Social Justice Commons^™

Multicultural Student Center 25th Anniversary Report, Alex Herrera, Michelle Marie Belden, Abdullah "Rj" Alrujaib, Julia Liu, Linda Liu, Ed Washington, Stacie Taniguchi, Cynthia Carmina Gomez

Cultural Resource Centers Reports and Resources

This report describes the activities and mission of the Multicultural Student Center at Portland State university, including a timeline of notable events during its 25 year history as a student services organization.

Can Reducing Income Inequality Decouple Economic Growth And Co2 Emissions, Julius Alexander Mcgee, Patrick Greiner

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the past two decades, income inequality has steadily increased in most developed nations. During this same period, the growth rate of CO₂ emissions has declined in many developed nations, cumulating to a recent period of decoupling between economic growth and CO₂ emissions. The aim of the present study is to advance research on socioeconomic drivers of CO₂ emissions by assessing how the distribution of income affects the relationship between economic growth and CO₂ emissions. The authors find that from 1985 to 2011, rising income inequality leads to a tighter coupling between economic growth and CO …

Psu President’S African American, African, And Black Student Success Task Force Report, Shirley A. Jackson, Yves Labissiere, Lisa K. Bates, Tom Bull, Shanice Clarke, Steven Christian, Tara Cooper, Abel De La Cruz, Noni Causey, Alex Herrrerra, Rene Ingram, Vanelda Hopes, Vandy Kanyako, Marlon Dewayne Marion, Taremeredzwa Mutepfa, Marshawna Williams, Ebony Oldham, Tiffany Ganir

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

This report is in response to the President’s Charge to the Task Force on African American/African/Black Student Success at Portland State University. As included in the charge, the report assesses the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for PSU in continuing to serve the African American/African/Black community at PSU. In conducting its work, the Task Force reviewed a variety of reports and databases from various offices at PSU. Based on its findings, the Task Force provides recommendations under five main areas:
1) Student recruitment and retention
2) Student Experiences
3) Courses and Programming
4) Faculty and Staff at PSU
5) Best Practices …

Community Attitudes Regarding Public Safety In Bend, Oregon, Greg Stewart, Kris R. Henning

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

This report provides the results of a recent community survey in Bend Oregon. The purpose of the survey was to provide feedback on the Bend Police Department's recent performance in achieving their community-oriented goals from the agency's 2015-2020 strategic plan. Most of the residents surveyed report feeling safe in the city and the police received high performance ratings for being available when needed, dealing with problems that impact public safety, and for reducing crime. Likewise, residents who had been contacted by the police during traffic stops or investigations rated these interactions positively. Specific recommendations are offered in the report with …

Gathering Space: Building Community, Cynthia Carmina Gomez, Stacie Taniguchi, Melissa Bennett, Shanice Clark, Makerusa Porotesano, Maria Lieu, Kevin Thomas, Alex Herrera, Francisco Zamora-Flores

Cultural Resource Centers Reports and Resources

The Cultural Resource Centers (CRCs) at Portland State University (PSU) create a student-centered inclusive environment that enriches the university experience. The CRCs value diversity, social justice, cultural traditions, student identities, success and leadership. On November 2, 2016, PSU held a grand opening celebrating the expansion of the CRCs with the addition of two new centers, the Pan-African Commons (PAC) and the Pacific Islander, Asian, and Asian American Student Center (PIAAA). The growth of the CRCs marks a milestone in PSU’s commitment to social justice and equity. The Gathering Space, Building Community Report not only documents this growth, but also aims …

Community Attitudes Regarding Public Safety In Portland’S Parkrose Neighborhood, Kris R. Henning, Jason Jones, Christian Peterson

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has partnered with Portland State University (PSU) to develop new strategies for improving public safety and police-community relations. The initiative seeks to provide residents with greater voice in where police work in their neighborhood and what steps the police take to address public safety concerns. The current report presents the findings from a household survey conducted in Portland's Parkrose neighborhood. Residents' top concerns were social disorder, property crime, and alcohol/drug use. The majority of residents surveyed reported that overall safety in the neighborhood had declined over the past 12 months and a significant proportion (63%) …

Perceptions Regarding Public Safety In Portland’S Humboldt Neighborhood, Kris R. Henning, Greg Stewart

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has partnered with Portland State University (PSU) to develop new strategies for improving public safety and police-community relations. The initiative seeks to provide residents with greater voice in where police work in their neighborhood and what steps the police take to address public safety concerns. The current report presents the findings from a household survey conducted in Portland's Humboldt neighborhood. Residents' top concerns were gun crimes, gang activity, and traffic safety. The majority of residents support increased foot patrols by officers and community meetings as a means for reducing crime and strengthening police-community relationships.

Margaret’S Family Tree: A Story Of Hope And Belonging [Simulizi Ya Familia Ya Margareta: Hadithi Ya Matumaini Na Jumuiya], Susan Halverson

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Margaret’s Family Tree: A Story of Hope and Belonging (2016), is a coloring book designed to help children work through their grief in a constructive way and to help them acknowledge feelings about their lost loved ones. The book is written in both English and Swahili. It is illustrated in black and white by Oregon artist Edna M. Kennel. Halvorson-Westerberg is offering it free for duplication to anyone working with children, especially in African countries.

A Hidden History: The Stories And Struggles Of Oregon's African American Communities, Walidah Imarisha

Black Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

A Conversation Project program reveals the stories and struggles of Oregon's African American communities. Walidah Imarisha led this Oregon Humanities sponsored Conversation Project program entitled, “Why Aren't There More Black People in Oregon? A Hidden History.” This article describes her efforts in organizing and leading the program, and includes details of Oregon's history, how the state was "was created as a white utopian homeland," subsequent policies such as the "lash law," and hundreds of years of activism that is ushering change. The Hidden History Timeline embedded in this article starts with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, covers the founding of …

Replication School: Scaling Social Innovation Through Dissemination Training, Jacen Greene, Cindy Cooper, Carolyn Mcknight, Impact Entrepreneurs, School Of Business Administration, Institute For Sustainable Solutions

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper describes a training methodology to scale social innovation through dissemination undertaken in 2012 by Portland State University’s (PSU) Impact Entrepreneurs for the award-winning social enterprise Digital Divide Data (DDD). It begins with descriptions of some commonly used terms in the field — social innovation, social entrepreneurship, replication, and impact sourcing — and illustrates how each of these concepts was integrated into the development and delivery of a training program for replication of Digital Divide Data’s impact sourcing model. Program outcomes are reviewed, including findings that dissemination training is a viable, cost-effective method for replicating successful social innovations.

A Proposal Request For A Native American Task Force On Student Success At Portland State University, Cornel Pewewardy

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

This is a proposal request for a Native American Task Force on Student Success by the Director of Native American Studies Cornel Pewewardy.

The Portland State University Task Force On Latina/O Student Success, Carlos J. Crespo

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

In the fall of 2009, Portland State University President Wim Wiewel commissioned a Task Force, and an associated Advisory Board composed of community stakeholders, to make strategic recommendations concerning how Portland State can best serve the higher education needs and aspirations of Oregon’s Latino community. President Wiewel further charged the Task Force to base its recommendations on the best research and evidence available and to consider the most effective investment of PSU resources.

The Task Force met monthly from September 2009 to May 2010. It reviewed the literature, studied relevant data, learned from the success of comparable institutions, and performed …

Hybrid Chronicles: Biracial And Biethnic Perspectives On The Pedagogy Of Unlearning Racism, Stéphanie Wahab, Sunshine T. Gibson

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article details an autoethnography project of our odysseys into the pedagogy of unlearning racism. Our know ledge creation process forced us to re-envision both our locations in, and pedagogy of, anti-racism work, with particular attention to the challenges and dangers of teaching about, to, and from White privilege within social work. In the end, we are both troubled and invigorated by what we experienced, witnessed, and supported. By asking people of color to share their personal narratives of racism in the presence of Whites, teachers, facilitators, and diversity trainers stand to continue privileging Whiteness where Whites benefit and learn …

Bleeding Albina: A History Of Community Disinvestment, 1940‐2000, Karen J. Gibson

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Portland, Oregon, is celebrated in the planning literature as one of the nation’s most livable cities, yet there is very little scholarship on its small Black community. Using census data, oral histories, archival documents, and newspaper accounts, this study analyzes residential segregation and neighborhood disinvestment over a 60-year period. Without access to capital, housing conditions worsened to the point that abandonment became a major problem. By 1980, many of the conditions typically associated with large cities were present: high unemployment, poor schooling, and an underground economy that evolved into crack cocaine, gangs, and crime. Yet some neighborhood activists argued that …

Women, Welfare, And Work, Norman L. Wyers, Portland State University School Of Social Work

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

There are many popular misconceptions about people on welfare. This study challenges these myths with empirical findings, confirming the results of earlier studies. Four misconceptions contradicted by the findings of this study are as follows:

1. MYTH: She Doesn’t Want to Work
2. MYTH: Welfare Breeds Welfare
3. MYTH: She Rides the Gravy Train
4. MYTH: She Finds Life is Easy on Welfare

Reaganism And The Poor Family: Life On Afdc After The Budget Cuts, Norman L. Wyers, Robert C. Holloway

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recent changes in federal and state welfare policies have had negative consequences for public welfare recipients. This paper summarizes a study which focused on the impact of these policy changes on the AFDC population in the most populous region of Oregon. Of particular importance are the changes in income levels, employment, and social service utilization of recipients. Personal reactions of recipients are also reviewed, as are expectations for the future. The differential economic impact of the policy changes on various categories of recipients is stressed.

Testimony Provided Before The Joint Ways And Means Subcommittee, Human Resources Committee, House Of Representatives, Oregon State Legislature, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt:
My name is Norman Wyers. I am an Associate Professor, with a specialty in income maintenance from Columbia University, at the School of Social Work, Portland State University. I would like to talk with you today about the formulation of well-articulated welfare policy, in this case policy which would more effectively link social services with income maintenance. I am using this particular piece of welfare policy for illustrative reasons but also because it is badly needed.

Administrative Thinking On Youth And Youth Programs, Norman L. Wyers, John F. Longres

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Administrators have a lot of influence over the nature of youth programs. Because of this, their thinking on the causes of delinquency, the nature of ideal youth programs, and the role of youth workers were tapped. In the past, people in the field of delinquency have been accused of assuming an individual, personal problem or deficiency point of view. This study of administrators in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area suggests that, while some evidence for a more social structural understanding exists, in general the individual problem perspective prevails. An explanation for the persistence of a personal problem perspective is advanced …

Wages, Welfare, Or What? [Statement Of Norman L. Wyers] - Salem, Or, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

In his testimony to joint hearings before a task force of the welfare reform subcommittee of the US House of Representatives held on November 9, 1977, in Salem, Oregon, as part of a proposed welfare reform bill, H.R. 9030, Professor Norman L. Wyers shared the diverse opinions of participants of Oregon town hall meetings on economic security, entitlement, eligibility and responsibility. The public opinion survey findings revealed Oregonians' support for humanitarian policies, universal benefits, and a focus on job creation over training. Wyers urged policymakers to consider the liberal attitudes uncovered in the survey, emphasizing the need for a steady …

Wages, Welfare, Or What? [Statement Of Norman L. Wyers] - Washington D.C., Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Professor Norman L. Wyers, representing participants of Oregon town hall meetings and the Oregon Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, addressed the joint hearings before a task force of the welfare reform subcommittee of the US House of Representatives in Washington, D.D. In his testimony on welfare reform philosophy, Wyers emphasizes Oregonians' strong support for government-sponsored employment (68%) over income maintenance and preference for job development (42%) as a primary strategy. Surprisingly, 56% favor universal benefits, challenging assumptions about selective programs. Wyers warns against work relief proposals in H.R. 9030, citing historical failures. According to the town meeting …

Shame And Public Dependency: A Literature Review, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

All research related to under-utilization of income maintenance programs as well as to their impact on recipients has discovered the presence of stigma. A survey of the pertinent literature points out that much is known about stigmatization but that social welfare has been slow to incorporate this knowledge in any attempt to reduce the destructive effect of stigma on program users. Both liberal and radical reform measures are proposed as remedies.