Meeting April 7 at the University of Cincinnati, Ohio State's Board of Trustees focused much of its attention on the ways Ohio's two major public research universities collaborate.

President Kirwan and University of Cincinnati President Joseph Steger spoke of the need for higher education to be a leading force in the future economy of the state, and of the special role their universities fill as major research institutions, both individually and as current and future partners.

David Ashley, dean of Ohio State's College of Engineering, introduced several faculty members from both universities who outlined collaborations in research, equipment use and teaching. "These projects demonstrate leveraging of talent, opportunities for students and problem-solving for Ohio,"he said.

Professor Hamish Fraser of Ohio State, the Ohio Eminent Scholar in materials science, spoke about how work that he and his Ohio State colleagues are conducting with Cincinnati engineering faculty benefits Ohio's automotive and aerospace industries. Fraser also discussed the future possibility of the two universities collaborating on a distance-education program that would couple UC's renowned co-op engineering program with OSU's Engineering Practitioners degree program.

Professors Randall Allemang and Soon-Jai Khang of Cincinnati explained the joint projects that they are working on with Ohio State faculty in mechanical and chemical engineering, respectively. Allemang outlined a number of examples, including joint doctoral committees, research projects, proposals for funding and journal article authorship.

Khang spoke about studies by engineers from Cincinnati, Ohio State, Ohio University and Case Western Reserve University on air pollution resulting from the use of coal in power plants. In addition to quarterly meetings, the group exchanges data and samples and shares equipment. Together they have awarded master's and Ph.D. degrees to more than 40 students who are now conducting research in this important field. Future collaborative research projects are aimed at coal desulfurization, mercury removal and carbon dioxide sequestration (a factor in controlling global warming).

Daniel Sedmak, interim dean of the College of Medicine and Public Health at Ohio State, told trustees that his college has a long, strong and growing relationship with the medical college at Cincinnati. In particular, he noted that, working together, medical schools around the state have secured a recommendation from Ohio's Tobacco Task Force for 20 percent of the state's tobacco settlement money for biomedical research. The research funds amount to about $495 million a year, he said, giving Ohio researchers many chances to work together in the future.

"These funds will be allocated through a peer review process,"Sedmak explained. "In some instances, our medical researchers may compete against one another. At other times, I would expect to see substantial collaboration. The point is that it took us working as partners to convince the state to make a commitment of funds in this important area of research."

Knowles discusses Young Scholars plans

Attracting minority students who will flourish in Ohio State's Young Scholars Program is the goal of a new proposal to supplement the University's 12-year effort to help low-income under-represented minority Ohio youngsters succeed in college.

Timothy Knowles, vice provost for minority affairs, discussed a "Young Scholars Plus"plan with the University Board of Trustees at its April 7 meeting in Cincinnati.

Currently, students from nine Ohio cities -- Akron, Canton, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Lorain, Toledo and Youngstown -- are chosen to participate in Young Scholars in sixth grade based on a written essay, grades and a standardized test.

YSP Plus would allow the program to reach out to talented minority students who move into the district after sixth grade, are late bloomers or otherwise were not identified in sixth grade, said Knowles.

Students chosen for the program must maintain a 3.0 grade point average and take college preparatory classes in high school to remain eligible for the program. Middle- schoolers take math classes on Saturday mornings, and high school students attend two-hour tutoring sessions twice weekly after school and participate in career and cultural programs throughout the year, as well as annual two-week summer institutes at Ohio State's Columbus campus.

Gary Edmerson, an Ohio State senior majoring in mechanical engineering, told the board about his experiences as a Young Scholar. A 1996 graduate of Hughes Center High School in Cincinnati, he credited the personal attention and motivation provided by the Young Scholars program staff as a key factor in choosing to attend Ohio State. The special college-preparatory classes taught during the summer institutes were particularly helpful, he said.

Grants fund center, tuberculosis study

The Ohio State Research Foundation received nearly $22 million in research grants and contracts during the month of February.

Among the research projects is a National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education to be headquartered at Ohio State. Established with a first-year grant of $2.2 million from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education, the center is charged with putting education research into practice. The center will use Web sites, e-forums and videoconferencing in addition to traditional print publications to reach educators across the nation, giving them an opportunity to learn more about career and technical education and to improve their teaching techniques. Floyd L. McKinney, senior research specialist at the Center for Education and Training for Employment, is principal investigator and will serve as the new center's director.

Pappachan E. Kolattukudy, professor of biochemistry and director of neurobiotechnology, is principal investigator for a $304,104 grant from the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease. In response to the emergence of drug-resistant strains of the mycobacteria that cause tuberculosis, Kolattukudy and his colleagues are looking at Mycobacterium tuberculosis interactions in the lungs to further understand how the disease originates and to develop new drugs.

The board accepted 179 other research grants and contracts for the month of February. Since the start of the fiscal year in July, OSU has received 1,562 grants and contracts for a total of nearly $143 million.

Trustees accept endowed funds

Biomedical engineering students at Ohio State are the beneficiaries of a new endowed fund in the College of Engineering: the Kettering Biomedical Engineering Scholarship Fund, established with $300,000 in gifts from The Kettering Fund in Dayton. The Kettering Fund was one of 20 new named endowed funds, totaling nearly $1.27 million, accepted by trustees April 7.

• The Chih-Ming and Jane Chen Graduate Fellowship Fund in Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, $265,000.

• The Kathy and Alec Wightman Endowment Fund for Cancer Genetics Research, $115,150.

• The Wells Family Athletic Scholarship Fund, $100,000.

• Robert D. Lowrie Innovation Endowment Fund, $69,231.

• The Dr. Boong Youn Cho Endowed Fund in Physics, $40,000.

• The Leo Yassenoff Foundation Endowed Research Fund, $40,000, to support Jewish studies.

• The Richard Shroyer and Cheryl Evans Leiss Family fund, $37,629, in support of the Stefanie Spielman Breast Cancer Research fund and student support in the Department of Food Science and Technology.

• The James M. Barrett Family Endowment Fund, $26,600, for student and program support in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.

• The Donald T. Witiak Graduate Student Award Fund in Medicinal Chemistry, $25,825.

• The Ruth Kroff Foster Scholarship Fund in Elementary Education, $25,794.

• The Class of 1974 Scholarship Fund for Student Nurses, $25,654.

• The Joe and Marlene Berwanger and Ed and Mary Jane Overmyer Athletic Scholarship Fund, $25,549.

• The Nancy J. Davis Hospice Nursing Scholarship Fund, $25,388.

• The Fred Kaufmann Memorial Scholarship Fund, $25,258, for student support in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Aviation or the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science.

• The Lawrence L. Mankoff Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund in the College of Engineering, $25,123.

• The Lowell C. Hoelle Memorial Scholarship Fund in Electrical Engineering, $25,015.

• The Dr. Craig W. Anderson Family Basketball Scholarship Fund, $25,000.

• Dr. Daniel Jolly and Dr. Greg Ness Student Research Fund, $25,000, for student research support in the College of Dentistry.

• The Bob Rodabaugh Agriculture Scholarship Fund, $15,312.

Contracts awarded for 3 construction projects

Trustees accepted a report of the award of contracts and the establishment of contingency funds for three projects:

• The second phase of the remodeling of Blankenship Hall will create facilities for departments in the offices of Business and Finance and Commencement and Special Events and general building space. The total project cost is $3.3 million provided by central University funds, and the estimated completion date is June 2000.

• The remodeling of portions of Caldwell Laboratory will provide general classrooms and space for College of Engineering use. The $1.6 million project will also remodel areas in Bolz Hall. Funding is provided by the state, the College of Engineering and the Department of Physical Facilities. The estimated completion date is August 2001.

• A $1.25 million renovation to Morrill Hall in Marion will provide distance-learning classrooms, and educational media and academic skills laboratories. Funding is provided by the state, Marion Technical College and the Marion campus. The estimated completion date is October 2000.