2000s

The campus community gathered after the September 11 tragedy to grieve and show unity.

Lowry Wyatt Hall, completed summer 2000

Some of the university's many houses.

Trimble Hall was completed and dedicated September 2002.

Peyton Field, 2003

Former President Susan Resneck
Pierce with current President Ronald
R. Thomas at his inauguration, 2004.

Brass Camp, a program of the Civic
Scholarship Initiative

Harned Hall, part of the Science
Center at Puget Sound

President Thomas signs the Talloires Declaration, 2005.

Puget Sound receives a City of
Destiny award from the City of
Tacoma in 2005.

Puget Sound finally beats long-time
rivals PLU on October 8, 2005, after
a 17-game losing streak.

Peace Corps Director Ronald
Tschetter with Jess Martin '07, who
entered the Peace Corps after
graduation, and President Thomas

2007 Watson Fellows

Professor Nancy Bristow named
Carnegie Foundation Washington
State Professor of the Year, Puget
Sound's fourth professor so honored,
2007.

Lower Baker Field improvements
completed in 2007.

2000
Lowry Wyatt Hall, the long-anticipated humanities building, completed. Located at the southern end of the Todd Quadrangle, the "L" shaped building is home to 17 state-of-the-art classrooms along with 70 faculty and nine academic offices. This $14.7 million, 51,000-square-foot building, completed and dedicated during the summer of 2000, is named after Lowry Wyatt, who served as a trustee for 26 years.

A $1 million grant helps allow for renovation of Collins Memorial Library, completed at the end of August 2000. The Murdock Trust of Vancouver, Washington, awarded $1 million to the $7.5 million project. Updates to the library include an electronic commons, a multimedia center, upgrading the building systems, and new equipment for students, faculty, and staff.

Additional house purchases brings the total of houses the university owns to 79. University-owned houses can be found on theme row, as well as scattered outside campus grounds.

2001
Campaign for Puget Sound fundraising concludes, raising a record $68.5 million, 27 percent above the intended goal. 231 faculty and staff helped out in the fundraising, generously donating a total of $335,580 to the campaign.

University of Puget Sound, with the recommendation of the president, faculty and Board of Trustees, establishes a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program in August.

2002
Trimble Hall, the university's 11th residence hall, was completed and dedicated September 2002. Alumnus Robert A. Trimble '37 donated $2 million to help with the construction of the university's new 56,000-square-foot hall. Because of his generous donation, Trimble Hall was named after his father, Charles Garnet Trimble, who was the physician for Puget Sound's athletic teams after World War II. Trimble Hall comprises 184 single rooms, arranged in suites with three, five, or six rooms that share a living area, semi-private bath, and kitchenette. This residence is the latest step to increase on-campus student living.

Schneebeck Concert Hall, the university's main music performance venue, named in recognition of long-time university supporters, Bethel and Ed Schneebeck.

Suzanne Wilson Barnett named 2002 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching Washington Professor of the Year.

Susan Resneck Pierce Professorship in Humanities established.

2003
Improvements made to Baker Stadium, including widening and resurfacing the track, widening the playing field, and adding restrooms and concession stands. The field was named Peyton Field, after former faculty member and head track and field coach Joe Peyton B.A. '67, M.E.D. '71.

Ronald R. Thomas elected president of the University of Puget Sound in July.

2004
Ronald R. Thomas inaugurated as the 13th president of the University of Puget Sound on April 23.

The Civic Scholarship Initiative begun later this year. Projects in this initiative align faculty and student research with issues of regional and national strategic interest. Initial projects include Nearshore Habitat Restoration in Puget Sound; Race and Pedagogy Initiative; The Road Home: Homeless Policy for Pierce County; Educational Achievement and Assessment; Summer Brass Music Camp; and the Pierce County Economic Index.

President Thomas initiated the vision process that will become Defining Moments.

Luce Professorship in Environmental Policy established

Two students named Fulbright Scholars.

Puget Sound Loggers ranked No. 1 Division III NCAA team in the West.

Freshman applications exceed 4,500.

2005
The Tapestry of Learning Master Plan for the physical campus unveiled. Harned Hall groundbreaking February 18, 2005, marked the start of the most ambitious capital project in the university's history. With key funding provided by H.C. "Joe" Harned '51, this new facility features new labs, links the north and south wings of venerable Thompson Hall, and quite literally puts "science on display."

President Thomas signed the Talloires Declaration, an international university commitment to sustainability.

Puget Sound students honored by the city of Tacoma with a 2005 City of Destiny Award.

Freshman applications exceed 4,700, and the incoming class of 2009 had the highest verbal SAT scores in Puget Sound history. The diversity of the incoming class increased to 18 percent.

Football's 17-game losing streak to cross-town rival Pacific Lutheran University was broken on October 8, as the Loggers defeated the Lutes 23-13.

Puget Sound ranked third among small colleges producing alumni who serve in the Peace Corps (30 volunteers), following The University of Chicago and Dartmouth College.

Five students displaced by Hurricane Katrina admitted to Puget Sound.

2006
The board of trustees endorsed Defining Moments: the Strategic Plan for Puget Sound and its four pillars: Innovate, Inspire, Engage, Invest.

President Thomas appointed to a three-year term on the board of directors of the American Council on Education.

University of Puget Sound named the top producer of Peace Corps volunteers among institutions of its size.

Record-breaking number of student national academic honors, including seven Fulbright Scholarships, two Watson Fellowships, a National Science Foundation postgraduate fellowship, and two national debate championships.

Puget Sound recognized for the first time among the top 10 colleges producing Fulbright Scholars.

Harned Hall, Puget Sound's new science laboratory building and largest capital project in its history, was dedicated during the best-attended Homecoming on record.

Two new interdisciplinary majors were approved, in biochemistry and molecular biology, and a new interdisciplinary emphasis in neuroscience was established.

Race and Pedagogy National Conference drew more than 600 participants from around the county and overseas.

Loggers capture McIlroy-Lewis Trophy for best overall athletic achievement in the Northwest Conference.

Courtney Kjar ’06 was named Division III National Women's Soccer Player of the Year by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Kjar led her team to the NCAA Sectionals for the fourth straight year, and was named a First Team All-American for the second consecutive season.

OAR Northwest, made up of a group of Puget Sound alumni, became the first Americans to win the Shepard's Ocean Fours race and to successful row from mainland United States to mainland United Kingdom.

Puget Sound received a grant of $47,970 from College Spark of Washington, formerly the Education Assistance Foundation, to provide operating support for the Summer Academic Challenge program. Summer Academic Challenge is a component of the year-round Access Programs.

Beta Theta Pi's Delta Epsilon chapter won the Francis H. Sisson Award and Virginia Tech Award for academic excellence at the fraternity's 167th General Convention in Toronto, Ontario.

Puget Sound team Josh Anderson ’06 and Rachel Safran ’06 defeated a team from University of California-Berkeley to win the National Parliamentary Debate Association Championship (NPDA) at Oregon State University, ranking the team the best in the nation.

2007
Three students were named Watson Fellows and awarded a year of self-guided exploration and travel outside the United States. No college or university had more Watson Fellowships awarded than Puget Sound.

Trustees endorsed capital campaign in support of the Strategic Plan for Puget Sound on May 11, 2007.

Incoming freshman class boasted the highest-ever average SAT, 1254.

Mellon Foundation awarded Puget Sound $747,000 for junior faculty sabbaticals.

Nancy Bristow was named Carnegie Foundation professor of the year, Puget Sound's fourth professor so honored.

Puget Sound was named top small college with the most alumni serving in the Peace Corps. Peace Corps director Ronald Tschetter visited campus in April to recognize the accomplishment.

Freshman applications exceeded 5,200, and applicants included 11 National Merit Semi-Finalists, 35 National Merit Commended Scholars, and two National Hispanic Semi-Finalists.

Loggers captured the McIlroy-Lewis All-Sports Trophy for the second consecutive year. Five teams clinched Northwest Conference Championships, and 111 Loggers were named to NWC scholar-athlete teams.

Randy Hanson (women's soccer) was named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year.

Women's basketball advanced to the NCAA Division III Elite Eight round in postseason play.

Lower Baker Field improvements completed for student recreation, soccer, lacrosse, and football.

The Department of Theatre Arts and the Northwest Playwrights' Alliance presented the inaugural Double Shot Theatre Festival in May.

2008

The incoming class of 2012 had an average SAT score of 1261.

James Evans was named Carnegie Foundation Washington State Professor of the Year, Puget Sound's fifth professor so honored.

Puget Sound hosted the once-a-decade curriculum review of the American Psychological Association.

Community honors included recognition for excellence in environmental education from Audobon Society, Citizens for a Healthy Bay, and Green Tacoma, and an award in recognition of Puget Sound's work to reduce homelessness from Tacoma-Pierce County Coalition for the Homeless.

Hans Ostrom, professor of English, was nominated to join the PEN American Center, the oldest human rights and literary organization in the world.

With at least one athlete from each of Puget Sound's 23 varsity sports, 131 Loggers were named Academic All-Northwest Conference in June.

Three students earned the prestigious Fulbright Scholarship award.

Tanya Rogers ’10 received the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship.

William Kupinse, associate professor of English, was named Tacoma's first poet laureate at the Soul of the City Poetry Competition Awards.