Be Good. Be Orange.

Submitted by Hayden Olson

Being “Orange” at Oregon State University can mean a number of things. As our primary school color is orange, there are primary characteristics people have associated with that color. For example, being Orange is being respectful and understanding of the diversity on campus; having differences allows our culture to be unique and widespread even outside of the campus. To my friends, being Orange is being school spirited and motivated to reach one’s goals; however, each person I spoke to had a slightly different meaning of “Being Orange.” Though definitions differ, the general concept people describe is of hardworking and open-minded individuals who share differences yet are able to collaborate and make positive changes on our community and world that we live in. That is what makes this university so great; the diverse cultures and interests found at OSU all come together to make up a unified body that wears orange apparel and functions with an “Orange” attitude.

When I am being “Orange” I am consciously making an effort to be welcoming of others and representing my school in the most positive way possible. This means I am showing up on time to events, school, and work, I am putting my full effort into my daily tasks, and I am being considerate of those around me. Oregon State is known for being a research school, but it is not the only thing that makes our school successful. Having a diverse culture that share the common belief of working hard and representing their school makes OSU shine in every department.

To “Be Orange” not only means to be ambitious; it also means making smaller, achievable steps in order to progress towards a lager and meaningful impact on the community.  As seen on campus, there is a number of different banners scattered throughout buildings and on light posts stating what it means to be part of Beaver Nation. An effective strategy in communicating these messages would be to incorporate these characteristics into all OSU events. Whether these be at sporting events or orchestral concerts, having a set of characteristics visible or explained to student, faculty, and visitors will allow everyone to understand the moral compass here at OSU.

My interpretation of “Being Orange” revolves around having respect for you and for other. Holding yourself accountable will keep your goals in perspective while understanding others’ differences will allow you to be more adaptable and flexible when collaborating together. Integrity fits the list of “Orange” characteristics because succeeding in college and further into the workforce takes a lot of motivation that can be and is learned through the struggles experienced when on your own (such as college).

Being a part of the “Orange” movement means working hard for yourself and for the common good of the community; however, to do this requires proper communication and portrayal of “Orange” characteristics on a daily basis. It is easy to feel the warmth of Beaver Nation during the civil war football game but it is equally important to express passion for being Orange outside of competitive settings such as when you work with peer on group projects. Being Orange is being on time, being prepared, and being driven to reach your goals.

Submitted by: Ashley Hittner

            In the future, when I tell someone I am a graduate from Oregon State University (OSU), I want their first impression of my alma mater to be positive. More importantly, I want my future employer to see me as a hard worker and potentially as an awesome employee. To me, “Being Orange” is more than a color or a saying, I want it to be a legacy that follows me and my fellow peers throughout our lives in the professional and personal world.

My journey as a Beaver Believer started as a little sprout. When it came time to apply to college, the only college I ended up applying to was OSU. In fact, we should have had a building named after my family since everyone on my dad’s side has attended OSU. However, while growing up I always watched my family work hard. After graduating college, my dad opened up his own car washing business while working at a painting company. Over the next twenty years and two kids later, he opened up two more car washes for a total of three washes. His car washes are open 365 days a year and he attends to them every day. I watched first hand growing up with a dedicated father whom worked hard so my brother and I could have a head start at life.

Being Orange is multigenerational; I have adopted my dad’s work ethic while my time at OSU. I am constantly busy but my GPA is flourishing, I have been associated with many academic societies and work two jobs. I have been very satisfied with my time here at OSU but have also been disappointed with one aspect; I wish myself and other OSU students were rewarded for their hard work in academics. When I started at OSU in Fall 2010, the cost of tuition was $6,727 for in state residents (from: http://www.collegecalc.org/colleges/oregon/oregon-state-university/#.UyR2vZPijw1). However, tuition has sky rocketed to a whopping $8,538 for in state residents (from http://oregonstate.edu/financialaid/cost-attendance). To put this in better perspective, this is a 21 percent increase in tuition since 2010. How is this drastic increase in tuition supposed to promote hard work? I have seen my fair share of firsthand accounts of hard working students who have dropped out of school because of these massive hikes in tuition.

My response to OSU is let the hard working student have a tuition break. I love this school and want to see our alumni flourish, not waste away in college debt. My solution to the problem is simple; I want to be recognized and rewarded for my hard work and dedication I put forth with my schoolwork. One solution to the increase tuition hikes is for OSU to give students who have good grades a discount on tuition. This will give us incentive to do well in classes and make our campus more competitive.

My other solution has been adopted by other colleges such as Western Oregon University and that is to do a tuition promise. For example, the tuition that you pay your first year of college will be the same for the next four years (follow this link for more details http://www.wou.edu/student/finaid/tuition_fees/tuition_fees.php). For many students, knowing the price of college for the next four years is crucial; they will know how much money to budget for as well as how much they will be in debt.

Positive rewards the best rewards. They encourage us to prosper and grow as individuals and as a community. During my 2014 Winter term at OSU, I took a Philosophy 205 class which is the Introduction to Ethics. The professor had an amazing way of rewarding the students for their hard work. At times, the rewards seemed elementary but as simple as they were, they were the most powerful rewards. Much of the time, graded college assignments come with a solid grade, maybe some comments, and then it’s on to the next paper. However, this professor took a different approach; she added stickers to places in our papers where we had exceptional work, she rewarded us with surprises, and whenever we contributed an unique idea to class, she had a bag with small pieces of paper with a written reward on it such as cookies or an A on an assignment. She genuinely always acknowledged our hard work and unique ideas in a positive way to entice us keep participating. I would like to challenge the university to acknowledge our hard work as an entity.

As of today, OSU’s current astronomical increases in tuition are not beneficial to the many hardworking students on its campus. By providing monetary incentives to the hardworking students on campus, OSU can foster a better environment for learning. I want OSU to thrive and be known for having students of determination, intelligence, professionalism, and great work ethic. By demanding students to pay more and more each year, these objectives are less likely for the common student.

#workhardplayhard #TuitionFreezePlease #beorange

Submitted by Jyssica Yelas

When applying to colleges, students often apply to the schools that have the best programs in his or her chosen course of study. How desirable it is to be thoroughly knowledgeable on a subject or field –to have been involved in one’s studies so deeply that all subjects taught in school were learned and understood. This is a level of involvement that, I have discovered, must be far surpassed in order to be successful at Oregon State University, and beyond. It is not purely interest in one’s major that will create fulfillment –it is a deeper involvement, with other students, with subjects of alternative interest; it is involvement with community at large, and even with oneself that creates a truly informed, rounded scholar.

To be “involved” in this sense is to ponder and act deeper than is expected. This requires curiosity as well as mindfulness in learning. This term I have practiced exercising mindfulness through a series of yoga practices that, with the help of class discussions, have helped me be a more involved learner. This means I am listening with an opened and broadened mind that allows me to see where everything I am experiencing personally and learning about in school intermingles. By being involved in my own learning, I am not merely a ‘sponge’ in a classroom–a scenario that deters students from seeing value in attending class.

I am learning more about myself because of my involved learning. Through my ethics class this term, I have discovered that I am developing quite a utilitarian approach to ethics. Thus, being involved helps me know myself better, which allows me to treat others better. Maintaining and feeding curiosity throughout this journey is both healthy and promotes ethical behavior. When one is interested in matters outside their own usual interests, and genuinely thirsts to understand ulterior perspectives and experiences, room for appreciation of others expands. The ability to openly receive others’ ideas and find common ground comes from this very kind of involvement. It requires exposure to worlds outside one’s own, which allows for a more informed and compassionate decision-making.

To be Orange is to well represent Oregon State University –a responsibility possibly unasked for, possibly underestimated, but one that presents itself the moment one accepts to become a part of the OSU community, whether a student, professor, or anyone in between. The Orange community is made of millions of individual acts of involvement of all sorts. As I further my friend and interest circles at OSU, I start to see links between different friends or acquaintances of mine. He knows her through the Anactist Club; he knows him from anchoring at KBVR TV; she met him at the basketball game in the student section. These networks and relationships that tend to be so fulfilling and productive build between conversations between all kinds of students who are involved and interested –and everyone does it differently. As afore mentioned, a member of the Orange community can practice involvement anywhere from the classroom, to a conversation in the bathroom, to a friendly exchange of smiles whilst on a run down Monroe street. That’s the beauty of it. To be Orange is to be involved –to be engaged, however one chooses to be. I once saw a bumper sticker that read, “The world is run by those who show up.” This has been my inspiration this year, and it explains exactly why there exist so many successful and continuously involved Beaver alumni and students.

When you hear the phrase “it takes a village to raise a child”, what does it mean to you? After a short time thinking about it, you discern that it means a child is not raised just by those that cater most to them, but all of the people around them play a large role in the process. I have a similar definition in my mind, however when I think deeper about it, I realize that this phrase does not just accommodate to children, and it is not just the people that surround us by which we are molded. It is everything around us that shapes us into who we are in our daily lives. Every thought we have, words we speak or read, every interaction, and everything we see and process in our minds is what molds us.

So what does it mean to Be Orange? As college students at Oregon State University, we are the “child” in the village. A village that gives you the opportunity of knowledge and skills required to be who you strive to be in the future. Being Orange isn’t about pride, diversity or integrity. It is about a community that teaches you to be prideful, instills strong moral principles and gives you the confidence to rise in the face of diversity.

Being Orange is also about open mindedness, innocence and trust. These three traits go hand-in-hand in our OSU community. One of my favorite parts about Beaver Nation is that it is not uncommon for random people to just walk into your house, realize it was not the house they were looking for, apologize and be on their merry way. Just last night I was sitting on my couch watching television and three guys I didn’t know walked through my door. We had a small conversation before they realized that they were in the wrong house, and they left a couple beers on their way out. This may seem weird everywhere else in the world, but it is what makes me proud to call Corvallis home.

Compassion also plays a large role in the Orange community. It seems that a large majority of Oregon State students are very thoughtful and kind to one another. Oregon State does not just offer an education, it offers a home. A home that is full of people that will build you up when you are down. One that is full of people trying to reach out to one another. The individuality on this campus is not something that divides us, but instead it brings us closer together. It is shown that through the compassion shown to one another unifies our community as a whole. It is not uncommon to see a posting on our “Things Overheard at Oregon State” Facebook page about a lost I.D. or credit card, and people trying to contact whoever the card belongs to. People combine their efforts in order to help one another, that is what being orange is all about.

Being Orange is not just about the five core values that are listed on the Oregon State website. To Be Orange is to appreciate everything this town and university has to offer. Each individual at OSU is the “child raised in the village” and I am proud to see what people grow into at this university.

Submitted By: Shayna Kim

Many people outside of the Oregon State University community believe that Be Orange is seen as mainly school pride because of Benny the Beaver, but that’s not all there is to it. After asking other OSU students, they see being orange as being eco-friendly, reliable, and unique. There is a large amount of words that could describe being orange. Everyone has a different perspective on being orange depending on their own personal values because one may be more important to one person but less important to another. That doesn’t mean we aren’t being orange, we are being orange in our own way.

When I first chose OSU as my college of choice we were told that we were going to be Powered by Orange. This has had a great effect on me because it gave me a sense of a community and unity. All of the OSU students, faculty, and staff are unified under the values of OSU. Be Orange is the same thing. We are all unified under the same moral values that we want as students to better ourselves by being a part of the OSU community.

I see Be Orange as a code of ethics in a way for the OSU community. OSU defines being orange by their core values of accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. To me, the most important moral value held to Being Orange is social responsibility, basically making the right decisions. In Hawaii, this moral is called being pono. Be pono is to do the right thing. College in general is when we, the students, become adults and we are guided by the moral values of the school and choices we must make as adults. Every day we are faced with challenges that test our values and morality, that’s what makes ethics so important. Question all that we know to know that what we are doing is right for ourselves in our own situations. This is a part of life that I struggled with most and being orange has led me to becoming a better decision maker and making the right choices.

Being Orange means being the best person you can be in the world. Make a difference through what you have learned as being a part of OSU and keep a part of OSU with you for the rest of your lives. Everyone has a different opinion of Being Orange depending on how they want to make a difference in the world and their own personal values. I believe we all just need to do what we think is right for ourselves; not anyone else. Doing the right thing for you will always be wrong for someone else because our world is so diverse. Be Pono. Be Orange.

“Do what you feel in your heart to be right- for you’ll be criticized anyway.”

–Eleanor Roosevelt

Alex Roth
3/17/14
PHL 205
Be Orange Be Diverse

Being Orange to me is to be diverse, this campus is full of people from different countries, different religions, and overall different experiences that they bring into this giant mixing pot we call the Oregon State campus. Diversity is the core value that I can represent being Orange with because it represents everyone’s distinct paths and experiences at Oregon State. There is everything from being an apparel design major and being a part of some of the spring and summer plays put on to being an engineer and traveling to Las Vegas to compete in a competition. It seems that there is a million different ways to walk through this campus before you graduate and every way seems to point to a different experience this is why I choose Diversity as the core value of being Orange.
Diversity also is shown through actions that clubs and organizations participate in to make both a difference for our campus and for those outside of our campus. The actions that happen on campus cause for a changing and progressing life for the students of Oregon State. Our mixing pot of diversity brings people from all walks that believe in different causes and when their ideas are implemented it causes all aspects of campus from student government, athletics, to recycling to see change. This sparks imagination and excitement about learning if our campus was static, non-progressing, would anything get done?
Outside of our own campus people make change and we like to call this being orange. This is also a sign of diversity best way to explain it is the diffusion of liberal culture. Some do this by helping out our local community outreach and some by going on service trips through clubs on the Oregon state campus. To diffuse liberal culture is to accept, engage in, and see other cultures this can be done on a local scale by participating with the marching band to going overseas and immersing yourself in a different culture all together. This helps tailor our campus to come together and accept that diversity is the building block on which we build this campus.
In the end I believe that diversity is what has brought us so far and how we define being orange is to be diverse and live a well-rounded life going our part in being orange through what your passionate about. Be Orange Be Diverse is how I see our campus because it explains the constant changes in social norms and the progressing of our campus and the people that are a part of our campus. It really is one big mixing pot and I’m excited to see what other changes, achievements, and innovation it can create for future generations.

Submitted by Tyler Day

Some people may ask, what does it mean to be orange? While there are many different answers to the question, I believe one must be proud in order to be orange. Some may feel that orange is just any ordinary color. However, when you look closer, you see the pride these students have for their school. One look at the student section in any sport will tell you what I see. These students have pride and passion in their school, and their yelling and cheering is just evidence that they do. Why would someone paint him or herself orange or wear bright orange? Around Corvallis the answer is usually because of OSU. Here at OSU not only do we have pride in our sports, even though we may not be the best at all of them, but we also have pride in our academics. Even if I see orange outside of school, I feel the pride of being a part of the OSU community because it is a great place to be and grow.
The other day I saw a kid walking through campus with a packet in hand, and he was smiling ear-to-ear shaking that packet. Now we can assume that he did well on a paper or test, and that happiness flying through the air really spreads a positive vibe throughout. That is what I would love to see, because I would love to see there be more pride going around about the academics. When a lot of people think of college, they usually think of frat parties, and (around here) football. I think that more pride and attention should be towards education, since we are here to get a degree and ready ourselves for the world outside of the classroom. However, when I say people should put more pride in their school work I am not saying everyone should go around the campus bragging about the A they got on their physics test. It wouldn’t be the best idea if everyone were egoistic, because then that could lead to putting other students or schools down. I believe in some utilitarianism actions, which is to find what does the largest amount of good, and that is to not only be prideful in ones work, but also find pride in others. I don’t think it’s a good idea to put others down for not being the best at what they do. Instead people should show pride in how their community breaks through educational barriers or growth in academics. Showing pride in one’s fellow students is just as showing growth in one’s self. And I believe OSU does just that. I feel like the pride that OSU shows, in not only their athletics, but also in their academics really shows that we as a school have real pride, and that it why I think that being orange is also being full of pride.

“Submitted by Jeffrey Hendrix”

Being orange means being a reliable person no matter where I am. Most of the students who attend Oregon State University are enrolled solely for the purpose of getting an education and eventually graduating with a degree. When deciding where to attend college, I was not worried about where I would receive my education. I simply based it off of where I would be able to play on the best baseball team. This strategy may seem like a terrible way to choose a college and plan my education, but baseball has always been my ultimate goal.

As a senior in high school, I was never specifically worried about my education, but rather all my attention was toward the best baseball opportunities. My focus was to become a great baseball player and with time, make money in the big leagues.  The thought of sitting through school for at least four more years did not sound appealing to me at all. However, the thought of playing baseball, being a part of the team and eventually making good money doing what I loved sounded great. Baseball was and still is my greatest passion, and this is why I decided to come to Oregon State. Because of the elite baseball program and the quality men who coach the team, I knew playing for the Beavers would make my dreams a reality.

During my time at Oregon State thus far, I have started to define what being orange means to me. Being orange means being a reliable friend and teammate both on and off the field. If any of my teammates ever need help with anything, my desire is to be there in any way that I can. I have heard several stories of people looking back on their lives and realizing that something they will never regret are the times they were a true friend to someone. What they do regret though, is worrying too much about class and not focusing enough on family and relationships. I am not saying that we should not put our best effort into our school work. In fact, I am firm believer that a college education is very important and can be very beneficial. What I am saying, is that life is too short to become completely consumed and overwhelmed by school and forget about the other areas of our lives. In my opinion, the most important things in life are family, friends, and then school. Something that I have learned while being at OSU is the importance of keeping my priorities straight, and it is not easy to do. This does not mean that going to a party with a friend is more important than studying for school. Rather, being there for your family and friends when they need you the most should always come before anything else. Maintaining relationships and supporting one another is a priority.

Being on the baseball team, here at Oregon State, I have a very unique outlook on what it means to be orange. Being reliable does not only apply to my friends and family, it also applies to the entire school and campus. Many times the athletic programs are where schools get a lot of their identity and reputation. Because of this, it is our responsibility as athletes to be reliable and to represent OSU in a positive light. In addition to this, our baseball team often receives a lot of media attention for performing well, both on and off the field. Because of this, we have an amazing opportunity to promote our school and its values to people across the country.

I am beyond blessed to attend such an amazing, diverse school. Being orange means accepting others for who they are, and not just for where they come from or what they have achieved. It means supporting my friends and fellow students in whatever activities they are involved in. Being orange means having a passion for my school. It means representing with respect and integrity. It means making others look better than myself. As an athlete, it means holding myself to a higher academic, athletic and moral standard because I know that I am a direct representation of Oregon State University, and regardless of how it may seem, people are watching.

Oregon State is a great academic school and because of that has developed a strong reputation for itself. Reputation, I believe, is built on by your moral compass and by the actions influenced my your moral compass. Oregon States reputation all starts with the students and staff blazing new trails and have the ambition and focus to achieve their goals. When I asked my friends what “being Orange” meant to them, each friend shot back with their own interpretation of the understanding of what it means.  Most of the answers received is that “being Orange” means to be committed and/or driven, hardworking, and to have school spirit. They based most of their reasoning on message they got from the Oregon State commercials. “Being Orange” seems to have a different or a somewhat different variation of what it means to each student and professor on campus.

I have a different understanding of what “Be Orange” means to me. Walking around campus, library, MU, and many other places, I see people are always hard at work doing something. There is a strong feeling of ambition and determination here on campus, and to me, this is what “be Orange” means to me, to have ambition. Without strong ambition and determination on campus, I believe Oregon State would not have the reputation that it has now. Ambition is a very important moral value to have because that is what will help you to reach your goals. Oregon States “Be Orange” campaign is there to help us build our moral compass and to keep each student and teacher with the ambition and determination to finish their goals.

Walking around campus, especially during finals and midterms week, is when I see the motto “be Orange” really stood out. This is when the value of ambition is prevalent. But I see ambition on campus all year round. I see “Orange” in the barometer and when I hear about research and positive things that are happening at Oregon State.

The way I try to “Be Orange” is by trying my hardest in all that I do. I try to bring ambition and motivation in to all aspects of my life in order to achieve my long and short-term goals.  To me, “Be Orange” is a great motto because there is so many definitions of what it can be, but it can also help to motivate people and guide them in their schoolwork and overall day-to day life. Because the motto of “Be Orange” can have multiple definitions, it means that it can influence a person life based on what their definition of “be Orange” means to them.

“Being Orange” is being ambitious; it is having the drive and motivation to reach personal short and long term.  It is having the courage and strength to stick to your goals and see them through. The best way to promote “Be Orange” is by exposing it and its multiple definitions to incoming freshman. This would help them to develop a moral compass and to welcome aspects of growing, instead of fearing it. But exposing it to freshman only is not enough, it is important to promote “Be Orange” in all activites/research labs, sporting events, etc. in order to reiterate the meaning. I walk around campus and I see “Be Orange” occasionally, but it would be a good idea to have “Be Ambitious, Be Orange” and “Be You, Be Orange” and any other moral values that you could put into the phrase in order to reiterate that “Be Orange” can have multiple meanings. It is important to develop a strong moral compass to help guide you through life, and “Be Orange” is a great motto to help develop those moral values.

Submitted by Barret Neumayr

If you take a look around the Oregon State University campus, you can see how often the phrase “be well. be orange” is used. There is no specific definition to what being orange actually means. It could be used in a variety of ways, I believe the school’s definition is that of the strategic plan. The strategic plan has a set of core values, they believe these values are fundamental to our success. There are five core values on the strategic plan; accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. Each of these values could mean a variety of things, although they all have one thing in common and that is being orange.

I think being orange means following the Oregon State strategic plan. I would say I don’t really have a true definition of being orange. It is not something you do, but something you are. I do believe that as students of this University we should treat everyone with respect and integrity. Being orange is much more than that. It is the ability to do what is right, no matter what the scenario. Being orange is having the courage to do what you believe is right. Being orange is being yourself and not following a crowd just to fit it. Being orange is going after your goals, but not pushing people out of your way to do so. Being orange is not being number one to everyone else, but being number one to yourself.

From a day to day basis a key example of being orange is going out of your way to help someone. If you see a person struggling to carry their groceries out to their car, we should help them. It doesn’t need to be some big event to help someone, but just little things. This would follow the social responsibility of the action plan. I think we all have a responsibility to help others that are obviously struggling with something. Sometimes it may be harder to really see if someone is having a hard time with something or someone who is being bullied. This is why Oregon State needs to have students take courses that help students spot this situations. If we are able to seek out those in need of help we will be able to engage with those people and really try to help them. Some people don’t always need help with physical issues like carrying out their groceries to the car, some people just need to talk to someone. That’s where being orange comes in, if we can show compassion to others just by taking a minute and listen to their problems we can help them find a solution. This can improve their life and of course improve yours. Those little acts of kindness add up, they make yourself feel better as well as the people around us.

We can take being orange into our careers as well as everything else. I will use my field of study construction engineering management for example. There are many ethical decisions that we must make in this field. A major problem in the industry is bid shopping. Bid shopping is when an owner allows a contractor to see another contractors bid in hope for that contractor to bid lower than that so they can get a lower price for their project. This is against all the laws and codes about the bidding competition for jobs. Now, when I am in a situation like that I need to be orange. I need to make the decision to do the right thing. If I work for the company that is doing the bid shopping then I should tell them that I do not agree with what they are doing and will not continue to work for them if they continue this unethical practice. If I was working for the contractor then I should not give them a lower bid, but in fact inform other contractors what they are doing. Allowing the other contractors to make a decision if they want to continue working with them. I make the right decision, even though it could cost me my job. It is my responsibility just like how Mill said that we should seek pleasure, but not at the cost of others pain.

Besides the social responsibilities and accountabilities, being orange also brings together a community. We all have a particular characteristic that brings us all together, no matter what are major or passion is. Of course, that characteristic is being a student at Oregon State and being orange. Along with any community there is citizenship to that community. We all have rights and duties to ourselves, our school, and our community. As we go through our education, we are constantly getting moral values and ethics drilled into our head. At some points I tend to find it repetitive, but it is better to drill it into our heads now, then to have to learn it the hard way in the future. If we can’t show the core values of the strategic plan on ourselves, there is no way we can use them in our community. Everything starts with yourself, you can’t be respectful to someone else if you can’t even respect yourself. That is what being orange means, being able to have personal integrity, self-respect, and self-accountability and then being able to take those values and use them out in the community.

If we take accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility and mix them with courage, compassion and ethic spotting, we get the true definition of being orange. We could go through hundreds of examples of what being orange is, but at the end of the day being orange is all about just making the right decision. If you know you can help someone, no matter what the problem or situation is, help them. It is being respectful to everyone, no matter who they are. It is having the courage to step up and do what you believe is right, even if everyone else disagrees with you. Every person that graduates from Oregon State will have their own passions, their own career path, and their own life, but at the end of the day, no matter what they do, we will always “be orange”.