YSU Graduation Numbers Highest in 34 Years

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The number of students earning degrees from Youngstown State University this academic year is the second highest in over 100 years.

“We are pleased to have such a large class of graduates this year, and we wish them well as they leave campus to pursue their career goals,” President Jim Tressel said in a news release.

Spring Commencement ceremonies are 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday in the Beeghly Center.

The official number of graduates will not be known for several days, but YSU anticipates after the Spring Commencement ceremonies, 2,387 students will have graduated during the 2016-17 academic year.

That number is just under the university’s largest class of 2,448 students in 1982-83, and it’s only the third time since YSU’s founding in 1908 that an academic year exceeded 2,300 graduates.

“Over the past three years, we have squarely focused a great deal of attention on creating an environment and services that help students achieve in and out of the classroom, move progressively from year to year and earn their diplomas on time and without delay,” Provost Martin Abraham said.

These services include reducing the number of credits required to earn a bachelor’s degree, introducing a new Penguin Jump Start program that allows entering students to take classes at a reduced rate in the summer before their freshmen year, and encouraging students to enroll in more credits per semester by increasing the bulk tuition rate.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.