The University of Oregon recently bestowed its Pioneer Award on two Ducks whose achievements helped revolutionize the sporting and technology industries. In the process, the UO raised more than $200,000 for Pioneer Award Presidential Scholarships.

The scholarship fund, which provides four years of support for outstanding incoming freshmen from Oregon, is now nearly $2 million. The selection process is highly competitive and merit based, with the goal of keeping high-achieving Oregon students in the state.

High achievement was the theme of the Portland reception, as UO alumni Renée James, who earned a bachelor’s degree in 1986 and a master of business administration in 1992, and Harry Glickman, a 1948 graduate, joined such accomplished alumni as Gwen and Charles Lillis, Cheryl Ramberg Ford, Dan Wieden, James Ivory, Ann Curry, and Phil Knight in receiving the honor.

James, currently an operating executive with the Carlyle Group, is the former president of Intel Corp. In nearly three decades at Intel, James oversaw the establishment of the company’s international research and development efforts as well as the expansion into cyber security and cloud-based computing.

James is the vice chair of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee to the President of the United States, and sits on, among others, the boards of Vodafone Group PLC, Oracle Corp., and Citigroup Inc. A prominent figure in the technology industry, in 2014 she was ranked 21st on Fortune magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in Business” list and currently ranks 45th on Forbes magazine’s “100 Most Powerful Women” list. She currently serves on the advisory board for the UO College of Arts and Sciences.

Glickman, considered the father of professional sports in Oregon, is the founder of the Portland Trail Blazers. A graduate of the School of Journalism and Communication, Glickman founded Oregon Sports Attractions after earning his degree and was responsible for bringing prominent entertainers and sporting events —from Judy Garland to the Harlem Globetrotters — to Portland.

In 1970, he established the Trail Blazers as an expansion NBA franchise, and in the years that followed served as the Trail Blazers’ executive vice president, general manager and president. When he wasn’t busy overseeing the longest sellout streak in professional sports — 814 consecutive games — Glickman sat on the UO Foundation Board of Trustees, the School of Journalism and Communication Advisory Council and the UO Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Established in 1979, the University of Oregon Pioneer Award recognizes Ducks who have blazed trails in business, philanthropy, communication, politics and the arts.