Ohio University receives 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement Classification

Ohio University has been awarded the prestigious 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement (CE) Classification, an elective designation from the American Council on Education (ACE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching that recognizes institutions with exceptional commitment to community engagement.

“The Carnegie Community Engagement Classification affirms Ohio University’s role as an educational anchor and trusted partner across our region,” said Ohio University President Lori Stewart Gonzalez. “We are proud to work alongside the communities we serve to advance opportunity, strengthen resilience, and build a future rooted in shared purpose and long-term impact.”

The CE Classification represents the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education. Awarded following a rigorous self-study process, this classification has recognized outstanding community engagement for 19 years.

The CE Classification recognition builds upon Ohio University's impressive collection of recent Carnegie designations. In 2025, OHIO maintained its prestigious Carnegie Research 1 (R1) status—the highest classification of research activity in the United States—placing it among only 187 institutions nationwide to achieve this distinction. The University also earned recognition as an Opportunity College and University, joining just 21 R1 research institutions in the country with this designation. Many of OHIO's regional campuses, including Chillicothe, Southern and Zanesville, have also been recognized in Carnegie rankings.

In total, OHIO’s Carnegie classifications reveal that the University is currently one of only two public R1 universities in the nation designated as professions-focused, community-engaged and an opportunity university.

Across Ohio University, a culture of collaboration and pride in its Appalachian identity are helping to shape campus life and institutional priorities, including its focus on community-engaged learning, public health outreach, arts-based engagement and applied research. Additionally, the University is further evolving its relationships and partnerships with the communities it serves through the ongoing implementation of its Dynamic Strategy.

Increasing access to health care, addressing provider shortages

Ohio University is playing a crucial role in enhancing healthcare access in Appalachian Ohio. Despite the region’s severe provider shortages, the University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (HCOM) and the College of Health Sciences and Professions (CHSP) are effectively bridging these gaps through mobile outreach, clinical training, and community-based health programs.

Beyond its immediate impact on the region’s current health care landscape, OHIO is actively shaping its future. Of the nearly 30,000 students enrolled at one of OHIO’s campuses or through OHIO Online, nearly one-third are preparing for a career in health care.

Interdisciplinary collaborations across OHIO’s academic units are also bolstering the University’s growing community impact, ensuring that OHIO engages in holistic approaches to health, equity and wellness. In fact, most of the University’s academic colleges house one or more professional staff members whose responsibilities include engagement and outreach, helping to further localize OHIO’s ability to facilitate connections with community organizations, support faculty and student initiatives and amplify the University’s impact.

Through OHIO’s Center for Community Impact – an initiative launched in August 2025 that was designed to align and amplify the University’s outreach, research and partnership efforts ­– the University has created a hub for collaboration that’s able to help scale local solutions to broader societal challenges and serve organizations, students, alumni and community partners seeking to engage with the University.

Ohio University was the first public university in Ohio to guarantee no increases in tuition and fees over four years. For five consecutive years, U.S. News & World Report has named Ohio University the best value among public universities in the state.

We promise price transparency, affordability and value through programs like our OHIO Guarantee+ tuition and graduation guarantee, our President’s Opportunity Promise Award for qualifying students in Southeast Ohio, and our competitive scholarship programs.

OHIO is equally committed to successful outcomes for our students by delivering high-quality career-aligned degrees and ensuring students have access to experiences that prepare them for their next step, and we recently expanded our experiential learning funding support to reduce barriers to internships, research, study abroad and more.

For more information on the Carnegie Classifications, including additional details about the Community Engagement Classification, visit carnegieclassifications.acenet.edu