``Making A Difference''. I recently asked my 300 level Neurobiology class what they expected from a U of O education. After the usual answers - ``to get a job'', ``to have a good time'', and the inevitable ``to get into medical school'', one struck a chord. A shy student said that she wanted a U of O education to ``do something positive with her life'' and several others nodded in agreement. When I asked if she was achieving this lofty goal, she replied ``yes'' and when asked why, she replied ``because of the faculty here''.

Our students are here to better themselves and those around them, and many succeed. I don't mean those who garnish awards, reach the top of their career ladder, or become famous, as those witty Duck media ads attest. I am referring to the rest - the non-famous Duck majority - who attend the University of Oregon, get their degrees, spread their Duck wings and spend the rest of their lives positively changing their world and ours. They are the personification of the ``Think globally, act locally'' bumper sticker. And many directly attribute their success to a specific U of O faculty member.

Case in point: Steven Cannell graduated in 1964 with an Journalism degree under the tutelage of Prof. Ralph Salisbury. Cannell was dyslexic before dyslexia was even recognized as a learning disability yet he spent his entire professional life writing novels because of Prof. Salisbury's assistance and guidance.

A second example is Tim Clevenger, class of '86 who was strongly influenced by Journalism Professor Willis Winter. Tim says he has ``carved out a successful career and life here in little ol' Eugene thanks to the quiet but firm motivation of Dr. Winter''.

Then there is Chang-rae Lee who graduated in 1993 with a MFA in creative writing. Lee is grateful to Professor Garrett Hongo for developing a rigorous creative writing program that ``provides encouragement to ethic american writers and allows them to find their own voices.''

Each of these cases and the dozens I have come across during my research on this topic mention a single faculty member who ``Made a Difference'' in the life of a student. Faculty members, like Profs. Salisbury, Winter and Hongo, whose caring goes well beyond their official duties. They didn't help these students to pad their CV. They did it out of love - and I've chosen this word carefully -- love for their professions, their students and our world.

Institutions don't make a difference - individuals do. And the University of Oregon, through its caring faculty and staff, has been making a difference for a long time. Making a difference may be this year's slogan but it was conceived 125 yrs ago. In 1876 the U of O was 5 faculty - 3 men and 2 women - teaching to 54 men and 25 women. There were three majors -- Classical Studies, Scientific Studies and Normal Studies -- however Normal Studies was abolished in 1885, which probably explains why our academic cousins 40 miles to the north cling to the belief we're slightly eccentric.

Making a difference was the raison d'etre of our first faculty. The obituary of our first President, John Wesley Johnson, highlighted him as a pioneer in public education. Another pioneer was Mary Spiller, the first woman faculty member who helped numerous women achieve their goals. Same goes for Thomas Condon, another of those first faculty, who took into his household one of our first foreign students, a Japanese student named Waymura in 1876, and guided him through his University years.

Individual faculty caring about individual students is a theme deeply embedded throughout our institutional history, like ivy on Straub Hall.

Straub Hall's namesake, John Straub, was hired in 1878 as an instructor to teach greek and modern languages. Despite his modest means, Straub established a loan fund from his personal resources to help students through difficult financial times. He also found places for students to live and ran an informal job finding service after they graduated.

Fast forward 40 years and we run into the inspiring figure of Ellis Lawrence, founder of the architecture school here in 1916 and official University Architect. He ran a large & lucrative private practice in Portland yet found time to drive down to Eugene 2 days a week to teach, hold seminar classes, and design much of our current campus. Somehow I doubt that the 110 mile drive was as easy then as it is now.

Fast forward again and we have Ken Metzler, Journalism Professor. Ann Curry of NBC TV, class of 1978 says ``If it hadn't been for Prof. Metzler, I wouldn't be an NBC anchor and correspondent. He probably doesn't even know what a big difference he made in my life because he was trying to make a difference in everybody's life''.

The faculty at the University of Oregon has always been distinguished by its scholarship. We have incredibly knowledgeable faculty, endowed with a special ability to acquire and disseminate information with intelligence, grace and style. I try to go to one lecture each month in a field outside my area and am continually impressed by my colleagues' depth of knowledge and insight.

That said, what truly amazes me is the humanity of our faculty - how they reach out to help others achieve their goals. This altruism becomes even more astounding because it directly conflicts with professional success -- after all, assisting students does not find its way onto a resume.

Yet faculty have helped students time and time again, throughout our history. I wish to finish with four examples that epitomize our faculty's statement of humanity:

-- E.B. McNaughton, President of 1st National Bank referred to Ellis Lawrence, the architect school founder in the following way, ``...while so many of us were making money, Lawrence was making men''.

-- Pharmaceutical company founder Alec Keith, who received a PHD in biology in 1966 said of his advisor Edward Novitski, `` Novitski's teaching goes beyond textbooks; he has provided me with a license to think''.

- Laurie Monahan, 1969 sociology graduate, writes, ``After graduation, I took an extremely depressing job in the retail business. In the midst of this trauma, my former voice teacher, Prof. Leslie Breidenthal called with a proposal: ``How would you like a scholarship to go to Germany for a year to study at the U of O Music School Extension?'' It took me half a heart beat to say yes and it was certainly the most life altering opportunity I have ever been given! Because of Dr. Breidenthal, I became a professional singer, and I shall be forever grateful to his insight and generosity.''

-- Eric Benjaminson, who graduated in history in 1981. He writes, ``During my senior year, I was the stereotypical aimless history major, not certain about my future plans. That year I was taking US Diplomatic History with Prof. Paul Holbo. After one class Holbo delivered some unsolicited advice: while I was a first rate history student, he said, I seemed to be chomping at the bit to do something outside of academia. It occurred to him that I might have the right mix of ``conflicting strengths'' for the US Foreign Service. Having grown up near Sweet Home OR, I heard him say ``Forest Service'' and for the life of me couldn't understand what point he was making. When I finally realized he meant the State Dept, I obtained a different level of incomprehension. I had never thought about diplomatic service and could hear my mother exclaiming that her son was ``the least diplomatic person she had ever met''. Nevertheless, Dr. Holbo's suggestion turned out to have been made, as the cliche goes, at the right time and the right place. I passed the Foreign Service exams and have just entered my 19th year with the Foreign Service serving in 6 countries as well as in Washington. It is no exaggeration to say that Dr. Holbo's astute assessment of me at the time made all the difference later.''

Today, our University struggles to maintain academic excellence in the face of persistent fiscal cuts. Academic excellence means many things to many people but at its core, it is the maintenance of the standards of excellence, and passing those values on to our students. Excellence comes in many colors and hues, but none shine as bright as helping a student achieve his/her goals. It is truly an honor to be part of a faculty and more importantly, of a 125 year faculty tradition whose prime focus, and joy, is helping students achieve the goal of ``Making a difference''.