In March 2007 OTRECís four partner universitiesóPSU, UO, OSU and OITóall part of the Oregon University System, signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) committing the four institutions to a collaborative partnership as a National University Transportation Center. Each universityís Vice President for Research (or equivalent) has been active in encouraging the partnership and working closely with one another to make certain that OTREC is successful. The MOU reflects the collaborative nature of OTREC. Not only is the MOU a national model for statewide transportation research collaboration, but it provides a model for future collaboration between the state Universities.