is opening a new campus this fall 鈥� just as the conversation about shrinking Ohio鈥檚 public universities grows louder.
The university鈥檚 first regional campus is on the former site of Eastern Gateway Community College in Steubenville. University President Bill Johnson said the new outpost will be a lean operation.
There will be no campus dean or a 鈥渂unch of overhead people,鈥� he said. Technology help, financial aid and other services will run out of the Youngstown campus. Johnson said this approach is saving a 鈥渢remendous amount鈥� of overhead costs.
鈥淭his is essentially another building of Youngstown State University,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just an hour and nine minutes away.鈥�
Johnson said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine 鈥渓oves this model.鈥� In fact, according to Johnson, Youngstown State鈥檚 push into southeastern Ohio was first seeded by DeWine in late 2023, months prior to Eastern Gateway鈥檚 eventual shutdown.
It was also years before current Republican gubernatorial candidate began calling to due to continued enrollment and financial challenges.
鈥淲hen you consolidate them, they can actually be centers of excellence, who are actually the best in their respective domains instead of trying to create replicas and clones of one another throughout the state,鈥� Ramaswamy said in a video .
Johnson said he鈥檚 spoken with state gubernatorial candidates 鈥� though he declined to name them 鈥� who also like the university鈥檚 expansion plans. Ramaswamy鈥檚 calls to from his Democratic rival, Dr. Amy Acton, and .
In addition to Youngstown State, eight of Ohio鈥檚 14 public universities already operate regional outposts. These campuses often offer cheaper tuition rates, smaller class sizes and pathways that allow students to easily move to a university鈥檚 main campus for advanced degrees.
Youngstown State looks to build trust with southeastern Ohio residents
Southeastern Ohio is familiar to Johnson. He represented the area for more than a decade as a Republican U.S. Congressman before taking over Youngstown State鈥檚 top spot in 2024.
During that time, he said, he learned that the region鈥檚 residents often felt like they went unnoticed.
鈥淲hen it came to economic investment, highways, roads, bridges, you name it, they saw too many times (that) the money would go to Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati,鈥� he said.
Eastern Gateway, the community college in Steubenville, closed in fall 2024. The closure meant residents 鈥渘o longer had access to choices in higher education,鈥� Johnson said. The city was left with one small private Catholic university and another community college about an hour away.
Eastern Gateway鈥檚 the institution illegally charged students receiving Pell Grants, federal funding awarded to those with high amounts of financial need, more than others. for 鈥渄erelict accounting鈥� and questionable spending.
board, Johnson said the Eastern Gateway saga contributed to a lack of trust between local residents and higher education institutions.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to quit on them,鈥� he told Signal Statewide.
Johnson said university leaders will try to build that trust themselves by keeping the promises they make. He said their biggest pledge to the community comes through the academic programs offered at the Steubenville campus. The fall 2026 semester in areas such as welding, nursing and business.
Eventually, he said, students will be able to access 鈥渁 portfolio of programs unlike anything they鈥檝e ever seen before.鈥� He pointed to a potential petroleum engineering program, given the area鈥檚 ties to the oil and gas industry, as an example of how the campus鈥� offerings will be tailored to local workforce needs.
鈥淲e are flexible and agile,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd we are sitting on go.鈥�
How Eastern Gateway鈥檚 complicated wind-down process impacts Youngstown State
Youngstown State officials assumed 鈥� 鈥渓ike most everybody else did,鈥� said Johnson 鈥� that the Eastern Gateway handoff would be a relatively seamless one when the conversations began in 2023.
That wasn鈥檛 the case. Eastern Gateway鈥檚 complicated wind-down process took several years. By then, Johnson said, 鈥渢here was no faculty, there was no staff, there were no students.鈥�
And no students means a big chunk of state financial support is gone 鈥� for now, anyway. Average enrollment size is one of the factors that determine how much money lawmakers give to public institutions. The overall amount of that funding .
Johnson said Youngstown State also ended up investing about $7 million to develop and earn approval for the Steubenville campus鈥� first slate of academic programs.
The state did in startup money. Jefferson County gave the Steubenville campus to the university, .
鈥榃e need them to come back鈥�
Now, Johnson said, the Steubenville campus is 鈥渟tarting from scratch to rebuild that enrollment.鈥�
The university declined to share any enrollment projections for the fall, though Johnson said he wants to get back Eastern Gateway enrolled more than a decade ago.
If the state鈥檚 other 24 regional campuses are any indication, it may be a tough task. . More than 33,900 full-time students enrolled in 2005. Two decades later, that number fell by about 14.5% to 28,993 students.
Youngstown State leaders are trying to get the word out about the university鈥檚 entry into the area. Johnson and Provost Jennifer Adams made the rounds on local Steubenville television stations ahead of a campus open house event last month.
They鈥檙e making the case to parents and families that the Steubenville campus 鈥渋s going to give their children and their grandchildren the kind of higher education that they need and want to pursue their version of the American dream,鈥� said Johnson.
Johnson鈥檚 feeling optimistic. He said they鈥檝e already received a 鈥渟ignificant鈥� number of applications. Yet all of the years of preparation ultimately come down to if 鈥� and how many 鈥� students arrive on campus this fall.
鈥淲e need them to come back,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淎nd, I dare say, we need them to come back quickly.鈥�
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