The University of Oregon hired Monica Hasek in 2022 to manage an unprecedented project: reopen UO Portland on a new campus, which included the simultaneous completion of five renovations of existing buildings.

Working closely with Design and Construction director Darin Dehle and Chuck Triplett, associate vice president of UO Portland Campus Operations, Hasek made her deadline and UO Portland opened on schedule in Northeast Portland last fall. She said she couldn’t have done it without the entire university behind her.

“What was really cool for me is that this was so supported by ‘the mothership’ — we had the support of the Eugene campus that was just buzzing with so many people to keep things moving,” said Hasek, a project manager with Campus Planning and Facilities Management. “Design and construction, facilities, engineering, fire and life safety, accounting — every department has touched UO Portland.”

The word “Herculean” has been used to describe the work by hundreds of UO employees who helped reopen UO Portland on the former campus of Concordia University. During a May 29 event at UO Portland’s new Campus Center, leaders thanked workers across the university who didn’t drop everything for UO Portland so much as add this huge undertaking to their regular workloads.

“This lunch and moment to gather is for you,” President Karl Scholz told an audience of 100, during a “grand gratitude” lunch that coincided with the grand opening of the new campus. “It is a chance for me and the rest of university leadership to give you the recognition you all so justly deserve for meeting those seemingly endless deadlines and managing the thousands of details that it takes to turn a shuttered campus back into a thriving space where students, staff and faculty mix and mingle in a true university setting.”

The 19-acre campus was purchased in June 2022 as part of a gift from Connie and Steve Ballmer to establish the Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health. The university renovated the campus over two years, relocated operations from UO Portland’s White Stag Block and Naito building and opened in fall 2024. The new campus includes 20 buildings, 12 academic programs and six research centers.

Given the scale of the relocation, renovation and reopening, it would be nearly impossible to recognize every individual who played a role — but UO Portland officials endeavored to try.

During lunch in the bright, open Campus Center, a slide show listed more than 200 UO employees and others who helped with the launch. Tables were arranged in a “flying V” formation created by Meghan Bucknell of UO Portland facilities services, a nod to the shared sense of purpose that unites Ducks.

“I have said many times in the past few years that it is hard to describe the generosity of our colleagues in Eugene, who had very full, if not overflowing jobs before adding our campus to their work,” said Jane Gordon, vice president for UO Portland. “So many people who never within their workday said the word ‘Portland,’ unless they were planning a personal day up here, or flying out of the airport, being so very involved, saying and hearing ‘Portland’ many hours on many days of the week.”

“I really appreciate all of the incredible work that so many of our teams did to launch the new Portland campus,” added Jamie Moffitt, senior vice president for finance and administration. “It took a tremendous amount of collaboration between various groups including Safety and Risk Services, Design and Construction, Facilities, Human Resources, Housing, Administrative Services, Information Services, Student Life, Transportation Services, General Counsel and our Portland-based staff to make the new campus a reality.”

Employees were also recognized from other administrative units and areas including Government and Community Relations, Libraries, Percent for Art, Advancement, UO Portland Safety and Security, and Scheduling and Event Services. The university also recognized architects from SRG and Cannon Design, Holst Architects, LeverArchitecture, Opsis Architecture, Peter Meijer Architecture, PLACE Landscape, TVA Architects, Soderstrom Architects, Woofter Bolch Architecture and ZGF Architects. Also recognized: contractors from Capital Engineering, Catena Consulting Engineers, Faster Permits, Howard S. Wright, Interface Engineers and Savatree.

“This was such a large project,” said Heidi Hiaasen, director of UO Portland communications. “There were hundreds of people who contributed, both internally and externally. Everyone was so gracious, willing and excited to work on this project.”

The lunch’s celebratory mood was accentuated with a game of “reno bingo,” a UO Portland-inspired version of the venerable game in which attendees matched terms associated with the renovation and the new UO Portland campus to their scorecards instead of randomly generated numbers. One example: “bell tower,” which refers to the 60-foot-tall campus amenity composed of three columns of brick.

“This feature could soon be iconic for the university,” Hiaasen said. “The best part is we just figured out how to play the fight song on it.”

—Matt Cooper, University Communications