Knight Campus town hall meeting slated for April 4

The UO has planned a town hall meeting for anyone interested in learning more about the $1 billion Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact.

The event will take place from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 4, in the Lease Crutcher Lewis Room in the Erb Memorial Union. The event is free and open to the public.

“The Knight Campus marks a historic and transformative leap for the University of Oregon,” said Patrick Phillips, acting executive director of the campus. “The hard work of turning an idea into reality is just beginning, but much has happened behind the scenes over the last few months, and we look forward to bringing the community up to speed on some of our early milestones.”

Phillips will lead the town hall session for students, faculty, staff, members of the public and anyone interested in the planning and vision of the Knight Campus. The initiative is designed to fast-track scientific discoveries into innovations, products or cures to improve the quality of life for people in Oregon and throughout the world.

Phillips will provide a general overview of the initiative, offer an update on the latest leadership recruitment efforts and talk about the groundbreaking research that will take place through the initiative. He will also discuss design and planning of the Knight Campus buildings, provide details on innovation programming and answer audience questions.

Rooted in the UO’s 60-year history of interdisciplinary collaboration, the Knight Campus will train new generations of scientists, forge tighter ties with industry and entrepreneurs and create new opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students. The project officially kicked off Oct. 17, when UO President Michael Schill announced an historic $500 million gift by Penny and Phil Knight

Since then, new developments have been steadily occurring. In recent months, the project team has announced new staffing additions, the selection of architects and general contractors, and ongoing funding support efforts in Salem as well as details about the campus’ advisory board. For more information, including future updates, visit the Knight Campus website

By Lewis Taylor, University Communications