The University of Oregon's selection this week as the state's top-ranked public university by Forbes magazine did not surprise the UO's chief enrollment officer. Nationally, the UO placed 65th among public institutions."Forbes is a well known, national publication that has experience looking at institutions across the country," said Roger J. Thompson, vice provost for enrollment management. "This ranking from Forbes demonstrates that the University of Oregon is not only strong academically, but we're also affordable."

The UO Office of Strategic Communications launched AroundtheO almost eight months ago to be the university's primary tool for reaching faculty, staff and GTFs with important news and information about the place we work. Our goal is to keep the website fresh and interesting. We are evaluating our strengths and weaknesses, and plan to roll out an improved news product before the start of fall term – but we need your help.

A professor in the College of Education's Communication Disorders and Sciences program was the only American presenter at a recent conference on stuttering in Croatia. Marilyn Nippold spoke at "Basic Science and Stuttering: Research for Clinicians," a conference held in Cavtat, Croatia, May 26-29. She joined a lineup of nine who also hailed from Australia, Canada, Germany and Sweden. Attendees represented some 20 countries.

Sean Thorne is off to a flying start. It was just last summer that the University of Oregon junior came up with the idea for Hallspot – a social media service geared exclusively to college students. Less than a year later, Thorne's brainstorm has become a reality. Hallspot raised $150,000 from a private angel investor and picked up another $6,300 in cash and prizes when Thorne's presentation won the top spot for early-stage companies at the Willamette Angel Conference in May.

Stephen Wooten, professor of international studies and anthropology, will serve as interim director of Study Abroad, effective immediately, said Dennis Galvan, vice provost for International Affairs. Cari Vanderkar Moore, outgoing director of Study Abroad, has taken a position as senior international officer at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo after 15 years of service to the UO.