R&D list has Ohio colleges rated 6th

By Harold Gwin

The chancellor has said he would like to see more research done at YSU.

YOUNGSTOWN — Ohio’s public universities rank sixth in the nation in research and development expenditures.

That’s according to a study by the National Science Foundation, said Eric Fingerhut, Ohio’s chancellor of higher education.

Only the public institution schools in California, Texas, Michigan, Florida and Pennsylvania spend more, he said, noting that Ohio’s expenditure is more than $1 billion a year. In comparison, California stands at $4.5 billion, he said.

In terms of individual schools, The Ohio State University, often described as the “flagship” of the state’s public institutions, spent about $600 million on research and development in 2007, placing it ninth among all public and private schools.

Youngstown State University had the lowest research and development expenditures among the 13 institutions in the University System of Ohio, Fingerhut said.

But its numbers are increasing, according to a report issued by YSU in September that showed the university’s faculty brought in more than $6.8 million in research and sponsored-program grants in fiscal 2007-08. That was a jump of nearly $1 million above the previous year, the university said.

It’s an area in which the chancellor would like to see YSU focus.

Ohio has a growing research prominence, and people don’t always realize the importance of research and development, Fingerhut said.

In the past, the state has kept YSU from launching graduate degree programs that, by their nature, tend to encourage research, and that’s something he would like to change, he said, pointing out that higher education is “an enormous asset” to Ohio and a key player in the state’s effort to revitalize its economy.

During a tour of the YSU campus last fall, Fingerhut said he believes the university can become a “first-class, fully developed research university” as part of its fit into the new version of public higher education in the state.

“That’s part of my vision,” said Peter Kasvinsky, YSU associate provost for research and dean of graduate studies and research. The university has made some significant strides along those lines, he said.

The University System of Ohio is looking for the best strategies to slow or eliminate the “brain drain” from the state, Fingerhut said, referring to the loss of bright and talented young people who leave the state to pursue higher education or careers elsewhere. These are the people who create jobs, he said.

The state is channeling $50 million into a new internship and co-op program that will launch July 1, he said, explaining that a link to a job is the best way to keep young people here. Linking those positions to industry is important, he said.

That’s a concept YSU’s engineering department has been pursuing for years, securing state and other funding to provide internships that put students into the workplace in local private industry.

Fingerhut said each of the public universities has been directed to come up with “Centers of Excellence,” areas of education where they can or do excel, to help draw talented students.

Affordability has been and continues to be a key factor in higher education, he said, citing figures from the College Board’s “Trends in College Pricing 2008.”

Ohio is at the top of the list of 50 states in terms of holding down tuition increases, Fingerhut said, both at public two-year and four-year schools.

Annual tuition at Ohio two-year colleges remained constant at an average $3,516 in 2007-08 and 2008-09. The rate at four-year schools held nearly constant at an annual average of $8,482 over that two-year span, he said.

Those weren’t the lowest average tuitions among the 50 states, but Ohio, through increased state funding over the last two years, has been able to persuade its public institutions of higher learning to hold the line on tuition, he said.

gwin@vindy.com