Shawnee State University
Shawnee State University is a public university in Southern Ohio. It is Ohio's newest institution of higher learning and is located on the north bank of the Ohio River. Ted Strickland, Ph.D., the governor of Ohio, is a former SSU assistant professor of psychology.
SSU has a low student/faculty ratio, more than $1.5 million in scholarships, and the lowest tuition costs of the Ohio's four-year public universities. In the 2006-2007 academic year, enrollment was 3,820 students. Endowment was $11,454,144.00
History
Shawnee State University was established in 1986. The late Vernal Riffe Jr., the former speaker of the Ohio legislature, is considered the father of the institution. House Bill 739--authorizing the university--became law on July 2, 1986. Vernal G. Riffe also endowed funding for a state of the art "Center for the Arts" which was named in his honor, The Vern Riffe Center for the Arts.
Academics
Shawnee State offers more than 80 bachelor’s and associate degree programs. Shawnee State offers degrees in several areas, including Biology, Chemistry, History, International Relations, Psychology, Sociology, Mathematical Sciences, English and Humanities, Accounting, Computer Programming, E-commerce (Business/MIS), Computer Networking (Business/MIS), Health Management, Teacher Education, Graphic Design (Visualist): Print, Web Design, Digital 3D Animation, Digital Simulation and Gaming, Ceramics, Drawing, and Painting, Plastics Engineering Technology, Computer Engineering Technology, Nursing, Medical Laboratory Technology, Respiratory Therapy,and Occupational Therapy. Shawnee State University’s federally funded TRIO programs prepare qualified individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds for programs of post-secondary education. The University features five TRIO programs including Upward Bound, Educational Talent Search, Student Support Services, Educational Opportunity Center, and Upward Bound Math Science.
Shawnee State University is also home to the Ohio Appalachian Center for Higher Education (OACHE), an organization that sponsors projects in 40 partner public school districts and ten member institutions. Its goal is to break down the barriers to access and success in higher education. Twenty-nine Ohio Appalachia counties are in the project area, and OACHE-sponsored projects have been responsible for increasing the college-going rate in the school systems in these counties.
Foreign Studies
In the interests of multi-culturalism, SSU has student/faculty exchange programs with several overseas institutions, including Jaume I University in Spain, Al Akhawayn Universit] in Morocco , and Zhejiang University of Technology in China.
SSU also has summer-study programs in Greece, Great Britain, and Ireland.
Shawnee offers on a regular basis many travel/study abroad courses to an ever increasing choice of destination such as Greece, Britain, Spain, and Ireland in order to increase global awareness among its students -- some of these courses are funded by the Hodgden Travel Fund and many others are funded, in part, by CIPA
Facilities
Shawnee State, located in downtown Portsmouth, has a 52-acre campus, featuring 36 buildings, including the Advanced Technology Center (home of one of only 50 Digistar II planetariums in the world), the Clark Memorial Library (which provides access to the 45.5 million items of the OhioLink libraries' collections), the 102,000-square-foot Vern Riffe Center for the Arts, which features an acoustically superior 1,139-seat main theatre and one of only a few functioning Virtual Audio Listening Rooms designed (along with main theater) by George Izenour. Other structures include the James A. Rhodes Athletic Center,which offers a gymnasium that is home to the Shawnee State Bears, weight rooms, racquetball courts, a dance classroom, and a junior Olympic-size swimming pool. A modern University Center, a bookstore operated by Barnes and Noble, and a network of off-campus townhouses for student living are also features of the SSU campus. Up to 600 students opting for an on-campus experience may choose from several newly renovated housing complexes.
Shawnee State’s Children’s Learning Center serves area pre-school children and is a lab school for teacher education students at the University.
The university features an ultra-modern computer network. 560 student computers, all of them fewer than 3 years old, are available in 30 labs on campus. The university also offers free Internet services to each student, faculty and staff member, as well as a campus Email account.
Student life
Student Organizations
Student organizations include the AHANA (African, Hispanic, Asian, Native American), Art Works, Association for Greek Life, Beta Beta Beta (Biology Honor Society), Calliope Club, Campus Crusade for Christ, Campus Ministry, Chemistry Club, Cross Walk, Environmental Club, Fantanime, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Gamer's Guild, Greek Council, Innermission, International Forum, Model Arab League, Pre-Med Club, Resident Life Council, S.C.U.G., Silhouette Literary Magazine, Society of Plastic Engineering, Sports Management Club, SSU Pep Club, Student Occupational Therapy Association, the Other World Society, the Shawnee Democratic Society, the Nihilist Club, the Conservative Student Association, the Gay-Straight Alliance, Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society, Circle K International, the Priori de Bolo, Delta Sigma Phi (men's national social fraternity), Tau Kappa Epsilon (men's national social fraternity), Theta Phi Alpha (women's national social fraternity), and Omega Pi Mu (women's social fraternity).
The Student Government Association oversees each of the more than forty student organizations. SGA is a member of the National Student Government Association (NSGA).
Campus Events
Many campus activities and events are organized by the Student Programming Board. Popular annual events include SpringFest (which features a concert), "homecoming," which is held in winter, and the week-long "Scare Week," which corresponds to Hallowe'en." Veterans' Recognition Day and Memorial Day activities often include parachuting and other aerial displays. I
Athletics
Shawnee State University has a rich tradition of success in athletics. A member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, SSU has participated in 24 National Championships in 6 of 11 sponsored sports. The SSU women’s basketball team won the NAIA Division II National Championship on March 16, 1999. A member of the American Mideast Conference since 1991, formerly the Mid-Ohio Conference, the Shawnee State Bears have won 17 championships and made 2.
The University fields teams in basketball, baseball, soccer, tennis, softball, volleyball, golf, and cross country.
In 1999, SSU women's basketball team won the NAIA Division II National Championship. Template:Public universities in Ohio
External link
Adapted from the Wikipedia article Shawnee State University