Portland State Vanguard

At the beginning of the legendary Pink Floyd song, “The Great Gig in the Sky” a voice says “I am not frightened of dying, you know. Any time will do, I don’t mind. Why should I be frightened of dying? There’s no reason for it. You gotta go sometime.” It’s a fitting sentiment for this time of year. Gothic vampire outfits cloaked in Patagonia coats and ghostly statues haunt Portland’s front yards. Halloween is a holiday that celebrates the absurd, the unnatural and entertains conversations of death.

The State of Oregon’s Employee Relations Board found Portland State University guilty of engaging in unfair labor practices against the Portland State University Faculty Association (PSU-FA). This decision was reached after PSU administration failed to distribute funds from the union’s Adjunct Financial Assistance Fund, Professional Development Fund and the Faculty Education Fund.

Every year it plays out the same way: as soon as the leaves begin to change, legions of Halloweenies crawl out of their dank, bat-infested caves and march their way to costume shops and vintage stores, clothing themselves in the vestments of war. Thus spooky season begins, for the entirety of October, or even longer — the starting gun seemed to shoot off on the first day of September this year.

When the wind’s chill returns, when the leaves don their decaying hues, when pumpkin drinks and pastries return to the menu, I get an itch. An alternative, indie rock itch. A british, drawl-y itch that I’m happy to give in to every year. That itch leads me to one of the first CD’s I bought with my own money – the Arctic Monkey’s fifth studio album, “AM.” Is this an incredibly basic indie music take? Maybe. Probably. But consider it wouldn’t be so basic if it wasn’t so good.

It’s an off year, so you may not have heard about it, but there’s an election next month. On Tuesday, Nov. 4, Portland voters will decide on whether or not to adopt Measure 26-260, a five-year levy to fund operations for Portland parks and recreation. They should vote “Yes.” If they don’t, the impact on parks is potentially catastrophic — if the measure doesn’t pass, the Parks operating budget will be reduced by about half, according to the ballot summary.

Portland State University (PSU) serves an enrollment population of approximately 20,000 students. Each of these students are ingrained within the larger institution of PSU in their own unique ways, pursuing various degree pathways and course offerings. When navigating their academic journeys, most students rely on utilizing the Degree Auditing Report System (DARS). Academic advising at PSU has a history of being mired in quality concerns.

Both faculty and students are being met with a new printing system on campus as they settle into their classes on the Park Blocks at Portland State University (PSU). On May 14, 2025, a press release by the Office of Information Technology (OIT) announced that the University would be upgrading its printers to the cloud-based printing system named Wēpa. According to the statement, this new system offers more locations, flexibility and reliability than the previous printing system.

André Previn and the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) demonstrate that ballet and boring should not coexist within the same sentence. Previn’s prolific career as a pianist, composer and conductor would be a gift to any world in which ears exist.

“September 30th, 1998. It’s a day I’ll never forget.” “Resident Evil” (RE) is a long-running Japanese horror game series and media franchise created by Capcom in 1996. The plot centers on a corrupt corporation called Umbrella, which is a powerful pharmaceutical company that is responsible for a deadly virus called the “T-Virus”; the T-Virus was responsible for the creation of zombies and other supernatural beings.

Screams, treats and Halloween spirit are being offered by ScareGrounds PDX at Oaks Amusement Park this October. Within four weeks, a segment of Oaks Park is transformed into a place of winding haunted houses and various Halloween themed food and merchandise vendors. According to Lilith Erion, the timeline of preparing for ScareGrounds PDX extends well beyond the four weeks it takes to physically build the space. “We do tend to work on [ScareGrounds PDX] on and off throughout the year,” Erion said.