Lorraine Davis remembers one day, when she was a new health professor at the University barely in her 30s, when a much older graduate student approached her on the first day of class and said, “So what do you think you can teach me about health statistics?”
Davis said she wasn’t sure, but she would give it her best shot.
“I’m not sure you can teach me anything I need to know,” said the student.
Davis eventually wagered a steak dinner with the student, whose name was Bob Harris, that she could teach him something. On the last day of lecture, the student came to class with a nametag that read “Steak Harris.”
He had learned something useful, and he made good on his promise by buying her a steak dinner.
More than 30 years later, Davis has earned the respect of students and faculty in becoming the highest-ranking female administrator in the history of the University as vice president for academic affairs. And after 36 years of service, she will retire from her current position at the end of the term.
Davis will assume the role of special assistant to the president and provost, acting as a consultant and advisory figure to the rest of the faculty in the Office of Academic Affairs. She said she looks forward to the change and being able to help others in the department.
“A change of pace is not only good for the University, it’s good for individuals,” she said.
A replacement for Davis has not yet been selected.
Davis spent the majority of her career at the University teaching in the health department, which she said was the most rewarding part of her time here.
“That’s the piece that I probably miss most,” she said. “I miss teaching in the direct contact of students. That was really invigorating to me.”
Davis also said teaching was consistently a learning experience for her.
“I learned in teaching that I could learn as much from the students as they could learn from me,” she said. “The more you learn, the more you learn you don’t know.”
Davis said she didn’t intend to become an administrator when she first arrived. She said she got involved by becoming a visible member of the University community through a number of faculty groups.
“I probably served on just about every University committee that there was,” Davis said.
She eventually earned a nomination for vice provost for academic personnel in 1990.
Once she earned the position, she said, she enjoyed the “broader perspective” of the University it provided.
From there, Davis climbed the ranks of the Office of Academic Affairs and became a highly respected administrator along the way.
“As an administrator she’s known as a tireless worker with just a vast knowledge of the University of Oregon and virtually everyone who works here,” University President Dave Frohnmayer said. “Often, her car is the last one to leave the Johnson Hall parking lot and the first one to be here in the morning.”
Others respect Davis for her hard work and dedication.
“She has been at the center of making this university work despite the resource limitations we face,” Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Russell Tomlin wrote in an e-mail.
Davis said she will enjoy having a lighter workload next year than the 60-plus hours per week her current position often demands. She said she plans to devote more time to outdoor activities such as biking, hiking and canoeing, and wants to spend more time with her husband, Mason, and two sons, Zachary and Josh.
Frohnmayer said he feels fortunate to still have Davis involved with the University, despite her less active future role.
“I’m happy that she’s going to be available as a special assistant to the provost and to the president for at least some period of time, so that we do not lose her expertise,” Frohnmayer said. “She really does know everything and everybody, and in the right kind of way.”
Davis said she is thankful for the opportunities the University has provided her, and for the colleagues she had at all levels.
“The University of Oregon is a special place, and it’s special because of the people,” she said. “When you’re with people of high quality, it makes you better, and I haven’t regretted spending most of my academic career here at the University.”