Lieutenant General Emerson C. Itschner retired from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1962 after serving five years (more than any other officer) as Chief of Engineers. He spent his retirement in Portland, Oregon, until his passing in 1995. Throughout that time, he was an ardent and constant supporter of the Portland Post, Society of American Military Engineers.
His distinguished career began with graduation from the U.S. Military Academy in 1924. His early service consisted of a variety of interesting assignments including field engineer with the Alaska Road Commission, Assistant Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the Missouri School of Mines, and Resident Engineer with the St. Louis Engineer District.
Following World War II, he supervised post war reconstruction in the Philippines. He then served as District Engineer in Seattle and Senior Engineer of I Corps in Korea. General Itschner served as North Pacific Division Engineer in Portland, Oregon from 1952 to 1953. In that assignment, he was in charge of the civil works and military programs of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Western Montana and Alaska.
On October 1, 1956, General Itschner became Chief of Engineers, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He was the youngest officer in more than a century to be appointed head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He served in that capacity until his retirement in 1961. His honors and awards include the prestigious Army Engineer Association Gold de Fleury medal, Croix de Guerre with Palm, L’Order de Leopold, British Empire Medal, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Service Medal and Purple Heart.
To permanently honor this great military and engineering leader, the Portland Post established an endowed scholarship in August 1995 in the College of Engineering, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon. Receipt of this annual scholarship requires demonstration of high scholastic achievement, active participation in one of the Oregon State University ROTCs, and demonstration of leadership potential, thereby honoring General Itschner's belief in the value of talented professionals who can build and maintain the important professional relationship needed between the military and private industry to best serve our country.
The fund has grown continually from investments, private contributions, and profits from the annual SAME-Portland District Golf Tournament. It is the goal of the Portland Post to continue to grow this scholarship. From projected annual interest earnings, we expect to increase the size of the scholarships awarded in future years. Continued support through individual donations and participation in the annual SAME-Portland District Golf Tournament will also help greatly to achieve this goal. Additionally, the use of matching funds from private industry to include our Sustaining Member firms is greatly appreciated.
All donations (which are tax deductible) to the Lieutenant General Itschner Endowed Scholarship Fund should be made payable to OSU FOUNDATION/ GEN. ITSCHNER. Donations should be mailed to:
OSU Foundation
Oregon State University
850 SW 35th Street
Corvallis, Oregon 97333