Oregon Health and Science University
Oregon Health and Science University is the present-day (2003) name for a university that can trace its roots back to the 1860s. Its primary campus, Marquam Hill in southwest Portland, was established in 1917 by the donation of 20 acres from the Oregon-Washington Railroad and Navigation Company and 88 acres from the family of a former publisher of the now-defunct Oregon Journal. In 1974, the University of Oregon Health Sciences Center was formed, which combined dentistry, medicine and nursing programs into a single center. This center was renamed Oregon Health Sciences University in 1981.In the 80s and 90s, with support from Oregon's U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield, the university grew significantly. Research centers were founded to focus on the following areas:
- Biomedical research
- Ethics in health care
- Rural health
- Radiology
- Eye care
- Occupational and Environmental Toxicology
The 90s also saw the growth in outpatient primary care facilities, first on campus (the Physician's Pavilion) and then in clinics throughout the Portland metropolitan area.
In 1998, the university dedicates the Mark Hatfield Research Center. It also takes over an affiliated primate research center now known as the Oregon National Primate Research Center.
In 2001, OSHU is renamed Oregon Health and Science University as part of a merger it undertook with the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology in Washington County.
With the Marquam Hill (nicknamed Pill Hill) campus running out of room for expansion, the focus for OHSU in 2003 and beyond is on expanding into the North Macadam district of Portland, which is south of city center, along the Willamette River. With support from the city government of Portland, there is hope within OHSU that North Macadam and Marquam Hill are unified through the construction of a new aerial tramway.
