Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

45th graduation has a fresh take

Photos and Story by James Hill

PCC’s graduation ceremony may be steeped in tradition, but this year it will have a few new items to look forward to. The college will hand out the inaugural Distinguished Patron Award and feature entertainment leading up to the program.

At 7 p.m. on Friday, June 8, PCC celebrates its 45th graduation ceremony, awarding more than 2,500 diplomas and certificates to graduates at the Memorial Coliseum, located at 1401 N. Wheeler Ave. Family, friends, faculty and staff will be on hand to congratulate the graduates and celebrate their accomplishments as they take center stage with PCC District President Preston Pulliams, featured guests, the Board of Directors and executive staff. This year’s ceremony includes emcee Katherine Persson (Rock Creek Campus president), Board Chair Jaime Lim and student Elizabeth Lawrence singing the national anthem. Music will be provided by the Cascade Campus’ Professional Music program.

Here’s a look at what’s new at this year’s commencement:

PCC’s Distinguished Patron Award

This is the inaugural year of the PCC Board of Directors’ Distinguished Patron Award, which will be given to a deserving recipient at every PCC graduation. This award recognizes a person from the community who has championed the college and community colleges as a whole at the local, state, or national levels. The 2007 recipients are Doreen Margolin, former board member, and Richard Helzer, former ceramics instructor.

Margolin was the Board Chair at PCC before she passed away following a brief illness. She had been recently honored with the Howard Cherry Award by the Oregon Community College Association. The award, the association’s highest honor, is for outstanding accomplishment on behalf of community colleges. Appointed in 1999 and elected in 2001, Margolin represented Zone 5 in the PCC District, which encompasses southwest and southeast Portland. She was also an attorney in private practice in Portland, specializing in domestic relations.

“Doreen made significant and lasting contributions to the college,” said District President Preston Pulliams. “She worked tirelessly at the state and national levels for community colleges as well. Doreen gave her time and energy generously to the college and we miss her very much.”

Richard Helzer took on many roles during his 37-year career with PCC. He taught ceramics at Sylvania, opened the art department at Rock Creek, oversaw the gallery, served as a mentor to young faculty members and guided thousands of students through sculpture, drawing and painting classes. Helzer passed away suddenly last summer. Colleagues recount the many hats he wore during his tenure, but more often they speak of his friendship.

“He gave his life to this institution,” said Mark Andres, art instructor at Rock Creek. “You can’t talk about the art department without his name being at the top.”

Last fall, the Rock Creek gallery was renamed the Helzer Art Gallery to honor his legacy. Helzer’s sculptures appear across the Rock Creek Campus and include a wall relief of textured wood and copper in Building 7 and two herons made of welded metal outside the greenhouses. His work also appears locally and at sites nationwide. Richard, along with his wife Sharon, who passed away last fall, gave the largest donation ever from an individual to PCC. Just before Sharon’s death, she gave the PCC Foundation $105,000 to establish two scholarship funds. The Richard Helzer Endowed Memorial Scholarship will pay for tuition, books and art supplies for a second-year art student. The Sharon L. Helzer Endowed Memorial Scholarship will provide support for a second-year nursing student. Sharon Helzer was a retired nurse.

“Thanks to the Helzer family this donation will provide scholarships for many PCC students in the years to come,” said Pulliams. “The years Dick worked at Rock Creek and the countless students he taught will never be forgotten. His legacy will live on for generations.”

Student Speaker: Lisa Hummel

This year’s student speaker is Lisa Hummel, who majored in gerontology and was named to the Phi Theta Kappa honor society. She was recently selected as one of its national New Century Scholars for 2006-2007, the only such scholar in Oregon, and named to the first team of the All-USA Today Academic Team. Hummel, 40, is a product of Project Independence, a PCC program that helps single parents and displaced homemakers transition into higher education or into the workplace.

“Before I started with Project Independence, I was cleaning houses and struggling with two part-time jobs,” said Hummel, a single mother. “But even as an older student, I came to realize that I could go back to school. Project Independence has helped make my dreams come true.”

She is president of Phi Theta Kappa at the Cascade Campus and volunteers her time at The Heights at Columbia Knoll Retirement Community, Loaves & Fishes and student government fundraisers. She has made the President, Honor and National Dean’s lists and is the recipient of the Ford Foundation Opportunity Scholarship. Hummel plans to go to Portland State University.

“Being in student leadership has made all the difference,” said Hummel. “I never thought of myself as a leader; I was always more of a follower. The opportunities I’ve found here have given me the courage to strike out on my own.”

Farewell to Karen McKinney

McKinney is retiring from the PCC Board and will be honored at this year’s graduation ceremony. McKinney, who has been re-elected to the PCC Board of Directors five times since joining it in 1987, represents Zone 7 in western Washington County. She serves on the Hillsboro City Council, the Business Education Compact and the Hillsboro and Forest Grove Chambers of Commerce. McKinney, a resident of Hillsboro, is a past appointee of the U.S. Department of Education to the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education. She was a member of the Pacific University President’s Advisory Board, and has been a member of the Hillsboro Union High and Elementary School Districts boards. A former teacher and health care planner, McKinney is an active community member.

History

PCC, the largest institution of higher education in Oregon, offered its first commencement ceremony in 1962 to a dozen students in the lunchroom of Portland’s former Failing Elementary School. Forty-four years later, PCC serves more than 91,000 full- and part-time students. Students earned associate’s degrees in Oregon transfer, arts, science, general studies and applied science; one- and two-year certificates; high school diplomas; and GED certificates.

Related Pages:

Graduating from PCC , About PCC, Art Program