Vol. 38, No. 18

2-27-2007
By:

News Briefs 3/01/07

Hart to lead working group during Secretary of Education’s summit

Tally Hart, senior adviser for the Office of Economic Access at Ohio State, was chosen by the Secretary of Education’s office to lead a working group during a summit of national higher education leaders.

The summit, scheduled for March 22, will discuss ways to carry out the recommendations of Secretary of Education Margaret Spelling’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education. The summit will include some 300 selected participants from the worlds of academe, business, philanthropy and elementary and secondary education. Over the course of the day, participants will complete a list of 25 “action items” and assign responsibility to states, colleges and other groups for putting them into practice.

Hart’s working group will look at ways to increase need-based student aid outside the federal government.

8-HELP and 2-UNIT phone numbers merged

Office of Information Technology recently merged the phone numbers for two of its contact centers, 8-HELP (688-4357) and 2-UNIT (292-8648). 8-HELP is now the primary contact number for all information technology services provided by the Office of the Chief Information Officer. The phone lines were merged to provide customers with a single contact point for all information technology services and support.

Stores no longer processing cash reimbursements

Beginning March 1, Stores will no longer process cash reimbursements. These reimbursements should be submitted through the Payment Request Online System. The change in process aligns with the university’s goal to ensure that all reimbursements are consistent with college/VP area internal controls and approved through the appropriate workflow.

Reimbursements processed through PROS provides the convenience of direct deposit for individuals requesting reimbursement. In support of this change, the minimum level for reimbursements paid through UNIV Central Accounts Payable, previously $20, has been eliminated. For information on how to submit a reimbursement through PROS, contact your fiscal office.

Nelms wins Gates-Cambridge Scholarship

Recent graduate Taylor Nelms has become the first OSU student to win the prestigious Gates-Cambridge Scholarship.

Endowed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gates-Cambridge Trust awards 40 scholarships annually to United States students who have been accepted to the University of Cambridge.

Recipients of the award must demonstrate extraordinary intellectual ability and the desire to contribute to society through their scholarly work. Taylor graduated in the spring of 2006 and was an Honors Collegium student and McCoy Presidential Scholar.

Child Care Program turns 35, seeks customer stories

This year marks the 35th anniversary for Ohio State’s Child Care Program, started in 1972 in response to student demands for child care. University faculty, staff and students who have participated in the program over the years are encouraged to share their stories and memories that will then be shared on the program’s Web site and at a celebration this summer. To participate, contact Amy Brandon at abrandon@hr.osu.edu.

Stanton takes lead of Ohio State’s Renewable Packaging Initiative

Susan Stanton has been named the new leader for Ohio State’s Renewable Packaging Initiative, aimed at developing commercial applications for bio-based materials.

The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences and the Ohio BioProducts Innovation Center announced Stanton as Stakeholder-in-Residence. She will direct program activities and link research and industry partners to support customer-focused packaging activities.

Stanton brings more than 20 years experience in technology development and product commercialization at corporations such as ALCOA, Ashland Chemical Co. and Bayer, as well as at the Robert C. Byrd National Technology Transfer Center. A resident of Sunbury, Stanton received master’s and doctoral degrees in organic chemistry from Syracuse University and the University of Rochester, respectively. She has five issued patents and more than 50 invention disclosures filed.

WOSU’s new Web site promotes growth jobs to middle schoolers

WOSU Public Media recently launched mycooljob.org, an interactive Web site designed to help and encourage middle school students to explore career fields relevant to their lives. The site focuses on four major career fields where job growth is fastest in Ohio — information technology, health sciences, engineering and science technology and arts and communication. The goal is to create an engaged, educational setting on the Web where students can take charge and assume responsibility for their own learning.

The four major career fields are defined in several ways, through the use of text, images, and audio and video clips. There also is a mentoring system that allows students to draw from the experiences of 15 practitioners and to get real-life insights into the demands of a given career or occupation.

High school students who have internships or mentorships, or professionals who would like to contribute to mycooljob.org, should contact Scott Gowans, WOSU Web manager, at gowans.1@osu.edu.

Messmore contributes $5M to OSU cancer research

Columbus philanthropist and entrepreneur John Messmore has pledged $5 million to support cancer research at Ohio State, including the ever-evolving research at the Comprehensive Cancer Center and the advanced clinical care provided at the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.

The gift will strengthen and expand cancer research initiatives at Ohio State as part of an ambitious campaign to raise $500 million to advance the research, patient care and medical education mission of the Medical Center. The Power to Change Lives campaign, which runs through 2010, has raised almost $310 million.

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