Youngstown State University has officially begun collecting cans for the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley's canstruction event.

The Eastwood Mall event allows teams to build structures made entirely of canned food before it is donated to support those in need across the area.

The Sokolov Honors College at YSU invites departments, faculty, staff and students to contribute canned food donations to aid in this year's structure.

Donation items requested include:

  • 700-1,000 Starkist tuna cans (blue)
  • 200-300 Great Value Chunk Chicken Breast cans (white)
  • 100-200 Campbell's soup cans (red)
  • 12 cases of bottled water

Structures being built during the event must be within a 10-foot-wide by 10-foot-tall area.

The theme for the 2026 Canstruction event is "Aquarium."

YSU students and staff are asked to visit the PenguinPulse website for more information on how to donate.

The canstruction event will take place at the Eastwood Mall on Monday, May 8, with the builds on display until June 11, 2026.