Portland State University student Kate Washington has chosen to partner with PHLUSH in carrying out research on the relationship between public restrooms and public transit, specifically whether public toilet availability encourages ridership. To this end she has launched the Portland State University 2013 Public Toilets and Transportation Survey.   Portlanders are urged to spend a few minutes taking the 20-item survey before June 12th and to share it with their friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues. Currently completing a BA in sociology, Washington is a PSU Master’s candidate in Urban and Regional Planning who was honored this year as a McNair Scholar.  The prestigious McNair Scholars Program helps first-generation, minority, and low-income students move into advanced study.  Awardees benefit from privileged contacts with senior researchers and graduate assistant mentors. During the nine-month program, they complete research projects and build professional portfolios. The US Congress established Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program to honor the African American physicist and astronaut who was killed in the 1986 Challenger Space Shuttle accident.  The program enables students who might not otherwise have access to the connections and research experience necessary to get into graduate school, to expand their educational opportunities by enrolling in a Ph.D. program and ultimately pursuing an academic career. This program is dedicated to the high standards of achievement inspired by Dr. McNair’s life. PHLUSH is delighted at this opportunity to support Kate Washington as she systematically addresses an issue for which we currently have only anecdotal evidence – the relationship of transportation choice and available amenities along the route.   We look forward with anticipation to the results of the extensive research of which this survey is a small part and to reporting them on this website later in 2013. Please take the Portland State University 2013 Public Toilets and Transportation Survey