Our Community Impact

Teacher working with child and parent

Let knowledge serve

AT PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY, we believe that knowledge works best when it serves the community. Our students and faculty have designed tiny homes for houseless populations, brought art into public schools, learned how to cool the hottest parts of the city and helped prepare our buildings and bridges for earthquakes. We’re forever tied to the city we call home, and remain steadfast in our commitment to our community.

Lightbulb with lightning bolt

Ashoka U Changemaker Campus

mountain topped with flag

#1 in Oregon for social mobility

hands surrounding heart

#1 in Oregon for service learning

People constructing homes

A million hours and counting

PSU gives back to the community with nearly 1 million student service hours each year, which provides city organizations hands-on support with key issues ranging from houselessness to climate change to racial equity.

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Students in Learning Labs garden

Hands-on experience, real-world impact

Before graduation, every PSU student participates in a community-based capstone project as part of Portland State’s internationally recognized University Studies program. It’s why U.S. News & World Report ranks us #1 for service learning in Oregon, and how our students make an impact with more than 200 community partners each year

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Students researching green energy

Turning research into community impact

PSU researchers conduct innovative, cutting-edge research that tackles the most pressing problems in our community and takes them from the streets to the forest to the ocean to the mountains.

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Portland State Recognized for Community Engagement

For the third time in a row, PSU has been honored by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for its commitment to community engagement.

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Engaging With Our Region

Ann Cudd


“For Portland State, it’s become increasingly clear that engaging with our region not only helps us ‘Let Knowledge Serve the City,’ but it provides the best outcomes for our students who graduate with hands-on experience and a deeper understanding of the importance of civic engagement. Today we celebrate the fact that PSU is more embedded than ever in our community.” 

- PSU President Ann Cudd