Portland State University was established as the Vanport Extension Center in June 1946, founded by Stephen Edward Epler, a native of Iowa.

Epler graduated from Cotner College in Lincoln, Nebraska, and later Columbia University in New York City, before joining the army to fight in World War II.

[7] The Vanport Extension Center was conceived by Epler in order to satisfy the demand for higher education in Portland for returning World War II veterans, taking advantage of the G.I.

Bill was passed in 1944 to provide college, high school or vocational education for returning World War II veterans, as well as one year of unemployment compensation.

The first classes were held in the Vanport Junior High School and given its location in the Columbia River floodplain was promptly given the colloquial title, "The U by the Slough.

In 1968, incoming university president Gregory Wolfe commented that the buildings were distressing evidence of Stalinist cubism on campus, although urban renewal chairman Ira Keller found them to be "perfectly lovely.

[15] The program garnered national attention for its learning communities, service-learning, senior capstones, and successful retention of first-year students.

[17] In August 2020, citing the George Floyd protests as well as the killing of a Black man by PSU (campus police) officers in 2018, university President Stephen Percy announced that the campus police will no longer carry guns on patrol (though firearms will still be stored in the public safety office for use in case of an active shooter situation).

), which allows accepted students who have completed two year associate degrees at an Oregon community college to transfer into the university at junior level.

The curriculum was conceived to address issues of credit distribution which required students in upper-level courses to enroll in classes outside of their majors.

[34] In a 1993 summary report on the reform, it was stated that the University Studies sought to incorporate "'across-the-curriculum' themes including writing, diversity and multiculturalism, ethics, and global studies," as well as form a foundation that "includes the capacity and the propensity to engage in inquiry and critical thinking, to use various forms of communication for learning and expression, to gain an awareness of the broader human experience and its environment, and appreciate the responsibilities of persons to themselves, to each other, and to community.

"[34] PSU's University Studies curriculum begins with Freshman Inquiry courses, which are interactive and theme-based, and "explore topics and issues using an interdisciplinary approach to show how they can be understood from different perspectives.

These projects are integrated with local community organizations, and cover a wide range of issues, from social justice to grantwriting, environmental conservation, youth education, and more.

Built in 1966 as a rectangular structure, the library's convex wall of glass facing the campus' park blocks was added in 1989 to surround and preserve a large copper beech tree that was planted in 1890.

The Millar Library houses approximately 1,422,427 volumes, 640 print subscriptions, 97,065 accessible electronic books, 2,592,288 microforms, 69,762 maps, and 133,978 audio-visual materials.

[54] U.S. News & World Report currently ranks Portland State University's graduate Urban & Regional Planning Program as the 14th best in the Nation.

In 2010, the university opened a $62 million Gold LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certified Student Rec Center.

[60] Its largest include University Pointe, a sixteen-story apartment building operated by American Campus Communities built in 2011, and Ondine, a fifteen-story high rise.

Optional residential and social opportunities exist with a small but active Greek system, which includes:[62] Fraternities: Portland State University has numerous pieces of public art around campus from renowned local, national and international artists, such as Frederic Littman, Thomas Hardy, Ken MacKintosh & Lillian Pitt, Emily Ginsburg, Harrell Fletcher with Avalon Kalin, Linda Stein, John Aiken, and Ed Carpenter.

In 2018, the Autzen Gallery at Neuberger Hall was closed amid restorations for the building, and will be replaced with the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at Portland State University.

[66] As of 2012[update], eight buildings on the PSU campus are LEED-certified, two of which are at Platinum status, and the university announced plans for renovations on Neuberger Hall to bring it to LEED certification as well in 2014.

[68] In addition to the university's eco-conscious architecture and reconstructive work, it has also been recognized for its utilization of mass transit, including light rail, streetcar, and bus systems all central to the campus.

The institution sold land in a neighboring block soon after its move to downtown Portland, and delayed the construction of student housing until the early 1970s.

Portland State University is serviced with mass transit by TriMet, which includes fifteen bus lines as well as the MAX light rail system.

[86] Portland State competes at the NCAA Division I level in football, basketball, women's volleyball, golf, soccer, tennis, softball, indoor and outdoor track and field, and cross country as a member of the Big Sky Conference.

Behind his revolutionary new "Run-and-Shoot" offense (developed in the late 1960s at Hillsboro (OR) HS) and a strong-armed quarterback named June Jones, Davis led the Viking program to new heights— an 8–3 record, including a perfect 5–0 home mark.

The university has several alumni in law and government, including Barbara Roberts, the 34th Governor of Oregon, U.S. Federal Judge Anna J.

Tarah Wheeler, cybersecurity executive and author of Women In Tech, received her MS in Political Science from the Hatfield School.

Writer Francisco Laguna Correa; poets Michael Dickman and John Sibley Williams; and novelists Deborah J. Ross and David James Duncan are among the university's alumni; Mike Richardson, publisher and founder of Dark Horse Comics, is an alumnus as well.

The university's contribution to performing arts and entertainment include actors Mark Dacascos and Terence Knox; four-time Grammy Award-winning jazz musician Esperanza Spalding; film composer Rob Simonsen; and Jack Ely, guitarist of The Kingsmen.