![\"Carpool\"](\"http:\/\/poweredbyorange.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/carpool.jpg\")
<\/p>\nSleepy eyes watch telephone wires dip and fall along Interstate 5 southbound. As the sun rises through the fog, the minivan passes evergreen trees, homes and farms.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s just another Wednesday, and four early-rising souls have set out on their way from a Park and Ride lot in Tigard toward the Oregon State University campus in Corvallis.<\/p>\n
They are CL@SE<\/a> director Ron Mize, economics professor Todd Pugatch, photography instructor Lorenzo Triburgo and Honors College<\/a> associate dean Tara Williams. They are four out of more than a dozen Oregon State faculty and staff who live in the Portland metro area and commute to Corvallis through an informal carpool system formed about eight years ago. The common thread for many of these commuters is a partner working in Portland.<\/p>\n \u201cMy family did not adjust well to Corvallis, and my partner had a hard time finding a job,\u201d Mize says. \u201cLiving in Portland is a decision that made the entire family happy.\u201d<\/p>\n The carpoolers agree that living in Portland does not make them any less active in the campus community. They all participate, volunteer and do their best to stay visible within their departments when they are on campus.<\/p>\n The carpoolers sip coffee and green smoothies while they chat about the evening before and the day ahead. Mize, who is driving his own Kia Sedona, never switches the radio on.<\/p>\n The last time Mize, Pugatch, Triburgo and Williams made contact was over email the afternoon before, when they decided the four of them would leave from the Park and Ride at 6:30 a.m. and head back to Portland at 5:30 that evening.<\/p>\n The four don\u2019t always ride together. Plans for each day are made through the carpool\u2019s listserv system, and Mize explains the goal is simply to cut down the 13-or-so cars to as few as possible. The departure times adjust to fit the schedules for everyone in the vehicle, and they don\u2019t mind getting to work early and staying late to accommodate each other.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s so much to do,\u201d Pugatch says, \u201cYou might as well be in your office.\u201d<\/p>\n Carpoolers form deep friendships through the 77 miles they drive each way together. They have jokingly suggested starting a sitcom or podcast based around their carpool experiences.<\/p>\n Still, Williams says sometimes they share personal stories with each other that they don\u2019t want to leave the van.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we do that, we say it\u2019s \u2018in deep carpool,\u2019\u201d Williams explains, grinning.<\/p>\n Williams says it\u2019s beneficial for her as someone with a background in English literature, to have access to experts in other areas.<\/p>\n \u201cI just read a book about economics that [Pugatch] recommended in carpool,\u201d she says. \u201cThat adds to my experience. I don\u2019t get to spend three hours with an economist in any other context.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNor would you want to,\u201d Pugatch adds.<\/p>\n Triburgo says time in the car makes him a better teacher.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s great to get to know senior faculty here who I can ask for advice and bounce ideas off of,\u201d he says. \u201cI get mentorship from my department, but it\u2019s really nice to talk candidly about classroom situations.\u201d<\/p>\n The fog along I-5 finally clears as the minivan exits for the last 10 miles to Corvallis. Today, Mize will teach his last official class of the term. Williams will meet a visiting professor. Triburgo will attend a maker\u2019s fair, and Pugatch says his will be just a normal day of teaching classes.<\/p>\n About an hour after leaving Tigard, Mize pulls his van into his usual spot in the parking garage on Washington Ave.<\/p>\n Because the Portland carpool system falls outside of Oregon State\u2019s definition of a traditional carpool, Mize purchased his own university parking permit, as have many other carpool members should they need to drive their own vehicle to campus. They estimate that the carpool as a whole spends over $3,500 per year on permits, even though they generally only use one parking spot each day.<\/p>\nThe daily grind<\/h3>\n
![\"Carpool\"](\"http:\/\/poweredbyorange.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/carpool2.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe benefits<\/h3>\n
Getting there<\/h3>\n
![\"Portland\"](\"http:\/\/poweredbyorange.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/3.jpg\")
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