Warren Washington, Emory Castle, Bernie Newcomb to receive honors

Oregon State University will honor a leading global climate scientist, a natural resource and rural economist and a business entrepreneur and philanthropist during its 137th annual commencement ceremony on June 18.

Climate scientist and OSU alumnus Warren Washington, who also will deliver the commencement address, will receive an honorary doctorate degree from the university, as will Emery Castle, a former OSU faculty member and pioneer in natural resource and rural economics.

Bernard “Bernie” Newcomb, co-founder of E*Trade and a prominent donor to OSU, will receive the university’s Distinguished Service Award. He is a 1965 graduate of the university’s College of Business.

Washington is one of the nation’s leading climate researchers. He also is one of OSU’s most distinguished African American alumni, serving by presidential appointment as chairman of the National Science Board, for which he was nominated by President Clinton.

After receiving a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s degree in meteorology from OSU, Washington earned a doctorate from Penn State University and then joined the National Center for Atmospheric Research in 1963. He has spent his entire career working for that organization.

Castle, whose career has spanned more than half a century, is a pioneer in the study of natural resource-based economics and rural economics. His work opened up new avenues of study that helped farmers, resource managers and decision-

makers to consider such things as the value of water quality and technological innovation.

He joined the OSU faculty in 1954 as an assistant professor of agricultural economics and then spent the next 39 years as a teacher, researcher, administrator and public policy analyst.

Castle co-wrote a textbook on farm management that introduced a generation of students to the fundamental economic principles of management of an agricultural business. He was chairman of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s national rural studies committee for 10 years.

Newcomb is an entrepreneur whose work as co-founder of E*Trade helped to revolutionize the way that investors research, buy and sell their stocks. Upon his retirement, he began a second career as a philanthropist, contributing $6.1 million to support to the OSU College of Business, a gift that established endowments for student scholarships, faculty positions and programs in the college. He also has supported numerous programs in his hometown of Scio.

Declared legally blind because of vision impairment at birth, Newcomb attended the Oregon School for the Blind for two years before entering the public school system in Scio in the third grade. In Scio, where he was known as “Bing,” he enjoyed a great deal of success and graduated as valedictorian from Scio High School in 1961. He enrolled at OSU and four years later graduated with honors and a bachelor’s degree in business administration and technology.

A pioneer in computer systems development, Newcomb spent more than three decades in business, primarily as a software developer and consultant.

Graduating class may be largest

OSU will graduate what might be the largest class in its history on June 18, when it holds its 137th annual commencement.

The ceremony, which will be broadcast live over Oregon Public Broadcasting, begins at 2 p.m. in Reser Stadium.

About 4,300 students will graduate from OSU in 2006 with some 4,440 degrees. Both would be records, according to Barbara Balz, the university’s registrar.

Last year, OSU graduated 4,083 students who received 4,219 degrees.

Earlier this spring, OSU graduated 38 new doctors of veterinary medicine in a separate ceremony.

Seventy-six students will receive their doctor of pharmacy degrees from two institutions. The doctorate is a joint degree awarded by OSU and Oregon Health & Science University, where students spend their third year of study.

The pharmacy graduates will be honored during a private hooding and awards ceremony at 1 p.m. June 17 in the LaSells Stewart Center.