Inner Circle September 2014

The Start of Something BIG

You may have heard that on Wednesday, September 17, at the University of Oregon White Stag Block, we announced our new partnership with Portland development firm Gerding Edlen and our plan to locate the Oregon Executive MBA program and the proposed master in Sports Product Management in a brand new building in Portland's Old Town Chinatown. The evening became even more special when Mark Edlen "75, MBA '76 made a surprise announcement—his pledge of $250,000 in support to the college.

We are genuinely indebted to Edlen. He brings a deep and wide dedication to this project and the college as whole—as an alumnus, a member of the Lundquist College Board of Advisors, and a friend.

The UO Lundquist College of Business will be an anchor tenant in the $37 million, six-story structure, which will be located on the corner of Northwest First Avenue and Davis Street, across the street from the UO White Stag Block. In this space, we will join Ankrom Moisan Architects, a prominent design firm with offices in Portland and Seattle. The move will also fortify our and the university's role in Portland. It will enable us to work more closely with the other UO schools and colleges currently offering programs at White Stag, including the School of Architecture and Allied Arts, School of Journalism and Communication, School of Law, Academic Extension, and Library and Learning Commons.

The top floor in the new building will also house about 50 apartments, which could be used for students, faculty, and visitors to the college.

We couldn't be more pleased to have all our Portland programs joined together geographically at last. At the time the Oregon Executive MBA was established, we were part of a three-university degree program, which made collocation difficult. Now that we are the sole administrator, collocation of our UO programs makes sense. Our incoming Oregon Executive MBA class is the largest ever at 52 members strong, and it is our plan to continue to grow the program in this inspiring new setting.

As we charge up our Sports Product Management offerings, this new location will likewise prove highly advantageous, with our White Stag Innovation Lab just across the street. The Sports Product Management initiative has already held several sold-out workshops in Portland and is expected to receive approval for a masters degree program this fall.

Shovels are scheduled to hit the dirt in October or November on the new building, and the expected occupancy is January 1, 2016.

We hope you agree that this is an auspicious time for both the Lundquist College and the University of Oregon. We are adding top-notch faculty, enhancing experiential learning, providing opportunities for global engagement, and building our Portland presence. As we add to and enhance our programs, we are poised to boost rankings, presence, and recruiting in the corporate community.

Join us in these exciting ventures.   Read the Press Release

Cordially,

Cornelis A. “Kees" de Kluyver
Rippey Distinguished Professor