Office of Community Engagement

All YSU students, faculty, and staff automatically have an account within YSU PenguinPulse.

To log into the platform:

1. Go to ysu.givepulse.com.  
2. In the top right-hand corner, click the user dropdown. Select “Log In.”  
3. Click “Login via YSU” and use your YSU username and password.

To find volunteer opportunities:

1. Go to ysu.givepulse.com and click on the Events tab.
2. Click on "Type" and filter for "Volunteer / Service Opportunity."
3. Scroll the list of opportunities or filter for more specific parameters.
4. Also, be sure to open your monthly email newsletter from the Office of Community Engagement to find a list of upcoming volunteer opportunities in every issue.

After registering for a community engagement opportunity and volunteering, log your service by:

1. Going to the event page you signed up for OR selecting the user dropdown in the top right-hand corner.
2. Clicking "Add Impact."
3. Following the prompts as necessary to find the organization you served, mark if your services was attached to a course, add your hours or donation, and reflect upon your experience.

If you are full-time faculty who are already using Watermark to track community engagement, you do not have to double-track in YSU PenguinPulse. Please just ensure you are checking the community engagement box in Watermark when applicable.  

If your organization does not have an account on GivePulse (our parent company for YSU PenguinPulse), you can request a group page be created here. We will build your page and connect the person you identify as your admin to it.

Once you have your account, you will be able to create volunteer opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to view and sign up for directly through the platform. You can also communicate with registrants and verify their volunteer hours.  

YSU offices, departments, and areas have a special presence on YSU PenguinPulse as subgroups. If you would like to become an admin for your area’s subgroup, you can email communityengagement@ysu.edu to request access.

As an admin, you can post both service-learning and university service opportunities for students to take part in.

e.g., Research opportunities that serve community partners, volunteering for English Fest, assistance with IGNITE, helping out at a YSU sporting event, etc.  

Once you become an admin, you will receive resources and training from the Office of Community Engagement. 

All approved student organizations at YSU have a subgroup on YSU PenguinPulse. If you do not see your student organization listed or need to update advisor or student leader admins, please email communityengagement@ysu.edu. 

Student leaders can post community engagement opportunities for members to sign up for; e.g., Guinathon planning, sorority/fraternity philanthropy activities.

STUDENT FUTURES & LIFELONG LEARNING...create environments that empower students to acquire intellectual and social capital to realize individual aspirations.

We will:

• Adopt a student-centered approach to all University operations and policies that values and includes all students.
• Ensure curricula, systems, policies and practices increase academic persistence and steady progress to graduation.
• Adopt a coordinated approach to admissions, matriculation, persistence, completion and the career success of our students.
• Develop an approach to the admission and matriculation process that advances the retention and completion strategy

ACADEMIC DISTINCTION AND DISCOVERY OF KNOWLEDGE…fosters the development of a community that will grow intellectually, socially, and ethically in which individuals put knowledge into practice.

We will:

• Implement a continuous, purposeful strategy to improve teaching, learning and national research distinction.
• Adopt university-wide learning outcomes throughout the curriculum.
• Develop internships, service, experiential and applied learning projects with local businesses and organizations that provide opportunities for students to apply their knowledge in scholarly activity.
• Implement continuous and regular assessment of student learning outcomes and best teaching practices to ensure the fair and equitable success of all students.
• Improve student, faculty, and staff access to advanced technologies, equipment, and facilities.

COLLECTIVE IMPACT WITH THE REGION…create deliberate, mutually-beneficial, educational, civic, industry, and philanthropic partnerships that achieve equitable and innovative regional development.

We will:

• Listen to the needs of the community and address these needs collaboratively.
• Actively collaborate with community partner organizations which share in our mission.
• Develop activities that demonstrate impact and purpose in accordance with the university’s mission.
• Communicate the impact and value of community engagement activities.
• Align community engagement activities with institutional learning outcomes.
• Ensure that current and future partnerships are inclusive, equitable, and grounded in accessible systems, practices, and goals.

Strategy: Ensure all students benefit from holistic, relational, developmental, and integrated academic advising

Strategy: Develop and deploy comprehensive, integrated and proactive student intervention strategies

Strategy: Enhance student experiences through implementation of specific initiatives designed to actively engage them in co-curricular and extra-curricular activities

Strategy: Improve support and resources for students facing non-academic challenges

Strategy: Focus on post-graduation planning across the student life cycle to reinforce the value of completion

Strategy: Develop an integrated and comprehensive market and brand communication strategy to distinguish the value of the YSU degree

Strategy: Develop an enrollment cultivation strategy linked to the value proposition of earning a YSU degree for each program of study

Strategy: Expand and enhance outreach and engagement with students prior to enrollment

Strategy: Develop innovative approaches to increase enrollment and completion of under-represented students

Strategy: Develop and enhance partnerships and collaboration agreements with international universities

Strategy: Institute specific initiatives to help guide student success objectives and strategies: create the working group to implement the strategy

Strategy: Establish consultation and timely reporting expectations to inform the campus community about institutional progress related to student success

Strategy: Create timely reports and dashboards related to student progress

Strategy: Create a structure of feedback to assess the impact and influence of student success objectives and strategies

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines, including promotion and tenure documents, to reflect the importance of faculty engagement in innovative teaching strategies

Strategy: Define expectations and provide training opportunities for faculty to learn and apply best pedagogical practices

Strategy: Enhance the quality and capacity of technological support that promotes learning. Provide faculty and students with the support and infrastructure needed to excel in technology-based learning

Strategy: Coordinate with the Institute for Teaching and Learning to develop tools for the improvement, evaluation and assessment of teaching and learning

Strategy: Implement a faculty development and mentoring plan

Strategy: Complete program effectiveness and enhancement review including rubrics for recommendations regarding actionable outcomes

Strategy: Develop a mechanism to continually identify, assess, and implement new academic programs, badges, credentials, certifications or coursework integration

Strategy: Develop a plan to integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout the university, including in purchasing, hiring, and in the curriculum

Strategy: Revise General Education Requirements to reflect the learning outcomes approved by Academic Senate

Strategy: Identify areas of research, service, and scholarship, in alignment with the Mahoning Valley Innovation and Commercialization Consortium, that focus on teaching and life-long learning and mutually beneficial community engagement

Strategy: Establish definitions and evaluation criteria for the designation and continuance of university centers and institutes. Inventory, document, and periodically evaluate all campus Centers, Institutes for outcomes, impact, and continued relevance

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines, including promotion and tenure documents, to reflect the importance of the scholarship of teaching, life-long learning and community-based research

Strategy: Aggressively pursue and secure regional, state, national, and foundation funding in support of university and community priorities

Strategy: Inventory and communicate all community engagement activities

Strategy: Develop a framework to optimize, coordinate, and manage community engagement

Strategy: Establish community engagement and experiential learning as key components of the YSU educational experience through an enhanced new student experience, and enhanced coordination of community and business engagement initiatives

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines for tenure, advancement, and promotion across departments and divisions to reflect the importance of community engagement initiatives and activities

Strategy: Broadly incorporate community engagement and experiential learning into curriculum

STUDENT FUTURES & LIFELONG LEARNING...create environments that empower students to acquire intellectual and social capital and experiences to realize individual aspirations.

We will:

• Adopt a student-centered approach to all University operations and policies that values and includes all students.
• Ensure curricula, systems, policies and practices increase academic persistence and steady progress to graduation.
• Adopt a coordinated approach to admissions, matriculation, persistence, completion and the career success of our students.
• Develop an approach to the admission and matriculation process that improves the retention and completion strategy, that attends to achievement gaps.

ACADEMIC DISTINCTION AND DISCOVERY OF KNOWLEDGE…foster the development of a community that will grow intellectually, socially, and ethically in which individuals put knowledge into practice.

We will:

• Implement a continuous, purposeful strategy to improve teaching, learning and area-identified selective national research distinction.
• Adopt and integrate university-wide learning outcomes throughout the curriculum, including credentials for distinction.
• Develop internships, service, experiential and applied learning projects with local businesses and organizations that provide opportunities for students to apply their knowledge in scholarly activity.
• Implement continuous and regular assessment of student learning outcomes and best teaching practices to ensure the fair and equitable success of all students.
• Improve student, faculty, and staff access to advanced technologies, equipment, and facilities.

COLLECTIVE IMPACT WITH THE REGION…create deliberate, mutually-beneficial, educational, civic, industry, and philanthropic partnerships that achieve equitable and innovative regional development supporting sustainable regional prosperity.

We will:

• Listen to the needs of the community and collaboratively address those needs.
• Actively collaborate with community partner organizations which share in our mission.
• Develop activities that demonstrate impact and purpose in accordance with the university’s mission.
• Communicate the impact and value of community engagement activities.
• Strategically align community engagement activities with regional educational needs via both degrees and industry credentials.
• Ensure that current and future partnerships are inclusive, equitable, and grounded in accessible systems, practices, and goals.

SUSTAINABILITY...there will be continuous quality improvement processes that reflects a commitment to alignment of resources with Plan implementation that aligns with the institution’s long-term goals and objectives.

We will:

• Focus on enhancing organizational effectiveness as well as gain efficiencies.
• Prioritize as part of the budget process academic program quality; enrollment as a marketing and communication strategy directly impacting admissions; finance and facilities; human resources; and information technology.
• Ensure all aspects of the institution, from its overarching mission to specific objectives and metrics, align with strategic priorities.

Strategy: Ensure all students benefit from holistic, relational, developmental, and integrated academic advising.

Strategy: Engage students in co-curricular and extra-curricular activities that contribute to their social and personal growth, and that complement and support learning in their degree program to enhance career readiness and success.

Strategy: Improve support and resources for students facing non-academic challenges with a particular focus on the mental health and other dimensions of student success.

Strategy: Improve post-graduation planning across the student life cycle to reinforce the value of completion and increase career-readiness

Strategy: Involve full-time and part-time faculty and staff in a wide range of activities outside the classroom to increase students’ sense of belonging and build community.

Strategy: Define the value propositions for each YSU degree program and develop an enrollment cultivation strategy for each that considers the pertinent attributes of the program, department and/or college.

Strategy: Develop a comprehensive, strategic marketing/advertising enrollment plan for undergraduate, graduate and international programs with a competitive budget to expand into regional, national and global markets.

Strategy: Implement the objectives, tactics and identity from the brand study for internal and external audiences through marketing, advertising, social media and communication channels that includes a focus on cultivating a YSU impression beginning in middle school including influencing college-going decisions.

Strategy: Align budget and resources to gain market share at the academic program level including under-represented students as well as via international recruitment strategies and collaborations.

Strategy: Develop new recruitment strategies that lend themselves to virtual experiences for students outside of drivable distances.

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines, including promotion and tenure documents, to reflect the importance of faculty engagement in innovative teaching strategies.

Strategy: Define expectations and provide training opportunities for faculty to learn and apply best pedagogical practices.

Strategy: Enhance the quality and capacity of technological support that promotes learning by providing faculty and students with the support and infrastructure needed to excel in technology-based learning.

Strategy: Coordinate with the Institute for Teaching and Learning to develop tools for the improvement, evaluation and assessment of teaching and learning.

Strategy: Implement a faculty development and mentoring plan.

Strategy: Continue academic program enhancement and effectiveness initiative that aligns with continuous quality improvement and a program enhancement plan, as well as investment and possible suspension of admissions to academic programs when warranted.

Strategy: Develop a mechanism to continually identify, assess, and implement new academic programs, including alternative credentials or coursework integration, and virtual educational experiences.

Strategy: Determine the differentiator of a degree and assure that such differentiation can be measured and be of consequence in marketing the value of a degree.

Strategy: Continue to integrate diversity and inclusion throughout the university and in the curriculum.

Strategy: Implement a revised General Education program to reflect the learning outcomes approved by Academic Senate that integrates alternative credentials that add value to a YSU degree.

Strategy: Optimize student understanding of the value of the General Education Curriculum so their expression of that value differentiates them during their career.

Strategy: Identify areas for community-based scholarship that focuses on teaching and life-long learning and mutually beneficial community engagement.

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines, including promotion and tenure documents, to reflect the importance of the scholarship of teaching, life-long learning and community-based scholarship.

Strategy: Identify selected areas of research, aligned with appropriate regional, state, or national focus areas that brings distinction to the university as a Carnegie Masters Large institution.

Strategy: Develop community-engaged experiential learning and engaged scholarship to meet needs in arts & culture, education, environment, health, prosperity and security for the public good

Strategy: Pursue and secure regional, state, national, and foundation funding in support of university and community priorities.

Strategy: Inventory and communicate all community engagement activities.

Strategy: Develop and optimize a framework for central communication, coordination, and management of community engagement.

Strategy: Integrate experiential learning into the curriculum as a key component of the YSU educational experience; provide professional development to support experiential teaching approaches and enhance coordination with community partners.

Strategy: Update University policies and guidelines for tenure and promotion to reflect the importance of community-engaged research/creative activities, and teaching.

Strategy: Develop, incorporate and highlight community engagement as part of position postings, processes and policies.

Strategy: Conduct and support community-engaged scholarship (research and creative activities) and service to create mutually beneficial experiences for students and community while adding value to the region.

Strategy: Student recruitment for enrollment strategies and tactics will align with a comprehensive rolling 3-year plan consisting of specific enrollment goals that support institutional financial integrity.

Strategy: Thoroughly execute the biannual Student Retention, Persistence, and Completion Plan, which will also encompass career readiness and success, and closing the achievement gap given evolving higher education accountability standards.

Strategy: Optimize educational offerings of workforce education and innovation to support regional career readiness and to enhance degree enrollment for institutional resource generation.

Strategy: Develop a talent attraction, retention, staffing and succession plan that supports a quality work environment.

Strategy: Implement a Business Intelligence System, within an activated data governance framework, to support timely delivery of data to inform institutional decision-making that enhances effectiveness and gains efficiencies.

Strategy: Build on the support area mission, quality and attributes statements to instigate the perspectives of a culture of caring and service-oriented actions.

Strategy: Enhance space efficiency by continually evaluating classroom and course scheduling, along with space occupancy rates, to reduce the campus footprint that requires ongoing maintenance and operational support, thus diminishing the need for continual repairs and minimizing deferred maintenance