Thursday, October 23, 2003
The funds will help support 36 student internships.
THE VINDICATOR
By JoANNE VIVIANO
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
STRUTHERS -- Gov. Bob Taft is scheduled to visit a local business Wednesday to announce a $228,400 state grant that will help Youngstown State University students obtain internship positions in the Mahoning Valley.
A goal is to help improve the economic climate in Youngstown and encourage college graduates to stay in the region, said Eileen Bodendorfer, director of the nonprofit Industrial Information Institute for Education Inc., which will facilitate the internship program.
"This grant will provide useful work experiences that facilitate the development and retention of talented, educated and skilled workers," she said.
Taft is slated to present the award at Materials Research Laboratories on North Bridge Street. Bodendorfer said the state grant is part of the governor's Third Frontier Project.
The proposed $1.6 billion statewide project aims to create 96,000 jobs in high-tech fields; the state seeks passage of a $500 million state bond issue on the Nov. 4 ballot to help fund the initiative.
Matched by businesses
The state grant is coming to Youngstown through the Ohio Department of Development and will be matched by $216,000 in funds from the local businesses, Bodendorfer said.
It will provide internships for 36 students. Thus far, 19 local businesses have committed to participate in the program.
The Industrial Information Institute for Education, based at YSU, represents business and industry seeking to provide economic and career-based educational opportunities to students and educators. It also works to build collaboration between education and the business community.
The group serves Mercer County in Pennsylvania and Trumbull, Mahoning, and Columbiana counties in Ohio.