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Bob Goodband’80 poses withthe sign markingthe geographiccenter of thecontiguousUnited States.Rin Carroll Jackson ’86W E S T E r n b O N U SRin CarrollJackson ’86PorTLAND, OrEGONAfter college, Rin Carroll Jackson’86 packed up her Subaru wagon, withher bike and windsurfer, and traveledto Portland, where a friend had secureda duplex in the northwest part of thecity. “I had been drawn to the westafter spending two summers livingin Jackson, Wyo.,” says Jackson. “Theoutdoorsy, laid-back feel of the citywas very appealing.” Today, she livesin southeast Portland, a more urbanenvironment, in a house with a smallyard where, along with her husbandJoe and two sons, Corri and Sawyer,she raises two chickens, tends avegetable garden and collects rainwaterto use in her business.Jackson is a working artist and herfreelance business has morphed frombeing a home-based business into acommercial-based art studio and productionspace. Since 2003, she has beenproviding design services includingillustration, graphic design and muralwork to a variety of clients. In addition,she focused on seeking out areaartists who would be interested inshowcasing their work in the neighborhoodfor a weekend art tour. In2004, she introduced ARTWalk, acommunity-driven, two-day eventfeaturing more than 100 artists showingin 50 indoor locations. Althoughshe no longer organizes it, the eventcontinues to thrive and is approachingits eighth year this spring.There is a “family-run” aspect tothe business, too. Together, Rin andJoe Jackson create a line of vibrant artclothing utilizing the batik methodand various dye techniques. Joe, alsoa musician, is the dye specialist as wellas the main “educational guide” fortheir sons, ages 12 and 9. “We havebeen home-schooling our kids, utilizinglocal resources, organizations, communitycenters and sports facilities inPortland. We approach learning froman open-minded, non-religious vantagepoint, and continually work to bringnew experiences, skill development andhealthy activities into our boys’ education.‘Life-long-learning’ has becomeour mantra,” she saysAlthough she doesn’t miss theBoston traffic, she finds herself in adifferent type of bumper-to-bumper:“We live adjacent to one of the manybike routes that run through the city,and I try to bike as much as possible.I often have to wait for bike traffic!”R i G H T i n T H E M i D D L EBob Goodband ’80MANHATTAN, KANSASDuring his days as a Nobles student,Bob Goodband ’80 had an interest inagriculture and knew it was the careerpath he wanted to pursue. He went toPenn State, where he majored in animalscience. There, his professors encouragedhim to go to graduate school,so Goodband went to Kansas for hismaster’s and Ph.D. degrees. After completinghis Ph.D., he accepted a positionat Kansas State University, where hehas been ever since.Goodband is a professor in theDepartment of Animal Sciences andIndustry and is involved with teachingand research in the area of animalnutrition. He also works with farmersboth in Kansas and throughout theMidwest to address nutrition- andmanagement-related issues. He liveswith his wife, Dani, and son, Brady, ona small farm just outside of Manhattan,Kansas, which is about a two-and-ahalf-hourdrive from the sign markingthe official geographic center of thecontiguous U.S.14 l the NobLES Bulletin l Spring 2011