Finding reasons to leave your dorm room this fall

While you’re still removing the plastic wrap off your IKEA furniture this fall, it’ll be hard to stay in-the-know about all the cool school-related happenings. Let us do the dirty work for you.

Sept. 15: Back to School Social
Smith Memorial Student Union, room 338, 4–6 p.m.
Open to all Portland State student-parents and international students, participants can shop for free clothing, school supplies and other essentials to jump back into fall term while enjoying a fun evening of socializing. A light supper is also included.

Sept. 16: Portland State Soccer vs. Colorado State
Hillsboro Stadium, 1 p.m.
Go support your Lady Vikings at their third home game of the season.

Sept. 19: Viking Days begins
There is a very special sweet spot of time at PSU, before the academic part of university begins but while many incoming freshmen move into the dorms. It is a week of free food, informational events and some unaffiliated recreational partying dubbed Viking Week, after our school’s mascot. Viking Week runs from Sept. 19–25.

Sept. 20: “Night at the Rec” Viking Day
Academic & Student Rec Center courts (third floor), 7:30–9:30 p.m.
Get to know the Rec Center under the pretenses of free food and music. There will be raffles and rock climbing and possibly some cute muscular boys.

Sept. 21–24: PSU Outdoor Orientation
Wednesday, 8 a.m.–Saturday, 5 p.m.
Incoming students can participate in an in-depth tour of campus, hike about Portland and go on a three-day backpacking trip. Cost of attendance is $250 and registration deadline is Sept. 7.

Oct. 8–Dec. 1: Andy Warhol: Prints from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation
Portland Art Museum, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Tuesday–Sunday
The Portland Art Museum will present a major exhibition of pop art master Andy Warhol’s work. The museum is free the first Thursday of every month, and any college student can buy an annual pass for $20.

Oct. 10: Harvest Share
Outside Shattuck Hall, 12 p.m.
PSU and the Oregon Food Bank have teamed up to provide students with FREE fruits and vegetables on the second Monday of every month. One of the few things that everyone on campus can agree is really super rad.

Oct. 13: Susan Murrell: Resident Artist Open Studio
Art Building, room 225, 12–2 p.m.
Susan Murrell will be showcasing her work alongside MFA studio artists. Murrell is a mixed-media artist, “assigning purpose and structure to otherwise chaotic or mysterious systems.”

Oct. 13: Portland State of Mind kicks off
Portland State of Mind runs until Oct. 22, and is a series of PSU events including speakers and bands. They print real cool t-shirts for the whole thing too. Check the Vanguard in October for more information on specific events!

Nov. 15: Screening of OKINAWA: The Afterburn
Location TBD. 6 p.m.
A documentary film on the post-war fate of Okinawa, Japan. Followed by a conversation with Academy Award–nominated director Jon Junkerman.

Nov. 18: PSU Football vs. Eastern Washington
Providence Park, time TBD
Go support your Vikings in the last home football game of the season. Show up in your best PSU gear and cheer for your team!

Nov. 26: PSU Volleyball vs. Seattle
Peter W. Stott Center, time TBD
Portland and Seattle are constantly compared to one another. See how the two match up in terms of women’s volleyball while supporting the Vikings.

Dec. 1: Scholarship application due for freshmen
If you’re an incoming freshman, you’ve had since Aug. 1 to fill out that online application for scholarships. Send it in by Dec. 1 to make that application worth it!

Other important academic deadlines:
10/2 – Last day to drop with full refund/last day to add courses online.
10/7 – Last day to add with instructor approval.
10/9 – Last day to adjust enrollment for financial aid purposes.
10/24 – Class schedule available online.
11/7 – Preterm priority registration begins for winter 2017.
11/11 – University closed for holiday.
11/13 – Last day to withdraw from a course.
11/24-25 – University closed for Thanksgiving.
12/5 – Final exams begin.
12/14 – Grades available online.

If you are enrolled in the PSU Payment Plan, remember to pay on the sixth of each month starting in October.