At Portland State, service isn’t a side project — it’s the foundation and the way we serve the individuals in our community.
Across campus, students and faculty lead community-centred programs that provide services and support to individuals throughout the region, from free hearing evaluations and low-cost counseling to a community chorus and business consulting. These resources are open to the public and designed to meet real-world needs, no university affiliation required.
When we talk about Portland State being an anchor institution for the city and for Oregon, these services are part of what we mean by that.
“When we talk about Portland State being an anchor institution for the city and for Oregon, these services are part of what we mean by that,” says PSU President Ann Cudd. “And at the center of this engagement are our students — under the guidance of our wise and wonderful faculty — who are forging new skills, building connections and gaining the satisfaction that comes with making a difference in their community.”
PSU is known nationally for its focus on community-based and service-oriented learning, but what’s less known are the services, resources and partnerships that bring much needed support to the people in Portland and beyond.
Creative Spaces for All
The arts have a special way of bringing people together. At PSU, they’re tools for building community and connection. Whether it’s through a multi-generational community chorus or art workshops, Portlanders are invited to join in, express themselves and create something meaningful.
PSU’s community chorus meets twice a week in an unassuming rehearsal space in Cramer Hall on campus. The group’s strong connection is evident the moment you walk through the door. Members arrive early, laughing and chatting as they find their seats and pull out their sheet music. Ian Timmons, a graduate student and the group’s current director, gains the attention of the lively group with lighthearted banter before leading the ensemble through vocal warmups.
Nancy Eichsteadt has been a member of the chorus since the early days, and recalls how the chorus became a community gathering place that met a real need in Portland.
“We called it the faculty choir back in the day but we expanded to include more people in the community — some are students, some are just people who like to sing that live in this area,” she says. “It's hard to find a choir that meets in the middle of the day, so that's what we have here. It works out well because it's your lunch hour. You can take a little break, come over here and sing, then go back to work feeling refreshed.”
Led by graduate student conductors and accompanists from the School of Music & Theater, the chorus welcomes anyone, no auditions required.
For many, it offers more than a space to sing.
“It’s a godsend. It's a blessing,” says Sally Miller, a longtime member. “It's just wonderful. I've made so many friends from so many age groups and different backgrounds. It just really helps to understand more of the community and to be connected.”
Music isn’t the only way community members can tap into PSU resources to ignite their creativity. Just a short walk from the chorus rehearsal space, PSU hosts art workshops that offer Portlanders another opportunity to expand their skills and connect through the arts.
The workshops give community members access to the tools, techniques and hands-on creative processes typically reserved for art students.
PSU’s public art workshops started with bronze casting — a rare offering in the Portland metro as the university has the only foundry in the city. PSU's College of the Arts has since launched additional workshops on topics like LED sign-making and 3D printing. These workshops give community members access to the tools, techniques and hands-on creative processes typically reserved for art students.
Emma Duehr, who oversees the workshops, says they are designed to be approachable and open to all — no prior experience required.
This summer, community members will benefit from an expanded series of hands-on programs. They can learn about bronze casting and metal fabrication, create a light-based lithograph or design neon LED signs.
“We’re trying to connect the dots across departments and make our facilities more accessible to anyone who’s curious — not just students enrolled in a class,” Duehr says.
Affordable Care, Open to Everyone
Creativity is just one way PSU gives back to the local community. Across campus, other services focus on an equally vital need: health and wellness.
Accessing affordable mental health care can be a major barrier for many Portlanders. PSU’s Community Counseling Clinic is working to change that, offering sliding-scale counseling sessions that range from $5 to $20 per session based on financial need.
"I don't know anybody else offering counseling for $5 per session,” says clinic director April Dodson. “Even group practices with sliding scales charge two to three times more than we do at our most expensive rate."
The clinic serves around 150 clients each week. Under close faculty supervision, second year graduate students and interns from PSU's Counselor Education programs provide support for individuals with anxiety, depression, trauma, life transition and relationship challenges. Clients range from adolescents to adults, reflecting the diversity of the Portland community and offering support across all ages.
The clinic fosters long-term relationships with clients to become a trusted community resource for specialized care.
"We’re not just training counselors — we’re providing an essential community service," Dodson says. "At a time when affordable mental health care has never been more important, we’re making sure it’s accessible to those who need it most."
Similarly, The Oregon Scottish Rite Speech & Language Clinic, also housed on campus, delivers specialized care to clients and families across Oregon. These services are entirely free of charge and open to anyone — regardless of insurance status. On-campus treatment as well as telepractice is offered, ensuring that distance and financial barriers never stand in the way of receiving high-quality speech and language services.
For Bree Ryan and her family, who live on a rural Oregon ranch and homeschool their son, Austin, receiving speech-language services could have been difficult to access. Through the clinic’s free telepractice program, Austin has received personalized care for more than a year — and continues to make meaningful progress.
“We've noticed that each term, Austin makes huge strides. Having the education come from somebody other than Mom and Grammy can be extremely beneficial,” Ryan says. “When the graduate clinicians notice that he might be struggling, they try from a different angle instead of continuing to push one way of learning.“
Beyond telepractice, the clinic offers a wide range of programs designed to meet the diverse communication needs of Oregonians.
Programs include individualized care for preschoolers with developmental language disorders, support for clients using augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), therapy for adults recovering from stroke or other neurological conditions and gender-affirming voice services.
At a time when affordable mental health care has never been more important, we’re making sure it’s accessible to those who need it most.
The clinic also runs specialized group programs, such as weekly aphasia groups that foster connection and community participation for adults with communication challenges.
Graduate student clinicians provide all services free of charge and are under the close mentorship and supervision of expert speech-language pathologists, ensuring high-quality care for clients.
“Clinical services can strengthen both individual well-being and community health. They offer a model of care that is person-centered, socially meaningful and deeply rooted in values of access and inclusion,” says Gerasimos Fergadiotis, professor of speech and hearing sciences and head of the program. “As communication is central to human connection, restoring that ability empowers our clients not just to speak — but to rejoin their communities and live with dignity and purpose.”
Just across the hall from the Speech & Language Clinic, the PSU Audiology Clinic offers equally barrier-free care to the community. The free clinic provides diagnostic hearing evaluations, hearing loss counseling, hearing aid demonstrations and hearing conservation consultations for musicians and concert-goers.
Each year, the clinic extends its reach into the community through hearing screenings at local elementary schools led by speech language pathology graduate students. This crucial service helps identify hearing loss early — when intervention is most effective. In 2025 alone, the program expects to reach nearly 2,800 kids.
These services offer more than just health and wellness resources for families like the Ryans, and for others across the city and state. They deliver connection, growth and compassionate support that extends into homes, schools and communities, bringing PSU’s mission to life in deeply personal ways.
Helping Local Businesses Thrive
Just as PSU supports the community through arts and wellness offerings, other campus initiatives are helping local businesses succeed.
Student Work @ PSU, a student-run and industry-mentored creative advertising agency, provides Portland-based businesses and nonprofits with free branding, marketing and communications services.
It’s part classroom, part agency and all impact — especially for local businesses to get the creative and strategic support they might not otherwise receive.
Fire Lily Coffee — a direct-to-consumer brand built by Kenyan entrepreneur Francis Kungu — is one of those businesses. Kungu sources coffee directly from small scale farmers in Kenya and wanted to launch a rebrand of his Certified B Corp company.
“I was coming in with something I’d struggled with — I didn’t know how to put it across as a brand,” Kungu says. “Student Works helped me capture exactly what I wanted to say and put it into words.”
The team worked with Kungu to redesign his packaging and develop a visual identity and messaging strategy — all free of charge. The experience, he says, surpassed every expectation.
Fire Lily is just a single example of how Student Work is providing local businesses with meaningful support and creative direction. Founded more than a decade ago, the agency has supported dozens of Portland-area clients, from nonprofits to B Corps to large companies like Tillamook Creamery.
While some clients donate to the program’s foundation account, creative services are always free.
“We see the whole city as our lab,” says program director Marc Moran. “It gives students experience — and it helps Portland businesses grow and stay healthy.”
We see the whole city as our lab. It gives students experience — and it helps Portland businesses grow and stay healthy.
Business consulting isn’t the only service Portland businesses can benefit from. Through the POP-Up Program at The School of Business, businesses and brands can access a unique retail space and engage directly with the PSU community. Like the business consulting, this opportunity is offered to community members at zero cost.
The retail space is located on the first floor of the Karl Miller Center and boasts 500 square feet of space for local brands, businesses and startups to showcase their products, build relationships with the campus community and widen their reach.
Past partners have included names like Portland Gear and Market of Choice, as well as alumni companies like BProud and ZeroBones. For many brands, the experience is much more than a sales opportunity — it’s a turning point.
“The pop-up experience is a versatile and effective strategy for brands looking to scale, innovate and connect with their target audience, but it’s not just about profits and losses. It’s truly about taking the challenge to grow as a business owner and as a person,” says Jospin Mugisha, co-founder of BProud. “The emotional connections forged in those two weeks will forever be etched in your brand’s story, reminding you why you do what you do.”
From business support to creative arts programs to health and wellness clinics, PSU is committed to offering services, resources and partnerships that uplift and support the people who call our city home.