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As spring wraps up, I’m pleased to share the Summer 2026 edition of Oregon Waters.  

This issue highlights our strong partnership with Portland State University (PSU), including the prestigious PSU Research award recently presented to our USGS/PSU Partnership (UPP). We made important strides in planning Oregon’s future water workforce, including a seminar with Oregon’s government agencies and secondary education institutions. I’m especially excited that Portland Community College plans to pilot a ‘Hydrology 101’ course this fall.

This spring, USGS Water Mission Area has held several in-person meetings with water science center representatives to refresh on our collective priorities. These include a commitment to continue delivering high‑quality science and data to our cooperators, to optimize our monitoring networks, and to deepen our understanding of the value our data and science provide to stakeholders like you. We welcome your ideas on how to capture that value quantitatively.  

I'm also pleased to share that the Center has saved for, and has now advanced, a new facility project to bring Portland USGS staff together under one roof, fostering a stronger sense of community, stability, and care.  With funds now secured, we expect to begin advertising for existing properties soon, with a projected move-in date of Fall 2028.  

After 42 rewarding years with the USGS, I will retire on May 30, 2026. It has been an honor to culminate my career as Director of the Oregon Water Science Center (ORWSC), leading this large and accomplished group through a period of substantial change and uncertainty (see the Oregon Waters: Winter 2026 newsletter for a recap). Through it all, we continued to deliver high-quality hydrologic data and research products to our partners and the public.  

While we cannot officially fill my position during the ongoing hiring freeze, ORWSC will be in the hands of a highly capable leadership team. After June 1, please submit all center-related inquiries to Alex Etheridge (ORWSC Associate Director) and Eric Janney (Northwest Pacific Islands Regional Science Advisor), who will share ORWSC Director duties. They will be supported by Marc Stewart (ORWSC Deputy Director), Andrew Kerslake (ORWSC Administrative Officer), our exceptional Administrative Team, and our outstanding Science Program and Data Program supervisors.

Thank you to our partners for your ongoing commitment to deliver much-needed science in our ever-changing world.

-Joanna