relationship, knowing that there is a reason that they broke it off.

The acoustic sounds range from ukulele, banjo, tambourine and bass drum, imbuing a natural and indie feel. With every song following the same pattern of a slow hook and end, with an upbeat chorus, Brenn! can instill a conflicting rhythm. Parallel to his lyrics about the confusion of a breakup, Brenn! creates music that replicates emotional spirals while preserving a natural and real feeling. He invites listeners to relate to the raw sounds and emotions that flow from his music.

Through this album, Brenn! replicates the healing process. He invites listeners to a moment of self-reflection, encouraging them to release emotions that have lingered over the course of any breakup— making it the perfect album for anyone trying to process tough emotions this season.