Year in Review: 2020-2021
End of Year Statistics | AR/VC Program Highlights | OCE Highlights | Civic Engagement Partners Feedback | Archive
2020 - 2021 Viking Corps and America Reads End of Year Statistics
42 CSU student workers served at the Cleveland Public Library, contributing 3,026.30 hours and interacting with 111 K-12th grade students remotely.
13 CPL America Reads tutors served remotely through the Cleveland Public Library branches during Summer 2020 contributing 791.80 hours and interacting with 43 K-12th grade students (5 of these tutors continued with the program in the fall and spring).
13 CSU student workers served at Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School, contributing 750.8 hours and interacting with 167 high school students remotely and on site.
1 CSU student worker served at The Centers for Families and Children, contributing hours and interacting with 574 clients on site and remotely.
1 CSU student worker served at Koinonia Camp and Conference Center, contributing 421.7 hours and interacting with 310 visitors on site.
1 CSU student worker served at Audrey's Outreach, contributing 83.8 hours and interacting with 1,647 community members on site.
*2 student workers worked simultaneously at Cleveland Public Library and Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School.
2020 - 2021 America Reads and Viking Corps Program Highlights
100% of CPL America Reads and Viking Corps site supervisors reported that Federal Work-Study funded students provided helpful assistance at their work site.
100% of CPL America Reads and Viking Corps site supervisors reported that CPL America Reads and Viking Corps student workers had a positive impact at their work site.
100% of CPL America Reads and Viking Corps site supervisors reported a valuable partnership was established between their work site and the Office of Civic Engagement CPL America Reads and Viking Corps programs.
91.3% of student workers in the CPL America Reads and Viking Corps program felt their work/service experience had a positive impact on their professional development and them personally.
82.6% of student workers in the CPL America Reads and Viking Corps program felt their participation in the CPL American Reads and Viking Corps program has helped them feel more engaged at Cleveland State University.
87.0% of student workers in the CPL America Reads and Viking Corps program responded that they have positively impacted their work site and/or the community members they served.
2020 - 2021 OCE Additional Highlights
56 OCE FWS and Grant funded student employees served 5,434.40 hours in communities around CSU earning $61,448.35, of which, $35,308.60 was FWS.
OCE student employees interacted with 2,852 community members at 32 remote and in-person community work sites.
We created 86 posts on our Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube social media accounts to continue engaging students throughout remote operations.
Revamped our website to keep students engaged and informed about the 2020 Presidential Election and the upcoming Cleveland Mayoral Election.
92.8% of all FYE ASC101 sections agreed that the new “Vikes! Vote” civic engagement curriculum was valuable and should be continued.
Hired 7 Democracy Fellows, 4 in Fall and 3 in the Spring, who earned a total of $4,500 to assist the OCE with voter registration and non-partisan election information.
Hired a Work Elections Fellow to assist us in recruiting 189 Election Day Poll Workers for the 2020 Presidential Election.
The OCE again earned the Voter Friendly Campus Designation for CSU for 2021-2022. Making CSU 1 of 231 campuses in 37 states and 1 of 15 in the state of Ohio to earn this designation.
2020 - 2021 Civic Engagement Partners Feedback
"Anita and Anthony at the Office of Civic Engagement have done a tremendous job transforming the culture of electoral engagement at CSU. In the last year and a half that we've worked together, their efforts have clearly made Cleveland State the most improved climate for civic engagement among the 30+ schools we work with in Ohio. They've put their campus on a trajectory to become one of the leaders in the state in this field.”
- Nate Hall, Midwest Regional Director, Campus Election Engagement Project
“We are so grateful for our partnership with the Office of Civic Engagement. OCE assists our student-athletes in learning more about the voter registration and voting process. We appreciate Anita taking the time to speak with our entire student-athlete population about these important topics.”
- Danielle J Cohea, Associate Athletic Director at Cleveland State University
"Due to pandemic-related restrictions in 2020, 61 students were registered in 2020. CSU turnout in November 2020 was 68%* while turnout for all residents in the City of Cleveland was 56%. This continues to show that CSU’s civic leadership has institutionalized voting as a part of student life. Advancing voter education via engaging student organizations, recruiting poll workers, providing voting-related student internships, and the Democracy Action Plan are all excellent examples of the Office of Civic Engagement's leadership.”
- Fouad Yard, NOVA Board Member
"Cleveland State University would not have been able to achieve the Voter Friendly Campus designation without their continuous support of voting rights and access for CSU students. As a result, CSU became one of only fifteen institutions in Ohio to receive this designation. Anita and Anthony's leadership have provided so many students with the opportunity to engage civically with the community around them in ways that they can continue to carry into their professional careers”
- Alexis Crosby, Ohio State Coordinator for Campus Vote Project
2020 - 2021 Community Partners Feedback
“Over the past year, the CSU Office of Civic Engagement and Viking Corp program staff demonstrated their commitment to the continuation of the CPL Tutoring Program. Despite the challenge of quickly transitioning to an all-virtual programming environment, Anita Ruf-Young and her team rose to the challenge. They successfully delivered a year’s worth of educational opportunities to the students we serve. Anita and Gabi offered creative solutions to the many unforeseen barriers we encountered along the way. I was most impressed by the fact that Anita and Gabi valued the needs of work-study students and CPL patron needs equally. Anita is a skilled administrator who is mindful of program cost, responsive to our needs, and a pleasure. We appreciate her commitment to library patrons and credit her with the strength of our partnership.”
- Aaron Mason, Cleveland Public Library, Outreach and Programming Services
"This has been a wonderful win-win for both the student and our agency."
- Judi Amicone, The Centers for Families and Children
“This was a really tough year. Most of our time was online. However, it was extremely helpful that we could offer students consistent online support. The volunteers are super knowledgeable and can help our students with so many topics.”
- Lauren Bowen, Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School, Cleveland Municipal School District
"I believe this partnership has been great this year and I appreciate everything your group has done to make it possible!”
- Amie Gillespie, Koinonia Camp and Conference Center
Also see America Reads and Viking Corps: A Year in Review, 2019-2020